Looking to buy some energy drinks online in New Zealand?
Look no further; I’ve got you covered!
It will be challenging to choose the right one with so many choices available. So, to make it easier for you, I’ve hand-picked the best of the best for you to choose from.
From a list of great recommendations to consider before getting your energy drink, stick around to get all the fabulous deets.
Let’s get to it…
What To Consider Before Buying An Energy Drink?
Caffeine
The amount of caffeine that’s best for you highly depends on your caffeine metabolism.
Energy drinks usually contain as low as 50mg to 300mg or more caffeine in each can.
Caffeine has several notable benefits, mainly enhancing physical and mental performance. It can even lift your mood in tiring or cognitively-demanding situations.
Caffeine is excellent, but you need to keep your intake moderate too. According to FSANZ, the recommended daily caffeine limit for individuals above 18 years old is no more than 400mg.
Any more than that, and you might experience adverse effects like:
- Fatigue
- Muscle breakdown
- Insomnia
- Anxiety
- Digestive issues
- High blood pressure
Sugar
Most energy drinks contain a ton of sugar; after all, it’s what makes them so enjoyable to drink. While indulging in sugar is okay now, and then, high sugar consumption isn’t healthy for your overall health and wellbeing.
Adults’ recommended maximum daily sugar intake is below 30g of sugars. Consuming more than this amount, in the long run, may lead to health issues like:
- Obesity
- Diabetes
- Cardiovascular disease
- High blood pressure
- Tooth decay
Fortunately, there are plenty of sugar-free energy drinks that are easily accessible and affordable available if you want to cut back on your sugar intake.
Price
Price is another crucial aspect to consider before purchasing your energy drink.
Some brands heavily advertise their unique blend of formula or additional ingredients that increase the benefits. And these tend to come with a hefty price tag too.
However, this doesn’t always mean that it’s better for you. Sometimes, a more affordable brand may work better for you than an expensive one.
How Old Do You Have To Be To Buy Energy Drinks In NZ?
You have to be above 16 years old to buy energy drinks in NZ.
Or at least, if you’re buying from Countdown supermarkets or stores, you have to be. In 2019, the supermarket giant implemented an age restriction to purchase energy drinks from its branches.
I’m not entirely sure about the rest of New Zealand, but from my search, so far, only Countdown stores have this particular age restriction.
Which Energy Drink Is The Most Effective?
The effectiveness of energy drinks is mainly attributable to the amount of caffeine present. However, this depends also on how your body responds to caffeine.
Bang and Reign are among the strongest energy drinks in the market, with 300mg of caffeine. However, I don’t recommend opting for these potent drinks if you’re not a regular caffeine consumer.
Energy drinks with moderate caffeine content like Zevia Zero and V Energy are often effective enough to provide you with the energy boost that you’re looking for.
How much does a Monster cost in NZ?
A single can of Monster energy drink of 500mL costs about 3.50 in New Zealand dollars. This is about 2.15 U.S dollars equivalent, which is similar in price.
On the other hand, a 24-pack, 500mL of Monster will net around NZ dollar of 74.99. Although the prices are fairly standard, keep in mind that these are subject to change on short notice and depend on the country of origin you are buying from.
Energy Drink Brands You Can Get In New Zealand
| Energy Drink Brand | Volume | Caffeine | Sugar |
| V Energy | 250ml | 85mg | 29.2g |
| Mother | 500ml | 160mg | 51g |
| Celsius | 355ml | 200mg | None |
| Reign | 500ml | 300mg | None |
| Bang | 500ml | 300mg | None |
| Monster | 500ml | 160mg | 55g |
| C4 Energy | 500ml | 200mg | None |
| Zevia Zero Calorie Energy | 355ml | 120mg | None |
| REIZE | Customisable | 50mg | None |
V Energy
Caffeine: 85mg
Sugar Content: 29.2g
Many Australian and New Zealanders are familiar with V Energy since it has built quite a reputation over the past years.
V Energy consists of a few flavours, namely V Green, V Sugar-free, and V Blue. V Blue was a ‘mysterious’ flavour that was a challenge in 2011 for the public to guess what it was.
With an ideal amount of caffeine, you’ll get your energy boost from V Energy, including a sugar rush from its sugar content. But make sure to consume V energy drinks in moderation, though, because the sugar is quite a large amount, and you don’t want to end up with a sugar crash.
You can buy your case of V Energy from their official website or sites like TheMarket, eBay, and Amazon to get great deals and discounts.
Mother
Caffeine: 160mg
Sugar Content: 51g
Mother is a leading energy drink brand in both Australia and New Zealand. There’s also a sugar-free version of Mother energy drink.
Both variations of Mother Energy contain a moderate amount of caffeine. However, Mother Original has a pretty large amount of sugar, so you might want to watch out for the number of cans you have in a day.
Aside from caffeine, Mother Energy also contains guarana extract for that extra boost to improve your physical and mental performance.
Mother Energy and its variety of flavours can be purchased from its official website. If you don’t mind purchasing elsewhere, you can check out sites like Amazon, U-Buy, Brand Outlet and I Shop New World for some good deals.
Celsius
Caffeine: 200mg
Sugar Content: 0g
Celsius is a popular energy drink with a few distinct variations under the same name. Celsius Originals’ signature series contains a healthy blend of B vitamins, minerals, and vegetable and fruit juices.
With zero added sugar and aspartame, Celsius Energy is a good option if you’re a diabetic or on a diet that requires cutting out sugar.
Celsius also has a pretty high caffeine content that surely will give you a long-lasting boost that’ll help you stay awake during mentally-demanding tasks.
All of Celsius’ product series are available on the official site. Other places you can get your pack of Celsius are online retailers like Amazon, eBay, GNC and, Best Price Nutrition.
Reign
Caffeine: 300mg
Sugar Content: 0g
Reign may seem similar to Bang, but it’s not. Unlike Bang, Reign Energy is relatively new to the energy drink market, introduced it in 2019.
Like most pre-workouts, Reign has a high caffeine content that packs enough punch to improve your alertness and boost your energy during gym sessions.
One perk about Reign is that its caffeine content is mainly sourced from green coffee beans and tea leaves, which are from natural sources, making it slightly healthier. Plus, Reign doesn’t have any sugar and calories and is filled with amino acids and B vitamins.
However, I suggest opting for lower-caffeine energy drinks if your caffeine metabolism isn’t very high due to its relatively high caffeine content.
To get your pack of Reign Energy, you can head over to their official website or check out online retailers like Tiger Fitness, Amazon, Suppz and GNC for affordable discounts.
Bang
Caffeine: 300mg
Sugar Content: 0g
When Bang was first introduced, it was advertised as a carbonated performance beverage with a delicious taste and a blend of beneficial ingredients.
Bang has climbed it is way up on the American energy drink market over the years and became the third-highest selling energy drink in 2019. Aside from having a high caffeine content, Bang is sugar-free and calorie-free.
According to its company, what presumably separates Bang from the rest of the brands are its various amino acids and proprietary Super Creatine, which is claimed to be the ‘world’s only water-soluble creatine’ according to its company. Though, there have been more than several controversies surrounding the legitimacy of Super Creatine that remains to be confirmed today.
If you’re interested to know how Bang stacks up against Reign, take a look at my Bang Vs Reign article, which goes into the nitty-gritty details of their similarities and differences.
All of Bang’s flavours are on their official website. Online stores like GNC, Suppz, Campus Protein, and Amazon sell Bang in multi-can packs at discounted prices.
Monster
Caffeine: 160mg
Sugar Content: 55g
With its iconic green-on-black can, Monster has dominated the energy drink market in the US for a considerable period, alongside its competitor Red Bull.
Monster has been advertised in many sporting events, leading to its worldwide reputation.
Monster has average caffeine content, not too high and not too low. But one thing’s for sure, and there’s no denying that you’ll be more energised after drinking a can of Monster.
The only thing you need to be wary of is the amount of sugar present in Monster.
I don’t recommend drinking more than two cans of Monster in a day. The good news is that Monster has a sugar-free version you can opt for.
All of Monster’s flavours can be found on their official website. You can also go through Amazon, eBay and U-Buy to get special discounts and promo codes for individual cases of Monster.
C4 Energy
Caffeine: 200mg
Sugar Content: 0g
Marketed as a workout beverage to help improve exercise performance, C4 Energy comes with a high caffeine content to give you an explosive burst of energy and alertness whenever you need it.
Since C4 Energy is also sugar-free, calories aren’t something you need to be worried about. Furthermore, C4 Energy contains a proprietary blend of amino acids like CamoSyn® Beta-Alanine and BetaPower® Betaine Anhydrous that are supposedly beneficial for muscle building and physical performance.
C4 Energy is an excellent drink to have before your workouts or even to keep you awake on a slow afternoon. Make sure to stick to two cans max, so you don’t go overboard with the caffeine and end up with a caffeine overdose.
C4 Energy is available for purchase at their official website. You can check out sites like Amazon, eBay, GNC, and Campus Protein for more deals and discounts.
Zevia Zero Calorie Energy
Caffeine: 120mg
Sugar Content: 0g
Hailing from a Los Angeles-based company, Zevia Energy drinks incorporate natural ingredients in its formula.
Zevia Energy keeps its calorie and sugar content at zero by substituting regular sugar with stevia, a sweetener that’s every bit as sweet as sugar but without the unnecessary calories.
Aside from being advertised as a healthy energy drink, Zevia’s moderate caffeine content is pretty ideal for almost everyone (yes, even if you have a low tolerance to caffeine).
One of the downsides of Zevia Energy is its limited flavour options. So far, there are only four available flavours, but there might be more in the future.
You can get your case of Zevia Energy drinks from their official website or online retailers like Amazon, eBay and U-Buy.
REIZE (10 Out Of 10)
REIZE is a convenient powdered energy drink that comes in lightweight 4g sachets, making it easy for you to bring around wherever you go.
With a sensible 50mg of caffeine, REIZE is also sugar-free and has only 11 calories to boot. You don’t need to be counting calories with the REIZE energy drink!
REIZE is also loaded with nutritious ingredients like taurine, ginseng and B vitamins that combine to supply you a smooth energy boost without the dreaded sugar crash.
The best part? REIZE ships straight to your door for only $1 per sachet.
That’s fantastic value for money.
Give REIZE a try, and you might agree that it’s the best energy drink you can get online from New Zealand.