Best nasal strips for running, HYROX and the gym

What are the best nasal strips for running?

The best nasal strips for running depend on what you want from them, because none has been shown to make you faster. These are our picks by use, with UK prices checked on 27 October 2026. A session means one strip, one pair of stickers or tabs, or one use of a device.

• One reusable kit for training and sleep: Airlift Complete. A magnetic clip in all five sizes, 30 nights of stickers and 30 prep pads for £33 (£1.10 a session), or £0.67 on the Annual plan.
• Made for sport, magnetic: Intake Sport Tabs. £27 for 20 (£1.35 a session). They need an Intake band, and Intake ships from the US.
• Made for sport, nothing on the skin: Turbine. An internal dilator. The three-size Starter is £16.99 (£0.57 a session if all three sizes fit you). Not for contact or water sports.
• Easiest to buy today: Breathe Right Extra Strength. £14.99 for 26 at Boots (£0.58).
• Lowest cost per session: MaxFlow. £0.33 a strip, or £0.17 on its 360-strip pack.
• Cheapest magnetic refills from a brand's own store: NoseStrip. £0.27 a session on its 90-use refill pack.
• HYROX edition: HiStrips. An adhesive strip with an official HYROX collaboration edition. That's a brand tie-in, not evidence, and Airlift has no connection with HYROX.

We found no survey of why runners wear them. A 2023 evidence guide concluded that strips may make breathing feel easier,^[5] which isn't the same as running faster. Our guide to why athletes wear nasal strips covers what players have said.

Do nasal strips make you run faster?

Research hasn't shown that nasal strips make healthy people faster or fitter. A 2021 review of 19 studies found no change in VO2max, heart rate or how hard exercise felt,^[1] and a 2022 review of 11 running studies that leaned the other way rated the certainty of its evidence as very low.^[2] We go through both reviews and the individual studies in why athletes wear nasal strips.

We could find no published, independent study of any magnetic nasal dilator, including Airlift's. A 2026 review by UK surgeons reached the same conclusion.^[6] The strip studies tested adhesive strips, so their results can't be borrowed for magnetic ones, in either direction.

So it makes sense to choose on comfort, fit, sweat and cost. Our science page has more on the evidence.

Breathing through your nose when you train

At hard efforts, most people breathe through the mouth as well as the nose, and a strip doesn't change that. Some runners train themselves to breathe through the nose only, which is a different question from wearing a strip. The studies are mixed: breathing only through the nose made an all-out cycling test feel harder,^[7] but an hour of easy cycling, though slightly less comfortable, didn't feel any harder.^[8]

If you breathe through your mouth at night as well, our guide to why you mouth breathe at night covers the causes.

How we chose

We used the same criteria we use for every comparison: fit and sizing, what's in the box, cost per session (to start and ongoing), adhesion support, guarantee and returns, UK availability and delivery, subscription flexibility, and published evidence. We also say whether each product is made for sport, as a fact rather than a score.

Prices and policies come from each brand's own pages, Boots and Amazon UK, checked on 27 October 2026 (Turbine on 28 October). We didn't lab-test anything. How well each one holds in sweat is "No winner: no comparable test data", because no brand publishes a test we could compare.

Nasal strips for running compared: UK cost per session

Airlift's starter costs more per session than everything here except Intake's Sport Tabs, and Turbine's Starter if only one of its sizes fits you. On the Annual plan it's still dearer than MaxFlow, NoseStrip's refills, Breathe Right Extra Strength, On The Nose Co's strips and Turbine on subscription; of the strips, only HiStrips costs more. And if you wear Airlift for training and for sleep on the same day, that's two pairs of stickers.

Airlift: one kit for training and sleep

Airlift is a reusable magnetic clip that attaches to two single-use stickers, one on each side of the nose, each holding a thin steel disc. Nothing goes inside the nose, and there's no strip across the bridge. A UK company sells it, only through its own website.

It suits you if you want one reusable clip for nights and training, and want to find your size at home rather than guess it at checkout. Every Complete starter has the clip in all five sizes, XS to XL, plus 30 nights of stickers and 30 alcohol cleansing prep pads, which clear skin oil before the stickers go on. Delivery is UK only, in pounds with no import charges. Every subscription order ships free by next-day delivery, with no minimum spend, and weekday orders placed before 3:30pm are dispatched the same day.

For sport, Airlift's own help page on sizes for sleep and exercise says that if you sit between two sizes, take the smaller one for exercise and the larger one for sleep. Its help page also says to take the clip and stickers off before swimming or a shower.

Where the evidence is missing, the sensible way to try is one where you can get your money back without sending anything back. Under the 90-Night Airlift Test, you email within 90 days of receiving your order for a full refund, including delivery. You keep the clip, and it's once per customer.

The drawbacks:

• No sport version, and no published hold, sweat or airflow data.
• Its starter costs more per session than most options here (see the table).
• A young company, set up in November 2024, with no Trustpilot reviews yet.
• Sold only on its own website, and only to UK addresses.

The Complete starter (£33) covers your first 30 sessions or nights. The Complete Annual plan (£240) brings it down to £0.67 a pair, with prep pads and delivery in every box. Bought one-time, the starter plus £5 delivery and then Airlift's 360-night stickers pack comes to £220 for 390 pairs, or £0.56 each, with prep pads for the first 30 only.

Intake Sport Tabs: magnetic, made for sweat

Intake Breathing is a US brand whose magnetic band clicks onto adhesive tabs on the sides of the nose. Sport Tabs are its separate tab for training: £27 for 20 tabs with 20 prep pads, or £1.35 a session. The Sport Bundle is £54 and includes a 15-use starter kit, 20 Sport Tabs, prep pads and a case.

Intake says Sport Tabs use a stronger three-layer adhesive and larger steel discs. It gives their sweat hold as up to 12 hours in one place in its FAQ and up to 10 hours in another, and says they aren't meant for sleep. Those are Intake's own figures; we haven't tested them.

It suits you if you want a magnetic system with a tab designed for sport and don't mind buying two kinds of tab. Orders ship from the US, and Intake doesn't publish a delivery rate in pounds. Our Airlift vs Intake Breathing comparison has the full picture.

Turbine: internal, nothing on the skin

Turbine is an internal dilator from Rhinomed: two soft paddles sit just inside the nostrils, with an adjuster on each side. Nothing sticks to the skin. Rhinomed says it isn't for contact sports, water sports or swimming, and recommends its Mute dilator for sleep.

The Starter Pack (one Small, one Medium, one Large) is £16.99 from Rhinomed's UK store or Amazon UK. Each device is rated for up to 10 uses, so that's £0.57 a session if all three sizes fit you (£0.73 with Rhinomed's £5 delivery; Amazon UK delivers free on a first order), or £1.70 if only one does. After that, a 3-pack of one size is £19.99 (£0.67, or £0.83 with £5 delivery), or £17.99 on subscription (£0.60). Rhinomed's 30-day money-back guarantee covers the Starter Pack bought from Rhinomed's own store (Amazon orders follow Amazon's returns), and sized packs can't be exchanged for fit.

Its two published exercise trials, both cycling tests, found no performance effect (see the cycling section below). Our Airlift vs Mute comparison looks at Rhinomed's dilators in more detail, and our nasal strips vs nasal dilators guide explains how internal dilators differ from strips.

Breathe Right Extra Strength: on the high street

Breathe Right is an adhesive strip sold in high-street chemists. Extra Strength is £14.99 for 26 at Boots, or £0.58 a strip. Breathe Right's FAQ says strips can be used for light exercise and should be worn for no more than 12 hours a day. Its "50% stronger than Original" line is the brand's own statement, with no published measure.

It suits you if you want something today with no fitting step: Extra Strength comes in one size. Returns follow the retailer's policy. Our Breathe Right alternatives guide compares other strips.

On The Nose Co running strips

On The Nose Co sells a separate "Nose Strips for Running" listing: 30 black adhesive strips for £18 (£0.60 a session), or £70 for a 6-pack (£0.39), with lower prices on subscription. The brand positions its black strips for workouts and sweat. Its 30-day guarantee covers your first order only.

MaxFlow: lowest cost per session

MaxFlow is a one-size adhesive strip at £9.99 for 30, or £0.33 a strip. Delivery is £3.99 under £25, which makes a single pack £0.47 a strip. The 360-strip pack costs £59.94, with free delivery, which is £0.17 a strip and the lowest per-session cost here.

MaxFlow markets the same strip for running, cycling and the gym, and calls its adhesive sweat-resistant; that's MaxFlow's claim, not a test result. It offers a 30-night money-back guarantee.

NoseStrip: the cheapest magnetic refills

NoseStrip is a magnetic band with single-use tabs. The 30-day starter is £26.99 (£0.90 a session) with four band sizes, which the brand doesn't name or measure. Refills are £23.99 for 90 uses (£0.27), the cheapest magnetic refills we found from a brand's own store. NoseStrip says each tab has a centre "sweat channel" crease.

There's no satisfaction guarantee: returns are accepted within 15 business days. Delivery is free but slow, with 1 to 3 business days of processing and then 7 to 15 business days. Our best magnetic nasal strips guide compares every magnetic brand sold in the UK.

HiStrips and HYROX

HiStrips sells adhesive strips only; its magnetic kit is no longer listed. Black strips are £23 for 30 on histrips.com (£0.77 a session, plus delivery, whose rate isn't published in GBP). HiStrips High Performance strips are £22.99 on Amazon UK, and a search result showed them at Sports Direct. HiStrips also sells an official HYROX collaboration edition, which we didn't price. The site banner says "30-Day Money Back Guarantee", while its returns policy sets a 14-day window, with returns going to a US address.

Racing HYROX with a nasal strip

The HYROX Season 26/27 singles rulebook doesn't mention nasal strips. It lists the items racers may wear, including "respiratory devices", and says anything not on the list is prohibited unless the Race Director gives written permission before the start. It also bans breathing apparatus and compressed air cylinders for safety. It doesn't say whether a nasal strip counts as a respiratory device, so check with your event before race day.

Airlift has no connection with HYROX. HiStrips' HYROX edition is a brand collaboration, not a sign that strips make any difference to your race.

If you do race in Airlift, its help page says to apply the stickers to clean, dry skin and wait two to three minutes before the clip goes on, so put them on before your warm-up rather than at the start line.

Gym, cycling and contact sport

Two cycling studies found no change. In a 2017 trial part-funded by Rhinomed, neither an internal dilator nor a nasal strip changed trained cyclists' power over a 20 km time trial,^[3] and an independent 2021 study found the Turbine didn't change breathlessness or peak performance in a cycling test.^[4] We found no studies of nasal strips in gym training, so the same choice criteria apply.

For contact sport, Rhinomed says Turbine isn't suitable. Airlift publishes no guidance on contact sport. Its clip contains magnets, and its published warnings say to keep it away from children under 14 and pets, and 15 cm from a pacemaker.

How to choose

Format

An adhesive strip is one piece you wear once. An internal dilator sits inside the nostrils and is reused a set number of times. A magnetic system pairs a reusable clip or band with single-use stickers or tabs. Our magnetic vs adhesive guide compares the formats.

Sizing

Breathe Right Extra Strength and MaxFlow come in one size. Turbine comes in three, and its Starter has one of each. Magnetic systems come in four to six band or clip sizes; Airlift puts all five in the box. Airlift's help page suggests the smaller of two sizes for exercise and the larger for sleep.

Sweat

Skin prep before you start matters for every adhesive. On hold in sweat, there's no winner: no brand publishes comparable test data. Our guide to nasal strips that stay on covers what each brand says about sweat and skin prep.

Cost per session

Add delivery before you compare, and count one strip, one pair of tabs or one device use as a session.

One kit for sleep and training

A reusable clip or band can do both. The stickers or tabs can't be shared between a run and a night, so budget for two pairs on days you do both.

What the evidence says

The reviews above found no performance gain from nasal strips in healthy people, and the one pro-dilator review is very low certainty. We could find no published, independent study of any magnetic dilator, so choose on fit and cost per session.

Sources checked

Prices and policies checked on 27 October 2026 (Turbine on 28 October; HYROX rulebook on 28 October).

1. Airlift's shop, refills, refunds, shipping and help pages: Airlift's products, prices, sizing advice, warnings and the 90-Night Airlift Test.
2. Intake Sport Tabs FAQ, Intake international shipping and Intake's guarantee: Sport Tabs, prices, delivery and returns.
3. Turbine on Rhinomed's UK store, Rhinomed FAQ and returns policy: Turbine's sizes, uses, prices, sport limits and guarantee.
4. Breathe Right FAQ and Breathe Right Extra Strength at Boots: exercise and wear-time guidance, and price.
5. On The Nose Co running strips and refund policy: prices and guarantee.
6. MaxFlow nasal strips and refund policy: prices, delivery and guarantee.
7. NoseStrip starter, refills and refund policy: prices, sizes, tabs and returns.
8. HiStrips, HiStrips HYROX edition, HiStrips refund policy and HiStrips on Amazon UK: products, prices and returns.
9. HYROX rulebooks (Season 26/27 singles rulebook, section 10): permitted and forbidden items.
10. The studies in the reference list below: the evidence on nasal strips, dilators and nose breathing in exercise.

Questions people ask