Mojo launched in early 2023 and offers energy pouches in two strengths, 50 mg and 100 mg. The purpose of this article is to compare both brands with as little bias as possible, to help you understand which product may be better suited for your individual and specific needs. For this showdown we have selected the Mojo 100 mg pouches to compare against SZN.
Mojo offers 100 mg of caffeine per pouch, the same amount as SZN. Around it, Mojo lists L-theanine, ginseng, eleuthero root, rhodiola, L-tyrosine and vitamins B3, B6 and B12, without stating the amount of any of them. Mojo describes the quantities as "proprietary and valuable trade secret information".1
That is a red flag for any supplement, and a physical problem in a pouch. A 600 mg pouch carries roughly 200 mg of active ingredients in total. Caffeine alone takes half of that. The remaining eight ingredients share whatever is left, and several of them cannot cross the oral mucosa at all.
"Stay even more focused and energized."
The one ingredient Mojo does put a number on, and it is a good one. 100 mg per pouch clears the 75 mg threshold behind the EU-authorised alertness claims, and matches SZN exactly.6
"Balanced, calm energy."
Studied at 100 to 400 mg, with 200 mg the standard dose. That alone is the entire active budget of a pouch. With 100 mg already spent on caffeine, an effective dose is physically implausible in this format.7
"Helps support cognitive function."
Three extracts with clinical doses of 200 mg and up each. Their active compounds are large molecules that do not pass the oral mucosa, and ginsenosides additionally need gut bacteria to become absorbable. In a pouch they sit under the lip until swallowed.8
"Focus under stress."
The trials behind the focus claims use 500 to 2,000 mg, which is more than three full pouches of anything. Whatever amount is present here cannot be doing what those studies describe.7
Credit where due. Mojo's caffeine is properly dosed and identical to SZN's, and Mojo is slightly cheaper per can. The question this article raises is what the other eight ingredients contribute when their amounts are withheld and the format cannot carry them.
SZN through the same lens. Five ingredients, every one disclosed on the label and dosed at or above the level the claim requires. No proprietary blends, no trace inclusions.
Measured values first, then the things you only learn by using both. The second group is our judgement from using both products, flagged as such, not a lab value.
| SZN | Mojo | |
|---|---|---|
| Measured values | ||
| Price per can, single3 | $12.00 | $8.99 |
| Price per can, bulk / subscription3 | $6.47 | $5.85 |
| Servings per can Tie | 15 | 15 |
| Caffeine per pouch Tie | 100 mg | 100 mg |
| Vitamins | 4 (B1, B5, B6, B12), all dosed | 3 (B3, B6, B12), amounts withheld |
| Amino acids | 0 | 2 (L-theanine, L-tyrosine), amounts withheld |
| Pouch weight4 | 700 mg | 600 mg |
| Pouch pH | pH-neutral | Not stated |
| Third-party tested | Yes · Eurofins5 | No |
| Sweeteners & flavour | Erythritol, sucralose, acesulfame K. Natural flavours | Sucralose. Natural flavours |
| Label transparency | Every amount on the label | Amounts withheld as trade secret |
| Our assessment Experience | ||
| Dosing | 5 of 5 ingredients properly dosed | 1 of 9 ingredients with a disclosed, effective dose |
| Scientific evidence for the formula | Strong | Weak |
| Pouch size Tie | Slim | Slim |
| Pouch feel | Soft, premium | Soft |
Both brands use a slim, soft pouch. SZN carries about 17 % more fill by weight, which shows up as a slightly plumper pouch rather than a more flabby format. In the mouth they sit almost identically under the lip.
Drawn to volume from stated weights · same mm scale · silhouettes illustrative
Adding active ingredients to a pouch is a very interesting prospect. The pouch acts as a carrier that lets an ingredient reach your bloodstream faster than travelling through the entire GI tract, by passing through the oral mucosa. This is known as buccal absorption.
For it to actually work, the active ingredient needs to meet certain criteria. Otherwise it is just going to sit under your lip doing nothing. Ginseng is one of those compounds that really should be swallowed to work: ginsenosides have high molecular weights and poor cell-membrane permeability. Mojo also adds eleuthero root and rhodiola, two more extracts whose active compounds cannot pass the oral mucosa. Of the nine active ingredients in a Mojo pouch, only caffeine has a disclosed, effective dose, and several of the rest do not work in a pouch at all.
Passive diffusion through the mucosa favours molecules under roughly 500 daltons. Larger molecules largely stay in the pouch until swallowed.
Moderately fat-soluble molecules cross fastest. Strongly water-loving or charged molecules diffuse slowly even when small.
A 600 mg pouch carries about 200 mg of actives in total. An ingredient whose effective dose exceeds its share cannot be dosed to work.
Additionally, ginsenosides need gut bacteria to convert into an absorbable form, which the pouch route bypasses completely. The same applies to the glycosides in eleuthero and rhodiola.8
Read more: sznpouches.com/pages/science
SZN contains four B-vitamins and states the amount of each, all above 100 % of the daily reference intake. Mojo lists three B-vitamins but does not disclose how much of any of them a pouch contains, so their contribution cannot be assessed.
SZN is manufactured in Sweden, considered by many to be the birth nation of the pouch, and is third-party tested by one of the world's leading laboratories, Eurofins. This way you can be certain that each pouch contains what the label says. Mojo manufactures in the United States, without third-party testing, and declines to disclose the amounts of its active ingredients, describing them as "proprietary and valuable trade secret information".1
Both brands generate a lot of strong customer feedback, for the product and for customer support. As everyone's tolerance to caffeine is unique, some users are bound to feel nothing no matter whether they pick SZN, Mojo or any other caffeinated pouch. That is why SZN offers a full 30-day money-back guarantee, so anyone can order and try the pouches.
Showcasing only five-star reviews doesn't say much. The unhappy customers are the biggest source of learning, so we compare the share of one-star reviews. On this measure Mojo does well, with fewer one-star reviews than SZN.
Mojo matches SZN on caffeine and beats it on price. Everything else on its label is a question mark: eight ingredients with no amounts, in a format that cannot carry most of them, and no independent test to settle it. SZN costs 62 cents more per can in bulk and tells you exactly what is in every pouch, with a certificate to prove it.
