Drinking Water Guide - How to Get Water

Drinking Water Guide in Subnautica 2. See how to get Water, where to find Water Slugs in the Coral Reefs, survival tips to manage your water meter, and all water items.

What is Drinking Water

Essential to Survive

Drinking water and keeping yourself hydrated is one of the core survival mechanics in Subnautica 2. Your hydration meter is shown as the bottle icon at the bottom left corner of your screen.

Thirst Meter Caps at 100

Your maximum thirst meter is capped at 100. With this limit, carrying 1 to 2 Water bottles is usually enough for early exploration, allowing you to save inventory space for materials and tools.

Running Out of Water Drains Health

Running out of water will trigger a Dehydration status, which steadily drains your health until you drink water.

How to Get Water

Craft Water at the Fabricator

Once you have gathered Water Slugs, head inside your Lifepod or base and interact with the Fabricator. Open the Sustenance tab and select "Water" to craft it.

How to Find and Catch Water Slugs

The easiest early-game way to get water is by collecting Water Slugs, which are commonly found crawling on the seabed.

Easier to Spot at Night

Water Slugs become even easier to track down at night because they emit a noticeable bio-luminescent glow against the dark water.

How to Manage Water Meter and Tips

Use Biomods

Biomod	Description	How to Get
Water Retention	Gain more water from all sources with enlarged, orca-like kidneys.	Scan a Coral Crab (Bioscanner)
Water Secretion	Slowly fills a water packet by filtering fresh water from the sea	Scan a Water Slug (Bioscanner)

There are two Biomods that can help in easing thirst and producing water. One is Water Retention which boosts your water gain whenever you drink and Water Secretion, which allows you to produce a Filtered Water Packet every 3.5 minutes. You can configure your Biomods at a Biolab.

Eat Water Slugs in Emergencies

If you run out of Water far from your base, you can consume a raw Water Slug directly from your inventory. This restores a small amount of thirst but reduces your Hunger Meter, so it should only be used in emergencies.

Check Supply Crates and Wreckages

Supply Crates and wreckage areas often contain Water bottles and Nutrient Blocks. Since these items do not spoil, they are excellent emergency supplies to keep in storage or carry during expeditions.

Use Isotonic Water in the Mid-Late Game

During explorations or resource runs where you'd want to stay longer in the depths, Isotonic Water provides better hydration and becomes a more effective option for long expeditions. The downside is that Flash Slugs become available very late in the game.

How to Craft Isotonic Water

You can craft Isotonic Water using x1 Flash Slugs and x1 Salt at the Fabricator.

Water Items List & Stats

Below is a list of all Water items, including their recipes and hydration effects.

All Water Items in Subnautica 2

Item	Details	Where to Craft
Water	[Description] Basic drinking water used for survival. Avoid drinking seawater. [Ingredients] - Water Slug x1 [Effects] +40 Water	Fabricator
Isotonic Water	[Description] Water enhanced with balanced sugar and salt concentrations based on the Alterra bodyprint. [Ingredients] - Flash Slug x1 - Salt x1 [Effects] +55 Water	Fabricator

Related Articles

Recommended Guides

Walkthrough (Early to Late-Game)	Where to Go and What to Do Next	Tadpole Pens: How to Open the Locked Door
Plant Farming Guide	Cooking and Recipes Guide	Best Biomods
Best Tadpole Upgrades	Metal Farm Guide

Progression & Priorities
Early Game	Mid-Game	Endgame

Lists

All Leviathans	All Items List	Biomes & PoI List
Blackbox List	Recipe Data Cards (Blueprints)	Vehicle List
Buildings & Facilities List	Best Base Locations	Best Tools to Craft

Notable Items

Salt	Silver	Copper
Lead	Lucifer Rotsac	Conduit Crystals
Creature Enamel	Enameled Glass	Troilite
Celestine

Guides for Beginners

Multiplayer Guide	How to Eat Food (Digestion)	How to Craft Items
Drinking Water Guide	How to Craft Air Tank?	How to Get Basic Fins
Scanner Station Guide	How to Manage Your Oxygen?	Base Guide
Alien Ruins	How to Use Coordinates	Tadpole Guide
How to Get More Storage	How to Get a Rebreather	Bioscanner Guide
Night Survival Guide	How to Heal	Angel Comb Guide
How to Power Your Base	How to Recharge Batteries and Tools	How to Get the Repair Tool
World Tree Guide	Flashlight Guide	Strong Acid Guide
How to Get Heat Tolerance	Scanner Guide	How to Get Tadpole Depth Module Mk. 2
How to Get a Wakemaker	How to Get Fibrous Pulp	How to Get a Wiring Kit
How to Get Advanced Wiring Kit	How to Get the Entangled Power Cell	How to Refund Bases

Pre-Game Guides

Specs Requirements	New Game Features	Is There Crossplay?
Supported Devices	Update & Roadmap	How Long to Beat?
Can You Play Subnautica 2 on PS5 and PS4?	Is Subnautica 2 on Xbox?	Is Subnautica 2 on Steam?
Is Subnautica 2 on Switch?