Reducing the gap between the electrodes and diaphragm to zero is an often adopted strategy to reduce the ohmic drop in alkaline water electrolyzers for hydrogen production. We provide a thorough account of the current–voltage relationship in such a zero-gap configuration over a wide range of electrolyte concentrations and current densities. Included are voltage components that are not often experimentally quantified like those due to bubbles, hydroxide depletion, and dissolved hydrogen and oxygen. As is commonly found for zero-gap configurations, the ohmic resistance was substantially larger than that of the separator. We find that this is because the relatively flat electrode area facing the diaphragm was not active, likely due to separator pore blockage by gas, the electrode itself, and or solid deposits. Over an e-folding time-scale of ten seconds, an additional ohmic drop was found to arise, likely due to gas bubbles in the electrode holes. For electrolyte concentrations below 0.5 M, an overpotential was observed, associated with local depletion of hydroxide at the anode. Finally, a high supersaturation of hydrogen and oxygen was found to significantly increase the equilibrium potential at elevated current densities. Most of these voltage losses are shown to be easily avoidable by introducing a small 0.2 mm gap, greatly improving the performance compared to zero-gap. Display omitted •Bubble and concentration overpotential quantification for a zero-gap electrolyzer.•An inactive electrode front explains the anomalously large separator resistance.•An additional ohmic drop arises transiently, likely due to gas bubbles.•Introducing a 0.2 mm gap strongly reduces the resistance.•Local hydroxide depletion gives large losses at low electrolyte concentrations.