Quick Summary
Which NAD Boosters Are CL's Top Picks?
Which NAD boosters deliver quality—and which are worth the price? ConsumerLab independently tested popular NAD+/NADH, nicotinamide riboside (NR), and NMN supplements and selected a Top Pick in each of these three categories based on quality and value.
What Did ConsumerLab's Tests Show?
Reports have found that many NAD+, NMN, and NR supplements sold online, including on Amazon, contain little of their claimed ingredients. Those reports included many lesser-known brands (see Quality Concerns). Most products in ConsumerLab’s tests—popular among our members and generally from more established brands—provided their listed ingredients within an acceptable margin. But meeting a label claim is only part of the story: Suggested doses often did not match clinical studies, and many products were expensive.
The price difference can be striking: A 250 mg dose of high-quality NMN cost as little as 3 cents, compared with 10 times as much for the same dose. See What CL Found and How Products Were Evaluated for the results and testing criteria.
Brands tested and reviewed include Bone Science Prime NMN, BulkSupplements NMN, DoNotAge Pure NMN, Elysium Basis, GNC NMN, Life Extension NAD+ Cell Support, Life Extension NMN, Nutricost NAD+, Renue By Science Pure NMN, Rho Nutrition Liposomal NAD+, Swanson NADH, and Tru Niagen Age Better.
NR labels can make comparisons difficult. The listed weight typically includes a stabilizing salt—not just nicotinamide riboside. The salt accounts for a significant share of that weight, and the share differs between forms such as chloride and hydrogen malate. Our report makes it easy to compare the actual amounts of NR.
What Are NAD Boosters and Do They Help?
NAD helps most cells produce energy from glucose. The promise of NAD boosters is appealing: more energy and other health benefits. Small studies have explored their use for chronic fatigue syndrome, cognitive function, dementia, Parkinson’s disease, depression, cholesterol, and blood sugar control. But the studies reviewed in this report do not provide good clinical evidence to support these uses, despite some interesting laboratory findings.
Raising NAD in blood and blood cells does not establish that these supplements increase NAD inside organs such as the brain. And if you get adequate vitamin B3—as niacin, niacinamide, or nicotinamide—you already have the basic building block for NAD: nicotinamide. See What It Is for the science behind the claims.
Concerns with NAD Boosters?
Beyond their cost and uncertain benefits, NAD boosters warrant caution. Some provide vitamin B3 above the established daily Tolerable Upper Intake Level. There is also a theoretical safety concern that NAD-raising compounds—including NR, NAD, NADH, and possibly NMN—could promote the growth of existing cancers. See Concerns and Cautions for details.
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