How Much Ashwagandha Per Day? 600 mg of KSM-66, by Extract
By Erin Rose Updated October 8, 2026 How we score
Take 600 mg of KSM-66 a day, as 300 mg twice: the dose most KSM-66 trials used. Other extracts were tested at other amounts: Shoden at 120 to 240 mg a day, Sensoril at 125 to 500 mg. Check which extract your label names, and whether its serving is 1 capsule or 2.
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How much, by extract
Find the extract named on your label. These are the daily doses its trials used.
| Extract | Trial dose | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| KSM-66 | 600 mg a day | Usually 300 mg twice a day. Trials in healthy adults used 250 or 600 mg (Salve 2019 tested both). More |
| Shoden | 120 to 240 mg a day | Once a day: 120 mg for 6 weeks (Deshpande 2020) or 240 mg for 60 days (Lopresti 2019). More |
| Sensoril | 125 to 500 mg a day | One trial compared 125, 250 and 500 mg a day (Pandit 2024); a strength trial used 500 mg (Ziegenfuss 2018). More |
| NooGandha | 225 to 400 mg a day | Two 30-day trials (Remenapp 2022, Leonard 2024). More |
| Unbranded root extract | 700 to 1,000 mg a day | 700 mg in a trial of college students (O’Connor 2022), 1,000 mg in a trial of cyclists (Shenoy 2012). Strength varies by label, so these doses may not carry over to your bottle. More |
| Root powder (not an extract) | About 5 g a day (see note) | This comes only from trials in people with a medical condition; we found none in healthy adults. Capsules of plain powder hold far less. More |
How many capsules make a trial day
4 of the KSM-66 capsules we score hold 300 mg each, so a trial day is 2 capsules. Some of those labels list 1 capsule as the serving and say to take it twice a day, so a 120-capsule bottle lasts 60 days. And a “1,000 mg” front label can be 600 mg of extract plus 400 mg of plain root powder.
| Extract, per piece | For a trial day | Products |
|---|---|---|
| KSM-66, 600 mg | 1 capsule600 mg of KSM-66 | 4 |
| KSM-66, 500 mg | 2 capsules600 mg of KSM-66 | 1 |
| KSM-66, 300 mg | 2 capsules600 mg of KSM-66 | 4 |
| NooGandha, 300 mg | 1 capsule225 mg of NooGandha | 1 |
| Root powder, 400 mg | 13 capsules5,000 mg of root powder | 1 |
| Sensoril, 125 mg | 4 capsules500 mg of Sensoril | 3 |
| Shoden, 120 mg | 1 capsule120 mg of Shoden | 1 |
| Shoden, 60 mg | 2 softgels120 mg of Shoden | 1 |
| Unbranded root extract, 500 mg | 2 capsules1,000 mg of unbranded root extract | 2 |
| Unbranded root extract, 450 mg | 3 capsules1,000 mg of unbranded root extract | 1 |
| Unbranded root extract, 290 mg | 4 caplets1,000 mg of unbranded root extract | 1 |
Where pieces do not divide evenly we round up. Plain root powder capsules are not an extract; their 5 g day comes only from trials in people with a medical condition.
What doses the trials used
Each trial below was in adults without a diagnosed condition and compared ashwagandha with placebo (a dummy pill). Doses only compare within one extract: 120 mg of Shoden and 600 mg of KSM-66 were each a full day in their own trials.
| Item | Value |
|---|---|
| Chandrasekhar 2012 (KSM-66) | 600 mg |
| Salve 2019 (KSM-66) | 250 to 600 mg |
| Kelgane 2020 (KSM-66) | 600 mg |
| Wankhede 2015 (KSM-66) | 600 mg |
| Verma 2023 (KSM-66) | 600 mg |
| Choudhary 2015 (KSM-66) | 600 mg |
| Lopresti 2019 (Shoden) | 240 mg |
| Deshpande 2020 (Shoden) | 120 mg |
| Pandit 2024 (Sensoril) | 125 to 500 mg |
| Ziegenfuss 2018 (Sensoril) | 500 mg |
| Remenapp 2022 (NooGandha) | 225 to 400 mg |
| Leonard 2024 (NooGandha) | 225 mg |
Trials in people with medical conditions also exist, at similar doses; ask a doctor about those. What each trial found, with its funder: the trials, read straight.
Withanolides: why the percent does not compare
Labels often quote a withanolide percent, such as 5% or 35%. Each extract measures it its own way: KSM-66’s trials state at least 5% withanolides measured by HPLC; Shoden’s state 35% withanolide glycosides. So a higher percent does not mean more of the same thing, and no trial dosed by withanolide milligrams across extracts. Dose by the extract named on the label, at the amount its trials used. A label that names no extract cannot be matched to a trial.
Gummies: how many make a trial day
Gummies hold less extract each than capsules. A KSM-66 gummy holds 150 mg, so 600 mg takes 4 gummies, and one brand’s 4 gummies also carry 8 g of sugar. A Sensoril gummy brand’s 2-gummy daily serving gives 125 mg, the lowest dose one Sensoril trial tested. And a front label like “1,200 mg” can be a raw-root equivalent: one gummy brand puts 40 mg of a 30:1 extract in 2 gummies, which its label calls equal to 1,200 mg of root.
| Extract, per gummy | For a trial day | Products |
|---|---|---|
| KSM-66, 150 mg | 4 gummies600 mg of KSM-66 | 3 |
| Sensoril, 62.5 mg | 8 gummies500 mg of Sensoril | 1 |
| Unbranded root extract, 20 mg | 50 gummies1,000 mg of unbranded root extract | 1 |
A capsule usually costs less a day: one 600 mg KSM-66 capsule of our pick is a trial day for $0.33. Gummy prices.
When to take it
To match most KSM-66 trials, take 300 mg twice a day. That is how 4 of the 6 KSM-66 trials we read gave it. The Shoden trials gave one dose a day; one gave it after dinner (Lopresti 2019). No trial we read compared morning with evening, or taking it with or without food.
How long the trials ran
Most trials we read ran 28 to 90 days (about 4 to 13 weeks). The longest, a safety trial (Vaidya 2026), ran 180 days, about 6 months. NIH’s Office of Dietary Supplements says ashwagandha seems well tolerated for up to about 3 months, and that its long-term safety is not known. No trial we read tested cycling on and off.
Side effects and cautions
Common side effects are mild: stomach upset, loose stools, nausea and drowsiness. Rare liver injury has been reported, usually 2 to 12 weeks after starting. If you are pregnant or breastfeeding, take any medicine, or have a liver, thyroid or autoimmune condition, ask your doctor first. Side effects and the liver cases.
Sources
- Chandrasekhar K 2012, Indian journal of psychological medicine. PubMed 23439798
- Salve J 2019, Cureus. PubMed 32021735
- Kelgane SB 2020, Cureus. PubMed 32226684
- Wankhede S 2015, Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition. PubMed 26609282
- Verma N 2023, F1000Research. PubMed 38988644
- Choudhary B 2015, Ayu. PubMed 26730141
- Lopresti AL 2019, Medicine. PubMed 31517876
- Deshpande A 2020, Sleep medicine. PubMed 32540634
- Pandit S 2024, Nutrients. PubMed 38732539
- Ziegenfuss TN 2018, Nutrients. PubMed 30463324
- Remenapp A 2022, Journal of Ayurveda and integrative medicine. PubMed 34838432
- Leonard M 2024, Nutrients. PubMed 38931168
- O'Connor J 2022, Journal of medicinal food. PubMed 35984871
- Shenoy S 2012, Journal of Ayurveda and integrative medicine. PubMed 23326093
- Vaidya N 2026, Food science & nutrition. PubMed 41458530
- NIH Office of Dietary Supplements, Ashwagandha fact sheet (updated May 2, 2025). ODS
- Labels: each brand’s page or the NIH Dietary Supplement Label Database, read October 7, 2026.
This page is for information. It is not medical advice.