{
  "dataset": "carnosine-cost-by-brand",
  "title": "L-Carnosine Supplements Compared — cost per day and per gram, at the labeled 500mg serving",
  "sourcePage": "https://verifiedsupplementdata.com/carnosine/best-overall/",
  "license": "CC-BY-4.0",
  "licenseUrl": "https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/",
  "attribution": "Verified Supplement Data (2026), L-Carnosine Cost Comparison",
  "dateModified": "2026-07-19",
  "methodology": "All six products disclose 500mg L-carnosine per serving, so cost per day and cost per gram are computable: costPerServing = price / servings; costPerGram = price / (servings x (mg/1000)). \"ingredientTier\" separates the five PURE L-carnosine products from the one COMBO product (Life Extension Super Carnosine, which bundles 50mg benfotiamine + 4mg luteolin alongside 500mg L-carnosine); \"pureComparison\" is false for the combo, which is EXCLUDED from the ranked cost table because two other actives share the capsule, making its price not a fair apples-to-apples comparison. Retail dose range: 500-1000mg/day; human trials in this evidence pack used 500mg-2g/day. THE LOAD-BEARING BIOAVAILABILITY CAVEAT: oral L-carnosine is largely hydrolyzed by serum carnosinase into beta-alanine + histidine before it reaches muscle (Gardner ML et al. 1991, PMID 1910085, \"Intestinal absorption of the intact peptide carnosine in man, and comparison with intestinal permeability to lactulose,\" The Journal of Physiology — up to ~14% of an oral dose recovered intact in urine, but the paper itself flags rapid post-absorptive hydrolysis; mechanism confirmed in Blancquaert L et al. 2021, PMID 33914660, Journal of Applied Physiology, whose own mechanism text cites carnosine being \"readily degraded in human plasma by the highly active serum carnosinase\"). For raising MUSCLE carnosine specifically, supplementing beta-alanine directly is the established, better-evidenced route (Harris RC et al. 2006, PMID 16554972, Amino Acids) — oral L-carnosine is an inefficient route to that same destination; see /beta-alanine/. GLYCEMIC EVIDENCE IS MIXED, NOT A DIABETES TREATMENT: Houjeghani S et al. 2018 (PMID 29420997, Nutrition Research) found L-carnosine reduced fasting glucose, triglycerides, AGEs, and TNF-alpha in type 2 diabetes (all primary endpoints MET); Saadati S et al. 2023 (PMID 38004228, Nutrients) found carnosine did NOT affect vascular or metabolic outcomes in prediabetes/T2D (primary endpoint NOT MET) — give both equal billing. Matthews JJ et al. 2021 (PMID 34333586, Advances in Nutrition) is a systematic review/meta-analysis of pooled human+animal glycemic data — heterogeneous, not a single-direction result. ANTI-GLYCATION/ANTI-AGING IS MECHANISM-ONLY: Hipkiss AR 1998 (PMID 9744078, The International Journal of Biochemistry & Cell Biology, \"Carnosine, a protective, anti-ageing peptide?\") is an in-vitro/mechanistic review, NOT a human clinical trial — never cited as proof of a human anti-aging outcome. This statement has not been evaluated by the FDA; these products are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.",
  "headline": {
    "productsCompared": 6,
    "pureProducts": 5,
    "comboProducts": 1,
    "retailDoseLowMg": 500,
    "retailDoseHighMg": 1000,
    "trialDoseRange": "500mg-2g/day",
    "cheapestOverallBrand": "BulkSupplements",
    "cheapestOverallCostPerDay": 0.21,
    "cheapestCapsuleBrand": "Nutricost",
    "cheapestCapsuleCostPerDay": 0.29,
    "note": "For raising muscle carnosine specifically, beta-alanine is the better-evidenced buy (see /beta-alanine/) — this dataset ranks retail L-carnosine cost only, not whether L-carnosine is the right product for that goal."
  },
  "columns": [
    "brand",
    "product",
    "slug",
    "form",
    "mgPerServing",
    "servings",
    "price",
    "costPerServing",
    "costPerGram",
    "ingredientTier",
    "pureComparison",
    "thirdParty"
  ],
  "units": {
    "mgPerServing": "mg L-carnosine",
    "price": "USD",
    "costPerServing": "USD/day",
    "costPerGram": "USD per gram of L-carnosine"
  },
  "citations": [
    {
      "claim": "Human ingestion study: up to ~14% of an oral carnosine dose recovered intact in urine — real, higher-than-assumed intact absorption, but rapid post-absorptive hydrolysis by blood carnosinase limits how much reaches tissue intact.",
      "source": "Gardner ML, et al. 1991, The Journal of Physiology",
      "pmid": "1910085"
    },
    {
      "claim": "Double-blind, placebo-controlled crossover: acute pre-exercise carnosine+anserine improved initial/peak Wingate power (Study A +6% initial 5s power, p=0.04; Study B +3% peak power); underlying mechanism text confirms carnosine is readily degraded in human plasma by serum carnosinase — an acute plasma-window effect, not chronic muscle loading.",
      "source": "Blancquaert L, et al. 2021, Journal of Applied Physiology",
      "pmid": "33914660"
    },
    {
      "claim": "Establishes that oral beta-alanine (not carnosine) is the effective precursor route that raises muscle carnosine concentration via de novo synthesis in human vastus lateralis.",
      "source": "Harris RC, et al. 2006, Amino Acids",
      "pmid": "16554972"
    },
    {
      "claim": "RCT, n=54, 12 weeks: L-carnosine reduced fasting glucose, triglycerides, AGEs, and TNF-alpha in type 2 diabetes — all primary endpoints MET.",
      "source": "Houjeghani S, et al. 2018, Nutrition Research",
      "pmid": "29420997"
    },
    {
      "claim": "RCT, n=49, 14 weeks, 2g/day: carnosine did NOT affect vascular or metabolic outcomes (endothelial function, arterial stiffness, BP, lipids) in prediabetes/T2D — primary endpoint NOT MET; the honest counterweight to Houjeghani 2018.",
      "source": "Saadati S, et al. 2023, Nutrients",
      "pmid": "38004228"
    },
    {
      "claim": "Systematic review + meta-analysis pooling human and animal carnosine/beta-alanine glycemic data — heterogeneous evidence; use as an umbrella citation, not a single-direction claim.",
      "source": "Matthews JJ, et al. 2021, Advances in Nutrition",
      "pmid": "34333586"
    },
    {
      "claim": "RCT, pediatric, n=90, 12 weeks, 1g/day carnosine added to ACE-inhibitor therapy: renal functional and oxidative-stress markers in diabetic nephropathy. Pediatric add-on population — do not generalize to adults or monotherapy.",
      "source": "Elbarbary NS, et al. 2018, Pediatric Diabetes",
      "pmid": "28744992"
    },
    {
      "claim": "Mechanistic review of carnosine anti-glycation/carbonyl-scavenging chemistry — in-vitro/mechanistic, NOT a human clinical trial.",
      "source": "Hipkiss AR. 1998, The International Journal of Biochemistry & Cell Biology",
      "pmid": "9744078"
    }
  ],
  "products": [
    {
      "brand": "BulkSupplements",
      "product": "L-Carnosine Powder",
      "slug": "bulksupplements-l-carnosine-powder-500mg",
      "form": "Powder",
      "mgPerServing": 500,
      "servings": 100,
      "price": 20.97,
      "costPerServing": 0.21,
      "costPerGram": 0.419,
      "ingredientTier": "pure",
      "pureComparison": true,
      "thirdParty": "Third-party tested (brand claim); no capsule fillers"
    },
    {
      "brand": "Nutricost",
      "product": "L-Carnosine 500 mg",
      "slug": "nutricost-l-carnosine-500mg",
      "form": "Capsule",
      "mgPerServing": 500,
      "servings": 120,
      "price": 34.95,
      "costPerServing": 0.29,
      "costPerGram": 0.583,
      "ingredientTier": "pure",
      "pureComparison": true,
      "thirdParty": "Gluten-free, non-GMO (brand claim); no third-party COA disclosed"
    },
    {
      "brand": "NOW Foods",
      "product": "L-Carnosine 500 mg",
      "slug": "now-foods-l-carnosine-500mg",
      "form": "Veg capsule",
      "mgPerServing": 500,
      "servings": 50,
      "price": 18.27,
      "costPerServing": 0.37,
      "costPerGram": 0.731,
      "ingredientTier": "pure",
      "pureComparison": true,
      "thirdParty": "cGMP; widely recognized brand"
    },
    {
      "brand": "Swanson",
      "product": "Ultra L-Carnosine 500 mg",
      "slug": "swanson-ultra-l-carnosine-500mg",
      "form": "Capsule",
      "mgPerServing": 500,
      "servings": 60,
      "price": 22.89,
      "costPerServing": 0.38,
      "costPerGram": 0.763,
      "ingredientTier": "pure",
      "pureComparison": true,
      "thirdParty": "cGMP"
    },
    {
      "brand": "Life Extension",
      "product": "Carnosine 500 mg",
      "slug": "life-extension-carnosine-500mg",
      "form": "Veg capsule",
      "mgPerServing": 500,
      "servings": 60,
      "price": 25.5,
      "costPerServing": 0.43,
      "costPerGram": 0.85,
      "ingredientTier": "pure",
      "pureComparison": true,
      "thirdParty": "Reputable QC-focused brand; single-ingredient formula"
    },
    {
      "brand": "Life Extension",
      "product": "Super Carnosine 500 mg",
      "slug": "life-extension-super-carnosine-500mg",
      "form": "Veg capsule (carnosine + benfotiamine + luteolin combo)",
      "mgPerServing": 500,
      "servings": 60,
      "price": 30,
      "costPerServing": 0.5,
      "costPerGram": 1,
      "ingredientTier": "combo",
      "pureComparison": false,
      "thirdParty": "Combo product: 500 mg L-carnosine + 50 mg benfotiamine + 4 mg luteolin — NOT a pure carnosine product"
    }
  ]
}