The best creatine supplements 2024 – tried and tested
This popular supplement is taken by gym-goers to help muscle bulking, as well as by performance athletes. Find out more and read our expert nutritionist’s review of the best products on the market
Creatine is a naturally occurring substance that is made in the body and is mainly stored in muscle cells. It is useful for helping replenish a molecule known as ATP, which the body uses for energy. During high-intensity exercise, as your body runs through its energy stores, you typically experience muscle fatigue and lactic acid production. Creatine helps regenerate ATP quickly and reduces lactic acid production which means muscle recovery between exercises is improved. Muscle cells that recover quickly can keep working, which can lead to performance enhancement and increased muscle growth.
This benefit is why people who do short-term high-intensity exercise or team sports, as well as weight-lifters, might choose to take a creatine supplement. However, creatine is found naturally in foods, too – particularly meat. Creatine is one of the only performance-enhancing supplements that is allowed in competitive sport.
Best creatine supplements at a glance
Best creatine powders:
- Innermost The Power Booster Creatine, £19.95
- Elite All Blacks Creatine Monohydrate, £43.99
- Impact Creatine, £6.99
- Nutravita Creatine Monohydrate Powder 5000mg, £16.99
- Optimum Nutrition Micronised Creatine Powder, £22
- Creatine Monohydrate Micronised Powder, £18.99
Best overall creatine supplement:
- Innermost The Power Booster Creatine, £19.95
Best creatine capsules:
- Creapure Micronized Creatine Capsules, £37.49
Best creatine gummies:
- WeightWorld Creatine Gummies, £6.99
Best creatine tablets:
- WeightWorld Creatine Monohydrate Tablets, £19.99
Jump to section:
- Best creatine supplements 2024
- How much creatine should I take each day?
- When should I take creatine?
- What form of creatine should I take?
- What format of creatine is best?
- What we looked for in creatine supplements
Best creatine supplements 2024
Best creatine powders
Innermost The Power Booster Creatine
Available from Innermost (£19.95), Debenhams (£19.95), Bodykind (£19.95)
Best creatine supplement overall
Price per day (recommended dose): 33p
Star rating: 4.5/5
Although this wasn’t the cheapest of the supplements, one serving contains 166% of the minimum recommended effective dose. It is flavourless and can be mixed with juice or any workout drink, although wasn’t particularly pleasant to drink when mixed with water. Innermost offers a free 15-minute consultation to anyone with questions about which product is best for them.
Available from:
Elite All Blacks Creatine Monohydrate
Available from Amazon (£39.59), Healthspan Elite (£43.99), Pharmacy2U (£43.99)
Price per day (recommended dose): 44p
Star rating: 4/5
This product is more expensive than most of the powders but the company is part of the Informed Sport organisation which is a third party tester checking for banned substances –which is important if you are competing – and is formulated by the All Blacks nutritionists. It is neutral tasting so it can be mixed with other drinks. It contains 166% of the minimum recommended dose per scoop, so would be less convenient to measure out if you wanted the 3g dose.
Available from:
Impact Creatine
Available from MyProtein (£6.99, 100g), MyVegan (£6.99, 100g), Amazon (£16.40, 500g)
Price per day (recommended dose): 17p
Star rating: 4/5
This creatine powder offers good value for money but the tropical taste is not going to be to everyone’s liking. It’s very sweet and this can feel a bit overwhelming. The flavour also makes it more difficult to add to any other flavoured workout drinks. It is part of the Informed Sport organisation testing for banned substances.
One serving contains 3g, 100% of the recommendation per day, although the scoop measured out slightly more than this.
Available from:
Nutravita Creatine Monohydrate Powder 5000mg
Available from Nutravita (£16.99), Amazon (£18.99), Grovz (£19.99)
Price per day (recommended dose): 17p
Star rating: 4/5
This powder dissolves well but there was no scoop included so you need to weigh or use a teaspoon to measure out the correct amount, making it less convenient. The 5g recommendation provides 166% of the minimum recommendation per day. The tub is sturdy but is too bulky to carry around. There is nothing to say you can dissolve it in other drinks like many of the other powders and it isn’t particularly pleasant to drink mixed with water. It has a slightly chalky mouthfeel and aftertaste.
Available from:
Optimum Nutrition Micronised Creatine Powder
Available from Tesco (£20), Holland & Barrett (£22), Sainsbury's (£22)
Price per day (recommended dose): 24p
Star rating: 4/5
It was less easy to measure this powder out to the correct dose. The pack states to have 3.4g per day to provide 100% of the recommended dose, but there was no scoop and our tester’s scales weren’t precise enough. It dissolves well though and is easily blended into a morning smoothie. This pack contains 3 months’ worth of product, which is convenient for not having to reorder, but is less easy to carry around. The tub is sturdy and should keep the product well.
Available from:
WeightWorld Creatine Monohydrate Micronised Powder
Available from Amazon (£16.99), WeightWorld UK (£18.99)
Price per day (recommended dose): 9p
Star rating: 4/5
This creatine powder was the best value for money in terms of cost per dose. It also comes in a pack with five months’ supply so will last a long time before having to reorder. A scoop was included which measures out 100% of the recommended 3g/d and was very easy to dissolve in juice or a smoothie with no discernible flavour or mouthfeel, but was less pleasant to drink with water alone.
Available from:
Creapure Micronized Creatine Capsules
Available from MyVitamins (£37.49), MyProtein (£37.49)
Best creatine capsules
Price per day (recommended dose): 47p
Star rating: 4/5
The creatine capsules were very large and four of them contained only 93% of the recommended 3g/d dose. Although they are convenient for carrying around, this convenience is offset by the price. Because they are in capsule form, there are also some additives and anti-caking agents which you don’t get with the pure powder. The taste was neutral but they were fairly hard to swallow and taking four at once wasn’t particularly pleasant.
Available from:
WeightWorld Creatine Gummies
Available from Amazon (£12.99), WeightWorld (£16.99)
Best creatine gummies
Price per day (recommended dose): 57p
Star rating: 4/5
Three of these gummies a day will give you the recommended 3g/d dose. It is the most expensive but the convenience of just eating them compared with swallowing or mixing in to a drink did offset this somewhat. They are lemon flavoured which won’t be to everyone’s liking and they did leave a slight aftertaste, but were very easy to eat. The label says that they do have to be chewed rather than just swallowed to be effective. Gummies need to go through the digestive system before they can be absorbed so will take longer to get into the system, however there is no evidence that this affects absorption in general.
Available from:
WeightWorld Creatine Tablets
Available from WeightWorld (£19.99), Amazon (£29.29)
Best creatine tablets
Price per day (recommended dose): 22p
Star rating: 4/5
The tablets were quite large but smaller than the capsules. They are not the easiest shape to swallow as they are not completely rounded, but they have no taste. Tablets aren’t going to suit everyone but if you are okay with swallowing them then these are convenient and not too expensive to get the 3g/d recommended dose. You do need to take three tablets to get this though. Because they are tablets and not pure creatine, there are bulking, binding and glazing agents added.
Available from:
Ancient + Brave True Creatine +
Available from Ancient + Brave (£28), Planet Organic (£28)
Price per day (recommended dose): 75p
Star rating: 4/5
This was the most expensive of all and although it also contains vitamin D, magnesium and taurine as well, there is no evidence that this will improve its functioning. Each serving contains 200% of the recommended 3g/d. It dissolves well and you can mix it into other drinks with no discernible flavour. The glass jar is good for storage but isn’t practical for carrying around and it only contains 30 servings so you will need to reorder every month.
Available from:
How much creatine should I take each day?
Many studies have recommended a 'loading phase' at the beginning of use, where muscles become saturated with creatine by taking a higher dose for a short period – typically 20g, which is split into four doses of 5g, for five days. However, there is accumulating evidence that this is not necessary and a lower daily dose of 3-5g still provides the same benefits.
One early study suggested that taking substantially more than the recommended dose had an adverse effect on the kidneys. However, more than 30 years of studying creatine supplementation has not found any adverse effects if taken at the recommended dose.
People with kidney disease or people who are pregnant or breastfeeding should not take creatine.
When should I take creatine?
The timing of creatine supplementation around exercise has been widely studied with conflicting results. Although many companies recommend taking creatine pre-workout, there is a lack of evidence to support this.
There are some studies that show taking creatine with carbohydrate or protein may improve retention and utilisation of creatine.
Creatine degrades quickly once dissolved, so it should ideally be mixed with water and then taken as soon as possible.
Early studies suggested that taking creatine and caffeine together may reduce the effect or even be harmful, but this has not been found in more recent studies.
What form of creatine should I take?
Creatine monohydrate is the most widely studied form of creatine and is shown to be very stable and well absorbed. Although other forms can be bought, there is no evidence to suggest that they are better, and some have performed worse in studies.
What format of creatine is best?
Creatine in powder form that you mix with water is readily absorbed and good value for money, but it is quite bulky to carry around and not everyone enjoys the taste. Tablets, capsules or gummies are convenient and taste is less of an issue, but they can be more expensive.
Micronised creatine is more easily dissolved, but there is no evidence that this improves absorption in the body.
Creatine gummies and tablets are not absorbed as quickly as powder as they need to go through digestion. Although they have not been specifically studied for absorption, they contain creatine powder which has a very high absorption rate in the gut. There is no reason to assume they will work differently once digested, but their convenience is offset by the price as they tend to be more expensive.
What we looked for in creatine supplements
All supplements were tested within the same time period, with observations recorded based on the testing criteria. We included samples from various manufacturers, offering diverse formats such as powders, tablets, capsules and gummies, with a range of price points to suit different budgets. The key areas we assessed were as follows:
- Taste and flavour: is the consuming experience pleasant?
- Nutrient profile: how much creatine per daily dose? How does this compare to the NRV?
- Additives: does the product contain additives, for example: preservatives, artificial sweeteners or colourings?
- Dietary requirements: does the product meet any specific dietary needs – is it vegetarian or vegan?
- Value for money: how does it compare to other products on a cost-per-day basis
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