Compare Supplements by Trust Score, Certifications & Price per Serving

How Much Does Whey Protein Cost Per Month?

A typical whey protein habit (1 scoop/day) costs $0.80-$1.50 per serving for mainstream brands and $1.50-$2.50 for premium grass-fed or NSF-certified options. That is $24-$75/month. The cheapest strategy: buy unflavored whey isolate in 5lb tubs — brands like BulkSupplements and Nutricost drop below $0.60/serving. Our calculator shows exactly how many servings your budget covers.

Creatine: The Cheapest Supplement Per Serving

Creatine monohydrate is the most cost-effective supplement you can buy. Bulk unflavored powder runs $0.07-$0.15 per serving — under $5/month. Branded creatine HCl or "buffered" variants charge 3-5x more with no proven advantage. At $50/month budget, you can buy a year's supply of creatine and still have $45 left for protein or pre-workout.

Pre-Workout Budget: Where Your Money Actually Goes

Pre-workouts range from $0.50 to $2.50 per serving. The price difference comes from ingredient dosing: a clinically dosed pre-workout (6g citrulline, 3.2g beta-alanine, 200mg caffeine) costs more because those ingredients are expensive. Proprietary blends hide under-dosing behind a total weight — a $25 pre-workout with a proprietary blend often contains less active ingredients than a $40 transparent-label product. Use our calculator to compare cost per serving across all 164 pre-workouts we track.

Fish Oil: The Hidden Cost of Low-Potency Omega-3

A bottle labeled "1000mg Fish Oil" typically contains only 300mg of actual EPA+DHA — the rest is filler oil. At $15 for 90 softgels, that is $0.17/capsule but $0.56/gram of real omega-3. A triple-strength fish oil (900mg EPA+DHA per capsule) at $25 for 60 softgels costs $0.42/capsule but only $0.46/gram of omega-3 — 18% cheaper per gram of what actually matters. Our tracker shows EPA, DHA, and $/gram omega-3 for every fish oil product so you can compare real potency, not marketing claims.

Probiotics: CFU Count vs Price Per Serving

Probiotics range from $0.10-$1.50 per serving with CFU counts spanning 1 billion to 100 billion. Budget brands like Culturelle and Align run $0.30-$0.50/day. Premium multi-strain formulas (Seed, Visbiome) cost $1.00-$1.50/day. The trap: higher CFU ≠ better results — strain specificity and delivery mechanism (delayed-release capsules survive stomach acid) matter more. At $50/month budget, a 30-60 billion CFU shelf-stable probiotic covers most gut health needs.

Berberine: The Standard Protocol and Real Cost Per Dose

The clinical protocol for Berberine is 500mg taken 2–3× daily with meals — that is 1,000-1,500mg/day. Most capsules are 500mg, so budget for 2-3 capsules daily. Standard Berberine HCl runs $0.10-$0.40 per 500mg dose. Dihydroberberine (DHB) costs 2-3× more per capsule but 250mg DHB equals 500mg HCl efficacy — cost per effective dose is often similar. Red flag: any product under $0.08/500mg is likely underdosed or impure. Our $/500mg metric makes this easy to compare across all 395 berberine products.

Collagen: $/gram is the Only Number That Matters

Collagen peptide powders range from $0.08-$0.40 per gram of collagen. Most products list 10-20g per serving. The trap: premium packaging and "grass-fed" labels can add 3× markup with identical amino acid profiles. Marine collagen (Type I) costs 20-40% more than bovine but is fish-sourced — relevant for halal or pescatarian diets. Type II chicken collagen targets joint health at lower doses (10-40mg/day vs 10-20g for skin/hair). Our tracker shows grams of collagen per serving and $/gram so you compare real value, not label claims.

Ashwagandha: KSM-66 vs Sensoril vs Generic — What You're Really Paying For

Ashwagandha extracts range from $0.001–$0.05 per mg of withanolides. A 500mg KSM-66 capsule delivers ~25mg withanolides; a 300mg Sensoril capsule delivers ~30mg. Generic "root powder 500mg" may contain less than 1% withanolides — effectively inert. The trap: products can legally say "ashwagandha extract" with no standardization at all. Always look for the extract name (KSM-66 or Sensoril) and the withanolide percentage. Our tracker shows mg of withanolides per serving and $/mg so you skip the guesswork.

Vitamin D / D3+K2: MK-7 vs MK-4 and Why Form Beats Price

D3+K2 combos range from $0.01–$0.50/1000 IU. The trap: 90% of cheap products use MK-4 (K2 form with a 4-hour half-life) while MK-7 stays in blood 48+ hours. A bottle labeled "with Vitamin K2" is almost always MK-4. Filter for MK-7 explicitly. D3 is fat-soluble — softgels in oil (MCT, olive) absorb 30-40% better than dry capsules. Vegans must verify "Lichen D3": standard cholecalciferol comes from lanolin (wool fat). Standard clinically effective dose: 5000 IU D3 + 100-200mcg MK-7 per day.

Magnesium: Elemental Mg is What Matters, Not Compound Weight

Magnesium supplements range from $0.02–$0.80/100mg elemental magnesium. The trap: brands label the full compound weight — "500mg Magnesium Glycinate" contains only ~70mg elemental magnesium (~14%). A second trap: "buffered" glycinate mixes a small amount of glycinate with cheap Magnesium Oxide to reduce capsule count and cost, while advertising "GLYCINATE" in large print. True bisglycinate says "non-buffered", "pure bisglycinate", or "100% chelated." For cognitive use: Magnesium L-Threonate is the only form shown to cross the blood-brain barrier. Our tracker shows elemental mg per serving and $/100mg for every magnesium product.

Turmeric / Curcumin: Standardization and Bioavailability Drive Real Value

Curcumin supplements range from $0.05–$0.60/100mg curcuminoids. The trap: a "1000mg Turmeric" capsule with no standardization contains only 30-50mg curcuminoids (raw turmeric = 3-5% curcumin) — the exact same amount as a 50mg standardized extract costing a fraction of the price. Always look for "95% curcuminoids" on the label. The bioavailability trap is the second hidden cost: plain curcumin is notoriously poorly absorbed. A $15 bottle with BioPerine delivers more active curcumin than a $40 bottle without it. Our tracker shows mg curcuminoids per serving and $/100mg so you compare real potency, not label weight.

Zinc: Form, Copper Ratio, and Format Define Real Value

Zinc supplements range from $0.02–$0.30/10mg elemental zinc. The hidden danger: high-dose zinc (25-50mg+) depletes copper over time, causing anemia and neurological damage — the safest products include copper at a 15:1 ratio. The absorption trap: Oxide is 60% elemental zinc but absorbs at less than 10% bioavailability — pay slightly more for Picolinate, Bisglycinate (TRAACS), or OptiZinc. For cold support: capsules are useless — only zinc lozenges dissolved in the throat block rhinovirus locally. Our tracker shows elemental mg, form badge, and $/10mg for every zinc product, plus 'With Copper' and 'Zinc Lozenge' filters.

CoQ10: Ubiquinol vs Ubiquinone Is the Only Form Decision That Matters

CoQ10 supplements range from $0.10–$0.60/100mg — with the widest gap driven entirely by form. Ubiquinol is the active, reduced form your cells actually use; it is 2-3x more bioavailable and 2x more expensive. Ubiquinone (classic CoQ10) requires enzymatic conversion — efficient at 30, problematic at 60+. The hidden trust signal: Kaneka is the Japanese company that produces virtually all pharmaceutical-grade Ubiquinol under license; brands explicitly citing Kaneka sourcing indicate a quality supply chain. Statin users have a specific need: statins block the same mevalonate pathway that synthesizes CoQ10 — 200-400mg/day is often recommended. Our tracker shows form badge, mg dose, and $/100mg for every CoQ10 product.

How We Calculate

Avg $/Serving = Σ(price_per_serving) ÷ total_products_in_category
Total Servings = monthly_budget ÷ avg_price_per_serving
Products Count = max items buyable sorted by lowest price, summed ≤ budget
Best Value = product with lowest $/serving + Trust Score ≥ 50

Based on 683 real Amazon supplement prices scraped via ScraperAPI. Prices updated every 2 months. Price per serving = listed price ÷ declared servings per container.