Search for a creatine brand and the first page is the brand's own store, then marketplaces, then lists of picks written by sites that sell through the links. This index is the other approach. Each brand below has a full analysis read from what the brand publishes: its label (as filed with the NIH Dietary Supplement Label Database), its store, and the certifier's own register. Every figure carries the date it was read.
Brands are listed alphabetically. The order is not a ranking, none of these pages gives a score or a verdict, and no product was bought, used or tested.
The four brands, side by side
| Brand | Unflavoured serving | Creatine source named? | NSF Certified for Sport creatine listings | Lowest listed price per gram, unflavoured (own store) | Full analysis |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Momentous | 5 g scoop | No — "no longer sources creatine from Creapure" | 7 (two with named lots) · 2026-09-30 | $0.096 (90 servings) · 2026-09-30 | Momentous creatine |
| Nutricost | 5 g scoop | No since 2024; a 2017 label named Creapure | 0 · 2026-09-28 | $0.047 (1 kg) · 2026-09-28 | Nutricost creatine |
| Optimum Nutrition | 5 g, rounded teaspoon | No — "ingredients of international and domestic origin" | 0 (Informed-Choice seal on label, register not checkable here) · 2026-09-27 | $0.045 (240 servings) · 2026-09-27 | Optimum Nutrition creatine |
| Thorne | 5 g scoop | No | 7 (unflavoured powder: 65 named lots) · 2026-09-24 | $0.093 (180 servings) · 2026-09-24 | Thorne creatine |
Prices are the brand's own listed prices on the date shown, before subscription discounts. They move often and are not comparable across different dates to the cent.
What the four have in common
The molecule is the same. Every unflavoured product in the series is creatine monohydrate at 5 g a serving, the form behind almost all of the trial evidence. Other forms and what their evidence shows are on types of creatine. "Micronized" describes particle size, not a different compound (micronized creatine).
Nobody says who makes it. None of the four labels or product pages read for this series names the manufacturer or country of origin of the creatine raw material. This is the single most consistent omission across the set.
Named sources are disappearing. Two of the four once pointed to a named raw material and no longer do. A 2017 Nutricost label declared Creapure, and its 2024 labels say only "globally sourced ingredients". Momentous states on its store that it no longer sources Creapure and uses an unpublished "Signature Spec" instead. What a named source like Creapure does and does not guarantee is on Creapure, explained.
Where they differ
Certification. NSF's Certified for Sport register is the one public programme in this category that lists individual products and, for some listings, individual lot numbers, so a buyer can match the number printed on a tub. Two of the four brands have creatine listings there; two do not. A factory's own NSF registration ("made in an NSF-certified facility") is a different thing from certification of the product, as the Nutricost analysis shows.
Cost. On each brand's own store, the lowest listed price per gram of unflavoured creatine ranged from about $0.045 to $0.096 on the dates read. A larger tub was cheaper per gram at every brand where more than one size was listed.
Format. Chews and gummies cost several times more per gram of creatine and add calories and sugar or sweetener:
| Brand | Chew / gummy format | Creatine per piece | Per gram of creatine | Unflavoured powder, per gram |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Momentous | Chews, 150 count | 1 g | ~$0.33 | $0.096 |
| Optimum Nutrition | Gummies, 35 servings of 3 | ~1.7 g | ~$0.23 | $0.045 |
The trade-offs, including labels that do not add up, are on creatine gummies and creatine pills vs powder.
What to read on any creatine label
The same five checks answered most of the questions in this series, for any brand:
- Form and amount. "Creatine monohydrate, 5 g" is the reference point. A blend or a different salt changes the arithmetic. The Nutricost women's product's "3 g of creatine" is about 2.6 g of creatine on molecular weights.
- Serving weight against creatine weight. A 6.5 g flavoured scoop carrying 5 g of creatine means 1.5 g of something else. The label lists what.
- Certification that can be looked up. A seal on the tub is a claim, while a listing on the certifier's own register, ideally with lot numbers, can be checked.
- Who made it. Usually absent. When a label used to name a source and now does not, that change is worth knowing.
- Price per gram of creatine, not per tub. Divide the listed price by (servings × grams of creatine per serving), and note the date.
How brands are added
The series grows one brand at a time on the same checklist, and each new analysis is added to the table above in alphabetical order. Its method is fixed. Every figure comes from the brand's label, its store and the certifier's register, each dated, and every page carries a notice that it is an analysis of published information, not a product review. The site's wider approach is in its editorial standards.
Limits of this index
Each row reflects the date its analysis was read; the four dates span 24 to 30 September 2026. Prices, certifications and labels change without notice. The label database can lag products on shelves. A brand not listed here has not been analysed yet, and its absence is not a judgement.
Sources and dates
- The four analyses linked in the table above, each with its own dated source list: Momentous (read 2026-09-30), Nutricost (2026-09-28), Optimum Nutrition (2026-09-27), Thorne (2026-09-24).
- NSF Certified for Sport, certified-products register, searched for each brand on the dates shown.
- NIH Office of Dietary Supplements, Dietary Supplement Label Database, labels as cited on each analysis page.