People Are Taking Creatine Gummies Now, Apparently (2024)

• By Will Price
• March 19, 2024

Thanks to the health and wellness craze of the last few years, creatine’s place in health culture has grown from old- school gym guy stuff to on-trend workout booster. This is good and bad. For one, the price of creatine has shot up in the last couple of years because of this, but it also means innovation in the category. In this case, innovation comes in the shape of a small, fruit-sized gummy stuffed with your daily allotment of creatine. Are creatine gummies worth the spend, and which should you buy? Here’s what you should know.

In a rush? Here are our creatine top picks:
Best Creatine Gummies Overall: Swoly Creatine Mono Gummies ($30)
Best-Tasting Creatine Gummies: Tribe Nutrition Creatine Gummies ($30)

Why You Should Trust Us

Hone Health is a team of health-obsessed journalists, editors, fitness junkies, medical reviewers, and product testers. Before writing this guide to creatine monohydrate gummies, I sifted through dozens of published, peer-reviewed research articles on creatine monohydrate’s potential benefits, recommended dosages, and any adverse side effects it may provoke (no, it will not make you fat and bald). In selecting products, I sought out companies that prioritize fair pricing, good taste, and solid creatine-per-serving. I personally purchased and tried each of the gummies recommended in this guide.

What Is Creatine?

Creatine is the most effective nutritional supplement for increasing high-intensity exercise capacity and muscle mass during training (1). It’s also been around for decades before the more recent surge in interest. This makes creatine geriatric in comparison with other supplements that have made some headway in recent years.

Creatine is a substance stored in your body—most of it is in your muscles, with smaller amounts in your brain and testes—that aids your body to produce more of something called adenosine triphosphate (ATP), which is the fuel to your cell’s everyday activities. So, taking creatine is meant to provide cells that carry creatine—again, mostly your muscle cells—with more energy, thus bigger and badder workouts.

Creatine monohydrate is the most studied and clinically effective form of creatine in terms of muscle uptake and ability to increase exercise performance (1).

What Are The Benefits of Creatine?

Pop a creatine supplement and these are the main benefits you have to look forward to.

Increase muscle mass

In a review of clinical trials published in 2022, researchers concluded that when participants in resistance training programs topped up creatine reserves with a supplement they increased lean body mass (2). Plus, they found that taking creatine may help build and maintain muscle, even if you don’t strength train.

In addition to helping to increase energy levels for your cells, several studies found creatine combined with heavy resistance training may encourage muscle growth by stimulating production of muscle insulin-like growth hormone 1(IGF-1) (3, 4). Some small studies have also suggested creatine may increase testosterone, but no large-scale studies support the theory.

Boost athletic performance

Creatine is basically a no-brainer for strength and other anaerobic athletes (like sprinters). One review of creatine supplementation in sport suggests that creatine supplementation results in increases in performance and short-duration, maximal intensity exercises across the board—including increases in 1-repetition maximum, muscular power, number of reps, muscular endurance, speed, and total force (5).

Supplementing with creatine might also be worth it for combination athletes (team sports like football and soccer that require both power and endurance). A drop in strength and performance due to overexertion from aerobic training is a common concern amongst combination athletes looking to maximize performance. One small study suggests creatine supplementation may prevent the loss of strength due to necessary cardiovascular training in combination athletes (5).

Better brain function

Some studies have found that creatine may improve cognitive function. Neuroscientist Andrew Huberman takes creatine for this exact perk (though we have no doubts it’s helping with his impressive gains too). A 2019 review of several studies found that participants who took creatine improved their performance on short-term memory and overall intelligence on reasoning tasks (6).

Creatine supplies your brain cells with more energy, and researchers are studying creatine to discover whether it may one day be used to help treat or prevent age-related and neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s, but more research is needed (7, 8).

Creatine Gummies vs. Powder

Dosage

Though all creatine powders come with a default measuring scoop (usually 5 grams), it can be easy to under- or over-supplement yourself. If you’re someone who cares deeply about the details, or is perhaps more sensitive to overconsumption of creatine (it’s completely safe for most people), getting the exact amount of creatine is helpful. With gummies you know you’re getting the exact dose listed, every time.

Convenience

As someone who takes creatine in its powdered form daily, I would say there is only one context in which it is not convenient: traveling. You don’t really want to go anywhere with a large bag of white powder on you. Creatine gummies offer a more stable alternative in this regard.

Taste

Powdered creatine is almost always tasteless, and usually dissolves nicely into a glass of water. But for those of us who want our medicine to taste like candy, the humble creatine gummy is available.

Do Creatine Gummies Work?

Yes. We don’t currently have reason to believe creatine gummies are any more or less effective than supplementing creatine in powder form. Depending on your reason for supplementing (fitness, brain health, etc.), if you’re getting enough through the gummies, it will work.

Creatine FAQs

You’ve got questions about creatine, we’ve got answers.

Are there any side effects of creatine?

The only clinically significant side effect occasionally reported from creatine supplementation has been the potential for weight gain (1). In short, yes, supplementing creatine can cause small amounts of weight gain; but, the amount is fairly low (2 to 4.5 pounds) and the reasons for gaining weight vary (water retention, and overtime, muscle mass) (9, 10).

Long-term trials have failed to confirm other known side effects of supplemental creatine among men and women, across age ranges—so long as you’re taking regular doses (3 to 5 grams). Based on existing research there is no evidence of detrimental effects of taking 30 grams of creatine per day for five years among healthy people (1). A number of observational studies provide anecdotal—and uncontrolled—accounts of creatine causing mild muscle cramping or dehydration, but clinical trials have yet to confirm (11).

Is creatine the same as pre-workout?

Nope. All pre-workout formulas are different, but most include a blend of ingredients designed to enhance physical performance, focus, and energy during your workout. Some pre-workout blends include creatine, but they typically also include other performance-enhancing ingredients including caffeine, amino acids, L-arginine, L-citrulline, and beetroot extract.

When should I take creatine?

Studies have shown taking creatine either before or after your workout can be equally effective for enhancing performance and muscle (12).