Best Nootropics

If you’re frustrated by brain fog, a short attention span, fading memories, or other cognitive difficulties, then nootropics may be worth a try. These “smart drugs” have been around since the 1960s, but they’ve only hit the mainstream supplement market within the last decade and have quickly been growing in popularity ever since.1

But while it’s easy to get excited about something that may be able to relieve a wide range of cognitive concerns, your brain’s needs are unique; dedicating the time to sift through dozens of supplements that all make the same claims is no simple task.

To make your search easier, we researched, investigated, tried, and compared the best nootropic options of 2025 to help you make an informed choice. If you’re short on time, here’s the rundown of our top picks.

Over the past two decades, Innerbody Research has helped tens of millions of readers make more informed decisions about staying healthy and living healthier lifestyles. As nootropics have emerged across the supplement landscape, we’ve dedicated ourselves to determining which ones are worth your consideration.

We’ve spent thousands of hours:

• Researching various nootropics, including specialized formulas, generalized nootropics, and individual ingredients
• Reading over 350 clinical studies examining the safety and efficacy of various nootropic ingredients
• Ordering a multitude of nootropics, trying them ourselves, and communicating with the companies’ customer service reps, gaining first-hand customer experience in the process.

But we weren't fully satisfied by the products we were recommending; though they were the best available, we wanted to be able to offer something better. So, to solve this problem, we decided to formulate our own nootropic supplement, and we’re confident that it is the best on the market. But no supplement is ideal for everybody, and nootropics don't affect everyone in the same exact ways (one reason why customer service and good return policies are so valuable in this case). The purpose of this guide is to offer fair and unbiased comparisons at every turn to help you decide what's likely to be best for you, be that our supplement or someone else’s.

Additionally, we conferred with members of Innerbody's Medical Review Board to ensure the medical accuracy of this piece. We’ll continue to monitor and analyze scientific developments and changes in the nootropics marketplace, updating this page as any information changes.

Nootropics are complicated supplements, but that doesn’t mean it’s impossible for the average person to understand them. To simplify things, we considered four basic criteria when evaluating the top nootropics: safety, efficacy, cost, and convenience.

Safety

Winner: Thesis

Because your brain is a sensitive organ that controls every part of your life, it’s critical that nootropic supplements are safe. The more research a product or ingredient has behind it, the more we know about its safety and can make better-informed decisions. We consider the following factors to be critical for our safety scores:

• Clarity around ingredient lists (not hiding dosing information in proprietary blends)
• Well-considered formulas and doses
• Transparent testing and manufacturing conditions

Additionally, we prefer nootropics that have the potential to make a big difference in your mental state without overloading your system with thousands of unnecessary milligrams of botanicals, vitamins, minerals, and other ingredients. If research indicates that 100mg works just as well as 10,000mg, it’s likely smarter to take 100mg.

Thesis, Innerbody Labs, and Mind Lab Pro are among the safer nootropics manufacturers. None of their products contain hazardous ingredients you’d need to cycle (take time off from). All three do a good job of selecting ingredients that have scientific support from human studies, not just animal or in vitro studies.

All three companies also make their nootropics in GMP-certified, FDA-registered facilities, but Thesis and Innerbody Labs are more transparent about third-party testing for ingredient and formula purity, with certificates of analysis from their third-party partner labs available on request.

Out of the three options, Thesis has an edge here because it uses some shorter lists of ingredients in doses that are sometimes lower than what human studies confirm to be effective. This likely makes them less useful for some users, but it can also reduce the chances of experiencing side effects. One exception is the vitamin D dose in the company’s Stress Reset supplement, which is a little higher than the upper limit for supplemental vitamin D set by the NIH.111 Chronically high vitamin D levels can lead to things like vomiting, headaches, and, in extreme cases, kidney failure. We believe Innerbody Labs presents a better balance of efficacy and safety, which we’ll discuss below.

However, it’s critical to note that research into many nootropic ingredients is still young enough that researchers don’t know how they may affect an individual after long-term use.64

Effectiveness

Winner: Innerbody Labs Focus Support

Despite having been around since the 1960s in some form, nootropics still often use a fair amount of ingredients with varying quantities and quality of research to back up their purported positive effects on cognition.

To establish the effectiveness of the market’s top nootropics, our team compared their ingredient bills and doses to the doses and, when available, combinations used in clinical research. More often than not, we found ingredients to be underdosed, with several companies apparently hoping the combination of underdosed individual ingredients would create something greater than the sum of its parts. And without research into these specific formulations, it’s impossible to predict effectiveness. Some companies rely on ingredients that have been subjected to little or no human study. Such dosing shortfalls cost several companies any chance of our recommending them, and the gap in the marketplace ultimately moved us to create our own nootropic supplement.

Innerbody Labs Focus Support relies on 15 total ingredients, each one dosed in line with what clinical research says should be effective for at least one cognitive concern, from focus and memory to stress and neuroprotection. That doesn’t mean we’re the only option worth considering. Some companies use proper doses of at least a few of their ingredients, including Revive and Thesis. But not all of Thesis’ blends offer clinically relevant doses, and some have as few as five ingredients in them. Among those Thesis formulas, you’ll occasionally find ingredients included more for their hype and potential than for their scientific merit. And while Revive Brain+ boasts 12 ingredients, it only contains half as much PQQ, a smaller dose of a weaker rhodiola extract, and no caffeine (which is a plus for some, but a ding for efficacy).

Here’s a quick breakdown comparing nootropics from Innerbody Labs, Revive, and Thesis:

As you can see, with the exception of a few ingredients scattered across those three other products, Innerbody Labs Focus Support provides the most comprehensive and well-dosed combination of clinically studied nootropic ingredients.

Cost

Winner: Revive Brain+

Similar to technology, newcomers to the supplement market with novel ingredients are often much more expensive than those that are simpler or have been around for longer. For the most part, nootropics follow this trend. Prices can range considerably depending on the manufacturer, ingredient list, and other factors, but they generally fit into one of two categories:

• $35 or below and lower quality: often lower doses, less effective ingredients, little or no reported manufacturing testing, etc.
• $60 or above and higher quality: more likely adequate dosing of more beneficial ingredients, in-house and/or third-party testing, occasional company-funded studies, and so on

Among the group of nootropics that provide a potentially effective formula, Revive Brain+ is our least expensive top pick. The company used to offer subscriptions for convenience without any additional savings, but it’s since added a 10% price cut for subscribers, bringing an already low $60 price point down to just $54 monthly. The closest thing to it is Mind Lab Pro’s $47/bottle price point you can reach by purchasing a four-month supply. But that requires a $208 up-front investment and comes with a considerably weaker formula.

Here’s a breakdown of the costs and money-saving opportunities for our top picks in as close to a 30-day supply as possible.

Note: The following chart only shows the lowest possible monthly costs accessible through subscription or bulk savings opportunities.

In general, the return policies are pretty strict for most of these products, but this isn’t exactly uncommon for the supplement market. Many companies that sell supplements, nootropics included, don’t accept returns for safety reasons — this is why those that do accept returns often require the product to be entirely unopened. That said, Innerbody and Thesis give you 30 days to try their products to see if they’re right for you, and when it comes to nootropics, that is particularly useful.

Convenience

Winner: TruBrain Nootropic Drinks

In a previous iteration of this guide, Thesis was our top pick for convenience, as its product lineup used to contain individually wrapped doses of any one of six nootropic formulas. The company has since consolidated its offering to include just four formulas, and they no longer come individually wrapped.

By comparison, the individual portable nootropic drinks from TruBrain are significantly more convenient. You can slip one into your pocket if you’re on the go, and they’re extremely easy to tear open and enjoy wherever and whenever you like. They’re also a lot easier to take than the handful of pills some formulas require (five pills from Revive, four from Innerbody Labs).

TruBrain also offers a trial pack you can order at a relatively low price to see if any of these formulas work for you in terms of taste or efficacy. But remember that most nootropic ingredients are shown to work best after weeks of daily administration, so a small sampler pack might not be enough to show you their full potential.

One knock on TruBrain’s convenience is its lack of a money-back guarantee. If you want a better-protected investment, Innerbody Labs and Thesis are your best bets.

Some of our favorite nootropic companies center on one formula (like Innerbody Labs and Revive), while others (such as TruBrain and Nootropics Depot) have broad horizons and create multiple lines of products. This can make trying to compare nootropic supplements confusing at best. To simplify things, we’ve created a handy chart:

Broadly speaking, nootropics are substances that improve your cognitive functioning. This definition is generous as it applies equally to supplements, prescription medication, and some recreational drugs. In recent years, the supplement industry has grabbed onto this term to describe products with vitamins, minerals, amino acids, and botanicals that are designed to boost your brain power.

The first nootropic to use the term was a drug developed in the 1960s called piracetam.60 61 It was intended to treat anxiety and provide patients with a soothing experience that might even lull them to sleep.2 The effect was quite different than what its creators intended, as users reported sharper focus, and later testing pointed toward improved memory. (At the time of writing, the FDA still hasn’t approved piracetam for use in supplements or as a prescription medication, though many still take it.)3

Nootropics also technically include prescription medications like Adderall (amphetamine salt), Vyvanse (lisdexamfetamine), and Ritalin (methylphenidate),62 as well as medications for dementia and Alzheimer’s disease (such as memantine).63 Caffeine is also a nootropic substance and an ingredient you’ll find in many nootropic supplements.

Nootropic supplements may have one ingredient, or they may have dozens. Some ingredient lists look similar to multivitamins, and others focus more on botanicals and amino acids. Because no two brains are identical, the best nootropic for our team or other people may not work for you, but we’ll provide all of the research and information you need in this guide to make the best decision for your needs.

Contemporary nootropics generally have three main goals:

• Protect your brain from damage
• Improve your memory, learning, and attention
• Regulate your mood

As cognitive enhancers, nootropic ingredients alter how your nerve cells and neurons work. This takes place in a variety of ways, including:64

• Affecting circulation to the brain
• Positively impacting signaling pathways
• Combating oxidative stress and decreasing cortisol levels
• Regenerating and strengthening neural connections
• Improving mitochondrial function
• Increasing the expression of neurotransmitters, like acetylcholine and dopamine

To better understand the potential mechanisms of action in any nootropic, it’s essential to take a closer look at its ingredients. Unfortunately, there are several hundred ingredients used in these kinds of supplements, yet manufacturers claim that all of them work equally well. This, perhaps obviously, isn’t true. Many nootropic ingredients have mixed evidence of their benefits, with even fewer research studies outright validating their potential.

That said, there are some nootropic ingredients that research supports wholeheartedly (or close to it). Here are 13 of the top ingredients you should consider noteworthy when picking a nootropic supplement.

It’s important to note that just because an ingredient works well in one research study, it doesn’t mean the ingredient will work exactly like that in your body. Your brain is just as individual as your fingerprints, shaped by both genetics and your lived experiences. Everything from your weight and what you ate for breakfast to your parents’ reactions to medications can make individual nootropic ingredients interact differently from person to person.

Research on nootropics is still largely in its infancy, so it’s hard to predict how a specific nootropic will work without an independent study of the product. (We take a look at the studies that have been done on specific nootropic supplement formulas later in this guide.)

If you’re new to nootropic supplements, starting with formulas that have relatively short ingredient lists makes it easier to pinpoint ingredients that do or don’t work for you, though that exploratory process is time-consuming. But we recommend talking to your doctor before introducing any nootropic supplement into your routine.

Nootropic ingredients for brain health

Some other nootropic ingredients may not directly affect your brain in the ways you might expect from the ingredients mentioned previously. However, they are still essential in supporting your brain’s overall health.

Studies on popular nootropics brands

Because nootropic ingredients vary so wildly in their clinical support, and almost no research studies look at ingredients in combination with each other, it’s always nice to see a company run a study on its product. There are some clear biases possible — when a company funds a study, the researchers may feel pressured to produce certain results, or the company can repeat a study until it gets favorable results — but some information is better than none.

A few popular brands tested their nootropics in some capacity, including Mind Lab Pro, Onnit, and Qualia. In general, Mind Lab Pro worked the best on reaction time, anticipation, memory recall, and information processing (particularly among the 30-and-over crowd).33

Onnit’s Alpha BRAIN has two studies under its belt, both of which are somewhat mixed but suggest that it may improve verbal memory, and Qualia Mind’s findings were disappointing — while participants reported significant improvements across six cognitive categories, they weren’t significant over a placebo.35 36 37 These findings ultimately make a big impact on how we judge these supplements, and while nothing’s going to work perfectly for every person, they can provide insight as to the strengths and weaknesses of these products.

You can read more about these studies in the products’ full reviews, linked under each product breakdown in this guide.

Nootropic supplements aren’t created equally, so it would be unhelpful to make a broad statement that they’re all safe or unsafe. Many should be safe for healthy adults who aren’t taking any prescription medication, but that leaves out two-thirds of all U.S. adults, according to Georgetown University’s Health Policy Institute.38 And, even if you don’t take a regular prescription, nootropics can also interact with other supplements, so it’s important to cross-check ingredient lists. As with any supplement, we recommend you talk to your doctor before starting a nootropic to ensure it doesn’t interfere with any conditions you have or medications you take.

Our top recommendations generally use ingredients in safe doses for most people. They err on the side of caution and are more likely to slightly underdose than overload your system, which is frustrating for efficacy but better for you in the long term. This isn’t the case for every supplement — we’ll point out which ones to approach with extra caution in our product breakdowns — but, in general, you’re more likely to experience fewer effects than a laundry list of side effects.

Side effects and contraindications are always a possibility, though. Some ingredients cause more side effects than others. (Since many nootropics have at least 90mg of caffeine, we recommend curtailing your coffee and tea consumption until you know how this new energy source affects you.) Keep an eye out for things like headaches, stomach aches, and dizziness when you’re starting a nootropic. If you find these symptoms don’t go away after a day or two of use, stop using them and contact your doctor. It may be a poor ingredient fit, or nootropics might just not be a good idea for you.

Potential long-term effects of nootropic supplementation are also still unknown. Research into many of these ingredients for nootropic ends is still relatively young, and the market for such products is even younger. We’ll keep an eye on the evolving science as longer-term administration studies come out, and we’ll make any adjustments to our recommendations as needed.

Nootropic ingredients to limit or avoid

There aren’t many common nootropic ingredients that are inherently dangerous, but there are a few with higher risks than most:

• Vinpocetine can induce miscarriages or birth defects if taken while pregnant77
• Huperzine A can cause acetylcholine toxicity if taken in high doses for too long70

Certain populations may also want to limit their exposure to ashwagandha, as anecdotal evidence suggests it can lead to miscarriages and thyroid complications highlighted in case studies78 100 34 These effects have not been firmly established by research, but those with thyroid issues or those pregnant or planning to become pregnant may want to look elsewhere.

Some ingredients with little to no evidence still find their way into nootropic supplements and are essentially fillers. Sadly, many nootropics contain at least one ingredient with questionable research behind it. Here are some of the worst offenders we’ve found, even in our favorite nootropics:

• Artichoke extract. There’s only one mouse study (from 2022) on this topic.29 It suggests artichoke extract may reduce some biomarkers associated with Alzheimer’s disease, but there’s no evidence it can otherwise support your brain.
• Oat straw extract. There’s no clinical evidence this does much of anything for your brain.
• Dimethylaminoethanol (DMAE). This antioxidant was sold as an alternative to ADHD medication called Deanol between 1950 and 1980, but it was recalled due to a lack of scientific evidence on its safety.30 There hasn’t been much, if any, research on it since.
• Coleus forskohlii extract. This mint-like plant is advertised as being able to do a lot for an aging brain, but there’s no evidence it has any cognitive benefits.
• Glutamine. Despite being the most common amino acid and protein building block in your body, it mostly works on rebuilding muscles post-workout unless you’ve experienced a lack of oxygen to the brain (and even that finding is tentative).31
• Taurine. Despite how frequently you might see it in energy drinks, and though taurine deficiencies are common in people with cognitive dysfunction, there’s no clear evidence taking taurine improves cognition.32

Tolerance and habituation

Some ingredients require a little more care to use properly. Tolerance — our brains physically adapting to a new situation — and habituation — our psychological adaptations — can both be present while you’re using nootropics.

If a nootropic asks you to cycle, or occasionally take a few days off from taking it, it’s likely that it contains ingredients that could build up in your system or that you could more easily develop a tolerance to over time. These are often ingredients that affect your brain’s acetylcholine levels, like huperzine A.

Cycling nootropics

Some nootropics will require you to cycle (take days off in your dosing routine). It can be inconvenient and a bit of a pain to have to remember, but it’s important for your health to follow these instructions. Many nootropics that suggest you cycle have recommendations on how to plan your weeks, which can make things a bit easier.

Taking a few days off keeps nootropic ingredients from building up in your brain, either flooding your body with excess acetylcholine that can’t get cleaned up (and can cause problems like muscle twitching or decreased respiration) or causing you to develop a tolerance or dependence.70

Cycling requirements generally depend on a few ingredients — notably huperzine A and other acetylcholinesterase blockers — included in a given formula. Other ingredients you might see that mean you should regularly take time off include:

• Caffeine
• Noopept
• Piracetam
• Modafinil
• N-acetyl cysteine (NAC)

Caffeine, for example, is an addictive stimulant (as you may know if you drink a cup of coffee each morning and don’t feel right without it), whereas NAC regulates the amount of glutamate released by your body. Cycling NAC prevents building a tolerance, which can have effects on your mood, whereas cycling caffeine can keep you from developing a dependency on it.79 Whether you choose to cycle because of caffeine may depend on your own consumption habits and the amount of caffeine present in the nootropic.

A nootropic may sound like something we could all use, but some populations would benefit more from adding it to their routine, and others should stay away at all costs. Pregnant people, nursing parents, and children under 18 should all avoid taking standard nootropic supplements. There are a few nootropic supplements specifically designed for children, but we don’t know enough about the impact of nootropic supplements on developing brains — they very well may be negatively impacted.

We always strongly recommend sitting down with your doctor before starting any new supplements, including nootropics. Your situation may be unique, and they’ll have the best sense of what might work for you. They may also order lab tests to ensure you don’t have any deficiencies, disorders, or other health problems that could be causing your cognitive symptoms.

Psychiatric and neurological medications can cause some of the biggest problems when combined with nootropics. (We’ll explore this in more depth momentarily.) You should also avoid nootropic supplements if you’re taking:

• Blood thinners like warfarin87
• Levodopa (L-Dopa)88
• Cholinesterase inhibitors like Aricept or Reminyl89
• Insulin or diabetes medication90
• Immunosuppressant medications91

Likewise, several conditions can be exacerbated by nootropic supplements. Not every nootropic will affect all of these conditions, but if you have any of the health concerns listed below, be particularly cautious about starting a nootropic, and talk to your doctor:

• Kidney disease92
• Liver disease93
• Thyroid disorders88
• Heart problems87
• Asthma64
• GI blockages94
• Stomach ulcers94
• Urinary tract blockages94
• High blood pressure64
• Diabetes90
• Cancer95
• Phenylketonuria (PKU)96
• Muscular dystrophy97

Nootropics also don’t interact well with drugs or alcohol. Some nootropics may be safe to have alcohol in moderation (such as a glass of wine with dinner) while taking it, but it’s generally best not to combine the two for your liver’s sake. Ingredients like green tea extract can cause liver inflammation, which is exacerbated by alcohol.39 Recreational drugs generally increase either dopamine, serotonin, or glutamate (inhibiting GABA), so adding nootropic ingredients that do the same thing can lead to side effects like tremors or worse.

Studies on individual products — such as the self-funded studies on Mind Lab Pro — regularly find that nootropics work best for the over-30 crowd. This doesn’t mean that they can’t help college students or young professionals, but because your 20s are generally some of your healthiest years, there’s less age-related dysfunction for the nootropics to address. One of our 25-year-old testers who tried Thesis, for example, found that it supported their focus and clear thinking as much as — if not more than — a 37-year-old peer tester. Like all other factors, age can make a difference, but your age alone won’t guarantee you do or don’t find benefit from a nootropic supplement.

Psychiatric and neurological conditions

If you have a psychiatric condition — even mild depression or generalized anxiety disorder — you are more likely to experience negative side effects or worsening symptoms by taking a nootropic. This is especially true if you take neurological or psychiatric medications, which act on the same neurotransmitters as nootropics. Having too much of any neurotransmitter is just as bad as not having enough and can lead to unpleasant side effects like headaches, stomach aches, tremors, or serious complications like serotonin syndrome.40

Best overall, best for brain health, best for memory, and best for studying

As we’ve discussed, nootropic supplements can often fall victim to a handful of shortcomings that might make them inferior choices for your cognitive enhancement. Sometimes they have too few ingredients to justify their costs, or they include way too many ingredients at doses significantly lower than those used in successful research. Some try to live on the bleeding edge of science, using ingredients that, despite great potential, haven’t been properly vetted for effectiveness or safety. Some use ingredients that haven’t been studied for these purposes in humans.

With all of these pitfalls, even the nootropics we regarded the most highly throughout the marketplace left something to be desired. That’s why Innerbody Labs ultimately decided to create Focus Support — to fill the gap with a product that followed a few critical rules:

• Approach cognition holistically, targeting focus, memory, mood, and brain health
• Only use ingredients with firm backing in clinical research
• Only use doses that align with successful research for cognitive ends
• Don’t overcharge just because we include more than other expensive options

With these guiding principles, we developed the following formula:

• Cognizin citicoline: 500mg
• Rhodiolife Rhodiola rosea extract (5% rosavins, 1.8% salidrosides): 350mg
• Phosphatidylserine 50%: 300mg
• KSM-66 Ashwagandha: 300mg
• N-Acetyl L-tyrosine (NALT): 200mg
• L-Theanine: 160mg
• Lion's Mane extract (20:1 extract): 100mg
• Caffeine (from Coffeeberry Energy organic whole fruit extract): 80mg
• Saffron extract (2% safranals): 30mg
• Pyrroloquinoline quinone (PQQ): 20mg
• Vitamin B3: 16mg
• Vitamin B5: 5mg
• Vitamin B6: 2mg
• Vitamin B9: 400mcg
• Vitamin B12: 2.4mcg

Innerbody Labs has chosen to include certain branded ingredients where scientific research was noteworthy compared to unbranded alternatives. For example, Cognizin has been the subject of several studies to improve cognitive impairment, including one in which 500mg/day resulted in improvements on numerous memory tests over placebo.5 In another study, 500mg and 2,000mg of Cognizin improved brain ATP levels and increased the speed of brain membrane formation.103

The closest thing to this currently on the market is Revive Brain+, which recently reformulated to include PQQ and branded Cognizin citicoline. It’s a less expensive supplement, but its PQQ dose is half that of Focus Support; it uses a smaller dose of a less concentrated rhodiola extract; its saffron extract isn’t standardized, and it lacks ashwagandha, caffeine, L-theanine, and phosphatidylserine. It’s still a good choice if you’re really counting your pennies, but as we’ll see below, its best price is only about $15 less per bottle than the best price you can get on Focus Support. Shipping is also free from Innerbody for U.S.-based customers, which can bring the prices that much closer. Our testers routinely paid nearly $10 per shipment from Revive.

Focus Support is available as a one-time purchase or on a subscription basis, and you can choose subscription quantities of one, three, or six months, each tier of which opens up more savings. Here’s how it works out:

As you can see, the costs per month and per dose are at their lowest when you subscribe at a six-month interval. The only catch is that you have to have the full $414 to spend up front.

If you’re not satisfied with Focus Support, Innerbody Labs offers a 30-day money-back guarantee. That’s on par with the guarantee from Thesis, and it’s far better than the short return windows for unopened products other companies offer.

Best budget pick, best non-stimulant option, and best choice for customers outside the U.S.

While Thesis formulas contain numerous, well-studied ingredients often delivered at clinically relevant doses, no one of the company’s four blends is as comprehensive as Revive Brain+ is. If you want something that’s simple, effective, and well-priced, Revive Brain+ is likely your best bet.

It’s worth noting that Revive’s formula has recently changed, however. Previously, it contained 600mg of alpha-GPC and 250mg of unbranded citicoline. Now, it’s replaced those two ingredients with 500mg of Cognizin branded citicoline. It also removed a 100mg dose of phosphatidylserine, though the reasons for that change are unclear.

Here’s a closer look at the product’s ingredient list:

• Niacin (as Niacinamide): 100mg NE
• Vitamin B6 (as Pyridoxal-5-Phosphate): 20mg
• Folate (as L-5-methyltetrahydrofolate calcium salt): 200mcg DFE
• Vitamin B12 (as methylcobalamin): 500mcg
• Cognizin citicoline: 500mg
• Acetyl-L-Carnitine HCl: 500mg
• L-Tyrosine: 500mg
• Rhodiola rosea (root) Extract (standardized to 3% rosavins, 1% salidrosides): 300mg
• Alpha Lipoic Acid (ALA): 250mg
• Saffron (Crocus sativus) [Flower] Extract: 30mg
• Pyrroloquinoline Quinone (as PQQ Disodium Salt): 10mg
• Lithium (from lithium orotate): 400mcg

In some cases, we find doses that align well with numerous studies into potential cognitive benefits. The 30mg of saffron, for example, is the average dose we’ve seen work well for improved sleep and mood, allowing for greater focus in the face of stressors.83 Other ingredients are either at the low end of effective study ranges or fall just shy of that, like the former 100mg phosphatidylserine and the 10mg PQQ. Those two ingredients are better-dosed at 300mg and 20mg, respectively.84 85 And an ingredient like ALA is close to a relevant dose here at 250mg, but 300mg-600mg is often a better starting dose for most people.110

One ingredient we definitely want to touch on is the 400mcg of lithium included in Revive’s formula. This may give some readers pause if they’re familiar with lithium as used for psychiatric disorders, namely major depression and bipolar disorder. But those doses are typically around 600-1,200mg, more than 1,000 times stronger than the 400mcg of lithium used here.86 Revive is one of a few companies using lithium microdoses as a way to improve cognition, balance mood, and even promote longevity.

A single bottle of Revive Brain+ costs $59.99, but you can mix and match bulk and subscription packages for added savings. Here’s how that plays out:

Revive also charges shipping based on package weight and distance, with a high free shipping threshold of $150. Note that none of Brain+’s packages meet that threshold on their own.

Revive’s return policy isn’t great, either. You can only return unopened merchandise within 15 days of purchase. There is no money-back guarantee like you see with Innerbody Labs and Thesis.

Best for stress and anxiety

Thesis recently underwent a major overhaul, both in the formulas it delivers and the packaging involved, making for a markedly different customer experience that, while positive in some ways, is a step backward for the company in others. Surely, the move will make the company more efficient and competitive, but it will also highlight some of the shortcomings of the Thesis approach.

Thesis maintains strong testing measures and even more robust customer service. The company also relies on strong science to back the core ingredients of its four blends. But the science gets a little shakier (or, at least, a little nascent) at the outskirts of each blend, and a new manufacturing approach has removed some flexibility for users.

Previously, the company offered six formulas, each available with or without caffeine.

• Clarity: increasing blood flow to the brain and stimulating acetylcholine, cutting brain fog
• Logic: improving communication throughout the central nervous system and cell membrane quality
• Energy: boosting cellular energy and blocking adenosine
• Motivation: increasing blood flow to the brain and boosting cellular energy
• Creativity: anti-anxiety and antidepressant
• Confidence: anti-anxiety and boosting dopamine levels

They came in individually wrapped packets, six packets to a box, four boxes to a monthly shipment. That was 24 total doses you could divide up among those six formulas however you saw fit. You could get one box of clarity and three boxes of logic, or you could opt for one box each of your four favorite blends.

The issue with that system was that many effective nootropic ingredients require several weeks of daily administration for you to feel their effects, according to research. Jumping from one formula to another and only having 24 doses per month caused unavoidable interruptions to this process, potentially undercutting many ingredients’ efficacy. The new system provides daily doses of any one formula, delivered in 25-day intervals. This approach allows a person to feel fuller effects from the formula they choose, but that 25-day interval also has an unintended and rather inconvenient effect: your delivery date and the day your card is charged to be on a different date every month. And over the course of a year, you end up paying for two more shipments than you would from a company that only charges every 30 days.

The new formulas include:

• Clarity: similar to the previous formula but with added ginseng, less choline, and no L-theanine
• Motivation: similar to the previous formula but with mandatory caffeine, no phenylalanine, and added salidrosides from rhodiola
• Stress Reset: strikingly similar to the previous Confidence formula but with no sage or magnolia bark and added vitamin D and salidrosides from rhodiola
• Neuroprotection: a new formula targeting brain health with ingredients like spermidine, PQQ, and bacopa extract. Research is mixed or quite young on several ingredients, but it still has some potential.

Of the new options, Stress Reset is, by far, the company’s best. It uses a potent branded form of ashwagandha called Shoden at a dose that’s been shown to reduce stress and anxiety.59 You’ll also find other well-supported anxiolytics like saffron and L-theanine.

This is an example of one way that the company’s new system works in its favor, as well. Previously, if you wanted to take out the caffeine, it would also mean you’d have to remove the L-theanine. The two came together in a separate capsule. Now, if you remove the caffeine, the L-theanine stays, which is good news for your cortisol levels.16 Unfortunately, that means you can’t use our old trick of ordering the caffeinated version of a Thesis formula and only taking the caffeine pill only when you want that extra boost. The company’s new system blends its caffeine into any formula you choose, so you can’t take it back out once you receive it.

Thesis also provides nootropics coaching to all subscribers, so you can get the most out of your nootropics and find new ways to improve your life and your brain. However, the company no longer advertises this offering, and you have to get to the point where you're about to cancel your subscription to find the appropriate phone number to call for the service.

Several companies in this guide take pains to test their products, looking at purity and dosage in particular. However, Thesis is among the few (like Innerbody Labs) who rely on third-party testing rather than internal testing. That makes for a product with a much more reliable safety profile.

Thesis has a relatively straightforward pricing structure similar to Innerbody Labs. You can make a one-time purchase or subscribe at intervals of one, two, or three months (technically, 25, 50, or 75 days).

If you aren’t happy with your Thesis nootropics, you can reach out to the company’s customer service team. They’ll recommend adjustments to a schedule or suggest other products to try first. When you know you want a refund, you’ll need to go to the returns page, which sends you an email link to actually process a return. You can send back any unopened box of Thesis for a full refund within seven days of delivery if you have more than you need, or you can refund one month’s supply within 30 days of purchase. You’ll have to physically mail back whatever you have — even if the box is empty — and Thesis doesn’t cover the cost of return shipping.

Easiest to take

Designed by UCLA-trained neuroscientists, TruBrain offers a novel delivery method for their most popular nootropics. Each product is available in liquid form and stored in a small pouch. You can crack one open and drink it in short order, and it doesn’t matter if you have any trouble swallowing pills.

There are seven available flavors:

• Sleep: uses GABA, melatonin, and 5-HTP to relax you
• Mellow: an all-around balanced and low-dose nootropic with Noopept, vitamin C, NALT, centrophenoxine, magnesium, L-theanine, and CBD oil
• Matcha: a green-tea-based drink with magnesium, Noopept, and NALT designed to increase mental clarity
• Mushrooms: a botanical blend with four mushrooms and vitamin C intended to promote cognitive health
• Medium: identical to Mellow, but without the CBD oil
• Strong: a caffeinated version of Medium
• Extra Strong: Strong plus 150mg of Adrafinil, a non-prescription version of modafinil

Mellow, Medium, and Strong are all nearly identical; Mellow adds functional CBD oils, and Strong adds caffeine. While they’re easy to take, you’ll need to be careful if you can’t take CBD or regularly need drug testing since full-spectrum CBD oil does contain a small amount of THC. (Though not enough to provide any psychoactive effects, the full-spectrum CBD oil in TruBrain could potentially cause you to fail a drug test.)

Overall, the doses are okay, and TruBrain picked somewhat unconventional ranges of ingredients. Noopept (or N-phenylacetyl-L-prolylglycine ethyl ester), for example, is a strong, branded nootropic that may come with some more risks than others. Noopept appears to have neuroprotective and cognition-enhancing properties, but it belongs to the nootropic family of drugs known as “racetams.”98 While there isn’t much data on Noopept’s safety, specifically, other racetams, like Piracetam, can lead to psychomotor agitation, dysphoria, tiredness, dizziness, forgetfulness, headaches, and digestive upset.99 So, until we know more about Noopept’s safety, it may be best to assume that it, too, can lead to similar adverse effects.

There’s also very little research supporting most of the mushrooms included in the Mushrooms flavor, despite not having any major known side effects.

Customers generally report that the flavors are pleasant, though there are a significant number of other ingredients added to make these drinks palatable. Overall, we think that TruBrain’s unique form makes their drinks interesting and a good option for people who don’t like taking pills, but they don’t offer as much value on a supplemental level as other recommended products like Thesis, Innerbody Labs, and Revive.

If you aren’t crazy about the thought of drinking your nootropic, TruBrain has shifted its capsule offerings to encapsulate all seven formulas as TruBrain Capsules. Now, you can get one bottle of 30 servings in every formula for the same flat price, which varies depending on how you’re ordering it.

You can get these drinks with both bulk (from 10 to 60 pouches per order) and subscription deals (10% off every delivery). Uniquely, you can also prepay and save up to a year in advance for 30% savings if you know you like them and will continue to drink these supplements through the subscription program. You can choose exactly how many of which flavors you want, which is a nice bonus.

If you live in the U.S., you can also try 10 drinks for $39 with free shipping, though you won’t be able to pick and choose exactly how many of each flavor you’ll get. Note, though, that it automatically signs you up for a 20-drink monthly subscription; if you don’t cancel within two weeks, you’ll be charged $59/month for a box of 20 TruBrain drinks.

The company also has a ‘prepay and save’ system on select other products that allows you to save up to 30% when you buy in bulk. Here’s how it breaks down:

• 3-month supply: 10% off
• 6-month supply: 20% off
• 12-month supply: 30% off

Free shipping is available on orders over $55 (subscriptions don’t automatically ship for free).

TruBrain’s return policy is quite strict, and the company will only accept a return if you send back an unopened box within seven days of delivery — not just the products themselves, but the container they’re delivered in. You also won’t be refunded the cost of shipping.

Other notable TruBrain products

In addition to their signature shots, TruBrain offers a handful of other products, some of which are nootropics. Here’s some information on a couple of the more notable products:

Best single-ingredient nootropics

If you’re more interested in building your own mixture of nootropic ingredients instead of taking a pre-formulated pill, then Nootropics Depot is our recommendation. This manufacturer offers a vast marketplace of various single- or two-ingredient nootropics — from ashwagandha and alpha-GPC to L-theanine, caffeine, and pretty much everything in between.

Generally, these supplements are well-dosed. For example, one of our picks from our Best Vitamins for Energy guide, Nootropics Depot’s Caffeine + L-Theanine Capsules, combines caffeine and L-theanine in doses of 100mg and 200mg, respectively, which is very close to the 160mg and 200mg noted to be effective in a 2021 systematic review.82

With such a wide range of supplements, we’d spend far too long going over the price of each individual product. However, Nootropics Depot supplements are usually priced fairly middle-of-the-road or less than average; the prices range from about $10 to $60. There are no subscription options if you purchase directly, but the company also sells some products on Amazon, meaning you can subscribe there and save 5% on recurring orders (if you’re a Prime member and the item you want is available).

If you’re interested in testing out a couple of supplements, the company also offers sample packs of complementary products. For example, there’s a mushroom extract pack and a traditional Chinese herbs pack, each with 15-count jars of their respective supplements.

Our top nootropics are far from the only ones on the market. In this section, we’ll go over some other popular picks that may stick out to you as an ideal choice for one reason or another. They each failed to make the cut as top recommendations for our readers, but we cover them here to be as thorough in our depiction of the landscape as possible.

Mind Lab Pro

Mind Lab Pro has the most successful self-funded study out of any nootropic on our list, displaying the best results after three months of taking Mind Lab Pro in the following areas:

• Simple choice and reaction time
• Anticipation (predicting the next step in a structure)
• Information processing (especially for people 30+)
• Immediate and direct recall (memory)

The supplement doesn’t use any novel ingredients, and its components all boast research of their own that shows safety and efficacy. These include citicoline, lion’s mane mushrooms, and Rhodiola rosea, among others. Notably, though, all but three — the two B vitamins and lion’s mane — are underdosed compared to the supportive outside research. And the lion’s mane is at the very low end of dosing. However, Mind Lab Pro’s self-funded study showed positive results, so there may still be enough of these ingredients in the supplement to help you.

They also have one of the lowest allergen profiles of any nootropic, as their formula is:

• Gluten-free
• Soy-free
• Nut-free
• Synthetic additive-free
• Caffeine-free
• Non-irradiated
• Vegan-friendly

You can learn more about its ingredient profile and how it’s changed over time in our full review.

Because Mind Lab Pro only offers one product, the pricing structure is simple:

Shipping on subscription orders is free, but smaller orders incur a charge of $9.95 for standard (3- to 10-day) or $14.95 for expedited (2- to 4-day) shipping. Mind Lab Pro has also kept in mind that mail times have slowed substantially in the last few years, extending their delivery windows by a few days.

Their refund policy is confusing, depending on whether you just want a refund or want to use their money-back guarantee.

You can get a refund in full within 14 days of delivery, assuming you haven’t opened the bottle. The company’s money-back guarantee only applies to the first bottle in your first order, but you can claim a refund through this policy within 60 days, and you’ll have to pay shipping both ways. This reduces your expected refund amount to about $40.

Onnit Alpha BRAIN

Onnit is a full-scale fitness brand offering everything from nutritional supplements to workout equipment. They have four Alpha BRAIN nootropic products that are caffeine-, dairy-, nut-, and gluten-free, as well as more than two dozen other supplements designed to optimize your health and wellness. We’ll focus mostly on their flagship product, Alpha BRAIN capsules, which also come in a Black Label version (with clearer dosage information, albeit a dissimilar ingredient list), an Instant powder, and Focus Shots, which are premixed caffeine shots with other nootropic ingredients.

Alpha BRAIN has a decent ingredient list as far as nootropics go, with a big focus on boosting your acetylcholine levels as much as possible (which may lead to things like intense lucid dreaming and requires a strict cycling routine).57

However, most of these ingredients are hidden behind a few proprietary blends, meaning Onnit provides the measurement of blend per serving but not each individual ingredient. While it’s used to keep competitors from copying an exact formula, it also keeps you from understanding what you’re actually taking. Onnit does well with testing measures, but the lack of greater transparency is a disappointment for Alpha BRAIN’s overall safety measures. Proprietary blends make it difficult to determine what side effects you’ll be more likely to experience, if any. And while proprietary blends are sadly not uncommon in nootropics (and Alpha BRAIN isn’t the worst offender, at least breaking down their blend into three separate smaller blends), it isn’t something that gives us confidence, and it cost Onnit a recommendation from us in this context.

Alpha BRAIN has been subjected to two scientific studies with mixed results, though they both found some evidence that Alpha BRAIN improves verbal memory scores. If you’re looking to improve learning and memory overall with a special focus on being able to restate what you know and are able to track a cycling schedule, this might be a good option for you.

You can learn more about Alpha BRAIN and its specific ingredient breakdown in our full review.

Onnit Alpha BRAIN is available as a 30- or 90-day supply purchased once or as a subscription:

You can also get a 15% discount as a member of the military, first responder, or medical provider, though you’ll need to verify your identity at checkout with an ID the first time you want to use this discount.

Shipping from Onnit is free on orders over $150. Otherwise, shipping varies depending on your location; our testers found it averaged between $7 and $11.

If you know where to look, you can also get a free trial of Alpha BRAIN. Onnit will give you a 30-count bottle of Alpha BRAIN for just the cost of shipping and sales tax, though it’s slightly hidden on Alpha BRAIN’s webpage. Onnit also features the second-best return policy in this guide, with an extra twist — you have 90 days to return any bottles that are at least half-full for a full refund. If you ordered a 30-count bottle for your first purchase and didn’t love it, Onnit will give you a full refund for the bottle without asking you to return it within that same 90-day window.

BrainMD

BrainMD offers both comprehensive nootropics like Brain & Body Power and more targeted combinations like Calm My Brain. The latter supplement provides only magnesium and ashwagandha, whereas Brain & Body Power boasts more than 40 ingredients. Generally speaking, products with shorter ingredient lists tend to be higher in quality — with doses more in line with scientific research — than products like Brain & Body Power that contain dozens of ingredients. The company’s more targeted supplements tend to deliver higher doses of specific ingredients, and their more comprehensive offerings have relatively low doses of each component.

It can be difficult to know which of the company’s vast array of products you should take, so they offer a short quiz about your lifestyle and cognitive performance. After the quiz, an algorithm will identify yours as one of 16 brain types. The site then lets you shop by your brain type to see only the supplements that would provide you with the biggest potential benefit. It’s more comprehensive and less prescriptive than Thesis’ quiz, which is better for people who want a more hands-on approach to their supplement journey.

BrainMD’s prices vary widely depending on their ingredient lists (as do the products’ potential efficacy). Subscribing is a good way to save, as you’ll take 15% off your order, but the company’s supplements are a bit expensive for what they offer. They aren’t as high-priced as some other nootropics, like Qualia Mind, but they also don’t generally have the same first-time saving discounts. Instead, you can bundle both subscription and bulk deals for extra savings.

Here’s a look at a few of their most popular supplements:

Previously, all seven of these supplements were available as part of a free trial program. Now, they only offer Put Me To Sleep Naturally, Happy Saffron Plus, Brain & Body Power, Serotonin Mood Support, and Focus & Energy, but you can still try any one of them for free for up to 14 days. After that, BrainMD will automatically enroll you in a subscription program for that supplement at the products’ standard cost.

Shipping with any subscription order is free, and non-subscription orders cost a flat $7.95 unless you order at least $75.

Hunter Focus

Hunter Focus is the nootropic component of Hunter’s supplement system. Much like Onnit’s range of products, the company’s system includes Hunter Burn, a thermogenic fat burner, and Hunter Test, a natural testosterone booster.

Hunter Focus is a relatively straightforward supplement. It contains many of the most popular nootropic ingredients in varying strengths compared to clinical research. For example, its citicoline dose is far lower than we’d recommend, but its caffeine and L-theanine balance is well formulated. It contains too little lion’s mane, phosphatidylserine, and rhodiola, but its ashwagandha, bacopa, and tyrosine doses are fine.

Here’s a brief look at some of their most effective ingredients:

• Acetyl-L-Carnitine: 800mg
• L-Tyrosine: 500mg
• Lion’s Mane: 500mg
• Bacopa: 300mg
• Ashwagandha: 300mg
• Citicoline: 250mg
• Maritime Pine Bark Extract: 75mg

All told, Hunter Focus contains 20 active ingredients that can directly or indirectly improve cognition, memory, and mood. This nootropic is very similar to Mind Lab Pro but contains more ingredients at slightly higher doses. Some of these ingredients are likely to bring positive benefits — ashwagandha root and ginseng, for example — while others are still on the newer side in research, such as Spanish sage. Hunter Focus contains 100mg of caffeine, so it’s not a good option for people who want a stimulant-free nootropic. (100mg is about 20mg more than what you’ll get in a cup of coffee and is very typical to find in nootropics that have caffeine.)

Between the two, we think Mind Lab Pro will be better for more people because some of Hunter Focus’ ingredients may inadvertently cancel each other out or cause strange side effects. Combining ashwagandha and caffeine may cause a particularly complicated response, for example. However, there’s nothing that stands out as harmful or otherwise strange in this supplement, so it is still a solid option.

Hunter Focus doesn’t offer any subscriptions, but you can save a little bit by buying in bulk (though comparatively much less than other products that offer bulk savings). Here’s how Hunter Focus’ pricing works out:

• One bottle: $90
• Two bottles: $180
• Three bottles (plus one free): $270

You’ll get free shipping as long as you buy two or more bottles at a time. Shipping for one bottle costs $7.95. Hunter has some of the widest-reaching international shipping options available with depots in London and Tennessee, and they can ship to all but 17 countries. If you don’t like Hunter Focus, you can return your bottle, opened or unopened, within 30 days of delivery; just reach out to their customer service team with your name, email, and order number and tell them you’d like to return your bottle of Hunter Focus (and why) to get the ball rolling.

Qualia Mind

Qualia Mind is the nootropic offering from a company called Qualia (formerly Neurohacker Collective). They make other supplements to support skin, sleep, energy levels, longevity, and vision. Qualia Mind is their standard nootropic blend with both common ingredients and some more unique choices. There are 27 different ingredients in Qualia Mind, so you’ll have to take seven capsules to get a full serving.

These ingredients include:

It’s also important to note that Qualia Mind is generally underdosed in these ingredients compared to clinical studies — a key factor in why it didn’t earn a spot in our summary of recommendations. You could make the argument that we don’t know if the ingredients can all boost each other to sufficient efficacy, but we’d have to turn to the self-funded study on Qualia Mind to determine that. This study was thorough and clinically run, but after measuring six major cognitive performance aspects (executive function, attention and focus, inspiration, perceived stress, work engagement, and mindfulness) as well as self-reported sleep quality, immune health, productivity, and mood, researchers found that there was little difference between Qualia Mind and a placebo.

Generally, Qualia Mind isn’t going to be the best option for someone who’s just getting started with nootropics. If you don’t mind taking a lot of pills and are looking for a generalized nootropic with focus- and attention-boosting potential but are sensitive to high ingredient doses, Qualia Mind may be a good fit for you.

Learn more about Qualia Mind’s ingredients in depth in our full review.

Qualia offers steep sales on all products when you start a subscription program. You can save $100 by ordering Qualia Mind as a subscription once and then canceling your subscription rather than purchasing a single bottle one time.

Here’s a closer look at Qualia’s nootropic lineup:

The company used to offer free shipping on most orders but now charges either $7.98 for standard shipping (3-5 days) or $12.98 for priority shipping (2-3 days) only to a restricted list of English-speaking countries. Or, if you order from a third party, you’re more likely to get a now-extinct product called Qualia Mind Essentials, which comes in smaller sizes and has a shorter ingredient list. For the greatest chance of effectiveness, we recommend purchasing from the Qualia website specifically.

Qualia has one of the longest money-back guarantees in its category, offering users 100 days to see if the product works (and you’ll still get a refund if you open the bottle and test it). But a closer look reveals downsides here:

• The refund will only apply to your initial order or the most recent order within a subscription. You could start a subscription and ask for a refund on day 99, but you’ll only get a refund for whatever was part of that last month’s order.
• Your entire household will only be eligible once. This means you won’t be able to access a refund if someone in your household happened to try Qualia Mind in the past and returned it.

Focus Factor Original

Focus Factor offers a wide range of relatively inexpensive nootropic products — drinks, gummies, pills, and more — mixed with ingredients like vitamins, minerals, and electrolytes. Though the brand’s Original formula is available at an impressively low price for a nootropic, we no longer recommend this product due to the use of risky ingredients like vinpocetine (which is particularly harmful for those who are pregnant or nursing) and huperzine A (which can lead to acetylcholine toxicity).70 77

The proprietary blend of nootropics in Focus Factor Original is fairly small, at only 640mg total, but ingredients like huperzine A can pose significant risks at relatively low doses. On the plus side, the product is uncaffeinated and it does include a wide range of well-dosed vitamins and minerals. Though we aren’t fans of the vinpocetine and huperzine A content — and we recommend caution if you do decide to try Focus Factor Original — this nootropic could be an option for those looking for a multivitamin with nootropic ingredients.

Focus Factor Original is available in bottles of 60, 90, and 150 tablets as a one-time purchase or a “flexible plan” (subscription). Since each serving is four tablets, that means you can get either 15, 22.5, or 37.5 servings, respectively. Because of the strange half-serving situation with the 90- and 150-count bottles, it may be better to stick with either the 60-count option. Additionally, Focus Factor Original can be purchased as a single bottle, 3-pack, or a 6-pack, the latter two of which can reduce your cost per bottle. Here’s how the pricing breaks down:

You can learn more about Focus Factor in our full review.

Momentous Focus & Cognition Stack

Momentous combines three of its products into its Focus and Cognition Stack. Each product contains one core ingredient: omega-3 fatty acids, Aplha-GPC, and L-tyrosine. Alone, research supports each ingredient for focus and cognition, and it makes sense to provide them in separate containers; omega-3s from fish oil are best delivered as softgels, which wouldn't work as well for the other two ingredients.

The major drawback to Momentous' stack is that it's pricey for just three key ingredients. Innerbody Labs and Revive provide hefty doses of Cognizin citicoline and L-tyrosine alongside 13 and 10 other ingredients, respectively. Granted, none of them are fish oil, but you can add a good fish oil supplement to that regimen without spending too much.

Here's how Momentous prices its Focus & Cognition Stack, which it delivers in a 60-day supply (we'll break it down monthly to make it easier to compare with competitors):

Shipping is free from Momentous on all U.S. orders over $75, which is less than the cost of this stack as a one-time purchase or subscription. The company also provides a 30-day money-back guarantee.

Codeage Brain Focus Vitamins+

Codeage uses a bit of a misnomer for its cognition supplement, as Brain Focus Vitamins+ only contains one vitamin — B12. So, that little plus sign is doing a lot of heavy lifting. Fortunately, its non-vitamin components include some reliable cognition enhancers, including a 500mg dose of Cognizin citicoline.

Unfortunately, ingredients and doses lose their luster after that. The 100mg dose of phosphatidylserine may provide some benefit, and the 25mg of Sceletium tortuosum extract is in line with many studies. But the inclusions of ginseng, resveratrol, and gotu kola all leave something to be desired. Some lack enough human data to be recommendable, and others just aren't dosed highly enough to matter.

Ultimately, you could spend about the same amount of money to purchase a bottle of Revive Brain+ on a subscription basis and get a larger list of better ingredients at higher doses.

Here's a quick look at the pricing for reference:

• One-time purchase: $55
• Subscription: $46.74

Either order format ships for free, and Codeage offers a 30-day money-back guarantee.

Thorne SynaQuell

Unlike most of the other supplements referenced in our guide, Thorne's SynaQuell is a powdered drink mix. This is necessary due to some of its higher doses, including a 2.5g dose of branched-chain amino acids (BCAAs). Delivered in capsule form, it would likely require you to take at least six large capsules per dose. As a drink, it's easier to take, and some ingredients may prove more bioavailable that way.

It's not a terrible formula, as it includes numerous potentially effective ingredients. But certain components are dosed on the very low end of what's been successful in research, meaning they might not be effective for as many people. These include things like nicotinamide riboside and glutathione. Even the BCAA dose is on the low side.

Thorne also sells a stronger version of SynaQuell called SynaQuell+, which increases the doses of most ingredients and adds a few more to go with it. It definitely has more potential than standard SynaQuell, but it also costs nearly twice as much while delivering half as many doses.

Here's a look at the pricing:

Fortunately for Thorne, it ships its orders for free and offers a 60-day money-back guarantee. So, whichever SynaQuell you want to try, you could take all of your first shipment before deciding whether you want a refund.

Notable Focus

Sometimes, we're left wondering whether a company fully reads the studies on which they base parts of their formulas. In Notable's case, the formula seems informed in part by willful ignorance, wishful thinking, or, more rarely, sound science.

Here's a quick breakdown, per ingredient, of what we mean:

• Sabroxy Oroxylum indicum bark extract: Notable offers 500mg when, upon closer examination of prominent, successful studies in humans, the clinically relevant dose is 500mg twice daily (for a daily total of 1,000mg).112
• enXtra Alpinia galanga extract: Notable delivers 300mg, the low end of a clinical range running from 300mg up to 500mg in studies.113 114
• Polygala tenuifolia root extract: Limited human studies support a 300mg dose, three times the 100mg delivered here.115
• L-Theanine: 100mg is on the low end of a typical 100-200mg dose, but it should still be effective at mitigating stress toward improved focus.116
• Ginkog biloba extract: There is a lot of conflicting research here, but most studies rely on higher doses than the paltry 80mg seen here, typically between 120mg and 240mg.117

So, out of five ingredients, two are delivered at the low end of potentially effective doses, while the other three are underdosed by as much as 66% compared to effective amounts used in clinical studies.

We don't think that's quite worth $60/month (or even $50 if you subscribe).

Your brain is the control center of the rest of your body, but there’s a two-way connection. What you eat, how you sleep, and hundreds of other small decisions influence how well your brain works. Not every factor is something you can control — as much as we might like to, there’s no stopping aging — but there are still plenty of things you can control. Improving other areas of your health will also often improve your daily cognitive functioning.

Generally, we first recommend checking in on your daily habits. For instance, are you sleeping and eating enough? Are you getting time outside? Do you exercise? If you're otherwise healthy, making lifestyle changes can lead to improved cognition. Adding supplements like vitamins, minerals, and individual nootropic ingredients is also a good bet if you’re struggling without an identifiable cause — especially B and D vitamins, omega-3s, and ashwagandha. And if things don’t get better with nootropics, lifestyle changes, and other vitamins, we encourage you to reach out to your doctor. There may be a more serious underlying cause, and they’ll be able to point you in the right direction.

Other supplements

Many of the individual ingredients in nootropics can be purchased on their own as supplements, like ashwagandha, ginseng, vitamins, and minerals, if you’re curious about how a particular supplement works but don’t want to commit to the full ingredient roster (or price) of a nootropic supplement. However, there are a few other kinds of supplements that improve common complaints also addressed by nootropics.

For anxiety and depression

The best ingredients for anxiety and depression in a nootropic supplement are easy to find on their own. Ashwagandha and saffron are likely to be your best bets, as they have some of the most reliable clinical backings for stress relief and routinely top our guides for things like stress or cortisol relief.

You may also find success with a GABA supplement, particularly if you struggle with anxiety. However, if you have low blood pressure, you shouldn’t take a GABA supplement. GABA effectively lowers blood pressure, which is situationally great (high anxiety can raise blood pressure, even if you don’t have hypertension), but it can be dangerous if your blood pressure is low at the outset. We think Thorne’s PharmaGABA is the best GABA supplement on the market because of its high efficacy and flexibility. It comes in two doses: 100mg, which will be better for low-level anxiety, and 250mg, which will be better for more moderate anxiety and insomnia.

There aren’t as many non-prescription options for depression as there are for anxiety, and most of them that do exist have some serious problems. 5-HTP, a precursor to serotonin, is one of the bigger names you’ll see, but we hesitate to recommend it because 5-HTP can be toxic, causing serotonin syndrome in high doses. Most studies seem to agree that 5-HTP can alleviate depression symptoms, but these studies are also small.

If you’re struggling with depression, don’t be afraid to reach out to your primary care provider. Most general practitioners will write prescriptions for common SSRI antidepressants like Zoloft, Prozac, and Celexa, so you don’t have to wait for a psychiatrist appointment.

Lifestyle changes

We know: this is the last thing you want to hear. But it’s always worth re-examining your daily routine to find ways you can naturally improve factors that impact cognition. These steps may make a bigger difference for some people than others — it may be more practical to fix your sleep cycle as a college junior than as a new parent — but it’s always going to be faster, safer, and generally better to try making lifestyle changes first.

See a doctor

Whether you’re struggling with mild depression or the signs of early dementia, nootropics might help, but they aren’t a cure. We always recommend talking to a doctor before trying any supplements, especially nootropics, as there may be an underlying cause for your brain fog that needs to be professionally treated.

Depending on your experiences, you may be given:

• Stimulants like Adderall or Ritalin
• Dopaminergic medications like L-dopa
• Antidepressants like Paxil
• Anti-anxiety medications like Xanax
• Sleep medications like Ambien

It can be difficult to identify the root cause of cognitive issues because it’s a symptom of hundreds of different conditions, so checking in with a medical professional might help you catch something like hypothyroidism or anemia or, more seriously, something like MS or early-onset Alzheimer’s. You could also be experiencing a vitamin B12 deficiency, depression, or long COVID. A doctor will be able to look at your particular cognitive struggles and give you tests to identify the specific underlying problem. (Again, a nootropic supplement cannot, and will not ever, give a diagnosis, nor will it cure or prevent medical concerns.)