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5 Effective Creatine Powders for Building Muscle
Discover 2024’s elite creatine powders for serious gains, rapid recovery, and next-level workout performance.
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For decades, creatine has been a fitness staple for professional athletes who want to reach peak physical performance quickly and effectively.
But you don’t need to play professional football to reap creatine’s benefits. In fact, creatine can help virtually anyone looking to support muscle growth, strength, and power.
Discover what highly effective creatine supplements all have in common and how to make an informed buying decision. Plus, find out which 5 creatine powders topped our list in terms of quality, price, and effectiveness.
Benefits of a High-Quality Creatine Powder
Promotes Muscle Synthesis
Creatine stimulates the growth of new muscle proteins, helping muscles to rebuild after strength training exercises.
Supports Cellular Energy
Creatine encourages the creation of ATP, your cells’ main energy source. This serves as a universal energy source for a variety of important functions in your body.
Reinforces Athletic Performance
The availability of ATP primes your body to release these bursts of energy when you need it most — namely during short, intense bursts of activity.
Aids Post-Workout Recovery
Creatine has been shown to increase the rate at which muscles use glycogen. This is essential for replenishing ATP stores and providing the energy needed for muscle recovery after exercise.
Enhanced Cognition
Studies show that creatine has positive effects on memory and intelligence metrics.
Why is Creatine So Important?
Creatine is a naturally derived compound found in small amounts in certain foods such as meat and fish.
Your muscles store creatine, which encourages the rapid regeneration of adenosine triphosphate (ATP), a vital energy source, and then releases it during high-intensity exercises like weight lifting, sprinting, and HIIT sessions.
These powerful energy bursts help give you the push you need to perform more reps and longer sprints for maximized strength and endurance.
However, you need a certain amount creatine to get all of its performance-enhancing benefits, which can be difficult to get through diet alone. This is especially true if you’re a vegetarian or don't regularly consume creatine-containing foods.
This makes creatine supplementation an effective and attractive solution for many people. But not just any supplement will do. Of all the different types of creatine on the market today, few are as revered as creatine monohydrate.
What Makes Creatine Monohydrate Special?
Creatine monohydrate is a simple compound, composed of one creatine molecule and one water molecule. This simple composition makes it ideal for easy absorption.
It is also one of the most well-researched and widely used forms of supplemental creatine on the planet and many sources agree that its benefits for strength training, endurance, and muscle recovery are undeniable.
Why Your Creatine Should Be Micronized
If you want to get the most bang for your buck, we recommend opting for a micronized version of creatine monohydrate.
Micronization is a mechanical process that helps prevent creatine compounds from bunching together, resulting in a fine powder that is easily dissolved and doesn’t leave behind a gritty texture.
Creatine Must Haves
Micronized Creatine Monohydrate
Micronized creatine monohydrate dissolves quickly and efficiently without leaving behind a gritty residue.
Powdered Formula
There are different ways to take creatine, from pressed pills to liquid formulas. Pills can be harder to break down in the body and liquid formulas are less stable. Creatine powder is the most consistent for absorption and effectiveness.
5 Gram Serving Size
The ideal daily dosage of creatine is 5 grams. This amount is scientifically recognized to help effectively saturate your muscles with creatine over time, which can help improve exercise performance, increase strength, and support muscle recovery.
What to Avoid
Creatine Ethyl Ester
Creatine ethyl ester is less stable than creatine monohydrate, and it may convert to creatinine (a waste product) more rapidly in the body, potentially reducing its effectiveness.
Despite claims of better absorption, research has suggested that creatine ethyl ester may not be absorbed as efficiently as creatine monohydrate.
Creatine monohydrate, on the other hand, has consistently demonstrated safety and efficacy in research.
Buffered Creatine
Buffered creatine is marketed as having a higher pH, which some sources claim reduces the conversion of creatine to creatinine.
However, there is limited scientific evidence to support the superiority of buffered creatine vs. creatine monohydrate. Additionally, buffered creatine supplements are often more expensive than creatine monohydrate.
Artificial Sweeteners
Artificial sweeteners are commonly added to creatine supplements to improve their taste without adding extra calories.
However, some artificial sweeteners like aspartame and sucralose have been linked to gut health issues like bloating and gas in some people, which can be especially uncomfortable during exercise.
We encourage simple, effective formulas. A high-quality creatine should stand alone on the ingredient list.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much creatine should I take?
For most people, a 5-gram daily dose of creatine is considered the safe and effective amount needed to saturate muscle creatine stores over time in order to maximize muscle-building support and athletic performance.
Do I need a loading phase with creatine?
There’s a buzz around loading your body with more creatine in the early stages. This phase aims to saturate the muscles with creatine quickly, but there’s really no need for a loading phase. Consistent daily intake has been shown to provide optimal results over time.
Should I cycle creatine?
Creatine cycling refers to the practice of alternating between periods of taking creatine and times of abstaining from it.
Cycling prevents the body from relying on external creatine sources, so it continues to work at its best over time. However, there isn't a strong scientific consensus on the necessity of cycling.
In fact, research suggests that long-term, continuous supplementation is perfectly effective. Some people may have success with cycling, but ultimately, the choice is up to you.
Top 5 Creatine Powders Of 2024
Below are the top 5 highest-ranked supplements for muscle growth of 2024.
1. Micronized Creatine Monohydrate
Owned by the Smarter Reviews Group of Companies
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Total Ranking
9.7/10
A+
Overall Grade
PROS
- Creatine monohydrate
- Micronized
- 5g / serving
- Powder formula
- Free of artificial sweeteners
- Good Manufacturing Practices
- Made in USA with global ingredients
- 365-day money-back guarantee
- Non-GMO
CONS
- Exclusively sold online
The Bottom Line
Essential elements Micronized Creatine Monohydrate contains 5 grams of powdered, micronized creatine monohydrate to ensure peak athletic performance and muscle-building support.
Our formula is also gluten-free, non-GMO, unflavored, and free of additives and artificial sweeteners.
All Essential elements products are manufactured in GMP-compliant facilities to ensure quality and consistency and are backed with an ironclad, 365-day money-back guarantee in case you don’t love them.
*Results do not necessarily reflect typical results from the use of these products. Please visit product websites for more information.
Learn More2. Creatine
Total Ranking
9.5/10
A
Overall Grade
PROS
- Creatine monohydrate
- Micronized
- 5g / serving
- Powder formula
- NSF certified
- Good Manufacturing Practices
- Made in USA with global ingredient
CONS
- High price point
The Bottom Line
Thorne is a reputable company within the world of sports nutrition, and their creatine lives up to their rigorous standards.
Their micronized creatine powder is a straightforward choice for maximum absorption. It’s unflavored, odorless, and offers 5 grams per serving. In addition, they’re certified by a reputable third-party board, the National Sanitation Foundation (NSF).
Thorne comes with a higher price point than others on our list, but they offer a 60-day return policy.
*Results do not necessarily reflect typical results from the use of these products. Please visit product websites for more information.
Learn More3. Creatine Monohydrate
Total Ranking
8.9/10
B+
Overall Grade
PROS
- Creatine monohydrate
- Micronized
- 5g / serving
- Powder formula
- Free of artificial sweeteners
- Good Manufacturing Practices
CONS
- 30-day limited return policy
The Bottom Line
Bulk Supplements monohydrate creatine powder is another micronized creatine powder for maximum absorption. They also value a single ingredient formula in 5g servings.
Bulk’s creatine powder is unflavored and free of additives.
They have the GMP stamp of approval, but we’d like a better return policy, as they only offer partial refunds on opened products.
*Results do not necessarily reflect typical results from the use of these products. Please visit product websites for more information.
4. Micronized Creatine
Total Ranking
8.2/10
B
Overall Grade
PROS
- Creatine monohydrate
- Micronized
- 5g / serving
- Powder formula
- Free of artificial sweeteners
- Good Manufacturing Practices
- Made in USA with global ingredients
- Non-GMO
CONS
- Limited 30-day return policy
The Bottom Line
Optimum Nutrition has another great creatine powder. Their single-ingredient monohydrate creatine powder has the optimal 5g serving for maximum strength and muscle-building benefits.
Their powder is unflavored, non-GMO, and manufactured in a GMP-certified facility.
However, Optimum Nutrition’s return policy is limited to only 30 days. Still, they’re a reputable company that cares about quality.
*Results do not necessarily reflect typical results from the use of these products. Please visit product websites for more information.
Learn More5. Creatine
Total Ranking
7.9/10
B-
Overall Grade
PROS
- Creatine monohydrate
- Micronized
- 5g / serving
- Powder formula
- Free of artificial sweeteners
- Good Manufacturing Practices
- Made in USA
- Non-GMO
CONS
- Limited 14-day return policy
The Bottom Line
Naked Creatine is a single ingredient monohydrate creatine powder. Naked also uses a heavily researched form of creatine in 5g servings for effectiveness and absorbability.
Their product is also made in a GMP-certified facility for consistency and quality assurance.
We’re impressed with Naked Creatine’s competitive price point. However, we believe Naked has some room to improve its return policy, which as of the writing of this guide, is only 14 days and only for unopened products.
*Results do not necessarily reflect typical results from the use of these products. Please visit product websites for more information.
Learn MoreDisclaimer:
Smarter Reviews is owned and operated by the same company that owns certain products featured on this website, including the products ranked number one.
In addition, we receive compensation from certain companies whose products are featured on this website when you purchase a product using the links on this website.
Go back to pageWith Research From
Sources used for research purposes. Smarter-Reviews.com are not officially affiliated with these sites.
What You Will Learn:
Estimated Read Time 5 Minutes
Benefits of a Quality Creatine Powder
Citations
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- Rae, C., Digney, A. L., McEwan, S. R., & Bates, T. C. (2003). Oral creatine monohydrate supplementation improves brain performance: a double-blind, placebo-controlled, cross-over trial. Proceedings. Biological sciences, 270(1529), 2147–2150. https://doi.org/10.1098/rspb.2003.2492.