Reviewed
Verified by SAC team
+20
XP on completion
Cheapest Per Capsule
Carlyle

Carlyle Tart Cherry Capsules 200 (Max Potency) Review

Carlyle's 200-count 'Max Potency' bottle is the cheapest way to put tart cherry in your routine, and for a strictly budget-minded buyer that has a place. But cheap has costs here: it's a 4:1 extract dressed up as a 6,000 mg serving, there's no standardized anthocyanin content, and testing transparency is limited to a Non-GMO claim. It'll deliver some cherry polyphenols daily, and that's not nothing, but you're trading the concentration and quality assurance of the higher picks for price. It ranks near the bottom because value can never buy its way past standardization and testing on our method.

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Read the complete Tart Cherry guide →
▸ THE SCORE

How we built the SAC Product Score™5.8/10

Form & Bioavailability25%5.5/10

Standard capsule with a 4:1 extract; lower concentration means fewer anthocyanins per serving than the 10:1 picks.

Standardization & Dose25%5.5/10

The 6,000 mg is a 4:1 raw equivalent with no anthocyanin standardization and minimal published potency data.

Third-Party Testing20%5/10

Non-GMO claim only; no published third-party certificate, sport certification, or contaminant data.

Tolerability & Safety15%6.5/10

Well tolerated as a simple cherry capsule; no sugar or stimulants.

Value15%7/10

~$13.99 for 200 capsules is the lowest cost per capsule here, its one genuine strength.

▸ SPECS

The product at a glance

Form
Capsule (4:1 extract)
Dose
6,000 mg raw equivalent/serving
Count
200 capsules
Standardization
4:1 extract; not standardized
Testing
Non-GMO
Cost per dose
~$0.07 per capsule
▸ TRUTH CHECK

Marketing claims vs. reality

Verified

Lowest cost per capsule of any pick here

At ~$13.99 for 200 capsules (~$0.07 each), it is the cheapest per-unit option on this list.

Partial

'Max Potency' 6,000 mg serving

The 6,000 mg is a 4:1 raw-cherry equivalent, not a high standardized dose; 'Max Potency' is marketing language, not a verified concentration advantage.

Not verified

Provides clinically effective anti-inflammatory dosing

With a weaker 4:1 extract, no anthocyanin standardization and no product-specific testing, there's no basis to claim it reaches a clinically studied dose.

▸ THE DEEP DIVE

What our test actually found

01Price is the only real selling point

At seven cents a capsule it's genuinely cheap, but the 4:1 ratio and absent testing mean you get what you pay for in concentration and assurance.

02'Max Potency' is a label, not a spec

The phrase carries no standardization behind it. Don't read it as stronger than the 10:1 extracts, which it isn't.

▸ THE TRADE-OFFS

Pros & cons, no sugar-coating

Pros
  • Cheapest cost per capsule on the list
  • High 200-count for a long budget supply
  • Simple, sugar-free daily cherry capsule
  • Widely available from a mainstream budget brand
Cons
  • Weaker 4:1 extract with no standardized anthocyanin content
  • Minimal testing transparency (Non-GMO claim only)
▸ THE BOTTOM LINE

For price-first buyers only

Carlyle makes sense if the lowest possible price is your deciding factor and you accept the weaker extract and thin testing. Anyone wanting real concentration or quality assurance should spend a little more on the 10:1 Zazzee or the studied Sports Research softgel.

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▸ ALTERNATIVES

If this doesn’t fit — try these

▸ RESEARCH

Sources & further reading

  1. Kelley DS, et al. Nutrients. 2018;10(3):368.Kelley DS, Adkins Y, Laugero KD · 2018 · Nutrients · PMID 29562604

    A Review of the Health Benefits of Cherries

    Health effects of cherry depend on anthocyanin dose; low-concentration products may not reach studied intakes.

  2. Connolly DA, et al. Br J Sports Med. 2006;40(8):679-83.Connolly DAJ, McHugh MP, Padilla-Zakour OI, et al. · 2006 · British Journal of Sports Medicine · PMID 16790484

    Efficacy of a tart cherry juice blend in preventing the symptoms of muscle damage

    Tart cherry reduced strength loss and soreness after muscle-damaging exercise at a substantial cherry dose.