Crazy Nutrition Mass Gainer (Chocolate) Review
#5 of 8 · Best lean gainer✓ Label verified · Supplement Facts read Sep 7, 2026Real retailer photo, cut out. Label unedited.
Consider it. A lighter, easier-digesting 'lean gainer' with oat-led carbs and low sugar — but the worst value per calorie on the list, and sucralose-sweetened. ~488 kcal, 40 g protein, gluten-free oat flour-led carbs and only ~8 g sugar, plus a DigeZyme enzyme complex and MCTs for easier digestion — a controlled lean-bulk tool rather than a calorie bomb.
$90$4.50 / serving ($0.92 / 100 kcal)
Why It Scores 7.2 — And The Label Line Behind Each Number
Carb ratio & carb quality
30% of scoreBetter than the maltodextrin bombs but not top-tier. The carbs lead with gluten-free oat flour — a genuine whole-food-leaning base — with only ~8 g of sugar and ~6 g of fiber, which is clean. But maltodextrin is still in the blend behind the oats, so it's a partial whole-food profile rather than the fully whole-food carbs of the top two picks.
Calorie & protein density
25% of scoreDeliberately moderate. At ~488 calories and 40 g of protein it's a lean-gainer dose — enough for a controlled surplus but well short of the 1,200-calorie bombs, and the 40 g protein sits at the lower edge of the ideal window. Fine for a slow lean bulk; underpowered if you need a large single-shake surplus.
- Protein
- 40 g (whey concentrate + milk protein concentrate)
Ingredient quality
20% of scoreThe lowest ingredient-quality score on the list, on a genuinely mixed profile. Pluses: DigeZyme digestive enzymes, MCT oil, added B6/B12, zinc and magnesium, and a whey-plus-milk-protein-concentrate blend. Minuses: it's sweetened with artificial sucralose, it's dairy-based (not vegan), and there's no creatine. The sucralose and missing creatine are what hold it down.
Value per calorie
15% of scoreThe worst raw value on the list — at roughly $0.92 per 100 kcal it's the most expensive tub per calorie of the eight, on a premium sticker price. It scores as high as it does only because value is judged against what you get (a lean, gut-friendly formula), but as pure calories it's poor value and we don't hide that.
- Price
- $90 / 2.5 kg tub ≈ $4.50 per serving ($0.92 / 100 kcal)
Mixability & taste
10% of scoreDecent. A moderate ~125 g serving mixes more easily than the seven-scoop bombs, and the sucralose sweetening makes the Chocolate flavor palatable. It's not a standout on taste, but the smaller serving and DigeZyme enzymes make it one of the easier gainers here to actually get down.
- More Specs
- Calories
- ~488 kcal per serving (~125 g)
- Carbs / Sugar
- 55 g total / ~8 g sugar, ~6 g fiber
- Carb source
- Gluten-free oat flour (lead) + maltodextrin
- Digestion
- DigeZyme digestive enzyme complex + MCT oil
- Micronutrients
- Added B6, B12, zinc, magnesium
- Sweetener
- Sucralose (artificial); no creatine; dairy-based
Label verified. Every figure read from the Supplement Facts photo, Sep 7, 2026.
Marketing Claims Vs. Reality
A lean gainer for controlled, quality calories.
At ~488 kcal with oat-flour-led carbs and only ~8 g of sugar, the label supports the 'lean gainer' framing — a moderate, controlled surplus rather than a 1,200-calorie bomb. The positioning is accurate and matches the nutrition panel.
Oat-flour-led carbs with low sugar.
Gluten-free oat flour does lead the carb blend and sugar is low at ~8 g, both verifiable and genuinely cleaner than the maltodextrin tubs. But maltodextrin remains in the blend behind the oats, so it's a partial whole-food carb source, not a fully whole-food one like the top picks.
DigeZyme enzymes make it easier to digest.
DigeZyme is a real, branded multi-enzyme complex and its inclusion is verifiable; enzymes can plausibly aid comfort with a heavy shake. But digestion-comfort benefits are individual and not a proven muscle or absorption advantage, so the claim is reasonable but not strongly evidenced — treat it as a comfort feature, not a performance one.
A clean, premium gainer.
It's cleaner than the maltodextrin bombs on sugar and carb source, but it's sweetened with artificial sucralose and contains no creatine, so 'clean/premium' is only partly earned. The premium price is real; the 'clean' label is fair on sugar but undercut by the artificial sweetener.
Supports muscle growth.
The 40 g of protein supports muscle protein synthesis (Moore 2009, PMID 19056590), but growth requires a sustained surplus plus resistance training (Slater 2019, PMID 31482093). At ~488 kcal it supplies only a modest surplus, so the muscle-growth claim is conditional on training and eating enough overall.
What Our Test Actually Found
A lean gainer, by design — not a calorie bomb
At ~488 calories, this is built for a controlled lean bulk rather than a 1,200-calorie dump. If you want to add a modest, manageable surplus — say for a slow, lower-fat gaining phase — the moderate serving and oat-led carbs fit that goal better than a bulk tub. It's a genuinely different tool from the rest of the high-calorie list.
The cleaner carb base is real — but so is the sucralose
The carbs lead with gluten-free oat flour and sugar is only ~8 g, which is genuinely cleaner than the maltodextrin bombs. But it's sweetened with artificial sucralose, which undercuts the 'clean' positioning for anyone avoiding artificial sweeteners. It's cleaner on sugar, not cleaner on additives.
The worst value per calorie on the entire list
This is the honest headline against it: at roughly $0.92 per 100 kcal on a $90 tub, it's the most expensive calories of the eight — more than double ON or Naked Mass. A gainer's core job is supplying calories, and this one supplies them least efficiently. If value as pure calories matters at all, this is the wrong pick.
Digestion features and micros — but no creatine
The DigeZyme enzyme complex, MCT oil, and added B6/B12, zinc and magnesium are genuine comfort-and-micronutrient extras that help a heavy shake sit easier. But there's no creatine, so if you want it you'll add 3-5 g of monohydrate separately (Kreider 2017), on top of an already-premium tub.
Full analysis: all pros & cons (7), buy if / skip if
- Oat-flour-led carbs with only ~8 g sugar — a cleaner carb base than the maltodextrin bombs
- Moderate ~488 calories suits a controlled lean bulk rather than rapid mass
- DigeZyme enzyme complex and MCTs make a heavy shake sit easier
- Added B6, B12, zinc and magnesium
- Smaller serving mixes more easily than the seven-scoop bulk tubs
- Most expensive per calorie of any tub here (~$0.92/100 kcal) on a premium sticker price
- Sweetened with artificial sucralose; no creatine; dairy-based (not vegan)
- You want a controlled lean bulk, not a 1,200-calorie single-shake bomb
- You want oat-flour-led carbs and low sugar (~8 g) in a moderate serving
- You value the DigeZyme enzyme complex and MCTs for easier digestion
- You're willing to pay a premium per calorie for a lighter gainer
- You want good value as pure calories — it's the most expensive tub per calorie here
- You avoid artificial sweeteners (it's sucralose-sweetened) or want built-in creatine
~488 kcal, 40 g protein, gluten-free oat flour-led carbs and only ~8 g sugar, plus a DigeZyme enzyme complex and MCTs for easier digestion — a controlled lean-bulk tool rather than a calorie bomb. The catches: it's the most expensive tub per calorie here (~$0.92/100 kcal), it's sweetened with artificial sucralose, and there's no creatine. Buy it only if you specifically want a lighter, gut-friendly gainer for a slow bulk and don't mind paying a premium.
Crazy Nutrition Mass Gainer is the lean gainer of the group. At about 488 calories a serving it's built for adding a controlled surplus rather than dumping 1,200 calories at once, and its carbs lead with gluten-free oat flour for a cleaner base and only around 8 g of sugar. A DigeZyme enzyme blend and MCTs help it sit easier than the heavy bulk tubs. The honest reasons it ranks low: it's the priciest tub per calorie on the entire list, it's sweetened with artificial sucralose, and there's no creatine. If you specifically want a lighter, easier-digesting gainer for a slow lean bulk and don't mind paying for it, it has a real niche — but as pure calories it's poor value.
A genuine lean-gainer niche — cleaner and gentler than the bombs, but the worst value per calorie on the list.
Crazy Nutrition Mass Gainer is the lean gainer of the group, and for the right buyer that's a real niche. At ~488 calories it's built for a controlled surplus rather than a 1,200-calorie dump, its carbs lead with gluten-free oat flour for a cleaner base with only ~8 g of sugar, and the DigeZyme enzymes and MCTs make it sit easier than the heavy tubs. For a slow, lower-fat lean bulk, that's a sensible profile. But it ranks near the bottom on honest grounds. It's the most expensive tub per calorie on the entire list — more than double ON or Naked Mass — it's sweetened with artificial sucralose, and there's no creatine. A gainer's core job is supplying calories, and this one does that least efficiently. Buy it only if you specifically want a lighter, gut-friendly gainer for a controlled bulk and are willing to pay the premium. If you want value, or a full bulk dose, or clean whole-food carbs without sucralose, better picks sit above it.
If This Doesn’t Fit — Try These
02ON Serious Mass
Serious Mass is the category's default for a reason — it's the cheapest way to add real calories, at roughly six cents per 100, from a brand you can trust, with 50 g of protein, 25 vitamins and minerals and 3 g of creatine in the tub.
015% Nutrition Real Carbs + Protein
Real Carbs + Protein is the honest hardgainer's pick: instead of chasing a giant calorie headline with maltodextrin and sugar, it's a clean whole-food meal you control the size of.
03Dymatize Super Mass Gainer
Super Mass Gainer is essentially ON Serious Mass's closest rival, and on raw numbers it edges ahead — 1,280 calories and 52 g of a genuinely good whey-isolate-and-casein blend with 10.7 g of BCAAs, and it's frequently the cheapest tub per calorie on the whole list.
Quick Answers
What's a 'lean gainer' and is it right for me?
A lean gainer supplies a smaller surplus — here ~488 calories rather than 1,200+ — so you gain more slowly with less fat. It suits someone who wants controlled, higher-quality weight gain rather than rapid mass, or who eats reasonably well already and just needs a modest top-up. If you're a true hardgainer who can't eat enough, a lean gainer may be too little, and a bulk tub or a DIY shake makes more sense.
Why is it ranked last among the whole-food-leaning picks?
Two reasons: it's the most expensive tub per calorie on the entire list (~$0.92/100 kcal, more than double ON or Naked Mass), and it's sweetened with artificial sucralose with no creatine. Its oat-led carbs and low sugar are genuinely good, but a gainer's core job is efficient calories, and on that it's the weakest value here, which drags the overall score down.
Is the sucralose a problem?
That's a personal call. Sucralose is a widely used artificial sweetener that's generally considered safe, but it undercuts the 'clean' positioning if you're specifically trying to avoid artificial sweeteners. If you want low sugar without sucralose, the top two picks (Transparent Labs and 5% Nutrition) use stevia/monk fruit or minimal formulations instead.
Does it have creatine?
No. You'd add 3-5 g of monohydrate separately, which is the effective dose per the ISSN position stand (Kreider 2017). Given the already-premium price, factor a cheap creatine tub into the total if creatine is part of your plan.
Sources & Further Reading
3 peer-reviewed sources, each linked to PubMed
- [1] Slater 2019 PMID 31482093 — Is an energy surplus required to maximize skeletal muscle hypertrophy associated with resistance training. A modest, individualized surplus supports hypertrophy while a large one adds fat. This tub's ~488 kcal is a deliberately small surplus — well-suited to a controlled lean bulk, which is exactly its stated purpose.
- [2] Morton 2018 PMID 28698222 — A systematic review, meta-analysis and meta-regression of the effect of protein supplementation on resistance training-induced gains in muscle mass and strength in healthy adults. Protein supplementation aids gains up to ~1.6 g/kg/day. The 40 g dose is a solid per-serving contribution toward that daily target, adequate for a lean bulk even at moderate calories.
- [3] Moore 2009 PMID 19056590 — Ingested protein dose response of muscle and albumin protein synthesis after resistance exercise in young men. Muscle protein synthesis was near-maximally stimulated around 20 g of high-quality protein per serving. At 40 g per scoop this tub clears the per-serving threshold that drives muscle protein synthesis with room to spare.
Affiliate disclosure: every Amazon link uses our Associates tag (superachieverclub-20). We earn a small commission at no cost to you; it funds independent reviews. We never accept payment to change a ranking.