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Dymatize Super Mass Gainer (Gourmet Vanilla) — product image
Most Calories Per Scoop (Whey Blend)
Dymatize · Super Mass Gainer · powder · 12 lb / 16 servings

Dymatize Super Mass Gainer (Gourmet Vanilla) Review

Dymatize Super Mass Gainer is essentially Optimum Nutrition Serious Mass's closest rival, and on raw numbers it edges ahead — 1,280 calories and 52 g of a genuinely good whey-concentrate, whey-isolate and casein blend with 10.7 g of BCAAs, and it's frequently the cheapest tub per calorie on the whole list. Mixability and the Gourmet Vanilla flavor are strong. It sits one rung below ON only on the extras: the creatine is a token 1 g rather than an effective dose, and ON's broader vitamin panel and best-seller value edge it out. The core caveat is identical, though — the carbohydrate is maltodextrin and there's about 26 g of sugar a serving. It's a fine high-calorie, high-protein tub for someone who wants maximum macros per scoop and isn't bothered by the sugar.

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▸ THE SCORE

How we built the SAC Product Score™7.6/10

Carb ratio & carb quality30%6.9/10

The lowest-scoring axis, tied with MuscleTech for the worst carb quality here. The carbohydrate is maltodextrin with about 26 g of added sugar per serving — the same refined-starch-plus-sugar template the ranking penalizes heaviest. It's marginally better than ON's ~31 g of sugar, which is why it isn't lower still, but this is a sugar-bomb carb profile.

Calorie & protein density25%8.2/10

The strongest axis and the badge here. At 1,280 calories and 52 g of protein per serving, it has the highest per-scoop macros of any mainstream tub on the list, with the protein at the top of the ideal window. If your metric is maximum calories and protein per scoop, this leads the pack.

Ingredient quality20%7.7/10

A genuinely good protein blend — whey concentrate, whey isolate and casein with 10.7 g of naturally occurring BCAAs and 14 essential vitamins and minerals — held back by the maltodextrin carb base and a token 1 g of creatine, well short of the effective 3-5 g (Kreider 2017). The protein is a real strength; the carbs and creatine are not.

Value per calorie15%7.7/10

Excellent — at roughly $0.27 per 100 kcal it's frequently the cheapest tub per calorie on the entire list, edging even ON Serious Mass. On the honest cost-per-100-kcal metric it's near the top; we credit that cheap-calorie value even as we dock it on carb quality.

Mixability & taste10%7.7/10

A strength. The two-scoop serving mixes cleanly for a 1,280-calorie shake, and the Gourmet Vanilla flavor is well regarded — a real compliance advantage. As with the other sweetened tubs, the added sugar is part of why it goes down easily.

▸ SPECS

The product at a glance

Calories
1,280 kcal per serving (2 scoops)
Protein
52 g (whey concentrate + whey isolate + casein blend)
Carbs / Sugar
245 g total / ~26 g sugar; 10.7 g BCAAs
Carb source
Maltodextrin (refined starch) — primary carbohydrate
Creatine
1 g (token dose vs the effective 3-5 g)
Micronutrients
14 essential vitamins & minerals
Servings
16 per 12 lb tub
Price
$55 / 12 lb tub ≈ $3.44 per serving ($0.27 / 100 kcal)
▸ TRUTH CHECK

Marketing claims vs. reality

Verified

1,280 calories and 52 g protein — the highest per-scoop macros of the mainstream tubs.

The label states 1,280 kcal and 52 g protein per two-scoop serving from the powder in water, both the highest among the mainstream maltodextrin tubs on this list. The figures are verifiable and don't depend on added milk.

Verified

A quality whey-isolate-and-casein protein blend with 10.7 g BCAAs.

The protein blend of whey concentrate, whey isolate and casein plus 10.7 g of naturally occurring BCAAs is label-stated. It is a genuinely better protein matrix than bargain concentrate, and the amounts are verifiable from the panel.

Partial

Contains creatine to support strength and mass.

The 1 g of creatine per serving is real but sub-clinical — well below the 3-5 g/day the ISSN identifies as effective (Kreider 2017, PMID 28615996). So the claim is technically true but the dose is a token amount that won't deliver creatine's documented benefits on its own; you'd supplement separately.

False

A premium gainer for serious mass.

The carbohydrate is maltodextrin with ~26 g of added sugar per serving — the same sugar-bomb template as ON. The protein blend is genuinely good, but framing the overall formula as 'premium' overstates it; on the heaviest-weighted carb-quality axis this is a budget-profile carb base, and muscle still requires a surplus plus training (Slater 2019).

▸ THE DEEP DIVE

What our test actually found

01The most macros per scoop of any mainstream tub

If your metric is raw numbers per serving, Dymatize wins the mainstream tier: 1,280 calories and 52 g of protein, both the highest among the maltodextrin tubs, with 10.7 g of BCAAs on top. For a hardgainer who wants to move the most calories and protein per scoop, this is the density leader.

02A better protein blend than its rivals — that's the real edge

Where ON uses a concentrate-casein-egg blend, Dymatize adds whey isolate to the mix, giving a genuinely higher-quality protein matrix with 10.7 g of BCAAs. Among the bulk tubs, the protein here is a real strength and a legitimate reason to pick it over the cheaper concentrate-based formulas.

03But the creatine is a token 1 g — don't count on it

The label lists creatine, but at 1 g it's roughly a fifth of the 5 g effective dose and a third of ON's ~3 g. It's essentially a label-decoration amount. If creatine matters to you, treat this tub as having none and add 3-5 g of monohydrate separately (Kreider 2017) — it's cheap and mixes in fine.

04Same sugar-bomb carbs — and often the cheapest calories on the list

The honest caveat is identical to ON's: maltodextrin carbs with about 26 g of sugar per serving. What Dymatize adds is value — at roughly $0.27 per 100 kcal it's frequently the cheapest tub per calorie here. So it's the best-value, highest-macro member of the maltodextrin tier, with all the sugar that implies.

▸ THE TRADE-OFFS

Pros & cons, no sugar-coating

Pros
  • Highest per-scoop calories (1,280) and protein (52 g) of the mainstream tubs
  • Genuinely good protein blend — whey concentrate, isolate and casein — with 10.7 g BCAAs
  • Often the cheapest tub per calorie on the entire list (~$0.27/100 kcal)
  • Strong mixability and a well-liked Gourmet Vanilla flavor
  • Full 1,280-calorie serving from the powder alone — no milk needed for the headline
Cons
  • Maltodextrin carbs with ~26 g sugar per serving — the same sugar-bomb category as ON
  • Only 1 g of creatine, a token dose versus the effective 3-5 g
▸ THE BOTTOM LINE

The highest-macro, best-value member of the maltodextrin tier — with the same sugar caveat and a token creatine dose.

Dymatize Super Mass Gainer is ON Serious Mass's closest rival, and on raw numbers it edges ahead: 1,280 calories and 52 g of a genuinely good whey-concentrate, whey-isolate and casein blend with 10.7 g of BCAAs, frequently at the lowest cost per calorie on the whole list. Mixability and the vanilla flavor are strong. If your priority is maximum macros per scoop for minimum money, this is the mainstream tub to beat. It lands just below ON for two reasons: the creatine is a token 1 g rather than the effective 3-5 g, and ON's broader 25-vitamin panel and best-seller value edge it out. And the core caveat is the same one that keeps the whole maltodextrin tier mid-pack — the carbs are refined maltodextrin with about 26 g of added sugar a serving. Buy it if you want the most calories and protein per scoop and aren't bothered by the sugar, and add your own creatine. If you want whole-food or low-sugar carbs, the top three picks are cleaner fuel.

Check Dymatize · Super Mass Gainer · powder · 12 lb / 16 servings on Amazon
▸ ALTERNATIVES

If this doesn’t fit — try these

▸ RESEARCH

Sources & further reading

  1. Morton 2018Morton RW, Murphy KT, McKellar SR, Schoenfeld BJ, Henselmans M, Helms E, Aragon AA, Devries MC, Banfield L, Krieger JW, Phillips SM · 2018 · British Journal of Sports Medicine · 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 resistance-training gains up to ~1.6 g/kg/day. Dymatize's 52 g dose from a whey-isolate-and-casein blend sits at the top of the useful window; the added sugar past that adds fat, not muscle.

  2. Slater 2019Slater GJ, Dieter BP, Marsh DJ, Helms ER, Shaw G, Iraki J · 2019 · Frontiers in Nutrition · PMID 31482093

    Is an energy surplus required to maximize skeletal muscle hypertrophy associated with resistance training

    A modest surplus supports hypertrophy; a large one mainly adds fat. This tub supplies a big single-shake surplus efficiently, but the ~26 g of sugar past your needs is fat-gain calories, not muscle.

  3. Kreider 2017Kreider RB, Kalman DS, Antonio J, Ziegenfuss TN, Wildman R, Collins R, Candow DG, Kleiner SM, Almada AL, Lopez HL · 2017 · Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition · PMID 28615996

    International Society of Sports Nutrition position stand: safety and efficacy of creatine supplementation in exercise, sport, and medicine

    The ISSN identifies 3-5 g/day as the effective creatine dose. Dymatize's 1 g is well short of that, so it functions as a token amount — add creatine separately to reach an effective dose.