Verified
“800 mcg folic acid provides NTD protection”
800 mcg sits within the USPSTF-recommended 400–800 mcg folic acid range (PMID 28097362); the Cochrane review (PMID 26662928) confirms folic acid's protective effect across this dose window.
Best ValueCheck on Amazon
NOW Foods
NOW Foods Folic Acid 800 mcg + B-12 Review
7.9/10SAC Product Score™
✓ BUYCheapest proven folate, with a B-12 bonus
SAC Product Score™ — how it breaks down
- Form & Evidence Base30%8.6
- Dose vs Clinical Target25%7.5
- Third-Party Testing & Purity20%6.5
- Tolerability & Safety15%8.0
- Value10%9.0
- Buy ifSame trial-proven folic acid form as the #1 pick
- Buy ifLowest cost per dose on the list (~$0.03/tablet)
- Skip ifOnly self-attested GMP testing, no independent USP/NSF seal
- Skip if800 mcg is more than most women actually need
Read the full analysis
NOW's folic acid tablet clears the prenatal folate target with room to spare — 800 mcg of folic acid, the same NTD-proven form as our top pick, plus 25 mcg of B-12 to support homocysteine metabolism. At roughly $8 for 250 tablets it is the cheapest way here to exceed the 400 mcg minimum. It loses a hair to Nature Made only because it carries GMP self-attestation rather than an independent USP seal, but the underlying substance and evidence are identical. If you want margin above the minimum dose and a token of B-12, this is the value play.
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How we built the SAC Product Score™ — 7.9/10
Form & Evidence Base30%8.6/10
Uses folic acid, the exact form validated in the MRC and Czeizel trials and recommended by the USPSTF. Standard synthetic folic acid, well-absorbed; the 25 mcg B-12 supports the same one-carbon metabolism pathway.
Dose vs Clinical Target25%7.5/10
800 mcg is at the top of the 400–800 mcg DFE prenatal range — fine and well within safe limits, though more than the 400 mcg minimum most need.
Third-Party Testing & Purity20%6.5/10
GMP Quality Assured and Non-GMO, but self-attested; no independent USP or NSF seal like the top pick.
Tolerability & Safety15%8/10
Doubling the dose to 800 mcg stays well under the 1,000 mcg tolerable upper intake for folic acid and gives a comfortable margin, and the included B-12 addresses the second nutrient in the homocysteine pathway.
Value10%9/10
Roughly $0.03 per tablet — the lowest cost-per-dose on the entire list.
The product at a glance
- Form
- Folic acid tablet + B-12
- Dose
- 800 mcg folic acid + 25 mcg vitamin B-12
- Count
- 250 tablets
- Testing / Certification
- Non-GMO, Kosher, GMP Quality Assured
- Cost per dose
- ~$0.03 per tablet
Marketing claims vs. reality
Partial
“Adding B-12 improves homocysteine metabolism”
Folate and B-12 jointly lower homocysteine, but a 25 mcg B-12 dose is modest and the clinical benefit of homocysteine-lowering for pregnancy outcomes is not firmly established.
What our test actually found
01800 mcg is safe but not necessarily better
Doubling the dose to 800 mcg stays well under the 1,000 mcg tolerable upper intake for folic acid and gives a comfortable margin, but there is no evidence 800 mcg prevents more NTDs than 400 mcg for the average woman.
02B-12 pairing is sensible, not transformative
Including B-12 addresses the second nutrient in the homocysteine pathway and can help vegetarians, but 25 mcg is a supportive touch rather than a therapeutic dose.
Pros & cons, no sugar-coating
Pros
- Same trial-proven folic acid form as the #1 pick
- Lowest cost per dose on the list (~$0.03/tablet)
- Higher 800 mcg dose gives margin above the minimum
- Includes B-12 to support homocysteine metabolism
- 250-count bottle lasts over eight months
Cons
- Only self-attested GMP testing, no independent USP/NSF seal
- 800 mcg is more than most women actually need
The value winner for proven folate
If cost is the deciding factor and you still want the evidence-based form, this is the pick. You get the same folic acid used in the NTD trials, a generous dose, and B-12, for the least money. The only reason it sits at #2 is the absence of an independent testing seal — a real but modest gap versus Nature Made.
If this doesn’t fit — try these
Sources & further reading
- US Preventive Services Task Force. Folic Acid Supplementation for the Prevention of Neural Tube Defects. JAMA. 2017;317(2):183-189.US Preventive Services Task Force · 2017 · JAMA · PMID 28097362
Folic Acid Supplementation for the Prevention of Neural Tube Defects
Recommends 400–800 mcg folic acid daily for those who could become pregnant.
- De-Regil LM, Peña-Rosas JP, Fernández-Gaxiola AC, Rayco-Solon P. Effects and safety of periconceptional oral folate supplementation for preventing birth defects. Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2015;(12):CD007950.De-Regil LM, Peña-Rosas JP, Fernández-Gaxiola AC, Rayco-Solon P · 2015 · Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews · PMID 26662928
Effects and safety of periconceptional oral folate supplementation for preventing birth defects
Folate supplementation had a protective effect against neural-tube defects.