Sports Research Creatine Monohydrate (Creapure) Review
#1 of 8 · Best overall✓ Label verified · Supplement Facts read Oct 6, 2026Real retailer photo, cut out. Label unedited.
Buy it if you want the source and the sport certificate in print. The facts panel names Creapure, the tub carries the NSF Certified for Sport mark, and it costs less than Thorne. The one gap: NSF lists a single certified lot so far.
$37 / 450 g (90 servings)~$0.41 / real 5 g dose (1 scoop)
Why It Scores 9.1 — And The Label Line Behind Each Number
Form purity
25% of scoreThe Supplement Facts panel reads "Creatine Monohydrate (Creapure®) 5 g" and the Creapure logo is printed on the front. It is the only powder on our creatine lists that states its source on the label.
- Active form
- Creatine monohydrate (Creapure)
- Source
- Creapure, named on the Supplement Facts panel and by logo on the front; the front reads "5G German Creatine"
Third-party testing
25% of scoreThe NSF Certified for Sport mark is printed on the tub, and nsfsport.com lists the product (checked October 6, 2026). NSF certifies lot by lot and shows one certified lot, 26174B; Thorne, at 10, has 66.
- Certifications
- NSF Certified for Sport (mark on the tub), Non-GMO Project Verified, certified vegan, NSF certified gluten-free
- Certified lots
- One lot on nsfsport.com on October 6, 2026: 26174B (450 g powder, unflavored)
Per-serving creatine
20% of scoreOne scoop is 5 g of creatine monohydrate, the daily dose in the ISSN position stand (Kreider 2017). Creatine monohydrate is the only ingredient; the powder is unflavored.
- Per serving
- 5 g creatine monohydrate (1 scoop)
- Other ingredients
- None listed; the ingredient line reads creatine monohydrate
Cost per active gram
20% of score$36.95 list price for 90 servings is about $0.41 per 5 g serving, or $0.08 per gram. That sits between Optimum Nutrition (about $0.23) and Thorne (about $0.50).
- Tub size
- 450 g · 90 servings · 3 months at 5 g a day
- Price
- $36.95 list price for 450 g = about $0.41 per serving (Amazon, checked October 6, 2026)
Brand QC track record
10% of scoreThe listing shows four third-party certifications with their dates: Non-GMO Project, certified vegan (American Vegetarian Association), NSF gluten-free and NSF Certified for Sport. The brand's fish oil is on the IFOS and MSC lists, which we confirmed earlier.
- Manufacturing
- cGMP-compliant facility and third-party tested, per the listing
- More Specs
- Flavor
- Unflavored
Label verified. Every figure read from the Supplement Facts photo, Oct 6, 2026.
Marketing Claims Vs. Reality
Made with Creapure.
The Supplement Facts panel reads "Creatine Monohydrate (Creapure®) 5 g" and the Creapure logo is on the front of the tub.
NSF Certified for Sport.
The mark is printed on the tub and nsfsport.com lists the product with certified lot 26174B (checked October 6, 2026). Certification applies to listed lots.
5 g of creatine per scoop, 90 servings.
Serving size 1 scoop (5 g), 90 servings per container, net weight 450 g on the label.
Non-GMO, vegan and gluten-free.
All three are printed on the front; the listing shows the Non-GMO Project, American Vegetarian Association and NSF gluten-free certifications with dates.
What Our Test Actually Found
The source is on the panel, not in the marketing
When we checked every creatine powder on our lists against its label and listing, none of the others stated Creapure. This tub prints it in the Supplement Facts panel, which is the place a claim has to be true.
One certified lot, so check yours
NSF Certified for Sport is granted per lot. The NSF list shows one lot for this product, against 66 for Thorne Creatine. For most buyers that changes nothing; for a drug-tested athlete it means matching the lot number before relying on the mark.
Two near-identical tubs
Sports Research also sells a plain creatine monohydrate in the same black tub. The Creapure version reads "5G German Creatine" and carries the Creapure logo; the other reads "5G Micronized Creatine". This review covers the Creapure version only.
Full analysis: all pros & cons (7), buy if / skip if
- Creapure named on the Supplement Facts panel
- NSF Certified for Sport mark on the tub, confirmed on the NSF list
- Single ingredient, 5 g per scoop, unflavored
- About $0.41 a serving at list price, less than Thorne
- One certified lot on the NSF list so far
- Costs more per serving than Optimum Nutrition or Bulk Supplements
- Easy to confuse with the brand's plain creatine in the same tub
- You want Creapure named on the Supplement Facts panel
- You want the NSF Certified for Sport mark and are willing to check the lot number
- You want a single-ingredient, unflavored powder with a 5 g scoop
- You are drug-tested and want the longest certified lot history; Thorne has 66 lots on the NSF list
- Lowest cost per serving matters most; Bulk Supplements is about $0.15
- You want a flavored creatine; this one is unflavored only
Creatine monohydrate is the form the research supports, and at 5 g a day every plain monohydrate on our list delivers it. What separates the tubs is what you can verify. Here the facts panel names Creapure, the creatine made by Alzchem in Germany, and the tub carries the NSF Certified for Sport mark, which we confirmed on NSF's own list. No other powder on our creatine lists states both. It costs about $0.41 a serving at list price: more than Optimum Nutrition or Bulk Supplements, less than Thorne. The limit is history. NSF certifies lot by lot and lists one lot for this product, so drug-tested athletes should match the lot number on the tub.
Most creatine tubs ask you to take the source on trust. This one prints it. The Supplement Facts panel reads "Creatine Monohydrate (Creapure®) 5 g", the only ingredient is creatine monohydrate, and the front of the tub carries both the Creapure logo and the NSF Certified for Sport mark. One scoop is 5 g, a tub is 450 g and 90 servings. We checked the certifier ourselves on October 6, 2026: nsfsport.com lists the product with one certified lot. At the $36.95 list price a serving costs about $0.41, between Optimum Nutrition and Thorne.
The creatine that shows its work
Creatine monohydrate works the same from any honest tub, so the best one is the one that proves the most. This is the only powder on our lists with Creapure on the facts panel and the NSF Certified for Sport mark on the front, and it undercuts Thorne on price. Take one 5 g scoop a day. If you are drug-tested, match your lot number on nsfsport.com first, or choose Thorne for its longer list of certified lots.
If This Doesn’t Fit — Try These
02Thorne Creatine
The right buy for exactly one kind of person: the drug-tested athlete.
03Optimum Nutrition Micronized Creatine Powder
This is the creatine to buy if you've never bought creatine before, and the one most experienced lifters quietly come back to.
04NOW Sports Micronized Creatine Monohydrate
The household-brand pick for the buyer who values supply continuity.
Quick Answers
Is Sports Research Creatine really Creapure?
This version is. The Supplement Facts panel reads "Creatine Monohydrate (Creapure®) 5 g" and the Creapure logo is printed on the front of the tub. Sports Research also sells a plain creatine monohydrate in a near-identical tub without the Creapure mark, so check for the logo and the words "5G German Creatine" before you order.
Is it NSF Certified for Sport?
Yes, for the lot NSF has certified. The NSF Certified for Sport mark is printed on the tub, and on October 6, 2026 nsfsport.com listed Sports Research Creapure Creatine Monohydrate Unflavored (450 g powder) with one certified lot, 26174B. NSF certifies lot by lot, so drug-tested athletes should match the lot number on their tub against the list.
How does it compare with Thorne Creatine?
Both give you 5 g of creatine monohydrate per scoop and 90 servings, and both carry the NSF Certified for Sport mark. Sports Research names Creapure as its source and costs about $0.41 a serving at list price; Thorne does not state a source and costs about $0.50, but NSF lists 66 certified Thorne lots against one for Sports Research. If you are drug-tested, Thorne's longer lot history is the safer choice.
Sources & Further Reading
2 peer-reviewed sources, each linked to PubMed
- [1] Kreider 2017 PMID 28615996 — International Society of Sports Nutrition position stand: safety and efficacy of creatine supplementation in exercise, sport, and medicine. The ISSN position stand concludes that creatine monohydrate is the most effective nutritional supplement available to athletes for increasing high-intensity exercise capacity and lean body mass, and that 3-5 g a day maintains muscle creatine stores.
- [2] Antonio 2021 PMID 33557850 — Common questions and misconceptions about creatine supplementation: what does the scientific evidence really show?. A review of common questions about creatine. It finds no evidence that other forms of creatine outperform creatine monohydrate, which supports choosing a plain monohydrate.
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