Expert's opinion
The article is a subjective view on this topic written by writers specializing in medical writing.
It may reflect on a personal journey surrounding struggles with an illness or medical condition, involve product comparisons, diet considerations, or other health-related opinions.
Although the view is entirely that of the writer, it is based on academic experiences and scientific research they have conducted; it is fact-checked by a team of degreed medical experts, and validated by sources attached to the article.
The numbers in parenthesis (1,2,3) will take you to clickable links to related scientific papers.
Best Vegan Creatine Supplement For Muscle Gain [2024 Updated]
Updated on
- Written by Mitchelle Morgan, Health Writer
Medically reviewed by
Kathy Shattler, MS, RDN
All articles are produced independently. When you click our links for purchasing products, we earn an affiliate commission. Learn more about how we earn revenue by reading our advertise disclaimer.
Transparent Labs Creatine
- Free of artificial sweeteners
- Muscle building formula
- Numerous flavors available
Optimum Nutrition Micronized Creatine Powder
- Supports ATP recycling
- Low carbohydrates and calories
- Boost muscle growth
Naked Creatine Monohydrate Powder
- Heavy metal tested
- Vegan certified
- GMO-free
15% Off Coupon: HEALTHCANAL
Creatine supplements are a significant consideration in today’s fitness world. They are among the many supplements bodybuilders use to gain mass, lose weight and fat, and get ripped into shape.
Creatine supplementation has immeasurable benefits for users, like improved brain function and boosted fat mass loss, and it also enhances your athletic performance in high-intensity exercises.[1]
Unfortunately, some people with certain dietary restrictions, like veganism, stay marginalized regarding the availability of protein powders. But thankfully, now you can find the best vegan creatine, and this piece will highlight five of the best in the market.
So keep reading to learn more about the vegan creatine supplements we will feature and what each can offer you.
5 Best Plant-Based Creatine On The Market In (May. 2024)
- Transparent Labs Creatine – Editor’s Choice
- Optimum Nutrition Micronized Creatine Powder – Best for Energy Support
- Naked Creatine Monohydrate Powder – Best Budget-friendly Pure Creatine Monohydrate
- Bulksupplements Creatine Monohydrate – Best Size Selection Creatine Monohydrate
- Now Foods Creatine Powder – Best Pure Creatine Powder
Best Vegan Creatine Supplements In 2024
Transparent Labs
Transparent Labs is a creatine monohydrate powder specially formulated to promote healthy muscle growth and repair. You may also decrease fat mass and discourage lean muscle mass loss.
- No artificial flavors, sweeteners, or preservatives
- Enhances muscle strength
- Helps decrease fat mass
- May help prevent muscle mass loss
- Gluten and GMO-free
- An expensive brand
The first ingredient in this vegan formula is 5,000 milligrams (mg) of creatine monohydrate. This form of creatine is excellent at improving athletic performance during intense exercise. It may also be potent at helping you improve your body composition[2] and enhance your mental health and overall health in general.
The second ingredient in this vegan monohydrate creatine is 1,500 mg of HMB (β-Hydroxy β-Methyl butyrate). This ingredient has properties that help users significantly increase lean body mass, increase strength, and decrease fat mass. All these become possible if you are under resistance training.
It also enhances protein synthesis,[3] increases muscle growth, and reduces muscle damage.
The last ingredient is 5 mg of Bioperine. This substance is an extract of black pepper. This ingredient has been known to increase the bioavailability of any substance it is included in. So much so that when you consume this creatine supplement, most of it assimilates into your system.
This product goes for $49.99 for a 30-serving container. You may get it for slightly cheaper if you opt for a subscription. The supplement has 11 flavors, including watermelon, tropical punch, and unflavored.
Optimum Nutrition Micronized Creatine Powder
This micronized creatine monohydrate powder from Optimum Nutrition is a specialized formula for both men and women bodybuilders. It promotes healthy muscle mass gain.
- Supports adenosine triphosphate recycling
- Supports muscle growth, preservation, and recovery
- Contains low carbohydrates and calories
- 100% pure creatine monohydrate
- Not available in smaller servings
This micronized monohydrate powder contains only one ingredient: 5,000 mg of pure creatine monohydrate. The company claims that this amino acid supplement supports the recycling of adenosine triphosphate (ATP). The ATP cycle[4] refers to the cyclic transition of ATP to adenosine diphosphate (ADP) and then back to ATP.
The company also claims that this supplement will promote explosive movements thanks to the monohydrate powder with energy-boosting abilities. Creatine supplements boost your phosphocreatine storage, allowing you to generate more ATP energy to power your muscular tissue during high-intensity activity. This is the critical mechanism by which creatine improves performance.
This supplement also has zero carbohydrates (carbs) and calorie counts, making it among the best vegetarian creatine for weight loss. Optimum Nutrition’s vegan creatine monohydrate supplement is tested for banned substances.
Naked Creatine Monohydrate Powder
15% Off Coupon: HEALTHCANAL
The Naked creatine monohydrates is also a one-ingredient supplement that claims to offer you massive muscle gains, better mental acuity, and energy to take you through intense exercise.
- Made of only pure creatine monohydrate
- Certified vegan product
- Gluten and soy-free
- GMO-free
- Heavy metal tested
- The supplement is always in demand, so it often runs out of stock.
The number one selling point that Naked Creatine uses is that their product contains one ingredient; 5,000 mg of pure creatine monohydrate. This simple formula is free of genetically modified organisms (GMO-free), gluten-free, vegan, and soy-free. It also lacks artificial sweeteners, flavors, and preservatives, proving that this high-quality creatine is authentic.
The brand passes all its batches through heavy metal and allergen tests, and the results are available if anyone wants to have a peek on the brand’s site.
Unlike other creatine supplements, Naked’s creatine monohydrate powder has excellent mixability. It creates a smooth blend with water or any other beverage of your choice: juice, protein shakes, or smoothies.
Lastly, this creatine monohydrate supplement has a high bioavailability. This means that it assimilates into the body quickly after digestion.
BulkSupplements Creatine Monohydrate
This creatine supplement offers vegans a clean source of 5,000 mg of creatine monohydrate. The most impressive part about this product is that you have an extensive selection of sizes you may get. This makes it newbie-friendly.
- Made of pure micronized creatine monohydrate
- Has good mixability
- No sugar, dairy, soy, or gluten
- It is devoid of synthetic additives
- The capsule dosage is too much; seven pills per dosage.
- The capsules contain bovine gelatin.
As a newbie-friendly brand with a wide selection of sizes, the Bulksupplements creatine monohydrate is sold in powder and capsule form. This makes this brand one of the best vegan creatine supplements to have on the go.
The brand’s claims align with most of the benefits we mentioned above, like improving cognitive function, boosting energy and stamina, neuroprotective against neurodegenerative diseases, and muscle growth. The extras included on their site are it promotes weight gain and that it fits everyone besides athletes.
The suggested dosage of the powder is 5 grams of the powder mixed with water or the beverage of your choice. 5 grams is approximately two teaspoons. For the vegan creatine supplement capsules, you must swallow seven capsules before your workout for the best results.
The one-time quantity purchase starts at 100 grams for $14.96. This quantity goes for $14.21 on a subscription arrangement. The maximum amount of powder creatine is 11 lbs, and the maximum capsule container is 210 gelatin capsules.
Now Foods Creatine Powder
Each container has about 45 serving quantities of pure and unfiltered creatine monohydrate. The brand claims that this formula will help you gain massive lean muscle mass, and you will get energy boosts during your workouts.
- Lacks most allergens: dairy, soy, egg, corn, and nuts
- Genetically Modified Organism (GMO)-free
- Halal and Kosher
- Steroid tested
- Vegan and vegetarian-friendly
- Only available to adults
This supplement contains 5,000 mg of pure creatine monohydrate, similar to most of the other vegan supplements in this listing. So much so the benefits are identical. Your athletic, aerobic, and physical performance is bound to see positive changes. You may also notice some energy boosts during high-intensity workouts.
The Now Foods brand prides itself in using only clean ingredients devoid of synthetic additives like flavorings and sweeteners. This creatine powder is kosher, halal, vegan, and vegetarian–friendly.
A tub of 8 oz costs $15.99, and the biggest 35.2 oz costs $44.99. Unlike other brands, this company does not have a subscription arrangement for its clients.
Should Vegans Take Creatine?
Did you know that creatine is the world’s most popular and safest nutritional supplement?
Creatine is an amino acid primarily found in the muscles and the brain. Its main job is to maintain a healthy energy level within the body. The kidney, liver, and pancreas can produce one gram of creatine daily. However, if you are actively working on building your lean muscle mass, you may need creatine supplementation.
Creatine supplementation has numerous health benefits, far more than we mentioned above. Any person would benefit from using creatine powder, and so would vegans. The only catch with creatine supplementation when it comes to vegans is that the source of the creatine is the main variant of concern.
The majority of humans obtain creatine through shellfish and red meat. And so, typically, creatine powder is sourced from animal products. And since veganism is against all animal products, a vegan creatine supplement sources its protein from plant sources.
Some natural vegan creatine sources include pumpkin seeds, sesame seeds, nuts, legumes, and seaweed. Even so, here are the main kinds of creatine supplements: vegan or not. (Some have their main job indicated)
Pure creatine monohydrate: increase transient water weight[5] retention in muscle cells (can be made vegan)
- Creatine Hydrochloride: highly bioavailable[6] (can be made vegan)
- Buffered Creatine (can be made vegan)
- Liquid Creatine
- Creatine Ethyl Ester
Benefits Of Vegan Creatine Powder
The best vegan creatine supplements will offer the body the following health benefits:
- A safe and healthy way to build lean muscle mass.
- Creatine vegan blends may accelerate post-workout recovery.
- Helps with fighting tiredness and fatigue.[7]
- Improve your cognitive function.[8]
- May help with blood sugar regulation.[9]
- Creatine powders may help fight neurological diseases.[10]
- May help accelerate muscle growth.[11]
- Nutrition creatine may help high-intensity exercise performance.
- Creatine helps muscle cells produce energy.
How To Choose The Best Vegan Creatine Supplements?
If your doctor has ascertained that you are not getting enough creatine from your vegan diet, plant-based creatine products are the next thing to look at. But how do you choose a creatine vegan supplement that will be the best for you?
Use this checklist when looking for the top vegan creatine brands that fit you.
- Look out for a ‘vegan-friendly label.’ This confirms that the product is high-quality creatine and is not sourced from animal by-products.
- The type of vegan creatine powder or liquid. Some varieties are more bioavailable than others.
- Check out if a vegan creatine supplement is micronized or not. The micronized powder is easier to dilute and mix into a beverage.
- Please take note of the extra ingredients ensuring that they do not compromise the formula.
- Check for third-party testing.
- Check for regulatory bodies’ seals and certificates.
Even after all these things are checked, ensure you purchase your best vegan creatine supplements from a verified seller. Finally, please stick to the recommended dosage to avoid side effects as you are using the best vegan product for whatever purpose, muscle recovery, or athletic performance.
Potential Side Effects
Some of the instances that may lead to the emergence of one or two side effects are if you overdose, use the substance inadvertently, or if you are allergic to an ingredient.
The first two ways are manageable by taking creatine in the proper dosages and using it for its intended purpose. For the third instance, you simply stop using the supplement.
Regardless, once you notice the signs, and depending on the severity, stop using the supplement and get medical help.
These signs indicate the side effects of taking creatine:
- Dizziness
- Diarrhea
- High blood pressure
- Liver dysfunction
- Muscle strains and pulls
- Muscle cramps
- Stomach upset
How To Take Creatine Effectively?
If you do not eat meat and still want to let your vegan creatine work as effectively as animal-sourced creatine, you may use one of two dosage cycles.
In the first method, a loading phase of 20 grams each day taken for 5-7 days may work, followed by a maintenance dosage of 2-10 grams daily. The second method is to take 3 grams per day for 28 days.
For the best results, use creatine supplements before, after, or at a time away from your working out time.
Final Thought
In this piece, we have highlighted the best vegan creatine supplements for various specific purposes: energy production, best container size, budget-friendliness, pure label, and the best overall.
The body naturally produces creatine, but as a vegan and someone who is not a meat eater, you may require more creatine in your system for muscle gain. Each of these five brands indicates how much creatine you should consume for maximum effectiveness.
Even so, before you start using any of the above, ensure that you have a doctor’s go-ahead. Secondly, get the product from a trusted seller; thirdly, use it as advised and in the appropriate dosages. Once you do this, you may be able to start seeing positive changes.
Frequently Asked Questions
Vegan creatine is excellent as it may help in improving your physical performance, enhancing cognitive function, and increasing muscle endurance, all while fitting into a vegan diet.
Since most creatine is sourced from animal products, vegans can only consume synthetic creatine found in supplements.
Yes, they do.
When you are on creatine supplementation, your total plasma creatine levels rise, as does the quantity of creatine in your muscle cells. When you quit taking creatine, your levels drop, leading to fatigue, muscle spasms, fat loss, and diminished natural creatine synthesis.
+ 13 sources
Health Canal avoids using tertiary references. We have strict sourcing guidelines and rely on peer-reviewed studies, academic researches from medical associations and institutions. To ensure the accuracy of articles in Health Canal, you can read more about the editorial process here
- Buford, T.W., Kreider, R.B., Stout, J.R., Greenwood, M., Campbell, B., Spano, M., Ziegenfuss, T.N., Lopez, H.L., Landis, J. and José António (2007). International Society of Sports Nutrition position stand: creatine supplementation and exercise. Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition, [online] 4(1). doi:https://doi.org/10.1186/1550-2783-4-6.
- Branch, J. (2003). Effect of Creatine Supplementation on Body Composition and Performance: A Meta-analysis. International Journal of Sport Nutrition and Exercise Metabolism, [online] 13(2), pp.198–226. doi:https://doi.org/10.1123/ijsnem.13.2.198.
- Courel-Ibáñez, J., Tomáš Větrovský, Klára Daďová and Šteffl, M. (2019). Health Benefits of β-Hydroxy-β-Methylbutyrate (HMB) Supplementation in Addition to Physical Exercise in Older Adults: A Systematic Review with Meta-Analysis. Nutrients, [online] 11(9), pp.2082–2082. doi:https://doi.org/10.3390/nu11092082.
- Bailoni, E. and Poolman, B. (2022). ATP Recycling Fuels Sustainable Glycerol 3-Phosphate Formation in Synthetic Cells Fed by Dynamic Dialysis. ACS Synthetic Biology, [online] 11(7), pp.2348–2360. doi:https://doi.org/10.1021/acssynbio.2c00075.
- Safdar, A., Yardley, N.J., Snow, R.J., Melov, S. and Tarnopolsky, M.A. (2008). Global and targeted gene expression and protein content in skeletal muscle of young men following short-term creatine monohydrate supplementation. Physiological Genomics, [online] 32(2), pp.219–228. doi:https://doi.org/10.1152/physiolgenomics.00157.2007.
- Gufford, B.T., Sattu Kamaraj, Miller, N.J., Miller, D.W., Gu, X., Vennerstrom, J.L. and Robinson, D.H. (2010). Physicochemical Characterization of CreatineN-Methylguanidinium Salts. Journal of Dietary Supplements, [online] 7(3), pp.240–252. doi:https://doi.org/10.3109/19390211.2010.491507.
- Ostojić, S.M. (2021). Diagnostic and Pharmacological Potency of Creatine in Post-Viral Fatigue Syndrome. Nutrients, [online] 13(2), pp.503–503. doi:https://doi.org/10.3390/nu13020503.
- Roschel, H., Gualano, B., Ostojić, S.M. and Rawson, E.S. (2021). Creatine Supplementation and Brain Health. Nutrients, [online] 13(2), pp.586–586. doi:https://doi.org/10.3390/nu13020586.
- Marina Yázigi Solis, Guilherme Giannini Artioli and Gualano, B. (2021). Potential of Creatine in Glucose Management and Diabetes. Nutrients, [online] 13(2), pp.570–570. doi:https://doi.org/10.3390/nu13020570.
- Andres, R.H., Angélique Ducray, Uwe Schlattner, Wallimann, T. and Hans Rudolf Widmer (2008). Functions and effects of creatine in the central nervous system. Brain Research Bulletin, [online] 76(4), pp.329–343. doi:https://doi.org/10.1016/j.brainresbull.2008.02.035.
- Wu, S., Chen, K., Hsu, C., Chen, H.-C., Chen, J., Yu, S.-Y. and Shiu, Y.-J. (2022). Creatine Supplementation for Muscle Growth: A Scoping Review of Randomized Clinical Trials from 2012 to 2021. Nutrients, [online] 14(6), pp.1255–1255. doi:https://doi.org/10.3390/nu14061255.
Written by:
Mitchelle Morgan, Health Writer
Medically reviewed by:
Medically reviewed by:
