Welcome to the official top 10 ranking of the world’s best pre-workout supplements!
Before we get started, we’d like to address that our ranking is centered entirely on results. We’ve extensively reviewed numerous amounts of supplements, and each one of these 10 has been specially curated out of hundreds. Although in the end there can only be one king of the pre-workouts, it should be strongly noted that each supplement continues to fight tooth and nail to make it to where they currently stand today.
We’ll continue to monitor this ranking for ingredient reformulations and additional, possible contenders.
Our Top 10 Pre-Workout Supplements
#10 MuscleTech Vapor X5
Weighing in at 9 grams per serving, we found Vapor X5 to be optimally utilized as a beginner’s pre-workout supplement. It provides 1.5 grams of creatine monohydrate and 1.25 grams of betaine anhydrous. These two ingredients alongside 750 mg of nitrosigine will help you get a nice pump and boost muscle growth.
In addition, Vapor X5 brings a modest amount of energy with 190 mg of caffeine anhydrous, 100 mg of choline, 1.6 grams of Carnosyn® beta-alanine, and finally 500 mg of taurine. Individually, each ingredient serves a unique purpose. But when used together, your body is better able to perform at peak efficiency.
While we almost always prefer larger, practical, clinically effective dosages for better results, you can’t get much more from Vapor X5 in terms of value for only $20. This is partly why it’s such a popular pre-workout supplement. Good ingredients used alongside a mild range stimulants at an inexpensive price point act almost like a gateway, helping you to understand and gradually ease into pre-workout supplements.
Key Features
• Gateway pre-workout
• Contains Yohimbe
• 1.6 grams of Carnosyn® beta-alanine
• 1.5 grams of creatine monohydrate
• 1.25 grams of betaine anhydrous
Lowest Price Here »#9 Mr. Hyde
In retrospect, we never did quite fully anticipate just how much of an energetic monster Mr. Hyde would be. That all changed when we tested it, though. This is because Mr. Hyde contains virtually 550mg of active stimulants – which is exceptionally heavy. For that reason alone, we don’t approve of Hyde for beginner workout enthusiasts, that is, unless you have a clear understanding of exactly what you’re getting into.
See, Mr. Hyde was specially formulated for seasoned athletes and gym-goers alike who crave an almost unsatiable urge for incredible blasts of lasting energy. During our sessions reviewing Hyde, we found we could absolutely topple the gym with our newfound wave of energy, and through the utilization of 2.5g of beta-alanine, we were left feeling more alert, focused, confident, and most importantly – powerful.
While the energy was quite intense and lasting, it did begin to gradually dissipate after about an hour and a half from initially taking it. We weren’t left with any residual jitters or crashes, but at the same time, we had to expend quite a lot of energy to keep it that way. Once our workout was finished, we still felt alert and focused for about two hours post-workout. With regards to taste, we felt mixed reactions, but it did mix well.
Key Features
• Long lasting energy
• Immense amount of power
• Contains Yohimbe
• 2.5 grams of beta-alanine
• 548 mg of stimulants
• Has Artificial & Natural sweeteners
Lowest Price Here »#8 Old School Labs Vintage Blast
To many, Old School Labs would be considered a household name when it comes to workout supplements. This doesn’t stem from luck, either. Over the years, Vintage Blast – Old School Labs’s pioneer pre-workout supplement – has continued to consistently live up to its name and reputation of high-quality, healthy benefits. They do this by rocking a massive range of valuable, cost-effective ingredients, as detailed below.
See, Vintage Blast is completely non-GMO, gluten-free, vegetarian-friendly, and contains absolutely zero artificial substances like sweeteners and dyes. Needless to say, we’re quite pleased with this because the vast majority of other traditional pre-workout supplements can’t even say state half of that. Going further, Vintage Blast offers 5g of l-citrulline malate, 1g of beta alanine, 1g of l-carnitine, and 2g of aspartic acid.
In addition, you’ll find a decent provision of supportive nutrients that help fulfill bodily needs pre, intra, and post-workout. Overall, we strongly believe Vintage Blast delivered a fulfilling workout by helping us achieve a worthy pump, lift for longer with increased strength, and also noticeably extend our endurance limits with the utilization of beta-alanine. Vintage Blast also tasted great and dissolved very quickly without any grit.
Key Features
• Lots of supportive nutrients
• Decent dosages
• 5g of l-citrulline malate
• 1g of beta-alanine
• 2g of d-aspartic acid
• Zero artificial substances
Lowest Price Here »#7 Kaged Muscle Pre Kaged
Pre Kaged’s All-In-One hard hitting formula is a wonderful solution for those searching for a great tasting, well-balanced blend of endurance, strength, focus, and energy improving ingredients. This is quite evident in Pre Kaged as per their largely effective variety of highly beneficial ingredients. Some of the more notable major ingredients include 6.5g of l-citrulline malate (pump), 3.5g of fermented BCAAs, and 1.5g of leucine.
On top of those, there’s also 1.5g of patented creatine HCl™, which offers a full range of benefits in and of itself. You’ll also find 500mg of freeze-dried coconut powder to help restore spent electrolytes back into your system. Furthermore, there’s a 100mg ORAC blend made up of 29 various healthy extracts and concentrates. Each of these ingredients contributes towards an improved overall physical performance.
In terms of flavor and mixability, Kaged Muscle’s Pre Kaged held up above average, aside from the Krisp Apple flavor. That was a bit rough for our taste, and it did leave behind a slight amount of grit. We’d set aside one suggested serving size and added it alongside 14oz of chilled water and almost immediately began to feel the effects after taking it. Fast forward 20 minutes and we were lifting noticeably stronger, for longer.
Key Features
• Clinically effective dosages
• All-in-one mixture
• 6.5 grams of l-citrulline
• 3.5 grams of fermented 2:1:1 BCAAs
• 1.5 grams of fast-acting Creatine HCl™
• 500 mg freeze-dried coconut powder for electrolytes
Lowest Price Here »#6 Dr. Jim Stoppanis – Pre JYM
Looking for a high-quality balanced blend of ingredients? If so, consider taking a look at Pre JYM. Developed by JYM Supplement Science, Pre JYM is Dr. Jim Stoppanis signature pre-workout supplement. What makes Pre JYM so special, though, are its 13 specially curated ingredients alongside zero proprietary blends policy. This means full ingredient clarity – so you know exactly what you’re putting in your body, and by how much.
We were certainly pleased to see clinically effective dosages as well. A few major key ingredients in P-JYM are 6g of citrulline malate, 6g of 2:1:1 BCAAs, 4g of carbohydrates (for energy), 2g of creatine HCL, 2g of Carnosyn Beta-alanine, and 1.5g of betaine. While this alone appears to be a lot of ingredients, there’s also a multitude of other, smaller dosed but still effective ingredients, most notable of which is 300mg of caffeine.
Each of those aforementioned ingredients effectively combines together to work efficiently alongside their smaller dosed counterparts to help keep you feeling focused, alert, driven and pumped up without burning out. Moreover, as can be expected from such a longstanding pre-workout, each flavor of Pre JYM dissolved and tasted great. Overall, Pre JYM certainly enhanced out gym experience, leaving us on top of our training.
Key Features
• Clinically effective dosages
• 6 grams of citrulline malate
• 6 grams of 2:1:1 BCAAs
• 4g of 1:1 creatine HCL + beta-alanine
• 3g of 1:1 betaine + l-tyrosine
• 300mg of caffeine
Lowest Price Here »You’ve now reached the Top 5 Pre-Workout supplements currently on the market.
Each supplement past this point has been specially designed for absolute maximum effectivity.
#5 Cellucor C4 Ultimate
C4 Ultimate – the apogee of Cellucor. Designed with an ingredients list centered around mood, pump, and endurance boosters, we quickly found C4 Ultimate to be one of the most effective pre-workout supplements available. This is because C4 Ultimate is able to deliver a hard-hitting formula made up of fast-acting mood enhancers, pump & endurance boosters, as well as an incredible Energy and Focus blend of ingredients.
Put simply, this is done through the body’s utilization of C4’s packed ingredients, such as a hugely positive nutritional support complex, 6g of citrulline malate to stimulate nitric oxide production (pump), 3.2g of beta-alanine, 1.5g of creatine nitrate, 1.5g of betaine anhydrous, 1.5g of nitrosigine, 1g of taurine, 1g of arginine (alpha-ketoglutarate), and a total of 858mg (300mg caffeine) to help deliver an additional flurry of power.
Over the years, Cellucor has established a longstanding, reputable brand name for themselves. Part of this is achievement is namely due to how well their products perform regarding taste and mixability. With that in mind, we tested each one of their 5 currently offered flavors. Needless to say, they were all about equally as good and rarely ever clumped if at all, making it a fantastic option for many athletes and bodybuilders alike. What really left an impression, though, was Ultimate’s exceptionally efficient nitrate-nutrient delivery system.
Key Features
• Fast acting stimulants
• Decent nitric oxide pump
• 6g of citrulline malate
• 3.2g of Carnosyn beta-alanine
• 3g of ½ creatine nitrate + betaine anhydrous
• 858mg of stimulants
Lowest Price Here »#4 Nutrex Outlift
Nutrex certainly raised the bar with the advent of Outlift – their flagship pre-workout supplement. Commonly referred to as the “Big 10”, Nutrex aims to effectively provide its user 10 hard-hitting, clinically dosed ingredients out there. The most notable ingredients (which you will probably recognize) are 8g of citrulline malate, 3.2g of beta-alanine, and 3g of creatine monohydrate, 2g of taurine, and 6g of 2:1:1 BCAAs.
Moreover, while each of the previously mentioned ingredients offers their own uniquely beneficial attributes, we haven’t yet covered Outlift’s primary source of energy – caffeine. Outlift offers boundless amounts of energy with the introduction of 350mg of caffeine. Not only will it work to increase natural levels of energy, you’ll experience an improved mental clarity, strength, mood, and it’ll also help assist in bodily weight loss.
We really enjoy how Outlift has 8g of citrulline malate to stimulate nitric oxide production to help you get and maintain an intense pump. With time, we noticed their 2:1:1 BCAAs and beta-alanine enhanced our overall athletic progress, keeping us energized throughout our entire workout without any issues. Going further, Outlift impressed us with how easily it mixed. Likewise, each of its large variety of flavors was tasty.
Key Features 
• Clinically effective dosages
• Very strong pump
• 8g of 2:1 citrulline malate
• 6g of 2:1:1 BCAAs
• 3g of Creapure® Creatine
• 3.2g of beta-alanine
Lowest Price Here »#3 Staunch Nation Koala Freak
Koala Freak, spearheaded by Pro Bodybuilder Calum Von Moger himself, is Staunch Nation’s most powerful pre-workout to date. Formulated with the true beasts of the gym in mind, you’ll find each serving of Koala Freak contains a heaping dosage of 6g of 2:1 citrulline malate, 4g of beta alanine, 2g of betaine anhydrous, and 1g of choline bitartrate. There’s also 360mg of caffeine that kept us energized throughout our workout.
Each aforementioned ingredient combines alongside their own respective support complex’s are designed to provide a strong pump, keep you focused, and best of all, noticeably improve overall performance. We can safely say from two weeks of personal experience Koala Freak adequately fulfilled our athletic needs. We felt a huge increase in oxygen uptake which helped us hit new limits and get more reps in-between sets.
You’re safe to assume we tried each of the three flavors – peach mango, piña koala, and blue raspberry. We were very pleased with how each flavor tasted sweet. And, as a trait we always look for, Koala Freak mixed quickly in chilled water, never leaving behind a single clump. In the end, Staunch Nation’s advent of Koala Freak left us reeling at the vast amount of strength we felt while lifting. Overall it was a fantastic experience.
Key Features 
• Science-backed clinically effective dosages
• Delivers a phenomenal pump
• 6 grams of 2:1 citrulline malate
• 3.2 grams of beta-alanine
• 2 grams of betaine anhydrous
• 450mg of Peak ATP
Lowest Price Here »#2 Legion Pulse
Pulse, developed by Legion, is without a doubt one of the best pre-workout supplements we’ve come across yet. We found it was capable of accommodating both anaerobic and aerobic exercise. This means Pulse can be used for a variety of fitness activities, like weight lifting, cardio, and stamina training. Also, one of the many notorious attributes that stood out was Pulse’s rush of clean, lasting energy without any shortfalls.
This is because the 350mg of caffeine in Pulse is perfectly balanced out with 350mg of l-theanine. See, while caffeine uplifts focus, mood and natural levels of bodily energy, it comes with its own side effects like shakes, otherwise known as jitters and worst of all, crashes. On the contrary, l-theanine works by countering caffeine’s negative effects, allowing you to utilize your pre-workout energy boost without ever burning out.
In addition to its energy blend, there are a whopping 8 grams of citrulline malate, 4.8g of beta-alanine, 2.5g of betaine, and 2.2g of l-ornithine. Furthermore, you won’t find a single artificial sweetener, dye, or filler in Pulse, either. Moreover, as with nearly each supplement we review, we had to experience Pulse’s flavor profile for ourselves. Folks, Pulse tasted nothing short of fantastic – and it mixed just as well as it tasted.
Key Features
• Science-backed clinically effective dosages
• Delivers an incredible, lasting pump
• 2.5 grams of betaine
• 4.8 grams of beta-alanine
• 8 grams of 1:1 citrulline malate!
Lowest Price Here »#1 Transparent Labs BULK – The Alpha
After a considerable amount of thorough testing, ingredient research and review, we’ve finally found our champion. We believe Transparent Labs (TL) Pre-Series BULK currently deserves to dominate first place for a multitude of reasons, such as no garbage ingredients, full ingredient disclosure (you always know exactly what and how much you’re putting in your body), as well as scientifically proven clinically effective dosages.
Sounds awesome, right? It gets even better. Inside BULK you’ll find 4g of fermented, instantized BCAAs, 6g of clinically effective Citrulline Malate, and 4g of beta-alanine – all in just one serving. It’s very apparent TL BULK spared no expense on its ingredient quality, which is a significant plus. Also, in addition to all that clinically effective goodness is a testosterone support complex made up of Vitamin D3, boron, and zinc.
Furthermore, there’s also 2½g of betaine-anhydrous as well as a multitude of 19 other, smaller-dosed (and active) ingredients. They help by boosting nitric oxide levels, reduce fatigue, and improve focus as well as physical performance. Lastly, in terms of taste, we made sure to test each one of their 3 offered flavors. Each flavor tasted phenomenal despite having zero Artificial or Natural flavorings. BULK dissolved just as well, too. This is mainly due to its ‘instantized’ powder which allows it to break down quickly in cooler water.
Key Features 
• Clinically effective dosages
• Delivers an incredible, lasting pump
• 4 grams of beta-alanine
• 4 grams of fermented 2:1:1 BCAAs
• 6 grams of citrulline malate
• 2½ grams of betaine-anhydrous
Lowest Price Here »Concluding Thoughts
We’ve outlined what we believe to be the Top 10 industry leading pre-workout supplements with regards to a variety of reasons. In the end, though, deciding which supplement to choose is ultimately up to you. While we strongly believe TL Bulk is currently the best in its class, it should be noted that pwo’s reformulate with time. As such, we’ll continue to monitor and update our ranking as necessary far into the foreseeable future.
Tried one of these supplements before? Tell us about your experience in the comments below!
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