Tribulus terrestris is a popular herbal supplement, growing from Eastern Europe to the heart of Asia, which is among the top natural remedies for sexual health.
Originally, tribulus terrestris was widely recommended to bodybuilders as a natural testosterone booster, without resorting to steroids or other performance enhancing drugs. However, the studies were inconclusive, and in reality, tribulus terrestris is a powerful libido booster, used by Ayurvedic medicine for hundreds of years. This study on 30 women found that after 4 weeks of supplementation, a tribulus terrestris extract increased their sexual desire significantly.
In another study, 180 men were fed tribulus terrestris or a placebo. Their ages varied wildly, from 18 to 65. After 12 weeks of supplementation, the evidence was conclusive: tribulus terrestris was beneficial for sexual performance, sexual satisfaction, and libido.
Tribulus terrestris is a complex plant, however, and consequently comes with a rich profile of antioxidants too, including quercetin, rutin and kaempferol. There’s even evidence that tribulus terrestris can protect heart cells and calm anxiety.
But which is the best brand? That’s what we’ll discuss today. Firstly, remember to cease supplementation with tribulus terrestris if you notice the following (rare) side effects: acid reflux or stomach cramps.
Let’s get started:
One – NutriBio
Firstly, the tribulus terrestris is confirmed to be the correct species of plant. Like every brand here, NutraBio clearly says tribulus terrestris on the ingredients label, with some dodgy brands merely saying “tribulus powder” on the bottle. NutraBio is free from controversial additives such as magnesium stearate and carrageenan, with the only inactive ingredients being the hypromellose capsule and water.
NutraBio is also particularly strong value for money compared to most brands, with 90 capsules. Each capsule contains 500mg, and the recommended serving is one daily, lasting for 3 months, easily enough to conduct your own tribulus terrestris experiment.
The all important steroidal saponins are standardised to a high rate of 60%, guaranteeing that the libido enhancing compounds are in place, alongside the bonus antioxidants. NutraBio is also a highly trustworthy brand. The supplement is manufactured in the USA in a GMP certified facility, and NutraBio sells some of the purest zinc and magnesium supplements. Every batch is tested by a third party laboratory for purity and potency, and there’s a 90 money back guarantee in case of dissatisfaction.
Why is NutraBio the victor? Because it delivers every feature at once – a clean additives list, high potency, and higher standardisation than Solaray below, another pure product. This is also a vegan product if that matters to you. The only negligible disadvantage is a lack of Amazon reviews, but NutraBio is well trusted for their other products.
NutraBio is the most well-rounded and effective tribulus terrestris on the market.
Amazon link: NutraBio Tribulus Terrestris Extract.
Two – Solaray
If you want to feel the solar rays with this supplement, forget it. You’re more likely to become a lean, mean, gym-addicted machine if the ingredients list is anything to go by, unless the muscle you pack on makes you so confident that you walk around shirtless everywhere.
Solaray is almost as perfect as NutraBio. This supplement is standardised to consist of 40% steroidal saponins, and the dosage is 450mg per capsule with a recommended serving of 1 daily. This is slightly lower than Nutrabio, but more than sufficient for your performance needs. With 60 capsules per bottle, you again receive slightly less than NutraBio, but the price is again affordable.
Solaray is manufactured in the USA, in a Good Manufacturing Practises (GMP) certified facility. Solaray is free from the bonus libido-boosting ingredients of more complex male formulas, like zinc or tongkat ali, instead giving you a no-nonsense tribulus terrestris supplement.
The most important advantage of Solaray is an important one to remember generally: the label specifically says “tribulus terrestris” powder.
A few years ago the tribulus market was a minefield. There was an epidemic of products on Amazon which declared themselves to be tribulus, sucking people in with excitement, anticipating their future bulging muscles and beard growth. But when you read the label, these bottles would merely say “tribulus powder” and not tribulus terrestris. Essentially, they could have been any tribulus species.
These products were legion, and appeared to be virtual clones of each other, sourced from the same original supplier and then repackaged. Thankfully, these suspicious brands are far less common than they used to be, but there’s still a few dotted around. Always keep your eyes peeled, and always check the label.
Another upside of Solaray is a clean additives list, featuring only the vegetable cellulose capsule. There’s complete freedom from magnesium stearate, an anti-adhesive which is feared due to its effect on nutrient absorption. Magnesium stearate isn’t a deal breaker, and one supplement on this list contain its, but it’s still an advantage for Solaray.
Solaray is a trusted supplement brand, and their tribulus terrestris has similarly impeccable quality.
Amazon link: Solaray Tribulus Terrestris Fruit Extract.
Three – Now Sports
The sports branch of Now Foods, Now Supplements, etc. Now is one of the USA’s most trusted supplement companies, as laboratory tests consistently reveal ingredients that match those promised on the label.
Now Sports ranks among the most popular tribulus terrestris brands. Firstly, the ingredients label specifically mentions tribulus terrestris rather than “tribulus powder”.
Now Foods is also excellent value for money, featuring 90 capsules of 1000mg each, double the dosage of NutraBio. The capsules contain tribulus terrestris in a mixture of the fruits and the plant’s aerial parts. If tribulus terrestris really does boost libido and enhance muscle mass, then Now Sports will surely deliver. The supplement itself is made in a GMP certified facility, and packaged in the USA. Then there’s Now Sports’ endless list of positive reviews, running into the hundreds.
One thing about Now Sports you’ll notice is that it’s standardised to a high 45% steroidal saponins. Why are standardised saponins so important? Because the best studies used standardised rates of 45% plus, often up to 80%. For example: a rat study used a 20% saponin extract to improve libido, while the earlier study on 180 men used a 45% saponin tribulus terrestris extract to improve libido.
The steroidal saponin protodioscin is widely hailed as the main compound of tribulus terrestris. Interestingly, isolated protodioscin increased testosterone levels sharply, by 52% in one study, while tribulus terrestris as a whole usually fails. However, for erectile function, protodioscin actually achieved nothing in isolation whereas a full standardised extract was powerful.
Therefore the full saponin profile is most important, and others include protodibestin, tribestin, spirostanol, and tribulosin, the latter possibly protecting heart cells from death. It’s the same case as with many plant species; you need the full package, and that’s what Now Sports provides. Are there any flaws? Only a slightly longer additives list, reading “microcrystalline cellulose, stearic acid (vegetable source), vegetarian coating and silicon dioxide”. Also note that Now Sports contains 130mg of calcium per capsule. This is harmless, but if it interferes with any nutritional plans you’re following, choose a different supplement.
Now Sports is an unbeatable tribulus terrestris when it comes to trustworthiness.
Amazon link: Now Sports Tribulus Terrestris.
Four – Swanson
Swanson is free from controversial additives like magnesium stearate, with the list reading “gelatin, rice flour, calcium laurate, silica”. Swanson is standard strength for our list, providing 500mg of tribulus terrestris per capsule, equalling NutraBio though not quite matching Now Sports. There’s 90 capsules per bottle, for a 3 month supply.
Swanson’s supplement is confirmed on the label to be the tribulus terrestris species, rather than a random tribulus family plant nobody cares about. One difference is that this brand isn’t standardised, instead providing whole tribulus terrestris fruit. Swanson is another company that consistently tests well in laboratory reports for consumers. They’ve been around since 1969 and aren’t a pop up company which appears on Amazon overnight, flogs a few fraudulent wares and disappears back to China from whence they came. With Swanson, you get what you pay for.
The reviews are what you’d expect too: some believe it increased their testosterone, others reported supercharged strength, while others are convinced it did nothing. Such is the nature of tribulus terrestris.
Swanson’s clean additives, strong dosage, and confirmed authenticity combine to make it an excellent tribulus terrestris.
Amazon link: Swanson Full Spectrum Tribulus Fruit.
Five – Optimum Nutrition
This is a trustworthy company, which sells one of the most popular whey proteins. While not perfect, you get exactly what you pay for with Optimum Nutrition. There’s two minor disadvantages on the label; the magnesium stearate, with the other additives being gelatin and silica, and the fact that the exact standardisation rate of the steroidal saponins isn’t mentioned. However, the tribulus is separated into both whole fruit and a special extract…
…and once again, Optimum Nutrition’s label specifically says tribulus terrestris rather than tribulus powder.
Another question is this: will Optimum Nutrition increase testosterone levels as it boasts? Will any tribulus terrestris brand? We cannot answer, for tribulus terrestris extracts themselves have never been conclusively proven to increase testosterone.
The confirmed libido boosting properties led to the assumption, but the above rugby player study, and this study on humans where no direct nor indirect effect on testosterone was observed, both cast doubt on the theory. Isolated protodioscin was once shown to increase testosterone by 52%, but only when injected directly into the bloodstream.
Where it is interesting is that a rat study showed that Bulgarian tribulus terrestris can increase androgen receptor density in the brain. What does that mean? Essentially, existing testosterone in your body will be more powerful, because the areas where it binds to and exerts its influence are more sensitive. More sensitive brain receptors will enhance the mental benefits of testosterone like concentration, aggression, and a stable mood. Whether tribulus terrestris affects muscle androgen receptors is unknown, but not disproven.
Regardless, if libido enhancement and antioxidants are what you desire, Optimum Nutrition will succeed.
Amazon link: Optimum Nutrition Tribulus Terrestris.
Six – Banyan Botanicals
…which raises an important point: what’s the difference between the plant’s root and fruit? The fruit is yellow to green, and in the shape of a cow hoof, which is known as Goat’s Head in the USA. The fruit tastes acrid and has a mild aroma, and is divided into five sections as opposed to the dozens of the raspberry, for example, with each featuring two outward facing spikes.
But the real question is the medical properties. The steroidal saponins differ significantly in the fruit, featuring terrestrinin B, terrestroneoside A, and chloromaloside rather than protodioscin. In studies, tribulus terrestris fruits have anti-stress and antioxidant effects, behaving like a calming adaptogenic supplement in the manner of rhodiola rosea. Additionally, a study where humans were fed 2 grams of fruit extract daily observed a 9.6-10.7% fall in blood pressure after 4 weeks.
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Meanwhile, a few have claimed that the root is the main libido miracle, but this study tested the fruit extract and found a big increase in libido among sexually exhausted rats. This study, meanwhile, fed the root to rats and reinvigorated their sex drive. The truth is that both parts of the plant improve libido, and have promising differences aside from that.
As for Banyan Botanicals, the powder is certified organic. It comes in an 8 ounce bag for an affordable price, and the powder comes in a sealable plastic bag. It’s confirmed to be tribulus terrestris rather than a different tribulus species. The only flaw is not disclosing the country of origin, although the USDA organic seal is reassuring.
There’s no reason to take a powder over capsules, but Banyan Botanicals is an interesting experiment.
Amazon link: Banyan Botanicals Tribulus Terrestris Powder.
Does tribulus terrestris vary by country?
The answer is undoubtedly yes, but the exact consequences are a mystery. A lot of research has been conducted on the regional differences. A study found that Bulgarian, Macedonian, Greek, Iranian, Serbian and Turkish varieties of tribulus terrestris had 3 times as much protodioscin as other varieties. Easterly sub-varieties in India and Vietnam lack the steroidal saponins tribestin and prototribestin, but contain 50 to 150 times as much tribulosin.
Exactly which saponins increase libido is unknown, so unlike the hormonal herb maca root, which we know works most effectively when grown in the Peruvian Andes rather than China, there’s no clear rule yet for tribulus terrestris.
Elsewhere, the genus of tribulus itself is 25 members strong, of which 12 are found in the middle east. The plant family is united by its preference for warm climates, stretching from Bulgaria to Turkey and all the way to India. However, t. pentandrus is more known for its kaempferol content. It also features tricin-7-diglucoside as a unique compound, while t. alatus features steroidal gylcosides called spirostane, furostane, and cholestane.
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Interesting, t. alatus does what tribulus terrestris claims to, with a rat study showing that an extract increased free testosterone levels significantly. T. alatus is now gaining popularity among athletes as a supplement itself, and another study revealed that it could boost bloodstream glutathione and ascorbic acid levels effectively.
The main point though is that the species aren’t interchangeable, particularly considering that the studies on erectile strength were conducted t. terrestris on specifically. The main lesson for the future is to keep an eye on t. alatus.
The strength theories
We’ve established the testosterone theory as more complex than a simple increase, but what about the oft-promised boost in strength and power, whether for football or bodybuilding? The evidence is weak. One study gave 22 elite male rugby players either a placebo or a tribulus terrestris pill, which was standardised to contain 60% saponins.
After five weeks of training, there was no difference in fat free mass or strength between the groups. Nor was there a difference in the groups’ testosterone to estrogen ratios.
A longer 8 week study was similar; scientists fed rugby players a 45% standardised dosage of tribulus terrestris and there was no increase in leg press strength and muscle endurance. The athletic benefits may exist, but are minor at best, or only apply in certain circumstances.
Conclusion
The tribulus terrestris market is in better shape than it was when this article was first published (2018). At that stage, it was one of the shadiest of any natural supplement. As of April 2024, there’s still relatively few that combine tribulus terrestris extract with the purest additives list imaginable. This list contains a handful.
Other brands contain the correct species, but feature magnesium stearate as an additive, including Optimum Nutrition above. If nothing else is available, then purchasing the correct species definitely gets priority. It’s possible that tribulus terrestris is naturally sticky and adhesive, and requires an anti-caking agent like magnesium stearate much more compared to others.
It’s lucky that magnesium stearate’s downsides are relatively minor. If you’re unaware, then this common additive is believed to decrease nutrient absorption, but one study found that magnesium stearate only decreased the pace of capsule dissolution in the gut, and didn’t affect the ultimate availability of the ingredient itself. I recommend avoiding it if possible, but it isn’t a deal breaker.
Whether tribulus terrestris will work or not, every supplement here has a shot.
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Thanks for reading!