If you’re like any health-conscious consumer, you’ve likely come across the growing demand for medicinal mushrooms for their potential health benefits.
However, medicinal mushrooms aren’t new by any means.
They have been used for centuries in traditional Chinese medicine.
Until recently, they began to make their way into the Western world and have become one of the fastest-growing markets in the health industry, expecting to grow USD 4.55 billion at a CAGR of 9.15% from 2020 to 2025.
As consumers, that poses an issue with more and more brands flooding the market to grab their share.
How do you choose the best one?
Because NOT ALL MUSHROOM PRODUCTS are the same! Far from it...
Luckily, we’ve put together a list of the best mushroom supplements to buy.
There are multiple categories that we’ll expand on, depending on your preference as a consumer.
Let's dive in:
Our Top Mushroom Supplement Picks:
Best Medicinal Mushroom Coffee
This list will provide you with the top companies that offer a mushroom coffee blend, typically to be used as a coffee alternative. They blend together multiple mushroom species and other ingredients (often small amounts of coffee) to offer a product that is said to provide a sustained energy without the crash that many have with coffee or other high-caffeine drinks.
Best Medicinal Mushroom Powdered Extract
In this list, you’ll find companies that offer powdered medicinal mushroom extract, which is typically added to a drink of your choosing, rather than as a drink-replacement. Most enjoy adding this to their coffee, milk, tea, etc.
Best Medicinal Mushroom Capsules
If you want the benefits of mushroom powdered extract, but don’t have an acquired taste for them, this list provides the best capsules. They’ve taken mushroom powdered extract and put it in a capsule for consumers to take easily, just like other supplements you may take daily.
Best Medicinal Mushroom Tinctures
Tinctures are in the form of liquid extracts, most commonly used in the hemp industry and as herbal tonics. The product is given in a tincture and a dropper is used to place the extract into your mouth. This increases the bioavailability as your body doesn’t have anything to break down before absorption (like a capsule). We detail the best all around mushroom tinctures in this list.
Best Medicinal Mushroom Gummies
The gummy craze is still going! Across the vitamin and supplement space, we’ve seen exponential growth, as many consumers look for a friendly alternative to taking their vitamins. Medicinal mushrooms have followed suit, with companies offering mushroom extract in gummy form to deliver a better taste/experience. Typically, this will take longer to feel the effects of the mushroom, solely because your body has to digest it.
In order to choose the best products available, we review the company, consumer reviews, ingredients, source type (mycelium and/or fruiting body), lab tests provided by the company, and their cultivation/harvesting practices.
Best Medicinal Mushroom Coffee Alternative
1) EverydayDose
Pros: EverydayDose comes in at the number 1 spot for a variety of reasons. They offer a 100% organic product, as many do, and have carefully selected ingredients for specific effects.
The company has not only made an effort to disclose the ingredients and where they source them from, but has thoroughly done their research on mushrooms. They use lion’s mane and chaga in their blend of mushrooms.
They use 100% fruiting bodies. This is a pretty crucial part to our review. Fruiting bodies are what you envision when you think of a mushroom. It’s the cap. It’s what you would buy in a store. This part of the mushroom is known to have all the beneficial properties. Many other products only use the mycelium (the root system of mushrooms). While mycelium has its own benefits, problems arise with cultivation practices. Mycelium can be grown on grain/oats/rice and if the company is trying to turn around the product quickly, they often don’t allow the mycelium to fully colonize, so instead of actually getting mushroom mycelium, you’re getting more grain/oats/rice than anything else! You can learn more about that here.
Plus, they use extract which has gone through a process to make one of the most beneficial properties of mushrooms (beta-glucans) bioavailable for humans. Mushrooms have a tough cell wall that we cannot break down. It must be extracted so we can absorb these compounds. Those that don’t sell extract are just selling ground up mushroom powder, which is just about the same as eating mushrooms raw, and the beta-glucans and other “medicinal” compounds cannot be absorbed.
We also love their amino acid stack and how they list the mg content of each.
Customer reviews are strong! With 1000+ reviews on site, the company has a solid reputation. We tried to see other reviews on different marketplaces, but they don’t currently offer their product on Amazon.
Sustainability - We always support companies that have sustainably sourced products and are mindful about their packaging. EverydayDose has a starter kit that comes with a heavy-duty glass container. Then, when refills are shipped, they come in a compostable bag.
Additional Notes - While we don’t know him personally, we like Jack’s story. He talks about his struggle with the use of Adderall and discusses how mushrooms helped him take control of his life. Marketing or not, it’s a great story that resonates with a lot of people.
Cons - We wish that the company posted the exact amount of each ingredient, rather than just saying the serving size is a 1.85g blend. However, most that we’ve seen do not disclose this information either.
Consumers also looking for more than two mushroom species may opt for an alternative that offers more than just chaga and lion’s mane.
Also, those that are vegan may seek other options. They have collagen in their product, which is renowned as a great supplement, but there is no vegan option for collagen. However, their social media identified that a vegan product is in the works, so stay tuned!
2) Four Sigmatic
Pros: Four Sigmatic, one of the biggest names in the mushroom coffee space, is well deserving of its spot at number 2 on our list. Their products are organic, vegan, and keto-friendly. Unlike EverydayDose, what you’re getting from Four Sigmatic is coffee that is infused with medicinal mushrooms. EveryDayDose is more of a coffee alternative, but each consumers’ preferences vary.
The company has a diverse product line, with different mushroom species blended in bags of ground coffee. This makes it easy to shop by effect and choose which one is best for you. They also offer K-Cups for Keurigs and other coffee machines.
They, too, use 100% fruiting bodies. They also state that “all functional mushrooms in Four Sigmatic products are extracted. We do both a hot water and alcohol extraction to get the most out of each species we use. Once extracted, we spray-dry the extract to create a powder. All our products are potent and ready-to-use (hot or cold) as soon as you get them.”
Companies that clearly identify the source type of their mushrooms are winners in our book and if they clearly demonstrate the extraction process taken, even better! Hot water and alcohol extractions are necessary to break down the tough cell walls of mushrooms so us humans can absorb the beneficial compounds. Four Sigmatic knows this and their product is of the highest quality.
We took an image from their chaga and lion’s mane coffee to show that they do disclose the amount per serving of 250mg each.
They offer a variety of different products to choose from and something for every consumers out there.
Customer Reviews are Plentiful! - At time of writing, the company has 35,048 5-star reviews & counting! They’ve been around and were one of the, if not the first, to bring mushroom coffee to consumers on a large scale. On Amazon, their reviews across all of their products are very strong as well. Here’s one below.
Overall, Four Sigmatic delivers a winning product and has plenty of options that we like for consumers. They provide details on their extraction as well as the part of the mushroom we use, and that should be incredibly important for you, as a consumer.
We also like their commitment to the environment and eco-friendly packaging on many of their products.
Cons: The company doesn’t list their beta-glucan percentage like EveryDayDose. It’s an important compound and we wish they provided that information.
The dosing of each mushroom is rather small as well, but if you’re drinking more than 1 cup, it could do the job.
We wish the company offered blends with more than just one or two mushrooms, or offered a complete coffee alternative, but that’s just not who they are and we respect what they’re doing.
3) Ryze Mushroom Coffee
Pros: Ryze is in the 3rd spot for our mushroom coffee. They are an organic brand with raving reviews from customers. We dug under the hood to learn more about the company that has recently become a crowd favorite.
Ryze, like EveryDayDose and Four Sigmatic, uses fruiting bodies of the mushroom. This is important in our review. All of the 3 best companies used fruiting bodies, and while we are fine with the use of mycelium (if cultivation, harvesting, and lab tests are provided), none of the other products out there gave us the necessary information to include them in our best mushroom coffee list.
We also contacted Ryze, and their customer support team replied almost instantly and verified their extraction process as well, stating, “We use 100% fruiting bodies. Yes, they are powder extracts, not just the mushrooms ground into powder. We use a dual extraction process, hot water and alcohol depending on the specific mushroom.”
This is always great to see and confirms what we’re looking for in our mushroom coffee products…EXTRACTION!
It’s also important to note that the company has the knowledge to know that different extraction methods are better suited for specific species. Take reishi and chaga. Both have beneficial properties in the beta-glucans and terpenoids. In order to make beta-glucans bioavailable for humans, a hot water extraction must be done. For terpenoids, an alcohol extraction must be done. For both, a double/dual extract would be performed to extract both compounds. In say, Turkey Tail, for example, its primary benefit is the beta-glucans, so only a hot water extraction is necessary. The alcohol extraction is often not necessary and could be detrimental to the finished product as it can lower the percentage of beta-glucans.
Moving along, they post their nutrition facts directly on the site.
What we really enjoy about Ryze is their inclusion of multiple mushrooms in one blend. Cordyceps, reishi, king trumpet, shiitake, lion’s mane, and turkey tail. It’s blended with coffee as well and each cup contains 48mg of caffeine.
Customer reviews were fantastic and with over 4000 of them, we can see why this company is on the…Ryze!
No presence on Amazon or other marketplaces is noted at this point.
Overall, Ryze does it right. They have a solid product, high quality, focus on extraction, and respond quickly to customer service inquiries. For that, we had to have them in our list.
Cons - The company says they are working on their vegan and gluten free certification which may deter some consumers.
We also wish they provided a breakdown of their 2g blend of mushrooms so we know exactly how much of each species are in each service. However, most companies don’t reveal this, because they state it is their own intellectual property. We respect that.
Best Medicinal Mushroom Powdered Extract
1) FreshCap
Source Type: 100% Fruiting Body
Beta-glucans: > Listed on site, varies by species
Extraction Process: Dual Extract (Hot Water + Alcohol)
COA/Analysis: Listed directly on site
FreshCap is a Canada-based mushroom company, specializing in extracts of all different species. The company has a great story and focuses heavily on educating consumers. Of course, some of it is just good marketing, but we sifted through all of that to determine that it is our number one choice for best mushroom extract powders. The company has an array of extract powders, including lion’s mane, turkey tail, reishi, cordyceps, chaga, and their blend that includes all 5 of those mushrooms as well as maitake.
Pros: They stand by their sustainability and their quality and go into detail on the site.
The company uses 100% fruiting bodies. Again, the medicinally value in mushrooms is typically associated with the fruiting body. However, we don’t hold a gripe against companies that use both fruiting body and mycelium. Like any company, we just ask for COA’s and lab tests to verify the active compounds like beta-glucans and terpenoids. If any of them can’t do that, then, we kick them to the bottom. It should be a pretty simple ask to determine the quality of the product!
In the case with FreshCap, we couldn’t find the lab tests right away, so we reached out to them. One thing that sets them apart from others is their customer service. Directly on the site is a message tool. Within seconds, we got a message back and they provided details on their COA’s and tests.
All of their COA’s are on their site, which we appreciate.
One thing to note about COA’s and lab tests is that most, if not all companies out there, seem to do a lot of internal testing. What we’ve found is that there aren’t a lot of companies that perform the testing for beta-glucans and terpenoids, so most COA’s you’ll find are approved by the company that is actually selling the product. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing, but we do appreciate when companies state the lab that has done the testing.
FreshCap uses a dual extraction method, so they aren’t just selling mushroom powder like a lot of the companies out there. If you’re new to mushroom supplements, be on the lookout for mushroom powder vs mushroom extract powder. Mushroom powder is simply raw mushrooms that have been dried and ground into a powder. While this may hold some nutritional value, you really should be looking for companies that use an extraction method.
Simple put, our bodies cannot break down the tough walls of mushrooms. In order for the most researched, medicinal properties, of mushrooms to be absorbed by our bodies, they must go through a hot water extraction (for beta-glucans) and alcohol extraction (for terpenoids). Some species of mushroom may just benefit from a hot water extraction, while others benefit from both. Nevertheless, if you’re buying mushroom powder, make sure it’s an extract, like all of the companies in our list!
Customer reviews for FreshCap were great on their site and on Amazon. We always like to see customer reviews on Amazon as an unbiased, 3rd party marketplace.
Cons: Nothing glaring. Some products don’t have as many reviews as their Ultimate Mushroom Complex, but overall, a solid company. We do wish they stated which company performed their lab tests, but nevertheless, the results are there and are public for everyone to see.
2) Real Mushrooms
Source Type: 100% Fruiting Body
Beta-glucans: Listed on each product, varies by species
Extraction Process: Dual Extract (Hot Water + Alcohol), depending on species
COA/Analysis: Not Listing Directly on their Site. You have to inquire. Email response is slow and may not happen.
Real Mushrooms is a pretty well known company in the mushroom industry. It’s parent company, Nammex, is one of the leading providers of mushroom extract. They source their products from China, are certified organic, and their founder, Jeff Chilton, has over 40 years of experience in the industry. Jeff is adamant about the use of fruiting body, especially as he has seen many companies pawning off cheaply-produced mushrooms that were grown on grain/rice/oats, which often includes a lot of fillers and starch that really aren’t mushrooms at all. For this, we love his passion, but we do agree that there is a place for fruiting body and mycelium-based products, so long as accurate testing is done. Nevertheless, Jeff is a trusted mushroom expert and he delivers as promised with a high quality mushroom extract.
Pros: Along with the experience from the owners, which is crucial, especially as a lot of “pop-up” brands try to grab some market share with good marketing, Real Mushrooms spends time educating consumers. Of course, education can still be a form of marketing to act like a superior product, but their product checks out.
They offer a mushroom extract and warn people of those trying to pawn off mushroom powder (just raw mushrooms dried and ground up) as having the same medicinal properties of extracts. It’s just not true. All of the research says so.
They either do a dual extraction (hot water and alcohol) or just a hot water extraction, depending on species. They state on their site:
“In a reishi double mushroom extraction, we have triterpenes like ganoderic acids, many of which are non-water soluble.2,3 These are an important component of reishi which should be present in any high quality reishi product. Triterpenes give reishi its bitter flavor and this bitterness is a good quality indicator for reishi. Reishi products that aren’t bitter can be assumed to have negligible amounts of triterpenes. A chaga double extraction will help to isolate triterpenes and sterols like inotodiol, trametenolic acid, and betulinic acid. These are primarily non-water soluble. For other mushrooms like cordyceps, lion’s mane, turkey tail, shiitake and maitake, there isn’t any primary non-water soluble compounds of note.”
Their experience speaks volumes and conveys a level of trust that is needed and desired by consumers.
We couldn’t find COA’s/lab tests directly on their site, which is a bit of a let down. We did, however, contact their parent company, Nammex, and they were able to provide lab tests for us. We are still waiting for lab tests to be sent from us from Real Mushrooms and will update this when we’ve heard back. It has been a slow response time from their customer service. While this doesn’t speak for the quality of the product, when you’re buying a brand, you want answers and a response when you ask questions.
Their reviews are strong on their site as well as Amazon. They pass this test with flying colors.
Cons: We wished they posted their COA’s/3rd Party Tests directly on product pages.
3) Naturealm - Sacred 7
Source Type: 100% fruiting body
Beta-glucans: Listed from manufacturer, but not on site
Extraction Process: Hot water + alcohol extraction
COA/Analysis: Not provided, but wait for the explanation
Naturealm’s Sacred 7 deserves an honorable mention in our list. It’s hard to come by products that check off all our boxes, especially when it comes to beta-glucan percentage and verification of lab testing.
In this case, Naturealm didn’t provide this, yet they are still one of the best sellers for mushroom extract powder on Amazon.
We went to their site, and they provided information on their use of 100% fruiting bodies, as well as the extraction process. All checked out.
Then they noted that beta-glucan content was guaranteed by their provider in Canada and standardized to meet a certain percentage, but then they blend multiple mushroom species together and sell it in this 7-mushroom blend. At first, this was a little suspicious to us, so we dove a bit further to then find out that Sacred-7 sources their products from Nammex, the parent company of Real Mushrooms.
So, for that, we put them in our list, because the source of the product is trusted.
Sacred 7 is a strong product that has a great blend of multiple mushrooms and their reviews speak for themselves.
One thing to note is that some of the reviews said there is a new formula that tastes a bit like cocoa, so you may want to check that if you have any allergies or have pets. We have not heard back from the company in regards to this.
Final thoughts: The product can be trusted and comes from a reputable source. Naturealm saw an opportunity to have their own product, came up with a blend they wanted, and launched it. No harm there! We do wish they did their own testing and provided beta-glucan content on their own site and/or packaging, but maybe that will happen in the future.
Best Medicinal Mushroom Capsules
1) FreshCap
Source Type: 100% Fruiting Body
Beta-glucans: > Listed on site, varies by species
Extraction Process: Dual Extract (Hot Water + Alcohol)
COA/Analysis: Listed directly on site
FreshCap grabs the number 1 spot in our review for mushroom capsules, as they did for mushroom extract powders. Essentially, capsules are just extract powders that are put into capsule form. The product is the same, but it just provides an easier way to consume the product.
We’ve gone through and detailed a few of the things that we like best about FreshCap, including its use of 100% fruiting bodies, its extraction process, its lab testing, and its consumer reviews.
We’ll start with what's most important to us here at Remeday: lab tests that back up the quality of the product. If companies can’t provide this, even though they may be well known brands, it just doesn’t cut it for us. As consumers, we should demand transparency, especially as the FDA does not regulate the use of vitamins and supplements, it places the blame on consumers if they choose a poor-quality product. Problem is, it’s a hard and lengthy process, and just looking at reviews doesn’t necessarily cut it anymore. FreshCap delivered in this category, placing all of their COA’s directly on site. Here’s a sample:
Of course, we do looks for customer reviews, and FreshCap excelled here as well!
Great reviews on their site and we confirmed their reviews on Amazon.
Final Thoughts:
Pros: FreshCap is a company that pays attention to detail in regards to product quality and education. They respond quickly to customer service inquiries. They also have a great youtube channel covering a lot about mushrooms, from products to growing them on your own!
Cons: Nothing glaring. Some products don’t have as many reviews as their Ultimate Mushroom Complex, but overall, a solid company.
2) Real Mushrooms
Source Type: 100% Fruiting Body
Beta-glucans: >20%
Extraction Process: Dual Extract (Hot Water + Alcohol)
COA/Analysis: No Listing Directly on their Site. You have to inquire. The parent company is Nammex, and they did supply us with some COA’s.
Real Mushrooms is a leader in mushroom extracts, from their powdered extract to extracts in capsule form, that you’ll see in the link above. The company is run by the son of Jeff Chilton, who is very well versed in mushroom cultivation and harvesting. His experience in the industry dates back 40+ years and his emphasis on quality is refreshing in an industry that is becoming mass-produced to a degree. The company will forever remain as one of the best.
They use 100% fruiting body extract and go over their extraction process in detail. Certain mushrooms benefit from a hot water and alcohol extraction, while others just need a hot water extraction. They also list all beta-glucan and terpenoid content directly on their site and on the product labels.
We have not been able to find their lab tests on their site and their customer service isn’t quick to respond, if they respond at all, which would come off as a major red flag, but Nammex did respond to us. Nammex is the parent company owned and founded by Jeff Chilton and was able to provide some COA’s. A sample of theirs looks like this:
Don’t be alarmed when mushroom extracts are sourced from China. This is coming as China is the largest producer of them. What you want to ensure is the lab tests, like you see above, to make sure the product is of high quality and free of any pesticides and heavy metals. Also, look for organic certification. It’s important to do your due diligence and make sure your products are safe.
Real Mushrooms had extremely positive reviews on their site and Amazon confirmed this. Here’s a snippet below of one of their products, though all passed with flying colors.
Final Thoughts:
Pros: Real Mushroom products have a high beta-glucan content, use no fillers, are certified organic, and go through extensive testing. They also have a nice knowledge bank on their site and welcome consumers to ask them questions. They have a solid product line and offer individual species of mushrooms in capsule form as well.
Cons: We wished they posted their COA’s/3rd Party Tests directly on product pages.
3) Mushroom Revival
Source Type: 100% Fruiting Body
Beta-glucans: Listed on site, varies by product
Extraction Process: Dual Extract (Hot Water + Alcohol)
COA/Analysis: Listed directly on site.
Mushroom Revival is a smaller company, compared to the likes of FreshCap and Real Mushroom, but deserves a spot on our list for best mushroom capsules. They offer multiple products, and their Daily 10 capsule is the star of the show.
The company uses 100% fruiting bodies and details their extraction process. We have to drill the importance of the extraction home. Many companies sell mushroom powder that is not extracted. That’s essentially the same thing as eating raw mushrooms. While that may have some nutritional value, we, as humans, cannot break down the compounds that have been deemed “medicinal” by studies and research. So, making sure companies follow a hot water and/or alcohol extraction is key.
We also love the transparency of Mushroom Revival, as they post their lab test results on each product page so you can see everything BEFORE you purchase. This is a big win for us and an important part of our reviews. Lab tests really mean everything in the mushroom industry. Without them, you just never know what you’re getting. Here is a sample of theirs:
Customer Reviews: Unfortunately, not many for this product yet, but they did say that capsules were new products they are offering. Other products (tinctures and extract powder) on their site have many positive reviews.
On Amazon, they have some products listed (primarily tinctures) with minimal, yet positive reviews.
Final Thoughts:
Pros: The company excels in product quality, lab testing, and transparency. They also offer a very nice educational resource in their podcast. They are a newer company, but have done the legwork to build their reputation as a solid brand in the mushroom industry.
Cons: There aren’t a substantial amount of reviews across all products, but they are relatively new (Founded in 2018). They also have little presence on Amazon. This isn’t to say that all brands should be on Amazon, but it is nice to comb through reviews on a centralized marketplace.
Best Medicinal Mushroom Tinctures
1) Rainbo
Source Type: Fruiting Body (Some mycelium for different species)
Beta-glucans: Not listed
Extraction Process: Dual Extract (Hot Water + Alcohol)
COA/Analysis: Not provided
Rainbo is in the top spot for a variety of reasons. Their product is organic, vegan, and sourced sustainably from Canada. They are a Canadian company as many top mushroom producers are. Their commitment to quality is unmatched.
They use the fruiting body for their mushrooms, except for lion’s mane, and agaricus, which both have beneficial properties that are only found in the mycelium. Round of applause for them on shifting processes for different species! They also use a dual extraction of hot water and alcohol.
As we get into tinctures, you’ll notice that some companies listed do not provide testing for beta-glucans and terpenoids, like Rainbo. While we typically look for companies that do provide this testing, the reality is that testing is still in its infancy and some companies don’t do it. Don’t steer away from them just because of that. It’s true. Testing is still being perfected and few labs do it.
We look for companies that can comment on this. Rainbo responded to our inquiry, stating, “In terms of beta-glucan testing - we don't believe in the standardization of natural health products (which would mean that we guarantee a certain % of beta-glucans in each product) because that would dilute other bioactive compounds that come from a full spectrum approach to whole mushroom extracts! We believe in extracting the whole mushrooms in full without manipulating the final concentrations of any of the compounds. Of course, each batch of the same mushroom has varying degrees of beta-glucans in them. Also, some mushrooms generally have a higher percentage of beta-glucans per total mass, than others. For example, in cordyceps extracts we can see around 30% beta-glucans whereas in chaga extracts we see 10%.
So unfortunately we don't test for those compounds, however we can share our heavy metals and microbials test with you. Which tincture/s would you like to see the testing for?”
They sent us over their testing for their most popular product, the 11:11 Super Multi Mushroom Synergy product (available with and without alcohol). You’ll start to see more companies do this as they remove the alcohol to make the flavor better for those that don’t enjoy the rather harsh/bitter taste.
The company has an ample amount of reviews on their site, this just for one product.
We also like their commitment to social issues and that they donate 1% of profits to the foundation of your choosing (currently they are 4 to choose from).
Final Thoughts:
Pros: Overall, Rainbo excels where others don’t. From quality to their social impact, the brand was created with care and we applaud them for that.
Cons: We wish they provided beta-glucan and terpenoid testing, but do not fault them for this at this time. Their products are also towards the high end in terms of cost, but in the mushroom industry, you pay for quality.
2) Life Cykel
Source Type: Fruiting Body + Mycelium
Beta-glucans: Not listed
Extraction Process: Dual Extract (Hot Water + Alcohol)
COA/Analysis: Not provided
Life Cykel, like Rainbo, states on their site that “Beta-glucan and terpenes laboratory testings are in their infancy and so we do not believe in the validity of these markers currently.” We expect this to change as new labs and testing procedures are rapidly improving.
Nevertheless, at this stage, it shouldn’t take away from the quality of the product. We just have to dive a little deeper. The same goes for consumers.
Life Cykel is one of, if not the first, mushroom companies to pave the way for liquid extracts. They use both the fruiting body and mycelium for their product. The products go through a double extraction (hot water and alcohol) to make the beta-glucans and terpenoids more bioavailable. We always look for this in a product, depending on species.
They offer a full line of products designed for specific effect. As far as product diversity goes, they lead the pack.
They also offer sprays instead of the tinctures that come in droppers. To many, this is a crowd favorite, with natural flavoring added to taste better.
The cordyceps, chaga and reishi extracts are grown and engineered in the USA, while their Lion’s Mane and Turkey Tail extracts are made from strains growing natively in Australia, which is where the company is primarily based.
As we said, unfortunately, they do not provide testing for their products, but none of the other two tinctures in our list do either. The biggest determining factor for Life Cykel being in the number 2 spot is the amount of reviews they have from consumers.
The company has over 13,000 5-star reviews.
And on Amazon, they succeed as well.
Final Thoughts:
Pros: The company comes heavily reviewed. They are Made in the USA with 100% organic mushrooms. Third-party tested for safety, all natural, full-spectrum, adaptogenic, non-GMO, gluten free, and cruelty free. They’ve made it their mission to produce a high quality product and they have thousands of reviews showing that.
Cons: We hope they will provide testing on beta-glucans and terpenoids at some point, once testing continues to be done throughout the entire industry.
3) Mushroom Revival
Source Type: 100% Fruiting Body
Beta-glucans: Listed on site, varies by product
Extraction Process: Dual Extract (Hot Water + Alcohol)
COA/Analysis: Listed directly on site.
Mushroom Revival may be a smaller brand than the likes of Rainbo and Life Cykel, but they deserve a spot on our best mushroom tincture list.
The company uses 100% fruiting bodies and speaks about their extraction process. We always applaud this. They also have a podcast that really educates and dives into the mushroom industry, with experts and famous mycologists.
We also love the transparency of Mushroom Revival. They are the only product in the list that posts their lab test results on each product page. This is a big win for us and an important part of our reviews. Lab tests really mean everything in the mushroom industry. And not just from a beta-glucan and terpenoid standpoint, but from the safety tests done on heavy metals and microbials. You’ll see a sample of one below for their tincture.
Their products are gluten free, non-gmo, and certified USDA organic.
Overall, the company does it right. We check on their reviews and they don’t have a lot yet, but they are a pretty new business founded in 2018.
We checked on Amazon as well and saw the same thing.
Final Thoughts:
Pros: The company offers an organic product at a reasonable price and pays attention to their extraction process as well as educating consumers. For that, we give them the #3 best mushroom tincture. We hope they continue to grow and could see them move up the leaderboard. Their transparency is refreshing as well, putting their lab test results directly on the site.
Cons: The beta-glucan content in their lab test was rather low, but this can also be from testing procedures as some of their other products tested higher. We would like for them to continue to build and garner more reviews as well!
Best Medicinal Mushroom Gummies
All of a sudden, gummies took over the vitamin world. The nostalgia from eating Flintstone Vitamin gummies as a kid has resurfaced into one of the hottest growing segments in the health & wellness supplement industry.
It was only a matter of time that medicinal mushrooms were used in gummies and here they are. There aren’t many companies that offer this yet, but after speaking with suppliers in various industries, we expect to see many products hit the shelves. We’ve listed a few brands below, with a caveat.
You’ll notice that all brands have a very similar dose per gummy. Essentially, they are using 250mg of 10:1 mushroom extract and touting 2500mg.
This really isn’t accurate.
They are stating the weight of the pre-extracted starting material as what they have used in the final product and not the actual input into the product.
So they say 2500mg in a serving, but the actual total input is only 250mg (25mg of each mushroom).
All the 10:1 extract means, for example, is that 10 pounds of mushrooms were used to make 1 pound of extract.
The weight listed under 'amount per serving' on the supplement facts table should always state the actual physical ingredient amount used in the formulation, and never the pre-extracted weight of the starting material of the ingredient.
Not only is reporting the pre-extracted ingredient weights misleading and dishonest but it's incorrect from a regulatory labeling point of view. Companies should never use pre-extracted weight in place of the actual masses of each component in each serving.
We attempted to ask them about their testing for active compounds, like beta-glucans and terpenes, but didn’t get any answers. Most didn’t know the answer or really had an understanding of medicinal mushroom extracts in general.
It’s just another reason to pay close attention to what you’re buying.
So, if you do choose to buy mushroom gummies, make sure to look at the supplement facts, like this:
They are listing 250mg of each for a total of 2500mg, but really it’s 25mg of each mushroom for a total of 250mg.
Most companies we’ve seen out there are doing the same thing.
Occasionally, you’ll see a company do this, stating the real correct dose.
It’s the same product as the one above, but they chose to display it correctly.
Anyway, it’s up to you as a consumer to decide what you’d like to purchase.
Are gummies more tasty, sure!
But it’s harder to get the same amount of mushroom extract into each and still make the gummy stable and flavorful.
Capsules and extract powders are going to give you more bang for your buck, with a much higher dosage. Most mushroom extract dosages are around 1000mg - 2000mg per day, depending on species, and they could be higher.
So, if your mushroom gummy only has 25mg of each species, is that really enough to do anything for you? Unlikely.
At 250mg per 2 gummies, in order to get to 1000mg per day which has been looked at as a standard dose, that would require eating 8 gummies a day.
Just something to think about.
Here are a few brands to check out. We’ll update it when we find better products hit the market as well.
1) WonderDay Mushroom Gummies
Wonderday does the same thing on their supplement facts that we discussed.
2) Strange Love
Strange Love does it, too.
3) Purify Life
Purify Life with the same supplement facts here. Notice that they all try to throw in that little fine print at the very bottom, “Equivalent from 250mg of 10:1 extract”...
Gummies, at this point, aren’t going to compare to powdered extracts or tinctures.
The problem comes down to dosing and the amount you can fit into a gummy.
Have you ever taken hemp gummies? Maybe apple cider vinegar gummies?
Hemp gummies may have up to 50mg. Apple cider vinegar gummies may have up to 500mg per gummy.
Gummies, by weight, typically only weigh 3-4 grams or 3000-4000mg. Most of the weight is from pectin or gelatin as well as other ingredients, like sugar, water, etc.
It just isn’t feasible to be able to put 1250mg of mushroom extract into each gummy which is why these brands really only have 125mg in each and are using the 10:1 extract as a marketing tactic and nothing more.
But hey, if you want to eat a handful of gummies on a daily basis, that’s up to you!
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