mineral

Iron supplements

Half of the 6,910 iron supplements in the NIH label database that print an amount list 5 mg or less per serving; the middle half list 1.2 mg to 18 mg, and 1 in 29 of the 6,825 with a plausible amount give more than the adult upper limit at the most servings their labels direct (DSLD version 9.4.0, January 2026). The 291 products whose only supplement ingredient is iron list a median of 27 mg, and 25% of them give more than the upper limit.

How much iron do supplements contain?

The median product lists 5 mg per serving. One in ten lists 0.5 mg or less, one in ten 27 mg or more. The amount printed most often is 18 mg (778 products).

How do the amounts compare with the Daily Value and the upper limit?

The FDA Daily Value for iron is 18 mg (adults and children 4 and older). The median product gives 28% of it per serving; the 90th percentile 150%.

The adult Tolerable Upper Intake Level is 45 mg a day (total intake from food, water and supplements). At the most servings their labels direct, 234 of the 6,825 products with a plausible amount (3.4%) give more than that from the supplement alone (what counts as plausible).

The upper limit is for total intake from food, water and supplements unless stated, and does not apply under medical supervision. A label amount is what the maker printed. This is data, not advice: the NIH ODS fact sheets explain what each nutrient does.

Which forms of iron do labels name?

Ferrous fumarate is the form named most often: 1,280 of the 8,696 iron products (15%), ahead of iron bisglycinate (546, 6%) and ferrous gluconate (228, 3%). A product naming two forms counts in both; the table below gives every form.

• Ferrous fumarate
• Iron bisglycinate
• Ferrous gluconate
• Ferrous sulfate
• Carbonyl iron
• Polysaccharide-iron complex

Which products list the most iron?

On-market products, per serving, with a plausible amount: the rule leaves out likely entry slips, such as an amount far beyond every other label with no %DV or strength on the label to back it (each product page still shows its own amount, marked).

• Trigelsd-F ForteTrigen Laboratories151 mg
• Trigels-F ForteTrigen Laboratories151 mg
• Ferrex-150Major150 mg
• Ferrex 150 Plus CapsulesBreckenridge150 mg
• Ferrex 150Breckenridge Pharmaceutical150 mg
• FEONYX 1 mg/150 mgAmella Pharma150 mg
• Corvite 150Vertical Pharmaceuticals150 mg
• Corvite FeVertical Pharmaceuticals150 mg

Have the amounts changed over the years?

Products whose current label entered DSLD in 2011 list a median of 6 mg; those entered in 2025, 4 mg.

In which products and brands?

Brands listing it most: Nature's Plus (162), Nature's Way (73), Core Nutritionals (63), Douglas Laboratories (58), Amazing Grass (55), Bronson (50), Sunwarrior (50), Garden of Life (49), Solgar (47), XYMOGEN (45).

Every product listing iron

8,696 products, A to Z by name (page 119 of 174), each with the amount its label prints; an amount far outside what other labels print is marked as a possible slip.

• Prenatal CompleteNewtonEverett18 mg
• Prenatal CompleteBIOVEA18 mg
• Prenatal CompleteWonder Labs28 mg
• Prenatal Complete with DHAOrtho Molecular Products30 mg
• Prenatal ComplexOL Olympian Labs30 mg
• Prenatal Core MineralsUSANA CellSentials · off the market14 mg
• Prenatal Core MineralsUSANA14 mg
• Prenatal Daily NutritionCountry Life Realfood Organics · off the market18 mg
• Prenatal DHANoor Vitamins27 mg
• Prenatal DHA plus ProbioticsGreens First Female · off the market30 mg
• Prenatal DHA+ GingerNoor Vitamins27 mg
• Prenatal Drink Mix with DHA Citrus FlavoredPremama9 mg
• Prenatal EssentialsWhole Foods18 mg
• Prenatal EssentialsDoctor's Best27 mg
• Prenatal EssentialsXYMOGEN · off the market30 mg
• Prenatal EssentialsProCaps Laboratories18 mg
• Prenatal Folic AcidNature Made27 mg
• Prenatal Folic Acid + DHANature Made27 mg
• Prenatal FormulaNature Made · off the market27 mg
• Prenatal FormulaProThera · off the market27 mg
• Prenatal FormulaGNC Women's18 mg
• Prenatal FormulaSmartyPants PhD9 mg
• Prenatal FormulaSmartyPants6.7 mg
• Prenatal Formula With DHAGNC Women's18 mg
• Prenatal Formula with Folic AcidRite Aid Pharmacy28 mg
• Prenatal Formula with IronGNC · off the market18 mg
• Prenatal Formula With IronGNC Women's18 mg
• Prenatal ForteIntegrative Therapeutics16 mg
• Prenatal Gels + DHAButterfly Express · off the market27 mg
• Prenatal Gels + DHANOW27 mg
• Prenatal Gummy Multivitamins Fruit Flavorsup&upno amount
• Prenatal Liquid Natural Tropical Fruit FlavorNatures Plus Source of Life · off the market4 mg
• Prenatal MiniLife Nutrition27 mg
• Prenatal MultiVitaCeutical Labs60 mg
• Prenatal Multi365 Everyday Value30 mg
• Prenatal MultiWindmill · off the market28 mg
• Prenatal MultiVitamer Laboratories60 mg
• Prenatal MultiNature Made27 mg
• Prenatal MultiGarden of Life MyKind Organics27 mg
• Prenatal MultiNatures Plus Source of Life Garden18 mg
• Prenatal MultiWindmill Natural Vitamins28 mg
• Prenatal MultiAncient Nutrition18 mg
• Prenatal Multi + DHAWell At Walgreens27 mg
• Prenatal Multi + DHAGarden of Life Dr. Formulated27 mg
• Prenatal Multi + DHAMama's Select27 mg
• Prenatal Multi + DHANature Made27 mg
• Prenatal Multi + DHA 200 mgNature Made27 mg
• Prenatal Multi + DHA 200mgNature Made27 mg
• Prenatal Multi +DHANature Made27 mg
• Prenatal Multi GoldNutriGold · off the market27 mg

Where next?

• Iron capsules
• Iron drops
• Iron gummies
• Iron powder
• Liquid iron
• Vegan iron
• Check an amount of iron
• Labels above the upper limit
• All ingredients