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 65 of 174), each with the amount its label prints; an amount far outside what other labels print is marked as a possible slip.

• Iron AidCountry Life · off the market100 mg as transcribed, likely a slip
• Iron AllPuritan's Pride38 mg
• Iron Asporotate 18 mgSolaray18 mg
• Iron Bile Salts 40% Cholic AcidSwanson Premium Brand · off the market3.5 mg
• Iron Bis-GlycinateDaVinci Laboratories Of Vermont · off the market30 mg
• Iron Bis-GlycinateDaVinci Laboratories30 mg
• Iron BisglycinateThorne FX · off the market25 mg
• Iron BisglycinateThorne Research · off the market25 mg
• Iron BisglycinateThorne25 mg
• Iron Bisglycinate 25 mgSuperSmart · off the market15 mg
• Iron Bisglycinate 25 mgBronson25 mg
• Iron Bisglycinate 25 mgPure Naturals25 mg
• Iron Bisglycinate 75 mgSuperSmart · off the market15 mg
• Iron Blackberry Vanilla Alcohol FreeVillage Vitality10 mg
• Iron Blood Maker 9 in 1 Iron Advanced ComplexKAPPA NUTRITION26 mg
• Iron BoosterNatures Nectar25 mg
• Iron BuilderSNAP21 mg
• Iron CapsWindmill Natural Vitamins50 mg
• Iron ChelateProThera · off the market30 mg
• Iron ChelateAdaptogen Research27 mg
• Iron Chelate (As Ferrochel) 28 mgPatient One MediNutritionals · off the market28 mg
• Iron Chelate (as Ferrochel) 28 mgPatient One 1 MediNutritionals28 mg
• Iron Chelate 18 18 mgNutraBio18 mg
• Iron Chelate 18 mgNutraBio18 mg
• Iron Chelate 18 MilligramsNutraBio · off the market18 mg
• Iron Chelate 25 mgNatural Factors25 mg
• Iron Chelate 27 27 MilligramsNutraBio27 mg
• Iron Chelate 30 mgKlaire Labs · off the market30 mg
• Iron Chelate with Ferrochel 36 mgNutricost36 mg
• Iron Chewable 10 mgSeeking Health10 mg
• Iron ChewsMidlothian Laboratories · off the market15 mg
• Iron ChewsH2 Pharma15 mg
• Iron Children's Chewables Orange FlavoredNovaFerrum18 mg
• Iron CitrateThorne Research · off the market25 mg
• Iron Citrate 25 mgSwanson25 mg
• Iron CompletePure TheraPro Rx18 mg
• Iron CompleteGNC Women's30 mg
• Iron ComplexThe Vitamin Shoppe28 mg
• Iron ComplexAdvanced Nutrition by Zahler25 mg
• Iron ComplexIntegrative Therapeutics50 mg
• Iron ComplexBioCare14 mg
• Iron ComplexPerformance Lab14 mg
• Iron ComplexNOW27 mg
• Iron Complex 29 mgVitaCeutical Labs29 mg
• Iron Complex 29 mgVitamer Laboratories29 mg
• Iron Complex 29 mgVillage Vitality · off the market29 mg
• Iron Complex CapsNOW27 mg
• Iron ConcentrateComplete H2O Minerals0.05 mg
• Iron Daily Oral SprayBetterYou · off the market5 mg
• Iron Daily Oral Spray Natural Baked Apple FlavorBetterYou5 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