Chromium Picolinate vs. Chromium Amino Acid Chelate
Among 4,926 on-market chromium products with an identifiable primary form, 38.8% use Chromium Picolinate (1,909 products) and 9% use Chromium Amino Acid Chelate (445).
| Chromium Picolinate | Chromium Amino Acid Chelate | |
|---|---|---|
| Quality tier | Tier 1 | Unrated |
| Chromium by weight | 12.4% | — |
| Share of market | 38.8% | 9% |
| On-market products | 1,909 | 445 |
| Median declared dose | 100 elemental mcg middle half: 37.2–200 | 100 elemental mcg middle half: 32.25–120 |
| Most common brands | Emergen-C, Vitamin World, vitafusion | Trace Minerals Research, The Vitamin Shoppe, Douglas Laboratories |
Doses are declared per serving in elemental mcg. “By weight” is the share of the ingredient that is the nutrient itself (e.g. elemental magnesium in a magnesium salt).
Why Chromium Picolinate is tier 1
Produced significantly higher 24h urinary Cr than chloride/nicotinate forms in a randomized crossover; the form used in the positive Anderson 1997 glycemic-control RCT.
Source: DiSilvestro RA, Dy E. 2007, J Trace Elem Med Biol 21(2):120-4, PMID 17499152; Anderson RA et al. 1997, PMID 9356027
Why Chromium Amino Acid Chelate is unrated
No dedicated human or animal comparative bioavailability study for this named complex was located.
Source: none found -- insufficient evidence
Other chromium comparisons
- Chromium Picolinate vs. Chromium Polynicotinate
- Chromium Picolinate vs. Chromium Chloride
- Chromium Picolinate vs. Chromium Nicotinate Glycinate Chelate
- Chromium Polynicotinate vs. Chromium Chloride
- Chromium Polynicotinate vs. Chromium Nicotinate Glycinate Chelate
- Chromium Polynicotinate vs. Chromium Amino Acid Chelate
- Chromium Chloride vs. Chromium Nicotinate Glycinate Chelate
- Chromium Chloride vs. Chromium Amino Acid Chelate
- Chromium Nicotinate Glycinate Chelate vs. Chromium Amino Acid Chelate