Iron Amino Acid Chelate vs. Ferrous Gluconate
Among 1,931 on-market iron products with an identifiable primary form, 8.6% use Iron Amino Acid Chelate (167 products) and 7.1% use Ferrous Gluconate (138).
| Iron Amino Acid Chelate | Ferrous Gluconate | |
|---|---|---|
| Quality tier | Tier 1 | Unrated |
| Iron by weight | — | 11.6% |
| Share of market | 8.6% | 7.1% |
| On-market products | 167 | 138 |
| Median declared dose | 10 elemental mg middle half: 5–18 | 9 elemental mg middle half: 3–17.25 |
| Most common brands | NaturesPlus, Douglas Laboratories, MH Michael's Health Naturopathic Programs | Wonder Laboratories, DC, ALLMAX |
Doses are declared per serving in elemental mg. “By weight” is the share of the ingredient that is the nutrient itself (e.g. elemental magnesium in a magnesium salt).
Why Iron Amino Acid Chelate is tier 1
If equivalent to ferrous bisglycinate chelate, showed substantially higher apparent bioavailability than ferrous sulfate.
Source: Pineda O, Ashmead HD. 2001, Nutrition 17(5):381-384, PMID 11377130
Why Ferrous Gluconate is unrated
Commonly used clinically as a milder-tolerated alternative to sulfate, but no comparative human bioavailability citation was independently verified.
Source: uncertain -- needs review
Tiers summarize published comparative bioavailability or outcome evidence for each form (see methodology).
This page describes the market; it is not a recommendation to take either form. Talk to a clinician about what's right for you.
Other iron comparisons
- Ferrous Fumarate vs. Ferrous/Iron Bisglycinate Chelate
- Ferrous Fumarate vs. Iron Amino Acid Chelate
- Ferrous Fumarate vs. Ferrous Sulfate
- Ferrous Fumarate vs. Ferrous Gluconate
- Ferrous/Iron Bisglycinate Chelate vs. Iron Amino Acid Chelate
- Ferrous/Iron Bisglycinate Chelate vs. Ferrous Sulfate
- Ferrous/Iron Bisglycinate Chelate vs. Ferrous Gluconate
- Iron Amino Acid Chelate vs. Ferrous Sulfate
- Ferrous Sulfate vs. Ferrous Gluconate