Research-based picks · Affiliate disclosure

Transparent Labs Creatine HMB Review: Three Independent Checks, Plus the Real Cost of the Extras

Item: Transparent Labs Creatine HMB
Rating: 8.1
Author: Peptide Pete

Check the three marks on the label. If you only want creatine, a plain pouch is the other buy.

Pete's #1

BulkSupplements Creatine Monohydrate

BulkSupplements has 500 grams. One scoop is 5 grams. It's NSF Certified for Sport, the stamp drug-tested athletes look for. HMB is an extra ingredient. It is not more creatine. The bag flops over.

Check Today's Price on Amazon Compare all 4 picks

Check the exact size and label before buying. You don't pay extra. I might earn a commission.

Choose by what matters to you

Our picks

Choose up to two products to compare. Prices and product details can change.

Everyday pick

BulkSupplements Creatine Monohydrate

BulkSupplements has 500 grams. One scoop is 5 grams. It's NSF Certified for Sport, the stamp drug-tested athletes look for. HMB is an extra ingredient. It is not more creatine. The bag flops over.

Is this the right fit?

You only wanted creatine, with the HMB left out.

Keep in mind: Skip it if you won't use a pouch.

Pete's take

BulkSupplements has 500 grams. One scoop is 5 grams. It's NSF Certified for Sport, the stamp drug-tested athletes look for. HMB is an extra ingredient. It is not more creatine. The bag flops over.

NSF Sport Budget tier One ingredient

Score breakdown

Proof 9.5

Dose 9.5

Formula 9.5

Value 9.6

Full specs

NSF Sport
Budget tier
One ingredient

More pros and cons

One scoop is 5 grams of plain creatine, which is the dose I use.

For people who don't want HMB in the scoop, you can lean on an NSF Certified for Sport listing on the unflavored 500 g pouch.

The bag flops over in a gym bag, and measuring a half scoop out of it is annoying.

Skip it if you won't scoop out of a bag.

Check Today's Price on Amazon Compare

Tested pick

Thorne Creatine

Thorne has about 90 servings. One scoop is 5 grams. It's NSF Certified for Sport, the stamp drug-tested athletes look for. HMB is an extra ingredient. It is not more creatine.

Is this the right fit?

You want the plain canister and no HMB.

Keep in mind: Skip it if you wanted the flavored blend.

Pete's take

Thorne has about 90 servings. One scoop is 5 grams. It's NSF Certified for Sport, the stamp drug-tested athletes look for. HMB is an extra ingredient. It is not more creatine.

NSF Sport Higher price 5 g

Score breakdown

Proof 9.5

Dose 9.5

Formula 9.5

Value 6.0

Full specs

NSF Sport
Higher price
5 g

More pros and cons

The canister and the scoop make a half serving easy to measure.

The plain 5 gram powder has NSF Certified for Sport, the stamp drug-tested athletes look for.

You pay more for the canister than for the pouch, and the pouch has the same NSF listing.

Skip it if the canister price is the whole reason you would say no.

Check Today's Price on Amazon Compare

Tested pick

Momentous Creatine

Momentous has about 90 servings. One scoop is 5 grams. It's NSF Certified for Sport, the stamp drug-tested athletes look for. Creapure came off the label in June 2026. Don't buy the small jar.

Is this the right fit?

You want a plain tub with a searchable listing.

Keep in mind: Skip it if you need the Creapure name on the front.

Pete's take

Momentous has about 90 servings. One scoop is 5 grams. It's NSF Certified for Sport, the stamp drug-tested athletes look for. Creapure came off the label in June 2026. Don't buy the small jar.

NSF Sport 90 servings Higher price

Score breakdown

Proof 9.2

Dose 9.5

Formula 9.5

Value 6.0

Full specs

NSF Sport
90 servings
Higher price

More pros and cons

You get NSF Certified for Sport on the 90-serving tub, which is what I'd count for people comparing premium NSF brands.

For people comparing premium NSF brands, you can lean on a plain 5 g serving after the June 2026 source change.

The source change will annoy anyone who bought it for the Creapure name, and the small jar is a worse buy.

I'd pass if you need the Creapure logo on the label in 2026, and I wouldn't pick it for people comparing premium NSF brands.

Check Today's Price on Amazon Compare

Everyday pick

Transparent Labs Creatine HMB

It's NSF Certified for Sport, the stamp drug-tested athletes look for. HMB is an extra ingredient. It is not more creatine. Labdoor measured 5,480 mg of creatine against a 5,000 mg claim on August 7, 2026. I don't link a checkout I didn't verify.

Is this the right fit?

You want the flavored scoop and the paperwork, and you are fine with HMB in it.

Keep in mind: Skip it if you only wanted creatine.

Pete's take

Three checks High tier Not plain

Score breakdown

Proof 9.6

Dose 9.0

Formula 6.5

Value 4.0

Full specs

Three checks
High tier
Not plain

More pros and cons

You get three independent checks on one tub.

You can count on a Labdoor result of 5,480 mg against 5,000 mg on August 7, 2026.

The extras are the bill, and if you only wanted creatine you're paying the high tier for HMB and flavor.

I'd pass if you only wanted creatine and nothing else in the scoop.

How we chose

By Peptide Pete. Updated October 28, 2026.

I checked the ISSN position stand and the NSF Certified for Sport list. The method sits on how we research.

NSF list checkedLabels read Oct 18I don't run a lab

I compare the label, the testing line I can look up, what the same amount of creatine costs, and whether the format fits a daily routine.

Read our full research method

Is the HMB blend worth the extras?

You want the folder with the most stamps. Transparent Labs creatine HMB has it. NSF. Informed Choice. A Labdoor number that cleared the label on August 7, 2026. Don't call the blend a better creatine. HMB and the extras are why you pay the high tier, and why a plain NSF pouch leads when the only ingredient you wanted was creatine. I don't have a verified brand checkout to button, so the Amazon buttons here are the plain powders.

How they compare

Swipe for more

Product	Pete Score	Proof	Dose	Formula	Value	Amazon
BulkSupplements Creatine	9.5	9.5	9.5	9.5	9.6	See today's price ›
Thorne Creatine	9.0	9.5	9.5	9.5	6.0	See today's price ›
Momentous Creatine	8.8	9.2	9.5	9.5	6.0	See today's price ›
Transparent Labs	8.1	9.6	9.0	6.5	4.0	Brand site

What a 5 g claim means next to HMB

You still take 3 to 5 g a day. That range is the one I keep from the ISSN position stand (Kreider 2017). The extras don't change the monohydrate dose I trust.

The Labdoor sheet I use for this blend found 5,480 mg of creatine against a 5,000 mg claim on August 7, 2026 (Labdoor).

A plain 5 g scoop still matches the ISSN range. HMB is a separate ingredient, and I don't score it as free creatine.

Who should skip the HMB blend

If your kidneys are already in trouble, or a medicine hits them, talk to your doctor before you buy. Read creatine and kidneys.
Pregnant or breastfeeding? I won't pick a tub for you. Ask your clinician.
If you're a teenager, don't treat this ranking as permission. A parent stays in the decision.
A label that says third-party tested and never names the lab fails the test. Use the label checklist.

Transparent Labs creatine questions

Is Transparent Labs creatine NSF Certified for Sport?

The Creatine HMB tub carries NSF Certified for Sport and Informed Choice. That's real paperwork. It still isn't a one-ingredient creatine.

Why isn't Transparent Labs my number one?

You asked for creatine, and the serving adds HMB plus other extras at the high tier. The NSF pouch beats it when you didn't ask for a blend.

Can I buy Transparent Labs from the Amazon button?

No. You won't get a checkout link that wasn't verified. The Amazon buttons here are for the plain powders, not for Transparent Labs.

Does the Labdoor number mean the blend is stronger?

The creatine grams cleared the claim on August 7, 2026, at 5,480 mg versus 5,000 mg. HMB doesn't make the creatine work harder.

If I only wanted creatine, not the HMB blend

If I could only buy one, I'd buy #1, BulkSupplements Creatine. For the next pick, get #2 if you want a canister with the same sport seal. The blend itself is #4, and you buy that one from the brand.

BulkSupplements Creatine, 9.5/10

Check Today's Price on Amazon

Sources for the Transparent Labs review

Sources (6)

Kreider and colleagues, 2017, is the dose note I keep coming back to. ISSN position stand.
Jäger and colleagues, 2011, is the solubility note. PubMed 21424716.
Ostojic and Ahmetovic, 2008, is why I split a big dose. PubMed 18373286.
NSF Certified for Sport list, read on October 18, 2026. nsfsport.com.
Labdoor creatine rankings, for the dated milligram numbers. Labdoor.
Amazon buttons use tag creatinebuz00-20. Tiers stay words. I'm not printing a dollar figure.

What changed. October 27, 2026: cut the repeated page label out of the notes, the closer, and the disclosure.

Disclosure. CreatineBuzz is reader-supported. As an Amazon Associate we earn from qualifying purchases. Brands don't buy rank. The full note is on the disclosure page.

Not medical advice. I'm a gym nerd explaining research, and this isn't a doctor's visit. Kidney disease, pregnancy, breastfeeding, and medicines that affect the kidneys belong in a clinician's office. Teens shouldn't use these products off a blog.

Use these before you click buy