6 Best Creatine Supplements for Cutting in 2024

In this article, we will present the ranking of 6 best creatine for cutting, with additional explanations and answers to frequently asked questions. You will also get an answer to the key question – do you need creatine to lose weight, or is it better to cancel it if your goal is to lose fat mass?

35 creatines were tested and compared by our expert team of professional athletes, medical professionals, and certified nutritionists. They carefully examined and tested each of them and only 6 of them were considered to be the best for cutting.

Our experts spent 7 weeks testing the creatine and they have also analyzed hundreds of online user reviews. The creatines were evaluated on 5 of the most important criteria. We update this list all the time, so we’d love it if you would share your experiences, thoughts, tips, and anything else with us!

Top 6 Best Creatines for Cutting Reviewed

1. CREATINE HMB by Transparent Labs – Top Pick
2. Promix Creatine Micronized – Runner-Up
3. ProSUpps CREAGEN
4. Optimum Nutrition Micronized Creatine
5. Jacked Factory Creatine
6. Genius, Micronized Creatine

Product	Total	Creatine Type	Solubility	Nutrition Label Transparency	Taste	Price/ Quality
Transparent Labs	47.5	9.5	9.5	9.5	10	9
Promix	47.5	9.5	9.5	10	8.5	10
ProSUpps	47	9.5	9.5	10	9	9
Optimum Nutrition	46.5	9.5	9	10	8.5	9.5
Jacked Factory	46	9.5	9	9	8.5	10
Genius Creatine	45.5	10	8.5	9	9	9

The leading position in this rating is occupied by Creatine HMB from the Transparent Labs. In addition to creatine, this product contains HMB, or ß-hydroxy ß-methylbutyrate, so we can expect potential effects on improving body composition, i.e. maintaining or gaining muscle while reducing fat mass (this is called recomposition). You will read additional explanations about HMB below.

Also consider the significant amount of vitamin D, which is 13 mcg (that’s 520 international units, or IU) per one serving. In conditions of a suboptimal level of vitamin D its supplementation may have beneficial effects on athletic performance.

However, it is important to factor dose from one serving into your overall vitamin D intake if you are taking it as a single supplement.

This creatine has 10 flavors to choose from (excluding the unflavored option), which is quite rare. And although this is one of the most expensive supplements in this ranking, consider the presence of HMB and a large dose of vitamin D per serving. To save money, I would choose the 60-serving package.

Micronized Creatine from Promix is a great product with good reviews from users who buy it time and time again. This is a one-component product that contains only good old creatine monohydrate in micronized form.

Micronization allows solving the main (albeit minor) disadvantage of monohydrate - not very good solubility in liquid. So it's not surprising to see a lot of reviews about the very good solubility of this product.

This creatine is also tested by an independent third party for contaminants, banned substances and masking agents. Certification from Certified for Sport® minimizes possible health risks and failure of doping tests for professional athletes.

Promix Creatine is available in a large pack of 180 servings of 5g each, so it will last you a long time, even if you choose your first creatine and want to try it with a loading phase.

In addition, this product has the lowest cost per serving in this ranking of best creatine for fat-burning - $0.33 per serving combined with NSF Certified for Sport® is a perfect deal!

ProSupps CreaGEN is another creatine in combination with HMB, which also contains 1 g of betaine and 60 mg of vitamin C, which can be considered as additional bonuses to the creatine monohydrate itself.

Overall, this is a good product with Informed Choice certification and potential fat-loss promoting additional components. However, given that one serving contains 3g of creatine, while the other products have a serving value of 5g, CREAGEN ended up in third place in this best creatine for cutting ranking.

The overall value of the product is also reduced by the fact that the brand offers packaging for only 30 servings.

Optimum Nutrition Micronized Creatine is a product with a long-standing reputation from a well-known brand that has long occupied its niche in the market and is included in most of the best creatine ratings. Available in packages of 60 and 120 servings of 5 grams each.

This creatine is also available in capsule form, but vegans should take into account the presence of gelatin in the capsule, so the capsule form is not suitable for them, unlike the powder form.

However, due to the fact that the cost of one serving significantly exceeds the cost of a serving of Promix, as well as the presence of a less strict Informed Choice certification, this product does not occupy the highest positions in this rating. Also, despite the micronized form, there are enough complaints about not very good solubility.

Jacked Factory Creatine is a simple and pure creatine monohydrate at a very affordable price per serving. Like some of the products in this rating, it does not contain additional components.

A package of 85 servings is enough for almost 3 months of continuous intake, if you use a dose of 5 g per day. This product is in the "Amazon Choice" category and has a huge number of reviews from satisfied users.

In general, this is a very good product, with no significant drawbacks, except for some complaints about not very good solubility in liquid.

The last on the list of best creatine for fat-burning is a product from The Genius Brand, which, in addition to creatine monohydrate, contains 1.6 g of beta-alanine.

However, this combination is not the only thing that makes this product stand out in this ranking, because it is the only creatine that contains the branded Creapure®. It is the world's purest creatine monohydrate, used in most trials that have shown the efficacy and safety of creatine monohydrate.

However, many users complain that when they open the jar, they see a powder that has clumped together, and this is also reflected in the poor solubility. Second, the package only contains 25 servings of 5g of creatine each, which is very inconvenient for those who take creatine regularly.

For example, to provide yourself with 5 g of creatine per day for 4 months ahead, you will have to buy 5 tubs at once. While one package of creatine from Promix contains 180 servings and will provide you with high-quality monohydrate for half a year.

Overall, this product contains the best form of creatine monohydrate from Creapure® in combination with beta-alanine for potential additive fat loss effects (this is in addition to the other well-established effects of beta-alanine).

However, complaints about clumping and only 25 servings per package dragged down the scores in the “Solubility” and “Value for Money” categories, giving this product the overall 6th place in this best creatine for weight loss ranking.

How Can Creatine Help With Weight Loss?

Since in combination with regular strength training creatine promotes an increase in skeletal muscle hypertrophy, this creates favorable conditions for maintenance of resting metabolic rate and reducing fat mass.

The point is that since the resting metabolic rate of skeletal muscle is 13 kcal/kg per day, with each kilogram of muscle retained or added, we can, albeit not by very much, increase resting energy expenditure, or at least counteract the decrease in energy expenditure associated with losing a significant amount of fat during weight loss.

After all, fat uses 4.5 kcal/kg per day at rest. So from this point of view, taking creatine to get ripped has significant benefits.

Creatine is also effective for improving muscle strength. During weight loss period (with a hypocaloric diet), this plays a very important role, as the preservation or increasing of strength allows you to maintain the high intensity of resistance training, which in turn keeps a needed stimulus for maintaining muscles. For most people, this is the best case scenario.

Keep in mind that a hypocaloric diet in itself creates the least favorable conditions for preserving, and even more so, building muscle mass. Therefore, taking creatine can act as a counterbalance, which at least minimizes the loss of strength and muscle mass.

Another reason why creatine is good for cutting is that during a hypocaloric diet, your performance may suffer. However, creatine, again, can counteract this performance decrements!

How to Find the Best Creatine for Cutting?

There is nothing complicated here, just choose the most studied and most effective form of creatine.

However, there are several supplements that, when combined with creatine, can potentially promote slightly greater fat loss. Some of them are added to creatine in the form of a combined supplement. That is why this rating also includes combined supplements that contain additional ingredients in addition to creatine.

What Additional Ingredients to Pay Attention To?

1. ß-hydroxy ß-methylbutyrate (HMB)

We still do not have strong evidence supporting the effect of HMB on endpoints (ie, the actual effect on body composition), but it is capable of favorably influencing skeletal muscle protein metabolism, having both anabolic and anti-catabolic effects at the same time.

I want to emphasize again that maintaining and increasing muscle mass plays an important role in reducing fat mass and body fat percentage, which is the most desirable scenario for the vast majority of people.

If your diet contains a suboptimal amount of protein with a high biological value (for example, if you are a vegan), HMB may have a potential effect. Also a combination of creatine + HMB with strength training (3 full-body workouts per week) appeared to help decrease fat mass in one study.

Therefore, creatine with HMB may be considered one of the best creatine for weight loss, albeit with an adjustment for the still controversial scientific data on the effectiveness of HMB.

2. Betaine

One systematic review and meta-analysis demonstrated a significant effect of taking betaine on reducing body fat mass and fat loss, while the other showed that taking betaine failed to significantly affect these 2 parameters. So if you are ready to pay more money for even a small potential additive effect, you can choose a combination of creatine and betaine in one product.

However, keep in mind that in the experiments that showed an effect on reducing fat mass, dosages of 2 g and more of betaine were used, so lower dosage may not be enough to get an already small effect.

Also note that in order to obtain other potential performance-enhancing benefits of betaine, it is better that a single dose is closer to 2.5 grams, because this is the minimum dose that may be required to elevate plasma betaine levels. Splitting this dose may not yield the same desired benefits.

3. Beta-Alanine

A 2022 meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials did not show the effectiveness of beta-alanine in reducing body fat mass and body fat percentage.

On the other hand, one randomized controlled trial showed that combined intake of creatine with beta-alanine for 10 weeks reduced the percentage of body fat by an average of 1.21%, while the placebo group - by 0.25%.

Also, the creatine + beta-alanine group gained an average of 1.74 kg of lean body mass, while the placebo group, on the contrary, lost 0.44 kg of lean body mass.

Therefore, although the data is still insufficient to draw a firm conclusion, the combination of creatine + beta-alanine may potentially have benefits for body recomposition, i.e. simultaneous fat loss and lean body mass gain.

Is There a Difference Between Different Forms of Creatine to Lose Weight?

One of the most common side effects of creatine monohydrate, which is mentioned in the scientific literature, is water retention. This may lead to a weight gain of a maximum 1-2 kg (2.2-4.4 lbs) in the first week of loading.

Many manufacturers speculate on this and make claims that other forms of creatine have the same performance-enhancing and other benefits, but without water retention side effect.

However, there is no convincing evidence that any alternative form of creatine guarantees the absence of increased body water or has the same level of evidence for ergogenic effects as monohydrate.

Moreover, taking creatine monohydrate may not lead to fluid retention over long periods, and to minimize this potential issue (if this is indeed a problem for you), you can take it without a loading phase.

It is also important to take into account that creatine does not lead to fat mass gain, so we have to distinguish between fat gain and weight gain due to increasing body water content.

If the body weight has increased due to water retention, you should know that after giving up creatine, this retained water will "go away" after 4-6 weeks. This is especially important to consider for athletes who have to enter their weight category.

FAQ

​​Is Creatine Good For Cutting?

If you're interested in fat loss, minimizing muscle loss and keeping your athletic performance in a caloric deficit, creatine is great for cutting!

What Type Of Creatine Is Best For Losing Weight?

The best form of creatine for any purpose is creatine monohydrate.

Conclusion

Creatine is one of the few dietary supplements with good scientific support for increasing strength, muscle mass, and training performance. In conditions of calorie deficit as a key requirement for fat loss, this is exactly what is needed.

You can try a combination supplement that contains beta-alanine, betaine, or HMB in addition to creatine. In general, you should not count on a strong effect of combined supplements, it is better to consider them as supplements with potential additional benefits.

​​According to the total number of points in this best creatine for cutting rating, Creatine HMB from Transparent Labs took the lead.

Do you take creatine while cutting? And how does adding or omitting creatine affect your results? Tell us in the comments section!

Also read:

• Best Creatine for Women
• Best Affordable Creatine
• Best Beginner Creatine
• Best Creatine for Athletes
• Best Creatine for Teenager
• What to Mix Creatine With
• What Happens When You Stop Taking Creatine
• How Much Water to Drink With Creatine
• How Long Does Creatine Stay In Your System
• Creatine or Protein Powder

References:

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