Proprietary Blends in Supplements: What They're Hiding

If your supplement uses a "proprietary blend," the company is legally hiding how much of each ingredient you're getting. Here's why that matters.

What Is a Proprietary Blend?

A proprietary blend is a mixture of ingredients listed under a single combined weight, without disclosing individual amounts. FDA labeling rules require companies to list all ingredients, but they're allowed to hide individual dosages under a blend name.

Here's what a proprietary blend looks like on a label:

You know the total is 1,500mg. But is that 1,400mg of creatine and a sprinkle of everything else? Or 250mg of each? You have no way to know.

Why Companies Use Proprietary Blends

The industry claims two reasons:

1. "To protect our formula from competitors" — This is the stated reason. In practice, any lab can reverse-engineer a supplement for a few hundred dollars. The formula isn't really a secret.
2. The real reason: to hide underdosing. Research-backed doses of popular ingredients are expensive. Creatine works at 3-5 grams per serving. Beta-alanine works at 3.2-6.4 grams. If a "proprietary blend" totals 1,500mg and contains both, at least one is severely underdosed.

The Math Doesn't Lie

Let's do the math on a common pre-workout proprietary blend:

The blend is at least 4x too small to deliver effective doses of all listed ingredients. Something — probably everything except caffeine — is dramatically underdosed.

How to Avoid Proprietary Blends

• Look for "fully disclosed" or "transparent" labels — Brands that list every ingredient with its exact amount have nothing to hide.
• Choose brands committed to transparency — Companies like Transparent Labs (it's in the name), Legion Athletics, and Momentous list every ingredient amount.
• Check SupplementCheck — We flag brands that use proprietary blends with a trust score penalty. Search your brand →

Brands That Don't Use Proprietary Blends

Many reputable brands have moved to fully transparent labels. Check our pre-workout category or protein powder category for brands ranked by trust score — higher-scoring brands are more likely to use transparent labeling.