Magnesium glycinate vs citrate: what is the difference?
On the two things this site measures — what a dose costs and how much you have to swallow to get it — they are close. The cheapest glycinate we track is $0.05 per 200 mg of elemental magnesium; the cheapest citrate is $0.052.
The usual reason given for preferring glycinate is absorption and gentleness on the stomach, and citrate is commonly described as having a laxative effect at higher doses. Those are claims about physiology. We do not measure them and this page does not settle them. What it can tell you is the part people cannot easily check: what each actually costs per unit of magnesium, and what the panels say is in the bottle.
| Form | Cheapest per 200 mg | Units per dose | Products tracked | What the panel names |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Glycinate | $0.05 | 0.7 | 5 | Magnesium Glycinate + Magnesium Oxide |
| Citrate | $0.052 | 0.5 | 6 | Magnesium Citrate |
The difference worth checking before the absorption argument
Before choosing between the two on bioavailability, it is worth checking that the glycinate you are comparing is entirely glycinate. Some products sold under that name list a second, cheaper salt on their own panel. See which magnesium products are one salt and which are blends.
- Servings per container are derived from net weight rather than read off the label, except where a note on the product says otherwise.
- Most source records have not been checked by a person. The ones that have say so.
- Amazon and Walmart are not included, so “cheapest” means cheapest among the retailers we track.
- Prices go stale. Each one shows when it was last checked, and says so when it is older than the retailer allows us to cache it.
Full comparison of every product in this category: Magnesium. How these numbers are made: How we compare.