Best Colostrum Supplement

In the past few years, colostrum has emerged as a potential broad-spectrum supplement for people looking to improve their immune function, gut function, and aesthetic well-being. And that’s a lot of us, as it turns out. In a 2023 poll conducted by the American Psychiatric Association, 66% of respondents expressed that they were anxious about their health in general.1

The colostrum market isn’t exactly vast, but it’s growing rapidly, and navigating it takes some know-how. With this guide, we aim to familiarize you with colostrum as a daily supplement and point you to the brands that stand the best chance of helping you realize your desired health outcomes.

See our summary of recommendations for a rundown of top choices, and read further to better understand the hows and whys behind our decisions.

Over the past two decades, Innerbody Research has helped tens of millions of readers make more informed decisions involving staying healthy and living healthier lifestyles.

For us, identifying the best colostrum supplement involved immersing ourselves in the customer experience — assessing each supplement for solubility and taste, navigating brand platforms, and engaging in their respective customer service channels. Alongside our testing, we closely examined the scientific literature on colostrum and accompanying ingredients, amounting to more than 70 published studies, analyses, and reviews across 100+ research hours. Our research in this space continues today, as we always strive to stay current on the advances relevant to the subjects we write about.

Additionally, like all health-related content on this website, this guide was thoroughly vetted by one or more members of our Medical Review Board for accuracy.

Our evaluation of the market's best colostrums centered on criteria that ordinarily interest consumers when they shop for supplements. Our primary considerations were effectiveness, safety, and cost, as we want our supplements to work but not to work over our bank accounts. Taste and convenience, though secondary factors, were significant because both are likely to inform your estimation of a product. Below, we explain how our favorite colostrum brands fared in each category.

(Note: WonderCow sells various colostrum supplements. Our evaluations pertain to its marquee lineup of pure colostrum powders.)

Effectiveness

Winner: ARMRA Health Revival

A colostrum's potential efficacy depends on its concentration of immunoglobulins, otherwise known as antibodies. In judging quality, the industry standard is to look at the amount of immunoglobulin G (IgG), which is not only the most abundant type of antibody in colostrum but also an essential player in building adaptive immunity. To qualify as "good," colostrum should have at least 50mg/mL of IgG or a 5% concentration.2

ARMRA and WonderCow have the highest IgG concentrations among our top recommendations, which is part of why they, respectively, are the winner and runner-up for effectiveness. Based on separate direct sources, we know the IgG concentration in ARMRA is either a minimum of 35% (per a customer support email) or greater than 40% (per ARMRA’s response to a customer question on Amazon). On the other hand, WonderCow advertises a standardized 40% IgG concentration right on its packaging, so there’s no ambiguity there. For added perspective, Bulk Supplements and Codeage don’t specify their IgG concentrations at all, although the latter’s cGMP compliance does require maintaining the “identity, purity, strength, and composition” of its supplements.61

WonderCow looks like it could have the edge on ARMRA based on IgG alone, but two crucial pieces of research ultimately moved our needle to ARMRA: a clinical trial and a cellular study. The majority of participants in the trial reported significant improvements in areas such as gut function, exercise performance, stress, burnout, and aesthetic health from using ARMRA Health Revival (previously called Immune Revival), while the cellular study found that immune cells treated with ARMRA provided a greater potential for protection against pathogens.3 4

For the sake of transparency, we should mention that ARMRA itself was the source of funding for both the trial and the cellular study, and self-funded research may have a higher tendency toward bias. Still, this research provides us with useful insights into how ARMRA works and how users may respond to it, so we have a clearer picture of its efficacy than of WonderCow, Bulk Supplements, or Codeage.

Safety

Winner: ARMRA Health Revival

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) doesn't approve claims or labeling for supplements before they hit the market, so we must examine other factors — manufacturing practices, third-party testing, and common interactions — to evaluate product safety.5 ARMRA is our winner for safety because it either satisfies or exceeds the parameters of each criterion:

WonderCow, Bulk Supplements, and Codeage also do commendable jobs of ensuring consumer safety by using cGMP-certified facilities and submitting their products for third-party testing, but we regard those as baseline measures, from which ARMRA rises considerably above.

Cost

Winner: Bulk Supplements Colostrum Powder

Colostrum tends toward the costly side of the supplements market, so Bulk Supplements absolutely stands out with a $19.97 price tag on its most modestly priced colostrum powder: a 100g bag containing 67 servings, which amounts to around $0.30 per half-teaspoon. It’s available in larger receptacles, too, with the per-serving cost moving down as you move up in size.

None of our other recommendations can compare on either a per-unit or a per-serving level. A jar of Codeage Immuno Colostrum runs up to $49.99 and contains 30-60 servings, which amounts to $0.83-$1.66 per serving. With WonderCow and ARMRA, even at their least expensive, you're spending $55.24 ($0.92 per serving) and $104.49 ($0.87 per serving), respectively. In other words, you can purchase roughly 2-5 units of Bulk Supplements’ 100g Colostrum Powder for every one of Codeage, WonderCow, or ARMRA.

But with Bulk Supplements, you should know that you have no idea how much IgG you’re getting. If that’s a concern alongside budgetary limits, you might consider our previous budget pick, NOW Foods Colostrum Powder, which has its IgG standardized to 25%.

Taste

Winner: ARMRA Health Revival

Taste is almost certain to be a deciding factor in your enjoyment of a given colostrum supplement. Most of our recommendations are powders, after all; whether you pour it into a liquid, sprinkle it over food, or take it straight from the spoon, the flavor's going to register.

Most unflavored colostrum powders are milk-like on the palate — mildly savory with a hint of sweetness. ARMRA and Bulk Supplements lean toward the savory end of the spectrum, and WonderCow errs slightly toward sweet. Among them, Bulk Supplements was the blandest and offers no flavor variety, so it didn’t make the cut in this category. That left ARMRA and WonderCow.

ARMRA ultimately came away as our favorite because its flavor variants were generally more enjoyable to our testers. At the time of this writing, Health Revival's permanent flavored lineup comprises Blood Orange, Vine Watermelon, and Peach Persimmon, and all three make for good sipping. Peach Persimmon, especially, was a treat, as it reminded one of our testers of Japanese sugar candy. (At this writing, ARMRA added Wild Lime to its flavored lineup, but it’s for subscribers only, and we didn’t have the opportunity to try it.)

To give a fair shake, we should mention that WonderCow has multiple flavor variants that present their own merits:

• The Elderberry flavor has just a touch of sweetness and a milky finish. In a water base, it has a light fruit juice characteristic; in milk, it reminded one of our testers of a sort of Nesquik-like beverage.
• The Matcha flavor tastes almost identical to matcha. If that’s your thing, you’ll probably like it, but our testers could take it or leave it.
• There are also Chocolate and Vanilla flavors, relatively recent additions to the lineup. We’ve yet to try Chocolate, but Vanilla was underwhelming — not enough vanilla flavor.

All things considered, ARMRA shines in terms of both the quality and the quantity of its flavors. But if all you want is an unflavored colostrum, with no consideration for other criteria, then Bulk Supplements is an excellent cost-saving alternative.

Convenience

Winner: Codeage Immuno Colostrum

Here, convenience refers to the entire customer experience outside of taste. The ease of consuming the product, as well as buying it and managing the order, factored into our assessment.

Our convenience winner, Codeage Immuno Colostrum, stood out for its easy capsule delivery mechanism, as all of our other top recommendations are powders that you'd need to portion out and stir into a liquid or food. Capsules preclude any worries about solubility or potentially making a mess on the countertop. Even with the recommended serving size being three to six capsules a day, we found the pre-dosed form factor to be the easiest to integrate into our routines.

The capsules aren’t very big, either; they’re fairly standard for supplements. When we measured them — with the help of our fluffy assistant, Clementine, as pictured below — they came in at about three-quarters of an inch long. (A clearer, more precise measurement image can be found under Codeage’s dedicated section later on, if you’re curious to see.)

Form factor aside, each of our top recommended colostrum brands provided a pleasant customer journey. Purchase and checkout were as straightforward as any other online retail experience.

Order management is equally straightforward with each of our recommendations. Apart from differences in page layout, all of the relevant information — settings, payment options, addresses, and order history — is accessible with tabs and buttons on your account dashboard. With ARMRA, WonderCow, and Bulk Supplements, you should encounter no difficulty with adjusting or canceling your subscriptions, as the options are pretty clearly displayed. (We want to say the same about Codeage, but its subscription program is temporarily unavailable as of this writing. It’s supposed to return at some point, but there’s no set date.)

Below is a quick reference chart for comparing our top-recommended colostrum supplements, point by point and side by side. (Note: for Bulk Supplements, the prices pertain only to sizes that were available at the time of this writing.)

Colostrum is the initial breast milk that mammals produce within the first 2-4 days after giving birth. With its yolk-yellow appearance, thicker consistency, and nutrient-rich composition, colostrum is both visibly and substantially distinctive from mature milk. Alongside proteins, peptides, and carbohydrates, it serves up large quantities of nutrients and bioactive compounds that are essential for immune health and overall well-being, such as vitamins, growth factors, antimicrobials, and immunoglobulins (we discuss these further in the next section, “How does colostrum work?”).10

Newborns rely on colostrum to support their physical growth and immunological development.10 19 Children’s immune systems remain delicate and underdeveloped for up to eight years after birth, so they need specific micronutrients to thrive and additional antimicrobials to compensate for the shortcomings of their own natural defenses.20 Thus, they can fight off life-threatening infections during a particularly vulnerable period.

As a supplement, colostrum normally comes from cows, as bovine colostrum is biochemically similar to that of humans, but there are also variants originating from sheep, goats, and even horses. One of the first steps in producing a colostrum supplement is pasteurization, which eliminates common, naturally occurring pathogens such as Salmonella, Staphylococcus aureus, and Mycoplasma bovis,21 the bacterial culprits behind potentially deadly infections and bovine tuberculosis in humans.22 23 It’s hard to overstate how important pasteurization is to ensuring consumer safety, especially considering a 2008 study that found 15% of raw colostrum samples contained Salmonella.24

Although various pasteurization methods are used within the dairy industry, we can broadly classify them as either high-temperature or low-temperature. High-temperature pasteurization takes the colostrum above 160 degrees Fahrenheit and sterilizes it within seconds, but the process can reduce the concentration of intact immunoglobulins by up to 25%. In contrast, low-temperature pasteurization holds the colostrum at reduced heat for a longer time but retains more of the ever-important immunoglobulins.25 Indeed, a 2023 meta-analysis found that calves that consumed low-temperature-pasteurized colostrum had higher serum IgG concentrations than their high-temperature counterparts. The implication is that lower-heat pasteurization equals greater immunological potential.26

(Of note, ARMRA and WonderCow both use low-temperature pasteurization methods. ARMRA, in particular, has developed a proprietary method it calls Cold-Chain BioPotent, which is intended to maximize immunoglobulin potency. Codeage and Bulk Supplements, however, make no mention of their pasteurization methods.)

Later in production, the pasteurized colostrum undergoes a drying process to create a powder. ARMRA, WonderCow, and Bulk Supplements sell colostrum powder in bulk package form, meant to be portioned and stirred into cold or cooled liquids or foods. Codeage, our top pick for convenience, encloses its colostrum powder in methylcellulose capsules.

Colostrum works by delivering all of those nutrients and bioactive compounds we’ve mentioned into the consumer’s body — namely:

In newborns who first consume colostrum through breast milk, these bioactive compounds help form the basis of their adaptive immunity. As explained by Dr. Matt Segar, board-certified cardiologist and member of our medical review board, they’re especially receptive to the immunoglobulins because “babies absorb maternal IgG via intestinal FcRn receptors shortly after birth.”

You don’t have to be a baby, though, to benefit from colostrum. When consumed by an adult or fully developed child, these same compounds can help bolster one's overall health through several possible mechanisms of action — altering the gut microbiome to increase the numbers of helpful bacteria, altering the mucosal linings of the gut to reduce cell death in damaged areas, and introducing compounds (e.g., immunoglobulins) that can bind to and neutralize infectious agents.10

But in grown-ups, it takes a lot more colostrum to do the trick. “Adults lack [the FcRn] pathway for systemic uptake,” Dr. Segar explains. “Where IgG may help [adults] is in mucosal immunity; IgG may not get systemically absorbed, but it may still be absorbed in the GI tract. However, much IgG is destroyed on its way through the GI tract. Upwards of 80% is destroyed, leaving only 20%.”

Because so much IgG is lost through digestion, a high immunoglobulin concentration is critical for a colostrum supplement to impart its potential health benefits to older individuals. Ideally, it should far exceed the 5% IgG concentration used as the industry benchmark for "good" colostrum.2 Our top-pick supplements, ARMRA and WonderCOW, meet that criterion with concentrations of 35-45%.

Four reviews published in 2013,27 2019,28 2023,29 and 2024 have identified several potential health applications of bovine colostrum supplementation among various user populations, including but not limited to:67

• Neutralization of respiratory tract infections among infants and the elderly
• Protection against exercise-induced immunodepression
• Protection against drug-induced lesions, especially from nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs)
• Inhibition of cancer cells
• Treatment for viral or bacterial diarrhea
• Reduction of abdominal symptoms associated with diarrhea
• Combating other pathogenic diseases, such as gastrointestinal diseases, gut-barrier diseases, and inflammatory bowel disease
• Reduced allergic skin inflammation
• Support for the proliferation, differentiation, and repair of skin cells

Although a bit more limited, some studies on bovine colostrum also support its utility for cognitive health and skin aging. In the following subsections, we discuss the research in these two areas.

Colostrum for cognitive health

In 2012, a Korean study found that colostrum may have a function in alleviating neuronal cell death in the brain.30 In it, ten out of 30 rats induced with cerebral hemorrhage received 0.4g/kg of liquid colostrum injected directly into the stomach for 21 consecutive days. The colostrum-treated rats had "significantly alleviated hemorrhage-induced short-term memory impairment," and post-sacrifice analysis uncovered they had smaller brain lesions compared to the other subjects. The human-equivalent dose here would be 9g of liquid colostrum per day, which (basing our numbers on the conversion for milk powder) equals roughly 1.5g of powder — pretty attainable, seeing as the typical serving size of a colostrum supplement is 1-3g depending on which brand you choose.31

More recently, and more relevantly, a 12-week randomized, double-blind, and placebo-controlled trial published in 2024 found that daily colostrum consumption by older adults (aged 50-69) could “significantly ... improve verbal memory,” leading the researchers to state that colostrum may “promote healthy aging among older adults.”68

A 2022 paper examined the mechanism of action behind colostrum's purported cognitive benefits.32 In addition to identifying other potential upsides (e.g., improving spatial memory, reducing neuroinflammation, and counteracting oxidative stress in the brain), the researchers found that colostrum's concentration of unsaturated fatty acids allows it to cross the blood-brain barrier and, therefore, affect the brain itself.

Of course, we'd need more human trials and other research on colostrum's relationship to brain function to seriously recommend it for any cognitive health benefits, but the existing studies give us reason to be optimistic.

Colostrum for skin aging

By “skin aging,” we’re referring to the visible physical changes that we normally associate with older adults, such as wrinkles and reduced elasticity. This is an area that has been the subject of colostrum studies and reviews in recent years.

For example, a 2024 study published in the International Journal of Molecular Sciences examined the biological activity of sheep colostrum on diseased skin cells in vitro. One compelling finding was that colostrum application simulated the proliferation of cells from diabetic foot ulcers, which are normally resistant to healing.69 In other words, topical colostrum could theoretically facilitate wound healing under circumstances that normally impede it.

Another example, even more compelling, is a separate 2024 study that examined the effects of sheep colostrum on human skin directly. It involved 52 women (aged 40-70) randomized into two groups, one with a placebo and the other that received a sheep colostrum skin cream formulated specifically for the study. After eight weeks, the treatment group reported increased skin moisture, firmness, and softness, as well as decreases in redness, hypersensitivity, and water loss from the skin. The researchers concluded that topical colostrum could indeed “improve certain aspects of skin quality ... and overall rejuvenation.”70

Because there are relatively few topical products within the larger colostrum market, and seemingly none that are derived from sheep, no currently available supplement is ideally suited to treat skin aging. Certain goat or bovine colostrum serums might do some good, but the research stands behind the sheep variant, and we don’t want to pull the wool over your eyes to guide you toward a less efficacious (often premium-priced) option, much less an unproven route of administration.

That being said, you could double the duty of any colostrum powder or capsule to concoct your own topical. That was the method taken by the researchers behind a 2025 study, who took the contents of encapsulated bovine colostrum to make facial masks.71 One of our testers tried it out at home, and using a roughly 5:4 ratio of colostrum powder to water, they successfully mixed together a paste that spread easily and clung to the skin. The resulting concoction may not be as effective as the sheep colostrum used in research, but at least you won’t have to buy a whole other product to try it.

Should you wish to experiment, we recommend sticking to an unflavored variety, unless you don’t mind smelling like a smoothie or applying flavorants that could potentially make your skin worse.

(This tester of ours didn’t actually use the mask they made. Their colostrum was a flavored variety.)

Given its potential to impart a wide array of benefits, we'd say that colostrum is for people who feel they need a boost to their immune, gut, or aesthetic health. More specifically, a daily colostrum supplement may provide the greatest advantage to people who:

• Want added protection against viral or bacterial pathogens
• Engage in strenuous exercise
• Live with chronic gastrointestinal complaints
• Have sensitivities to NSAIDs
• Have skin allergies
• Experience frequent dermatological complaints

But be aware that colostrum may not benefit all users. For some people, particularly those living with severe health conditions (e.g., nutritional malabsorption, serious infections, or gastrointestinal diseases), colostrum just wouldn't be an effective intervention. If that sounds like you, your best course of action would be to seek treatment from a medical professional.

For others, colostrum could even present a health hazard. Here’s a rundown on the populations that should exercise caution with colostrum or consider a different supplement altogether (see the "Alternatives to colostrum" section for prospective options).

As long as it’s pasteurized and taken properly, colostrum supplements are generally safe to use for most healthy consumers, including children as young as one year old.40 Case in point, colostrum has been well tolerated in most clinical trials, and there are no well-documented drug-drug interactions.39 However, bear in mind that safe use often hinges on whether you can tolerate dairy: if you have a dairy allergy or extreme intolerance to lactose, either exercise caution or avoid colostrum outright. Otherwise, you may experience unpleasant symptoms ranging from mild (physical discomfort) to severe (anaphylaxis). Pregnant or breastfeeding women and people who’ve had estrogen-dependent cancers should avoid colostrum, as well, for potential safety concerns.

Some side effects may arise even in users without any known sensitivities. Drugs.com mentions "infrequent reports" of skin rash and minor gastrointestinal symptoms such as diarrhea, flatulence, and nausea.39 Such occurrences may be due to undiagnosed intolerances, but you can't discount the possibility of other, less-recognized causes. You can minimize the risk of side effects by following your supplement’s label-recommended directions and precautions. If you experience unwanted effects after taking colostrum, try reducing your dosage or speaking with a healthcare provider to identify the potential cause.

Speaking of the label, it’s important to pay attention to additional ingredients in your colostrum supplement. Most unflavored colostrums are pure concentrate, but flavored varieties include additives for color and taste. For example, ARMRA Blood Orange and Vine Watermelon, respectively, contain annatto extract and dragon fruit, while WonderCow Elderberry has 80g of elderberry extract. Allergies, though not exactly common, are possible.

One final topic of concern with any cattle-derived product is bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE, otherwise known as mad cow disease). BSE is a serious disease that affects cows and is linked to a fatal human prion condition known as variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (vCJD).41 But the FDA states that cow’s milk and milk products can’t transmit BSE even if the milk comes from an infected cow, so colostrum users can rest assured that their supplement presents no risk of prion infectivity.42

In our experience, colostrum supplements are easy to integrate into any daily routine, as they can be taken at any time of day and combine well with other consumables (as long as they’re either cool or cold to preserve the integrity of the colostrum). Most of the products we evaluated are powders that you can mix into liquids, stir into foods, or dry-scoop. The exception is Codeage Immuno Colostrum, our winner for best capsule alternative.

When you mix colostrum powder into liquid, don't be alarmed if the mixture foams. That's totally normal, especially with greater agitation. What else is normal is clumping, which presents a small degree of inconvenience, but it doesn't interfere with efficacy and barely affects the taste. One of our testers even claimed to enjoy the clumps, describing them as "little flavor pockets, like boba." Still, it's something to keep in mind so you don't suspect any defects in your supplement when you try it.

If clumping is a problem you’d rather avoid, and you aren’t keen on taking capsules, seek out a powder supplement that includes a homogenizer, like sunflower lecithin, in its formulation.43

Tips for mixing your colostrum powder

Although clumps may not ruin the taste experience, we reckon that a lot of users would prefer to have a fully (or mostly) homogenized colostrum drink. To that end, try these methods for a better-blended beverage:

• Start with less liquid. Pour just a splash into your cup, add the colostrum powder, and stir to create a slurry or paste, using a spoon to press any clumps into the bottom or sides of the vessel. Once the drink is mixed, top it off. The initial lower liquid-to-powder ratio increases shear while you mix, allowing you to moisten more of the powder before it gels.
• Add an ice cube or two. The ice not only adds shear force but also prevents the powder from clinging to the sides of the cup.
• Use dairy (if you can tolerate the added lactose). One testing session found that a milk or yogurt base resulted in visibly reduced clumping.
• Go electric. A frother (like those sold by ARMRA and WonderCow) works fine, particularly when used along with the low-liquid method, but a blender would be the most foolproof approach.

Storing your colostrum supplement

Supplements, in general, should be kept in cool, dry conditions. Apart from that, colostrum brands say little about storage conditions. However, based on a 2022 study on storage-related changes in colostrum, if you’re using a powder supplement, we suggest parking it in the refrigerator to slow or prevent degradation of its health effects.60

Other considerations concerning colostrum powder

ARMRA’s and WonderCow’s single-serving packets have tear notches for easy opening. ARMRA’s packets are a little better in this regard, as WonderCow’s packets are designed to tear into a sort of “pour spout” that doesn’t fully accommodate the clumpy powder, leading to bottlenecks.

Also, if you prefer powders in bulk, you should know that serving volumes — and their corresponding weights — vary from brand to brand:

• ARMRA: roughly half a teaspoon (1g) of Unflavored powder, but more (at least 2g) for flavored variants
• Bulk Supplements: also half a teaspoon (1.5g)
• WonderCow: two scoops, which is a little under two teaspoons (2g for Unflavored and 2.4g or more for flavored variants)

Then again, with the powders, serving size isn't so much of a concern that it impacts the user experience — these fairly small amounts of powder are probably going to be mixed into something else anyway. Codeage, the only non-powder colostrum on our list, is really the one you may want to think over, as half a dozen capsules per day is a mighty handful. Codeage’s saving grace is its direct-to-mouth administration, with no need to stir, shake, or blend.

Best overall and best-tasting

At this time, ARMRA, along with WonderCow, is one of the relatively few supplement providers that deal exclusively in the colostrum space. ARMRA's pure colostrum product is Health Revival, which is available in regular-size bulk jars (90-120 servings), XL-size bulk jars (360 servings), or Travel Sticks (30 servings). Health Revival boasts an IgG concentration of no less than 35% and potentially more than 40%. If we're to take the higher figure for granted, it would make Health Revival the most immunoglobulin-rich (and, therefore, the most efficacious) colostrum supplement on our list. Even with the lower percentage, it competes fairly well with WonderCow in immunoglobulin content.

ARMRA's immunoglobulin concentration is just one differentiating feather in its cap. Here, we want to focus on four other positives:

What the clinical trial and research study showed

The clinical trial followed two groups of people as they used ARMRA colostrum over 12 weeks: 30 participants with chronic gastrointestinal complaints and another 30 who claimed to exercise at least three days out of the week.44 By the end of the trial, a significant majority saw improvements in gut symptoms like bloating, gas, constipation, and heartburn (72% of the gut health group); exercise performance markers like post-workout soreness, exhaustion, and recovery (57% of the physically active group); and other areas of well-being like energy, stress, burnout, focus, skin health, and hair health (60% of participants overall).3

The research study, meanwhile, documented how Health Revival works on the cellular level. The researchers found that immune cells pretreated with ARMRA had a stronger defensive response to a bacterial trigger compared not only to baseline but also to cells treated with another colostrum supplement. The stronger defensive response "translates into elevated immune defense activity," or a greater potential for protection against pathogens.4

In fairness to competitors, funding for the research came from ARMRA itself, so there's a risk of bias that can't be ignored. The trial, in particular, leaves us wanting since it doesn’t appear to have been double-blind and placebo-controlled — the gold standard for clinical research. Still, studies of ARMRA’s effectiveness do give us important insights we’d otherwise lack. Also, the studies wouldn't have happened had ARMRA not paid for them, and no other notable colostrum brand has funded studies of its products.

Customer reviews

It’s not all upsides with ARMRA. A concern worth mentioning is the company’s brand reputation. At the time of this writing, the company holds an F grade and a 1.14-star customer rating on Better Business Bureau (BBB) based on 28 reviews. The F grade is largely due to ARMRA's failure to respond to multiple complaints and its inability to resolve the causes behind customers' gripes. The gripes themselves mostly have to do with incorrect billing, shipment errors, nonreceipt of orders, difficulty canceling subscriptions, and problems concerning refunds. Some of the issues seem to stem from misunderstandings of ARMRA's refund policy, which includes certain caveats you can read about in the following section or our full ARMRA review. Ultimately, we can’t draw significant conclusions from the customer reviews since they’re so limited in number, but ARMRA, to its credit, has successfully resolved many complaints over the years.

ARMRA Health Revival pricing and returns

Packaging, flavor, and purchase options all influence the price you pay for ARMRA Health Revival. The chart below gives you the rundown. You'll notice the subscription option knocks just 5% off the one-time price (in comparison, subscription discounts are 15% with WonderCow and 10% with Bulk Supplements, whereas Codeage’s subscription program is temporarily defunct as of this writing).

ARMRA’s up-front cost is the highest on our list, but a per-serving breakdown might provide a tempered perspective. The company recommends taking one serving per day, with the potential to titrate up to 2-4 servings based on your tolerance. If you stick with just one daily serving, a single regular-size jar could last you 3-4 months, and an XL jar could go nearly a whole year. Effectively, the cost of Health Revival comes down to around $24 per month at its lowest. So, at varying levels, you might consider ARMRA to be comparable in price to its competitors.

With a subscription, your shipping costs $0. Otherwise, your one-time order must be at least $120 to qualify for free shipping. Only the XL jar, then, wouldn’t incur an additional shipping charge on its own.

Your delivery intervals are modifiable through your account dashboard.

ARMRA allows refunds within 30 days of order receipt. Bulk jars are not eligible if they’ve been opened, unless your jar arrived damaged (Travel Sticks are eligible). You, the customer, are responsible for return shipping, plus a $6 processing fee. Once ARMRA receives the return, you can expect a refund (less $6 for processing) within 10-15 days.

Of note, ARMRA allows payments via HSA/FSA.

Other ARMRA colostrum products

ARMRA has several other colostrum or colostrum-adjacent items in its product lineup, including another colostrum-based powder supplement, branded accessories, and cost-saving bundles.

The other colostrum supplement is Performance Revival, a formula geared toward the physically active. It has the same quantity of bovine colostrum as Health Revival but with the addition of raw cacao, black cumin, and tart cherry. The cacao may have only questionable potential as a performance aide, with more research being needed to make supportive conclusions,45 46 but the other two ingredients may help you see improvements in areas such as fatigue,47 inflammation,48 sleep quality,49 and strength recovery.50 To learn more about Performance Revival, check out our full ARMRA review.

ARMRA's branded accessories, running the gamut of form and function, include:

• Carafes ($32.99)
• An electric frother (24.99)
• A pouch for your Travel Sticks ($24.99)
• Clothing ($45.99-$65.99)
• An "ARMRA" tote bag ($28.99)
• A dog toy shaped like a jar of ARMRA ($27.99)

And the bundles, which let you save a few bucks on related items, consist of:

• The Peach Principle: one Peach Persimmon bulk jar plus a peach-colored carafe ($145.33, or $138.06 as a subscription)
• The Revival: one Unflavored Health Revival bulk jar plus one box of Unflavored Travel Sticks ($142.48, or $135.36 as a subscription)
• The Transformer: one Unflavored Health Revival bulk jar plus one Performance Revival bulk jar ($180.48, or $171.46 as a subscription)
• The Catalyst: one Unflavored Health Revival bulk jar plus one box of Blood Orange Travel Sticks ($151.98, or $144.38 as a subscription)
• The Revitalizer: one Unflavored Health Revival bulk jar plus one ARMRA Whirl frother (a $128.23)

Runner-up for best overall

Our runner-up for overall best colostrum supplement is WonderCow, the only other one of our recommended brands that centers around colostrum and colostrum-related products. Founded in 2021, it's also the youngest company on our list, yet it has rapidly become a recognizable supplement brand for delivering a high standardized IgG concentration and superior flavor variety compared to most competitors (not including ARMRA).

WonderCow standardizes its IgG concentration at 40% (800mg) — possibly even greater than ARMRA’s (again, ARMRA’s a bit ambiguous on the subject). Standardization provides a sense of transparency and certainty about the product you're using, which is a definite upside with any consumer product.

WonderCow has upped its flavor variety since we first wrote this guide. The company now offers its marquee powders in these variants:

• Unflavored
• Elderberry
• Matcha
• Chocolate
• Vanilla

The Unflavored powder leans just a bit toward the sweet side of the spectrum — that is, it’s “sweet” in the way milk is sweet — whereas ARMRA is more on the savory side. Accordingly, plain WonderCow tends to taste best when mixed with dairy products like milk and yogurt. As for the flavored varieties, they’re mostly good:

• Elderberry we found to be quite enjoyable. In cold water, it has a light, refreshing fruit juice characteristic; mixed in milk, it's similar (somehow, and according to one tester’s description) to Nesquik Strawberry.
• Matcha tastes exactly like sweetened matcha. If that’s something you like, you’ll like this.
• Vanilla is underwhelming. It tastes like regular milk that maybe sat next to an open bottle of vanilla extract for a little bit.
• We didn’t get to try Chocolate.

The Elderberry flavor is worth examining more closely. It adds 80mg of elderberry extract to the usual 2,000mg of bovine colostrum found in WonderCow's Unflavored variety. With the extract comes a few added potential health benefits owing to its abundance of phenolic compounds. In a 2022 review published in Processes, the researchers identified several potential actions of those phenolic compounds, including protections against:8

• Oxidative stress
• Bacterial and viral pathogens
• Diabetes

However, the quantity of extract in Elderberry isn’t exactly consistent with the doses used in clinical research. For example, a human study on elderberry's effects on viral respiratory infections used 500mg/day, which is more than six times the amount you get in WonderCow.9 With that in mind, you might consider the ingredient to play more of a background role in supporting colostrum's health benefits and not rely on it for the specific outcomes we've mentioned here.

Still, WonderCow has other upsides to recommend it. Its sustainable practices are a definite plus. Like ARMRA, the company sticks to a calf-first initiative. And, unlike ARMRA, WonderCow is a Carbonfund partner because of its commitment to using renewable energy, upcycling nutritional by-products, regenerating soil, and recycling water. WonderCow also matches ARMRA in offering travel-friendly (albeit slightly difficult to pour) single-serving packets and outperforms ARMRA in terms of its BBB grading (albeit by a small margin; it’s rated C- at the time of this writing).

By the way, WonderCow now sells its colostrum in capsule form, as well. It’s not as potent as Codeage, our pick for best capsule alternative, but it’s a thoughtful addition nonetheless.

WonderCow pricing and returns

The variability in WonderCow's product line means corresponding variety in cost, though it’s not as variable as ARMRA. Check out the following table for a granular breakdown:

WonderCow's up-front prices are mostly lower than ARMRA's, but the per-serving breakdown tells a slightly different tale. Given WonderCow's serving-size recommendations, a single order of colostrum powder should last no more than 30 days, raising almost every per-serving price point above ARMRA's. Adjusting your delivery frequency to 60 days would bring the monthly cost of WonderCow Colostrum Powder down to $27.62, but that corresponds to just half a serving per day or a full serving every two days. WonderCow’s one absolute area of advantage in pricing regards its standardized pricing model, as the company doesn't charge extra for its flavored colostrum the way ARMRA does, and the subscription discount brings the cost below that of the ARMRA counterparts.

WonderCow’s return policy is better than ARMRA’s. From the time you make your purchase, you have 60 days to return unopened items for a full refund. Also, for first-time customers, the policy extends to opened items, too, so you have some security if you want to try each product in the line.

WonderCow doesn’t ship internationally at this time, but there’s a possibility of international shipping sometime in the future.

Other WonderCow colostrum products

WonderCow's expanded product line has grown a lot since we last checked in. It now comprises:

• WonderCream, a powdered creamer ($34.99 stick packs, $34.99-$49.99 bulk bags)
• WonderGlow, capsules for hair, skin, and nail health ($39.99)
• Bioactive Collagen (49.99)
• Grass-Fed Beef Liver capsules ($34.99)
• Bioactive Beef Protein powder ($69.99)
• A handheld frother ($19.99)
• “Raised on Dairy” baseball hats ($34.99)

In a guide to colostrum supplements, only WonderCream and WonderGlow are worth examining.

WonderCream contains 4,000mg of coconut medium-chain triglycerides (MCTs), 500mg of lion's mane mushroom, and half the usual amount of bovine colostrum. Coconut MCTs have demonstrated some capacity to help manage body weight, boost energy, and enhance athletic performance, while lion's mane mushroom may have anticancer, antioxidant, and anti-inflammatory properties, plus the potential to support brain, gut, and heart health.51 52 But, similar to the elderberry extract, the quantities featured in WonderCream don't always line up with clinical doses. One of the weight-management studies, for example, used 20g of coconut MCTs, which equals 20,000mg — five times the amount that WonderCow provides.53 That’s not to say that WonderCream can’t be beneficial, but rather that you may want to temper your expectations.

With WonderCream, though, there’s the question of heat. Coffee is typically served hot, and high temperatures can affect the bioactive compounds in colostrum. Knowing that, you can expect a degree of compromised efficacy with WonderCream unless you mix it exclusively with cold or room-temperature java.

As for WonderGlow, it comes up short, as well. With regard to cosmetic concerns like skin, hair, and nails, the present research supports topical administration as the proven efficacious route, with sheep colostrum boasting the best bioactive compounds for desirable outcomes.69 70 Today, the market is absent a topical sheep colostrum product by a reputable brand, and none of the available colostrum-based cosmetic products stands out from the pack. That’s why, if you want to use colostrum to try to achieve a more radiant appearance, we recommend using an unflavored powdered variant of one of our recommendations to concoct your own cosmetic paste.

Best budget pick

Bulk Supplements specializes in selling large quantities of supplements in multiple sizes at low prices. Unsurprisingly, it often features in our guides as a budget pick, as it does here. But the colostrum powder here represents more than just an affordable price point. It also has several qualities that make it a strong competitor in the colostrum space, irrespective of cost:

• Colostrum dose: Each half-teaspoon serving of Bulk Supplements Colostrum Powder contains 1.5g of colostrum. That’s more than ARMRA, even, as well as our previous budget pick, NOW Foods.
• Safety: As we’d want from any top pick in our guides, Bulk Supplements subjects its products to third-party testing by independent labs. Its Colostrum Powder, in particular, is also free of soy, gluten, sugar, and additives.
• Sizing: As of this writing, Bulk Supplements has stock of its Colostrum Powder in three sizes — 100g, 250g, and 500g — and even larger quantities (e.g., 1kg, 20kg) may become available periodically.

The downside of Bulk Supplements comes down to two points. First, its Colostrum Powder isn’t sourced with a calf-first initiative, so there’s a question of sustainability. Second, and more vitally with regard to efficacy, its IgG concentration isn’t specified. So, even though each serving of Bulk Supplements contains more colostrum than ARMRA, it’s unlikely to be as potent as our top overall pick.

Still, for colostrum-curious people who don’t want to make a huge financial commitment to try a product, Bulk Supplements Colostrum Powder offers a low barrier to entry.

(Note: As with WonderCow, Bulk Supplements Colostrum is also available in capsule form. It isn’t our pick for best capsule alternative, however, since Codeage offers a more potent package per serving.)

Bulk Supplements Colostrum Powder pricing, payment, and returns

Pricing for Bulk Supplements Colostrum Powder varies by package size. At this writing, only three sizes are in stock — 100g, 250g, and 500g — but it’s worth looking also at an out-of-stock option to appreciate the savings you could potentially realize.

In every price measure, Bulk Supplements outdoes the other products in this guide. Even at the highest one-time price shown here ($82.97), it’s around $20 less than a regular-size ARMRA jar, and for 5.5 times as many servings. Also, the 100g package is around $10 less (and provides 15 more servings) than our previous budget pick from NOW Foods. Bear in mind, though, that you’ll have to pay $9.95 in shipping costs unless you cross the $59 free-shipping threshold, even if you’re a subscriber. Even so, it costs less than NOW Foods, which also incurs a shipping charge.

(Apparently, when it’s in stock, you can get Bulk Supplements Colostrum Powder in a 20kg container — a barrel, we assume. Unless you intend to supplement a whole county, we don’t recommend buying such a large quantity.)

Subscribers can arrange to receive deliveries every 1-6 months and skip orders as needed. That’s the widest range of intervals among our top recommended brands.

As far as returns go, you have 30 days from the invoice date to return unopened items for a full refund. Only partial refunds apply to opened items. According to Bulk Supplements’ policy, a partial refund is “equivalent to the price of the smallest unit available for that product.” With the Colostrum Powder, the smallest available unit is 100g. So, if you purchased and tried the 250g bag for $31.97, you’d get only a $19.97 refund, less the return shipping cost. If you purchased the 100g bag, however, you wouldn’t be eligible for a refund at all.

International shipping is available.

Best capsule alternative

Right off the bat, we notice several major differentiating characteristics that set Codeage Immuno Colostrum apart from the competition. First, it's a capsule, not a powder. You scatter a few into your palm, wash them down with water, and live content in knowing that spills and clumps are someone else's concern. Capsules are probably the easiest to incorporate into any health and wellness regimen — but up to six per day is a lot to take. The saving grace is that the capsules aren't egregiously large; they're what we'd call "standard" size, measuring about three-quarters of an inch in length.

Second, Codeage as a company is the only one on our list with BBB accreditation and an A+ grade, some signature marks of a trustworthy brand.

Third, Codeage's sustainability focus is remarkable enough that it stands apart from those of its competitors. Most of the company's product packaging consists of high-density polyethylene, which the U.S. Department of Energy describes as a "non-transparent plastic" that's "widely accepted in municipal recycling programs."55 Codeage has also committed to upgrading its shipping protocol to cornstarch-based mailers and kraft paper, compostable materials that can help reduce reliance on plastics. Such sustainability efforts are ongoing, and the company aims to increase its use of post-recycled materials, improve recyclability, and shorten the biodegradation of its containers in the years to come.

The final distinguishing factor, the unspecified immunoglobulin concentration, isn't so positive. The Immuno Colostrum product page says it contains "prized immunoglobulin-rich first milk" but says nothing about percentages. After reaching out to Codeage customer support, we discovered that nutrient assays aren't part of the company's testing process, and the range of immunoglobulins is anywhere from 50-150g per liter of liquid colostrum. Ultimately, this means that the product’s immunological efficacy isn't something we can objectively speak to. We greatly prefer the standardized IgG amounts from competitors, like ARMRA or WonderCow.

Codeage Immune Colostrum pricing and returns

Codeage Immuno Colostrum has a one-time purchase price of $49.99. It used to have a subscription price of $42.49, too, but the subscription program isn’t available at the time of this writing (it’s supposed to return eventually, but no word as to when). A single container gives you 180 capsules; divided by the recommended serving size, the math adds up to $0.83-$1.67 per serving, with enough colostrum to last 30 days at the minimum and 60 days at the max.

The company’s return policy is somewhat complex. Here's what you need to know if you want a refund on your Codeage order:

• You have 30 days to request a refund for every one-item order.
• Bundles and packs are an exception. An unopened bundle or pack is eligible for a full refund within 30 days. If you've opened any individual items in the bundle or pack, you can get a prorated refund.
• Every individual customer qualifies for just one money-back guarantee in the life of their relationship with Codeage.
• If your order contains multiple items, then only one of them is eligible for a refund.
• The same rule applies to multiple orders per household; if you and your partner each order a container of Immuno Colostrum, only one of the containers can be refunded.
• Sale items, promotional items, and items purchased with a gift card aren't eligible for the 30-day money-back guarantee.

Other Codeage colostrum products

Codeage offers several other products with colostrum at various doses:

• Colostrum Powder ($49.99): a lower-dose version of Immuno (1,000mg instead of 3,000mg)
• Multi Collagen Colostrum Platinum ($79.99): a capsule supplement with a 10,000mg collagen complex, 2,500mg of bovine colostrum, 55mg of hyaluronic acid, and 50mg of lactoferrin
• Multivitamin Recovery Elite Max ($42.99): a multivitamin that includes 1,000mg of bovine colostrum — one-third the amount found in Immuno Colostrum
• GLP-Harmony Companion+ ($39.99): 200mg of bovine colostrum along with ingredients such as lion’s mane extract, shilajit extract, and blueberry powder to “help support digestive health, metabolic health, and vitality”
• DNA Pet Goat Milk Powder and Colostrum ($34.99): a colostrum supplement for dogs

NOW Foods Colostrum Powder — an ostensibly vanilla-flavored supplement that pretty much tastes like Unflavored ARMRA — was previously our budget pick, but it has since been unseated by Bulk Supplements. Still, at $29.99 per bottle (up from $25.99 a year ago), it’s a solid choice for the budget-conscious, and unlike Bulk Supplements, it at least has a standardized IgG concentration.

Fortunately, NOW Foods’ low cost doesn't come at the expense of safety. A significant component of NOW Foods' branding is its commitment to safety and quality assurance. We know of no other colostrum provider with in-house testing labs accredited by the ISO, an international, nongovernmental association that develops standards in a broad range of areas, including scientific testing processes. NOW Foods' transparency about its testing information is another factor that fosters assurance in the quality of its products in general, as are the two third-party certifications associated specifically with the colostrum powder:

• Intertek GMP Supplement Certification, verifying compliance with cGMP standards
• Kosher (Triangle K with Dairy) certification, formally designating kosher status

We'd also like to point out a couple of the measures that NOW Foods has taken to improve the customer experience. One is that its colostrum powder contains sunflower lecithin, a common homogenizer that may help improve solubility in liquids. The other is the relative likelihood that you can find NOW-brand colostrum in brick-and-mortar stores like Natural Grocers, a national chain with 168 locations in 21 states.54

NOW Foods Colostrum Powder has its downsides, though. For one thing, the 25% IgG concentration is significantly lower than ARMRA and WonderCow, which theoretically corresponds to lesser efficacy. For another, you don't have a subscription option when you purchase directly from NOW. If you prefer having a subscription or recurring delivery, you'll want to hit up Amazon for your NOW Foods Colostrum needs.

NOW Foods Colostrum Powder pricing and returns

NOW Foods Colostrum powder costs just $29.99 for an 85g bottle. Every bottle amounts to around 52 servings, equaling a per-serving cost of around $0.58. Seeing as NOW recommends 1-2 servings per day, a single order should last you between 1-2 months.

Direct purchases through NOW qualify you for a return, should you need one. The return policy applies only to new, unopened items within 30 days of purchase. The cost of return shipping is the customer's responsibility except in cases of damaged or wrongly shipped orders.

By the way, if you decide to purchase through Amazon, you should know that safety issues prevent Amazon from accepting returns on powdered colostrum supplements. That’s the trade-off for having subscription access.

NOW Foods doesn't ship overseas, but its partner iHerb does.

Other NOW Foods colostrum products

NOW Foods' product line includes two capsule colostrum variants. One ($29.99) provides 500mg of dried bovine colostrum complex per serving. The other, called Super Colostrum ($31.99), delivers 1,000mg of bovine colostrum along with additional ingredients meant to maximize immune health:

• 200mg of arabinogalactan: a dietary fiber that may improve the IgG antibody response in humans, though the quantity here is lower than clinical doses62
• 200mg of olive leaf: an herb with potential antiviral, anti-inflammatory, and antioxidant properties63
• 100mg of astragalus: an herb that may help support immune function64

Maybe you're part of a population of people who shouldn't take colostrum, or perhaps you've tried colostrum to no avail. In that case, you might consider one of the following categories of alternatives.

ImmunoLin

Imagine colostrum minus the dairy, and you've got the gist of what ImmunoLin is. More specifically, it's a branded serum-derived immunoglobulin and protein isolate derived from cows. Not a tremendous deal of research has been done on ImmunoLin, but the compositional breakdown suggests its potential efficacy is similar to, if not greater than, colostrum’s. According to one supplemental study, it has an IgG concentration of 46-53%, the same growth factors as colostrum, minimal fat, and zero lactose.56 Also, instead of lactoferrin, it has transferrin, which is structurally and functionally similar to the former.57 Given its characteristics, ImmunoLin may be the best colostrum substitute for people who are allergic to dairy or severely lactose intolerant.

Probiotics (For gut health)

Probably the best colostrum swap-out for gut health is a probiotic tailored to your unique gut microbiome — a term that refers to the collective trillions of microorganisms that reside in your gut. Viome, for example, has a comprehensive microbiome testing solution that analyzes your gut’s microorganisms and allows the company to formulate probiotic products optimized specifically for you. Alternatively, you can take an over-the-counter probiotic supplement to achieve general gut health improvements, though the results may not be exactly what you're looking for.

Vitamins and minerals (For immune health)

Vitamin and mineral supplements, whether taken individually or in a multivitamin, can be a good, cost-effective alternative to bovine colostrum. The Office of Dietary Supplements specifies that selenium, zinc, and vitamins A, C, D, and E are critical for proper immune health, and a deficiency in any one area can make you more susceptible to infections.58 Don't overlook dosages, though. When you shop for a supplement, make sure it meets the following recommended dietary allowances:

• Selenium: 55-70mcg
• Zinc: 8-12mg
• Vitamin A: 700-1,300mcg RAE
• Vitamin C: 75-120mg (an additional 35mg for people who smoke)
• Vitamin D: 15-20mcg
• Vitamin E: 15-19mg