Find out more about the health benefits of magnesium.
Best magnesium supplements at a glance
Best magnesium capsules:
More like this
- Vitabright magnesium citrate, £15.99
- Vitabright magnesium glycinate, £16.99
- Holland & Barrett magnesium, £12.49
- JS Health advanced magnesium tablets, £16.19
- Superdrug magnesium tablets, £6.49
- Zooki magnesium capsules, £30
Best magnesium gummies:
- Nutrigums magnesium gummies, £12.99
- Novomins magnesium gummies, £14.99
Best magnesium drinks:
Best magnesium body oils:
- Holland & Barrett magnesium oil spray, £11.99
- BetterYou magnesium oil body spray, £8.66
Best magnesium bath salts:
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Best magnesium capsules 2024
Vitabright magnesium citrate
Available from Amazon (£15.99), Vitabright (£18.99), Superdrug (£18.99)
Price per day (recommended dose): 32p/day
Star rating: 5/5
The recommended dose of two easy to swallow capsules provides you with 118 per cent of your NRV. It’s a good option for avoiding allergens or unnecessary ingredients, as it contains no fillers or binding agents. Magnesium citrate is an easily absorbed form of magnesium.
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Vitabright magnesium glycinate
Available from Amazon (£16.99), Vitabright (£18.99), Superdrug (£18.99)
Price per day (recommended dose): 21p/day
Star rating: 5/5
Two capsules provides 80 per cent NRV of elemental magnesium in the form of glycinate, which may be a gentler alternative for delicate stomachs. Again, this brand is free from fillers and unnecessary ingredients.
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Holland & Barrett magnesium
Available from Holland & Barrett (£12.49)
Price per day (recommended dose): 7p/day
Star rating: 4/5
Excellent value for money, providing 100 per cent NRV – though magnesium oxide is a less soluble form of magnesium, and likely harder for the body to absorb. There are some additives, such as bulking agents.
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JS Health advanced magnesium tablets
Available from JS Health (£17.99)
Price per day (recommended dose): 60p/day
Star rating: 3.5/5
Containing three types of magnesium (citrate, glycinate and amino acid chelate), these are a good option if you want to ensure you receive the varied benefits of magnesium. Having said that, at 54 per cent NRV, it’s not the highest dosage you’ll find. The tablets are also quite large.
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Superdrug magnesium tablets
Available from Superdrug (£6.49)
Price per day (recommended dose): 22p/day
Star rating: 3.5/5
Good value for money, providing 50 per cent of your NRV, although the form of magnesium (as oxide) is not as easy to absorb. The product also contains some additives. Our tester found the packaging informative and the capsules easy to swallow.
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Zooki magnesium capsules
Available from QVC (£30), Zooki (£34.99), Body Kind (£34.99), Healf (£34.99)
Price per day (recommended dose): £1.17/day
Star rating: 3.5/5
Providing magnesium bisglycinate at 27 per cent NRV in a liposomal form, this product claims to optimise absorption. It does contain some emulsifiers and colours, and the frosted glass packaging makes reading expiration dates difficult. This is also one of the pricier products we tested.
Best magnesium gummies
Nutrigums magnesium gummies
Available from Nutrigums (£12.99), Amazon (£12.99)
Price per day (recommended dose): 53p/day
Star rating: 4/5
Suitable for adults and children aged five and over, these gummies include vitamin C to support energy and immunity. They’re higher in magnesium – at 40 per cent NRV – than the other gummies we tested, but contain glucose syrup and sugar. Our tester enjoyed the smell and taste, describing them as “nice and sweet without being too sickly”.
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Novomins magnesium gummies
Available from Novomins (£14.99), Debenhams (£14.99), Amazon (£14.99), Holland & Barrett (£19.99)
Price per day (recommended dose): 67p/day
Star rating: 3.5/5
Although gummies aren’t the most efficient delivery system for nutrients, these have some benefits thanks to the additional vitamin B6 and zinc, which support energy, bone health and immune function.
They’re also gelatin- and sugar-free, with 42 per cent NRV. Our tester found them tasty, comparing the flavour to a wine gum. However, they are not suitable for children.
Other options for supplementing
With insufficient research on how much magnesium can be absorbed via the skin, it’s impossible to gauge whether bath and oil products can help you reach your NRV. The latter (as they’re applied directly to the skin) are likely to be a more effective mechanism for delivery, although a bath can provide additional muscle-relaxing benefits, if that’s your aim. Drinks are a more accurate way to ensure you’re getting the benefits of the added magnesium.
Best magnesium drinks
BetterYou magnesium water focus
Available from Amazon (£21.57 for 12 x 250ml cans), BetterYou (£23.88 for 12 x 250ml cans)
Price per day (recommended dose): £1.99
Star rating: 3.5/5
The blueberry and mint flavour divided opinion among our testers, and was generally seen as an “acquired taste”. Providing 48 per cent NRV – with both magnesium citrate and glycinate – it also contains a range of B vitamins, which are mainly useful for supporting energy levels and the nervous system. The drinks are made with natural flavourings, but there’s a small amount of added sugar in the form of agave syrup. The drink is also available in an energy variant, which contains the same types of magnesium and added vitamins, but is flavoured with pomegranate and rhubarb.
Zooki magnesium pineapple guava sachets
Available from Zooki (£29.99 for a 14-day supply), Amazon (£29.99 for a 14-day supply), Victoria Health (£29.99 for a 14-day supply), QVC (£54 for a one-month supply), Selfridges (£59.99 for a one-month supply)
Price per day (recommended dose): £2.14
Star rating: 3.5/5
A pricey way to supplement, but a good option if you don’t like swallowing pills. The liquid can be drunk straight from the sachet or mixed into smoothies or other drinks. Whether you enjoy the flavour depends on how much you enjoy sweeter drinks – some testers found it “sickly”, while others said it “smells amazing and tastes equally as nice”. Contains magnesium glycinate at 53 per cent NRV in a liposomal form that may optimise absorption. The product is free from sugar, dairy and gluten, and is vegan.
Best magnesium body oils
Holland & Barrett magnesium oil spray
Available from Holland & Barrett (£11.99)
Price per day (recommended dose): no dosage info
Star rating: 3.5/5
There’s no dosage information provided, so it’s unclear how much to use. The label states a magnesium chloride solution of 310mg per 100ml – the same strength BetterYou product (see below) recommends 10 sprays to achieve 57 per cent NRV. This is a better-value product as it’s a couple of pounds cheaper, but our tester found the spray applicator messy to use and didn’t like the greasy film. It’s also unscented.
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BetterYou magnesium oil body spray
Available from Amazon (£8.66), Superdrug (£12.99), BetterYou (£13.95)
Price per day (recommended dose): 23p/dose
Star rating: 3.5/5
Applying 10 sprays provides 57 per cent NRV, but our tester found this to be a lot of sprays to administer, especially as the liquid takes a little while to absorb and leaves a sticky residue. However, they did feel that they experienced fewer restless leg symptoms when applying before bed. As with the H&B spray, this is a 31 per cent solution of magnesium chloride, and is unscented.
Best magnesium bath salts
Westlab magnesium flakes bath soak
Available from Westlab (£3.99/800g), Amazon (£6.99/1kg), Holland & Barrett (£7.50/1kg)
Price per day: no dosage information provided
Star rating: 3.5/5
Our tester felt relaxed and refreshed after bathing in these salts, although whether that could be solely attributed to the salts themselves is hard to say. The packaging was less informative than the brand’s website when it came to guidance on the optimal salt-to-water ratio, with the salts containing 117g elemental magnesium per kg.
Available from:
BetterYou magnesium bath flakes
Available from Amazon (£7.95/1kg), BetterYou (£10.95/1kg), Holland & Barrett (£10.95/1kg)
Price per day (recommended dose): £4.95
Star rating: 3.5/5
A quality product that appeared to soothe our tester’s muscles. The flakes dissolved quickly and were easy to use. Again, there is imprecise information on the recommended depth of the bath, but ratios are provided for a foot bath. Contains 120g elemental magnesium per kg. Alternatives that contain essential oils are also available if you’re looking for a scented bath.
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Keep all supplements away from children.
How much magnesium should I take?
How much magnesium you should be looking to include will depend on your age, gender, life stage and any health or dietary issues you might have. But, the Nutrient Reference Value (average recommended daily amount) of magnesium is 375mg.
Make sure you’re checking the ‘elemental magnesium’ amount on the label, as a compound (for instance, magnesium oxide) won’t contain as much magnesium as the pure form.
How should I take a magnesium supplement?
It’s usually best to take magnesium with a meal, and not at the same time as other mineral supplements (if you’re taking any). Aim to take it around two hours before bed if it’s being used as a sleep aid.
What form of magnesium should I take?
Magnesium is usually provided in compound form in supplements, and sometimes the partner element can bring health benefits of their own.
Our expert nutritionist Kerry Torrens advises the following forms, depending on your health needs:
- For energy: Magnesium malate / orortate
- For anxiety or mood: Magnesium citrate / lactate / l-threonate / glycinate / chloride
- For digestion, including constipation: Magnesium citrate / lactate / oxide / sulfate
- For heartburn: Magnesium oxide / chloride / carbonate
- For sleep: Magnesium glycinate / chloride
- For heart health: Magnesium taurate / orotate
- For bone health: Magnesium citrate
- For muscle tension: Magnesium malate / sulfate
What format of magnesium is best?
If you don’t want to take a capsule, magnesium can be used in a spray or bath. There’s limited quality research into how effective magnesium applied to the skin might be (although areas with more hair follicles – such as arms and legs – are believed to be best), as well as in how well magnesium bath salts might be absorbed.
How we tested magnesium supplements
Nutritionist Kerry Torrens provided advice on the benefits and disadvantages of different forms of magnesium, as well as the most efficient delivery formats for supplements and recommended doses.
Our key criteria were price (which we judged by the cost of a recommended daily dose), the percentage of Nutrient Reference Value (NRV) provided in the recommended dose of each product, and how the product format (capsule, tablet, drink, gummy etc) and form of magnesium might affect the amount of magnesium absorbed in the body.
Our panel of Good Food testers also trialled each product to see how easy it was to take or use, and judge flavour and smell where appropriate.
Read more about how we test different products at Good Food.
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