I’m one of those weird people who doesn’t like coffee. I do love the energy boost and the increased mental clarity that I get from caffeine. I just don’t like drinking coffee. Fortunately, I don’t have to drink a bunch of bitter joe to get my caffeine fix. That’s where the best caffeine pills come into the picture.
I’ve always loved the smell of coffee. It just never tastes as good as it smells. So in order for me to hide the taste, I drown my coffee in creamers and sugar. That’s a ton of extra calories that I don’t need or want.
Another problem that I have with coffee is that it tends to give me heartburn. That’s no fun either.
The beauty of taking the best caffeine pills is that you can skip all of the nasty side effects and the bad taste of the coffee. It’s like getting all of the benefits without worrying about the negatives that come along with coffee. If you find the right caffeine pills, you don’t have to worry about the jitters or crashing either.
Now before we get to the best caffeine pills, let’s talk a little more about caffeine.
First Things First, What Are Caffeine Pills?
Caffeine is a stimulant that acts upon your central nervous system. It is a natural substance found in plants like coffee beans, green tea leaves, and kola nuts. Caffeine pills are just supplements made from caffeine.
It’s worth mentioning that caffeine pills are not the same as pure caffeine powder. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has found pure caffeine powder to be potentially dangerous. Caffeine pills, on the other hand, are generally safe for most people.
Some of the best caffeine pills contain just caffeine. Others contain additional stimulants or things like L-theanine. L-theanine is an amino acid that has a calming effect. When you combine it with caffeine, the L-theanine takes away the unpleasant side effects.
So if you take a supplement that contains both caffeine and L-theanine, you won’t feel the jitters, and you won’t get the crash that usually comes after you drink coffee.
Before you take any caffeine supplement, it’s always a good idea to check with your doctor.
For some people, caffeine pills are a terrible idea. Certain people should avoid it altogether. These people include:
- Anyone with sensitivities to caffeine
- People with high blood pressure
- People with heart disease or rapid heart rate
- Children and adolescents
- Men or women trying to get pregnant
- Pregnant women
- People with gastroesophageal reflux disease
What Is a Nootropic?
All of the best caffeine pills on our list are nootropics. Nootropics sometimes called smart drugs, are compounds or supplements that enhance your cognitive performance. The best thing about nootropics is that they increase your mental functions like memory, alertness, motivation, creativity, and focus.
What Are the Benefits to Taking the Best Caffeine Pills?
There are many benefits to taking the best caffeine pills. Some of those benefits include:
- Reduced headaches
- Energy boost
- Decrease in depression
- Reduced constipation
- Increased alertness
- Sharper mental focus
- Improved memory
- Reduced pain
- Enhanced athletic performance
Are There Any Risks Involved in Taking Caffeine Pills?
Moderation is the key to caffeine. Taken in moderation, it can provide many health benefits. But if you take too much, you could have an adverse reaction. Overdoing it with caffeine can irritate and overstimulate your system. If that happens, you could experience the following side effects:
- Gastric distress and acid reflux
- Headaches
- Diarrhea
- Weakened bones caused by a reduction in calcium absorption
- High blood pressure
- Rapid heartbeat
- Insomnia
- Dizziness
- Irritability
- Jitters or shaking
- Pregnancy loss
- Reduced fertility in both women and men
How Do the Best Caffeine Pills Compare to Drinking Coffee?
Most of the best caffeine pills on our list have between 100 and 200 milligrams of caffeine. That is the equivalent of one to two cups of coffee.
Generally speaking, up to 400 milligrams of caffeine a day is considered safe. Make sure that you read the labels on your caffeine pills to see how much caffeine is in each tablet. And don’t forget about other caffeine that you consume in foods and drinks.
One of the problems with getting your caffeine from coffee is that we tend to load it up with creamers and sugars. Taking caffeine pills eliminates all of those empty calories.
Another reason that the pills may be preferable is that many people are like me and can’t tolerate the acid in coffee. It can lead to heartburn or acid reflux. You won’t have that problem with the pills.
Whether you drink coffee or take caffeine pills, you will find that caffeine is a diuretic. Both of them will increase your urine output.
Our Review Process
We performed an independent review of the best caffeine pills on the market this year. In the review process, we researched professional and consumer reviews. We also compared the ingredients and price of each product. Our goal is to help you find the best caffeine pills to meet your needs.
We have no business or financial ties to any of the manufacturers on our list.
The Top 10 Best Caffeine Pills
In no particular order, here are our top 10 favorite caffeine pills
1. Smarter Vitamins Caffeine Pills
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Our first contender for the best caffeine pills comes from Smarter Vitamins.
Each potent Smarter Vitamins softgel contains caffeine from green coffee beans, MCT oil, and L-theanine from green tea leaves. The MCT oil comes from coconuts and helps you to convert to caloric energy. And the L-theanine is beneficial because it helps to promote an alert state of relaxation and helps to prevent the jitters that you can get from caffeine.
Each bottle contains 50 caffeine pills, and each pill contains 200 milligrams of caffeine. That’s about equal to one to two cups of coffee. Each tablet also has 100 milligrams of L-theanine.
Another benefit of the L-theanine is that it minimizes the crash that you often get after taking caffeine. You shouldn’t get that with the Smarter Vitamins caffeine pills. If you get any kind of crash at all, it will be minimal. However, these are not super long-acting for some users.
2. Prolab Caffeine Tablets
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Prolab takes the next spot on our list of the best caffeine pills this year. These pills contain two main ingredients: caffeine and calcium.
Each bottle of Prolab Caffeine Tablets contains 100 pills. And each pill has 200 milligrams of caffeine. That’s equal to one to two cups of coffee.
Prolab designed these pills to increase your metabolism and provide a killer pre-workout boost.
One of the things that we love about the Prolab pills is that they kick in really quickly. You will feel the effects of the caffeine in less than 15 minutes.
Compared to the other best caffeine pills on our list, the Prolab pills are super cheap. They also get excellent professional and consumer reviews. Amazon customers rate them 4.3 out of 5 stars. They get the highest marks for presentation and absorbency.
The majority of people have great things to say about these pills. But some complained that they didn’t feel enough of a boost.
3. NutraChamps Focused Energy
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NutraChamps Focused Energy is another contender for the best caffeine pills this year. Focused Energy is a perfect name for these pills because they offer plenty of it. You get that focused energy with these pills because of the three main ingredients: caffeine, L-theanine, and yerba mate.
The NutraChamps pills don’t contain as much caffeine as some of the other best caffeine pills. They contain 150 milligrams of caffeine per pill. That’s equal to about a cup of coffee. These pills also contain 200 milligrams of L-theanine, so you don’t have to worry about jitters or crashing.
One of the things that we love about NutraChamps pills is that the company really stands by their product. If you aren’t satisfied with the pills they will refund your money, no questions asked.
4. Vivarin
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Chances are you’ve heard about Vivarin. It’s been around a long time. I know that I couldn’t have gotten through college without it.
One of the great things about Vivarin is that it doesn’t have a lot of extra ingredients that you don’t need. Vivarin has one main ingredient: caffeine. That’s basically all it is.
Each package of Vivarin comes with 40 tablets. And each pill contains 200 milligrams of caffeine. That’s equal to one to two cups of coffee.
Because Vivarin doesn’t contain any L-theanine, there’s a good chance that it may make you feel jittery, especially if you take more than one pill. However, those side effects should lessen after you get used to the caffeine.
5. VitalFuse Fused Focus
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The next spot on our list of the best caffeine pills goes to VitalFuse Fused Focus.
The first thing that we noticed about Fused Focus is that it contains a little less caffeine than most of the other best caffeine pills. Each pill contains 150 milligrams of caffeine, which is equal to a cup of coffee. The VitalFuse pills though, contain several other ingredients to help with alertness and focus.
Besides caffeine, these pills also contain theacrine, alpha-GPC, Bacopa extract, ginkgo biloba, and bilberry fruit powder. Because of these ingredients, you are less likely to experience side effects or crashes.
VitalFuse guarantees that the boost you get with their pills will last longer than any other caffeine pill. And they really stand by that guarantee. If you’re not 100 percent satisfied, they will refund your money.
6. TigerEYE Smart Energy
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TigerEYE Smart Energy is another of the best caffeine pills on the market this year. These pills contain two main ingredients: caffeine and L-theanine. TigerEYE says that each pill will last four to six hours. That’s pretty good for sustained energy.
One of the things to note about these pills is that they don’t contain as much caffeine as most of the other best caffeine pills. Smart Energy has just 100 milligrams of caffeine in each pill. That’s equal to one cup of coffee.
The 200 milligrams of L-theanine in each pill will assure that you don’t get jittery or crash after a few hours. The two to one ratio TigerEYE uses with L-theanine and caffeine means that any unwanted side effects from the caffeine get neutralized.
Another thing that we love about the TigerEYE pills is that they come with a 100 percent satisfaction guarantee. If you don’t like it for any reason, they will refund your money.
7. VALI Caffeine Pills
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Our next contender for the best caffeine pills comes from VALI. The thing that we love about these pills is that they are very gentle.
The VALI pills contain less caffeine than any of the other best caffeine pills, with just 50 milligrams of caffeine per tablet. These pills also contain 100 milligrams of L-theanine, so you don’t have to worry about jitters.
The great thing about this nootropic is that it gives you hours of mental clarity and focus. It also helps with mood and memory.
Another thing that we love about VALI pills is that they contain zero additives. We also love that they make these pills entirely in the USA.
8. Smarter Daily Smarter Energy
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Smarter Daily’s Smarter Energy takes the next spot on our list of the best caffeine pills.
The Smarter Daily pills offer 60 pills in each bottle. And each pill contains 100 milligrams of caffeine. That’s equal to one cup of coffee. Each tablet also contains 200 milligrams of L-theanine, so you don’t have to worry about any nasty side effects.
Another thing that we really like about these pills is that they are GMP and NSF certified. They are also lab tested and made in a USA FDA certified facility.
We also love that Smarter Daily stands by their product. If you’re not totally satisfied with these pills they will refund your money, no questions asked.
9. Natural Stacks Smart Caffeine
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The next spot on our list of the best caffeine pills goes to Natural Stacks.
This caffeine supplement offers increased cognition without any jitters or crashes. The reason for that is because the pills contain both caffeine and L-theanine.
Each bottle of Natural Stacks contains 60 capsules. And each capsule contains 100 milligrams of caffeine and 200 milligrams of L-theanine.
The thing that we love about these pills is that they keep you feeling relaxed while you’re mentally alert. There is no shaking or anxiety with these pills.
Another thing that we love is that you can get a full refund if you’re not 100 percent satisfied with your results.
10. The Genius Brand Genius Caffeine
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Our final contender for the best caffeine pills is Genius Caffeine by The Genius Brand.
One of the problems with many caffeine pills is that they tend to give a rush of energy followed by a crash. Well, you won’t get that with Genius Caffeine because they use a special sustained release formula that will keep you energized for hours.
Each bottle contains 100 capsules. And each capsule contains 100 milligrams of slow-release caffeine. That’s equal to one cup of coffee.
Another thing that we love about Genius Caffeine is that it comes with a money-back guarantee. If you’re not totally satisfied, The Genius Brand will give you a full refund.
Compared to the other best caffeine pills on our list, Genius Caffeine is relatively cheap. It also gets excellent professional and consumer reviews. Amazon customers rate it 4.4 out of 5 stars. These pills get the highest marks for presentation, easy to swallow, and flavor.
The thing that people love most about these pills is that they offer long-lasting smooth energy. The time-release formula is definitely a huge plus. The only downside to them is that they don’t contain any L-theanine.
The Takeaway
The bottom line is that caffeine pills when taken in moderation, can provide many incredible health benefits.
We really like all 10 of the best caffeine pills on our list this year. But if you twisted my arm and asked me which one was the very best, I’d have to say the Smarter Vitamins Caffeine Pills. They contain the most caffeine, and they also contain L-theanine, which prevents all of the nasty side effects that you often get with caffeine.
I also really liked Genius Caffeine by The Genius Brand because it is time-released. The benefit of that is that when the caffeine is released slowly into your body, you have fewer side effects and you avoid the dreaded caffeine crash.
Because caffeine can be dangerous at high doses, you must pay attention to the dosage along with all of the extra caffeine that you consume. We also recommend checking with your doctor before starting any caffeine supplement.
Now we want to hear from you! Let us know in the comments section below what you think about the best caffeine pills on our list this year. And share with our readers if you have any great tips for people who are new to caffeine pills.