Ashwagandha

Recovery/Sleep · Evidence: Moderate · Importance: Moderate

May support perceived stress, relaxation, and sleep quality.

What the evidence says

Moderate evidence for stress reduction and sleep improvement.

Typical dose & timing

Dose: 300–600 mg/day extract depending on standardization.

Timing: Evening or split dosing.

Role in a stack

Stress/recovery support.

Redundancy check:

Cautions & safety

Avoid during pregnancy/breastfeeding. Use caution with thyroid issues, liver concerns, autoimmune conditions, sedatives, or medications.

Not risk-free. Liver safety cases reported with high doses or prolonged use.

Best for

stress management · sleep support

Buying guide

Budget: KSM-66 or Sensoril standardized ashwagandha extract. Avoid unstandardized root powder.

Standard: KSM-66 at 300–600 mg per serving with clear withanolide standardization on label.

Premium: Third-party tested ashwagandha with published standardization data.

Source-verified products

Real products in this category, ordered by review count. Each price and rating comes from the product's own page, recorded 2026-07-29 — follow the link for current values. Links go to the product's source page and never affect this ranking.

• NOW Foods Ashwagandha 450mg
  NOW Foods · $5.50 · 4.7/5 (47093 ratings) · budget tier
• Swanson Full Spectrum Ashwagandha
  Swanson · $10.79 · 4.7/5 (29669 ratings) · budget tier
• Life Extension Optimized Ashwagandha
  Life Extension · $19.13 · 4.7/5 (21300 ratings) · mid tier
• Jarrow Formulas Ashwagandha 300mg
  Jarrow Formulas · $44.00 · 4.6/5 (11494 ratings) · premium tier
• Himalaya Organic Ashwagandha
  Himalaya · $25.99 · 4.6/5 (10666 ratings) · premium tier
• Youtheory Ashwagandha
  Youtheory · $23.19 · 4.6/5 (5673 ratings) · premium tier
• NutraBio KSM-66 Ashwagandha
  NutraBio · $19.59 · 4.7/5 (3458 ratings) · mid tier
• Nutricost KSM-66 Ashwagandha
  Nutricost · $11.91 · 4.8/5 (3057 ratings) · budget tier
• Force Factor Ashwagandha 600mg
  Force Factor · $12.20 · 4.7/5 (1812 ratings) · budget tier
• California Gold Nutrition Ashwagandha 500mg
  California Gold Nutrition · $16.20 · 4.7/5 (932 ratings) · mid tier
• Zahler Ashwagandha 600
  Zahler · $20.99 · 4.6/5 (276 ratings) · mid tier
• Micro Ingredients Organic Ashwagandha Root Powder
  Micro Ingredients · $25.95 · 4.7/5 (166 ratings) · premium tier

References

• A prospective, randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled study of safety and efficacy of high-concentration full-spectrum ashwagandha root extract. Indian Journal of Psychological Medicine (2012)
  KSM-66 ashwagandha reduced perceived stress and serum cortisol in stressed adults. Evidence is moderate. Caution warranted with thyroid, liver, autoimmune, or pregnancy contexts.