by Taking a daily multivitamin can certainly help with any nutritional gaps you have in your diet. However, there’s a growing interest in personalized vitamin subscriptions, as these might better tailor to your needs if you have health conditions or specific dietary restrictions. In our research, we also found that the best personalized vitamin subscriptions can often be more convenient, offer education and recommendations through their assessments, and give you access to nutritionists or doctors on board.
“The reason vitamin subscriptions exist is because compliance is hard,” says Nayan Patel, PharmD, board-certified pharmacist and founder of Auro wellness. He understands that knowing what vitamins you might need can be overwhelming, but says that a good personalized vitamin subscription “is a great start to help slowly improve your supplement regimens as you work to get educated.” That said, he always suggests speaking with your practitioner to see what works best for you.
Meet the experts: Nayan Patel, PharmD, board-certified pharmacist and founder of Auro wellness; Megan Hilbert, R.D.N., registered dietitian nutritionist at Top Nutrition Coaching.
But how do you if you can trust a personalized vitamin subscription company? “Some companies are highly transparent with doctors and dietitians on board—which means they are likely safer than other brands without medical professionals on staff,” says Megan Hilbert, R.D.N., registered dietitian nutritionist at Top Nutrition Coaching.
Additionally, you want to make sure the quality is up to standards. Dr. Patel suggests checking to see that the company performs third-party testing or holds a certification by the National Sanitation Foundation. An NSF-certified product just means it undergoes product testing and development inspections to ensure the products comply with strict standards.
We expand more on this below, along with the best personalized vitamin subscriptions vetted by nutritionists, testing, and reviews.
Dietary supplements are products intended to supplement the diet. They are not medicines and are not intended to treat, diagnose, mitigate, prevent, or cure diseases. Be cautious about taking dietary supplements if you are pregnant or nursing. Also, be careful about giving supplements to a child, unless recommended by their healthcare provider.
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Best Personalized Multivitamin Subscription
Vous Vitamins
Pros
- Founded by doctors
- Products are FDA-cGMP compliant
- Offers a 1-month free trial
Cons
- No access to nutritionist or doctor
Vous Vitamins was founded by two doctors, a medicine physician and endocrinologist who noticed a need for transparency and education when it came to consumers and what vitamins they needed.
You take a short quiz asking about your health concerns and goals, plus your eating and exercise habits. When testing out the signup process, I was quoted $91 for a custom formula subscription that would last me three months. Keep in mind that price varies on your results.
Vous Vitamins’ products are not third-party tested; however, they are built on standards defined by Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP). These are FDA-enforced regulations that ensure proper manufacturing of pharmaceuticals. They also are NSF-certified.
What a reviewer says: “I like the fact that it is tailored to my needs, the pills though they are larger have a fun light blue coating that makes it easier for me to swallow (compared to some other large non coated ones). I feel like I have had a little more energy, and not craving/eating so many things since my body is getting the vitamins I need to stay healthy.”
| Third-party tested? | No, but products are GMP-certified by NSF |
|---|---|
| Assessment | Quiz |
| Shipping | Free for subscriptions; ships every 3 of 6 months |
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Best for Those With Dietary Restrictions
Persona Nutrition
When testing signing up for Persona, I was impressed by how in-depth the assessment was compared to competitors’. Along with asking about general health goals and daily fruit and veggie intake, the questionnaire asks about dietary restrictions, menstrual cycle, sleep schedule, and even any medications you might take. This is a good way to prevent any harmful drug interactions.
Though thorough, the assessment is quick and takes less than 10 minutes. At the end of it, you get a custom “prescription” of daily vitamins that Persona would send you in little daily packets. After first-timer discounts, I was quoted just under $50 for 28 packets, or my first monthly box. What’s more, subscribers get access to a personalized nutritionist.
What a reviewer says: “I’m nearing the end of my first month on Persona. I absolutely love these vitamins! I noticed a change in some things fairly quickly, and am still noticing changes in other areas. I feel great.”
| Third-party tested? | No, but products are made sure to be cGMP compliant |
|---|---|
| Assessment | Quiz |
| Shipping | Free shipping over $50; ships monthly |
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Best Personalized Vitamin Subscription for the Whole Family
Ritual
While not 100% personalized, Ritual feels custom in the fact they offer vitamins for men, women, and children and their various health needs. Whether you’re pregnant, suffering from poor sleep, or just need a daily multivitamin for overall health, Ritual has it.
Ritual claims transparency with their Made Traceable certificate, which means you can track down ingredients, sourcing, and testing.
All Ritual vitamins are also non-GMO, which means no genetic engineering was involved in production. Select products, like the Women’ Essential Multivitamin, is USP-certified. This means that the supplements only contain the ingredients provided on the label, in the stated dosages.
Prices vary by supplement, ranging from $25 to $88.
What a reviewer says: “[It] it helps me focus and gives me energy for the day. They have all the vitamins I need and I love that they are vegan.”
| Third party testing? | Yes |
|---|---|
| Assessment | Nothing |
| Shipping | Free shipping on all orders; flex subscription |
5
Personal Best Protein Subscription
Beneficial
Although it is not necessary to offer vitamins, Ginful provides daily nutrition through a customized protein subscription. Instead of vitamins, you’ll find daily powdered greens, custom protein powder, pre-workout formula, hydration powder, collagen, and fiber. Gainful is a great choice for athletes or those looking to build and maintain muscle.
You start by taking a quiz that asks about your fitness goals, exercise regimen, and your height and weight. Then you’ll get some recommendations for the best subscription for you. In my signup process, I was quoted a total of $143 for 28 daily performance greens, a 14-serving custom protein powder, a 14-serving pre-workout formula, and a 21-serving hydration powder.
What a reviewer says: “This protein changed everything for me. My strength, recovery and muscle composition have improved dramatically and I’m amazed.”
| Third party testing? | No, but products are processed in cGMP certified facilities |
|---|---|
| Assessment | Quiz Time |
| Shipping | $5.99 shipping or free shipping on orders over $60; Custom shipping frequency |
How to choose the best personalized vitamin subscriptions
Hilbert and Dr. Patel both look out for specific testing claims and transparency in choosing the best personalized vitamin subscriptions. “We only work with physicians who can create a custom plan for each patient and use WholeScripts to help deliver their custom vitamin package each month,” says Dr. Patel. (Side note: WholeScripts is a platform used by patients and practitioners for supplement shopping needs).
Here are some factors to look out for when choosing the best personalized vitamin subscription, according to our experts:
✔️ Third party testing: Hilbert and Dr. Patel emphasized looking out for third-party testing — meaning an impartial outside source reviews the company’s products for quality control.
✔️ Seal certified by USP or NSF: If the products are not third-party tested, our experts recommend that the company should have at least one of these certifications. As mentioned earlier, NSF certification means that it is regularly reviewed by the National Institute of Sanitation to ensure that the company meets strict standards and procedures through testing and product development audits. USP-verified means that Pharmopecia of the United States – a non-profit dedicated to improving global health – “ensures that the ingredients stated on the label, in the amounts stated, in the supplements, and meet acceptable limits for contaminants such as heavy metals, pesticides, dioxins, furans, PCBs, and microbes.”
✔️ Professional healthcare providers on board: This means better transparency. “I like to see consumers being able to chat or schedule an appointment with an expert with personalized vitamin companies, because they can get more tailored advice,” says Hilbert.
✔️ Thorough assessment: While the online quiz helps a company better understand your goals and health concerns, Hilbert says it’s no substitute for guidance from a professional health care provider in assessing gaps in a patient’s diets. The quiz is usually quick and convenient, but the more questions it asks about your lifestyle and current state of health, the better.
Should I trust personalized vitamin subscriptions?
Our experts say yes, as long as you know what you’re looking for (note the factors listed above). Hilbert cautions readers that they should avoid brands that claim to have technology to assess nutritional or supplement needs that no other company or doctor’s office has. “This is a big red flag that they are using unfounded technologies to assess nutritional deficiencies since ‘accuracy’ nutrition in the private market is still in its infancy,” she says.
Hilbert also likes to avoid companies that don’t have health professionals on staff or running the company. “This is not a foolproof way to get a quality product, but more often than not the product is less likely to have negative supplement interactions and/or has a higher quality,” she says.
Otherwise, it’s up to you to be a smart consumer. For example, Dr. Patel reminds us that the key is what you need. “Oversupplementation is not healthy and sometimes even damages liver and kidney health,” he says.
Is it worth paying more for vitamins?
It depends on who you ask. Dr Patel thinks so. “It’s worth paying more if the quality is better. Working to educate yourself or consult a doctor about best practices and products is key,” he says.
On the other hand, Hilbert does not think that price is always a good indicator of quality. “The most important factors I look for when evaluating supplement quality are making sure products are at therapeutic doses, evaluated for purity, and third-party tested,” she says.
In our research, we found that some experts argue that cheaper vitamins are just as effective as cheaper ones – and in most cases, you’re probably paying for the brand name. Other experts do not believe this to be the case. For best results, talk to a trusted doctor if price is a deciding factor.
How we chose the best personal vitamin subscriptions
I have tested HUM Nutrition products for years, as long as they have been part of my daily supplement intake.
We consulted with Nayan Patel, PharmD, board-certified pharmacist and founder of Auro wellness; and Megan Hilbert, RDN, registered dietitian nutritionist at Top Nutrition Coaching. Our experts shared their professional recommendations on what to look out for when choosing personal vitamin supplements, and we conducted research based on their insights. Hilbert also rrecommended HUM Nutrition.
Why trust us
For over 70 years, Prevention has been a leading provider of trusted health information, empowering readers with practical strategies to improve their physical, mental and emotional well-being. Our editors interview medical experts to help guide our health-focused product selections. Prevention it also examines hundreds of reviews – and is often personally tested by our team – to help you make informed decisions.
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