Peptide ChooserBest peptides for muscle growth: what the evidence in people shows.
Short answer
No peptide is FDA approved for building muscle. Tesamorelin (Egrifta) is approved to reduce belly fat in adults with HIV and lipodystrophy, and growth hormone itself (somatropin) mainly for growth hormone deficiency.12 CJC-1295 and ipamorelin are research-use peptides, and ipamorelin is on the FDA list of substances that may be unsafe to compound.3 We found no trial in people that shows any of them builds muscle.
Which peptides are sold for muscle?
Our muscle page lists the options people ask about:
- Tesamorelin (Egrifta): FDA approved. A daily shot approved only to reduce belly fat in people with HIV. Sold off-label by clinics for "growth hormone".
- Sermorelin: No FDA-approved product on the market. A growth-hormone-releasing shot from compounding pharmacies; the approved brand was taken off the market years ago.
- CJC-1295 / ipamorelin: Not approved. Growth-hormone-releasing peptides sold by research-use shops and some clinics. No approved product, no large human trials.
Most of them work on the same signal. They make the body release more growth hormone, which is why they are called growth hormone secretagogues. CJC-1295 is a long-acting copy of the hormone that tells the body to release growth hormone.5 Ipamorelin acts on a different receptor with the same aim.6
What has been tested in people?
Hormone levels, not muscle. In two placebo-controlled trials in healthy adults, CJC-1295 raised growth hormone and IGF-I, a hormone made in response to it, for days after each injection.5 The trials measured those hormones and side effects; they did not measure muscle or strength.
Ipamorelin was developed in rats and pigs.6 Its one larger trial in people was for a different problem: 117 patients after bowel surgery, where it did no better than a placebo.7
We found no trial in people that shows CJC-1295, ipamorelin or sermorelin builds muscle. A higher hormone level in a blood test is not the same as more muscle.
Why are they on the FDA's risk list for compounding?
The FDA keeps a list of substances that may be risky when pharmacies use them to make medicines.3 Our database records that ipamorelin is on the FDA list of substances that may be unsafe to compound.3 The FDA says ipamorelin may set off an immune reaction when given some ways, and that a published study found serious side effects, including a death, when it was given into a vein for gut problems.3
For CJC-1295, our database records that its nomination for pharmacy compounding was withdrawn.3 The FDA lists serious side effects linked to CJC-1295, including a faster heart rate and a reaction in which blood vessels widen across the body, and says the data in people are limited.3
What is approved, and for what?
Tesamorelin (Egrifta) is approved to reduce excess belly fat in adults with HIV who have lipodystrophy, a change in where the body stores fat. Its label says it is not for weight loss.1 It is not approved for muscle.
Somatropin is growth hormone made in a lab, sold as Genotropin, Humatrope, Norditropin and Nutropin. It is approved for children who do not grow because of growth hormone deficiency or some other conditions, and for adults with growth hormone deficiency.2 It is not approved for building muscle in healthy people.
A doctor decides whether you have a condition they treat.
What do they cost?
67 shops we track list CJC-1295; the middle price across their listings is $7.95 per mg.4 69 shops we track list Ipamorelin; the middle price across their listings is $5.10 per mg.4 57 shops we track list Sermorelin; the middle price across their listings is $7.90 per mg.4 68 shops also list tesamorelin as a research-use vial; that is not the approved medicine.4
A price per mg says nothing about what is in a vial. Our guide on how to read a COA shows what a lab report can tell you, and how we check sellers explains the five checks next to each shop.
So what are the best peptides for muscle?
On the evidence in people, none. The peptides sold for muscle raise hormone levels in short trials or were tested for other problems, and the FDA lists safety concerns for two of them. The approved growth hormone medicines are for medical conditions.
None of this is medical advice. A doctor can tell you what fits your goal.
What to do next
Sources
- FDA drug label for Egrifta SV (tesamorelin), Indications and Usage, through openFDA, effective 29 Jul 2026: https://api.fda.gov/drug/label.json?search=openfda.brand_name:%22EGRIFTA%22
- FDA drug label for Genotropin (somatropin), Indications and Usage, through openFDA, effective 4 Aug 2026: https://api.fda.gov/drug/label.json?search=openfda.brand_name:%22GENOTROPIN%22
- FDA, Certain Bulk Drug Substances for Use in Compounding that May Present Significant Safety Risks, current as of 22 Apr 2026: https://www.fda.gov/drugs/human-drug-compounding/certain-bulk-drug-substances-use-compounding-may-present-significant-safety-risks
- Peptide Chooser database: the research-use and cosmetic peptide shops we check, 2 Nov 2026. Their prices and checks are in the seller windows on our goal pages
- Teichman SL et al., Prolonged stimulation of growth hormone and IGF-I secretion by CJC-1295 in healthy adults, J Clin Endocrinol Metab 91(3), 2006, PubMed 16352683: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/16352683/
- Raun K et al., Ipamorelin, the first selective growth hormone secretagogue, Eur J Endocrinol 139(5), 1998, PubMed 9849822: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/9849822/
- Beck DE et al., Randomized, controlled, proof-of-concept study of ipamorelin for postoperative ileus, Int J Colorectal Dis 29(12), 2014, PubMed 25331030: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/25331030/