What Is Nicotinamide Riboside (NR)? Evidence Guide

Quick answer

What is nicotinamide riboside? Nicotinamide riboside (NR) is a form of vitamin B3 that the body can turn into NAD+, a molecule involved in making energy in your cells. Human trials agree on one thing: NR raises NAD+ levels in the blood [1][2]. What they have not shown is clear health benefits. A careful 2023 review of 25 human studies found “few clinically relevant effects” [3], and a trial in overweight adults found no change in insulin sensitivity or blood pressure [4]. We rate the evidence D: small, short human trials only, with a lot still unknown.

What is nicotinamide riboside (NR)?

NAD+ is a molecule involved in how your cells handle energy [6]. NR is one of several “NAD+ precursors”, which are building blocks your body can use to make more NAD+. NMN is another. In animal studies, boosting NAD+ produced striking results, which is why NR is popular in the longevity world. Whether the same happens in people is still being tested [3].

What might it help with?

Possible benefit	Rating	In plain words
Raising NAD+ levels in blood	Strong	Consistent across trials, but this is a lab measure, not a health benefit [1][2]
Insulin sensitivity (how well your body handles sugar)	No clear benefit	No effect in a small trial of overweight and obese adults [4]
Blood pressure and artery stiffness	Early	Hints in a small trial, not confirmed [1][4]
Body composition	Early	A small increase in lean mass in 13 people, not a proven effect [4]
Memory and thinking in older adults	Early	A pilot trial of 20 people found no change in thinking scores [6]

Ratings describe how good the research is, not a promise that it will work for you.

What the research says

Does nicotinamide riboside work?

• Raises blood NAD+. In a trial of healthy overweight adults, 100, 300 and 1,000 mg a day for 8 weeks raised whole-blood NAD+ by 22%, 51% and 142%. There were no significant differences in side effects compared with placebo [2]. PubMed · DOI
• Well tolerated in older adults. A placebo-controlled crossover trial in healthy middle-aged and older adults found NR was well tolerated and raised NAD+ metabolism over 6 weeks. The authors suggested future trials should look at blood pressure and artery stiffness, which means this is a question, not a result [1]. PubMed · DOI
• No metabolic benefit. In 13 overweight or obese adults taking 1,000 mg a day for 6 weeks, NR raised NAD+ markers in muscle and made small changes in body composition, but did not change insulin sensitivity, blood pressure, inflammation markers or heart measures [4]. PubMed · DOI
• Older adults with mild memory problems. In a 10-week pilot of 20 people taking up to 1 g a day, blood NAD+ rose 2.6-fold, NR was well tolerated and thinking scores stayed stable. The authors say a larger, longer trial is needed [6]. PubMed · DOI
• The big picture. A review of 25 human studies concluded NR has shown few clinically relevant effects and noted “an unfortunate tendency” in the literature to exaggerate how important or reliable results are [3]. PubMed · DOI

Why the caution: most trials are small and short, and raising a blood marker isn’t the same as improving health.

Amounts and how people take it

What dose of nicotinamide riboside do studies use?

These are amounts used in studies, not recommendations.

• Study amounts: trials have used 100 to 1,000 mg a day for weeks [2][4]. Several used 1,000 mg [4][6].
• Form: supplements use nicotinamide riboside chloride. Check the label for the amount of NR, not just the pack weight.
• Timing: the sources we checked don’t give a firm rule.
• Duration: the trials above lasted 6 to 10 weeks [1][2][4][6], so long-term effects in humans are not established.

NR vs NMN in one paragraph

Both NR and NMN are building blocks your body can use to make NAD+. Human trials of NR mainly show higher blood NAD+ rather than clear health benefits [3]. See our NMN entry for NMN. For a fuller comparison, read NMN vs NR.

Side effects, interactions and who should check first

Is nicotinamide riboside safe?

In the 8-week trial, there were no reports of flushing and no significant difference in side effects between NR and placebo at any dose, and the trial found no rise in LDL cholesterol [2]. The older-adult and pilot trials also reported it was well tolerated [1][6]. Even so, trials are short and small, so we can’t rule out rarer or long-term effects.

Who should check with a doctor or pharmacist first

Check with a doctor or pharmacist first if you:

• are pregnant or breastfeeding
• take any regular medicine or have a long-term condition. We found no verified interaction data either way, so a pharmacist can check
• have kidney or liver problems, or are being treated for any serious illness, including cancer
• are thinking of taking doses above the label amount

Where to buy

Availability varies by country; in Great Britain, NR (as nicotinamide riboside chloride) is authorized in supplements up to 300 mg a day for adults [5].

Look for the active form and amount (nicotinamide riboside chloride, in mg per serving), a stated third-party testing certificate you can check, and work out the price per daily dose rather than comparing pack prices. Our NR buying guide explains how we choose products.

FAQ

What is nicotinamide riboside?

Nicotinamide riboside (NR) is a form of vitamin B3 that the body can turn into NAD+, a molecule involved in making energy in your cells [1][2]. It is one of several “NAD+ precursors”, building blocks your body can use to make more NAD+. NMN is another.

Does nicotinamide riboside work?

Trials agree that it raises NAD+ levels in the blood [1][2]. What they have not shown is clear health benefits: a 2023 review of 25 human studies found “few clinically relevant effects” [3], so we rate the evidence D: small, short human trials only.

How much nicotinamide riboside per day?

Trials have used 100 to 1,000 mg a day for weeks, with 6 to 10 weeks the usual length [1][2][4][6]. These are amounts used in studies, not recommendations, and long-term effects are not established.

Who should not take nicotinamide riboside?

Check with a doctor or pharmacist first if you are pregnant or breastfeeding, take any regular medicine, have kidney or liver problems, are being treated for a serious illness such as cancer, or are thinking of doses above the label amount.

Can you take nicotinamide riboside and NMN together?

We found no verified human data on taking NR and NMN together, so we can’t say whether the combination does anything extra or is safe. Both aim to raise NAD+, and the trials tested them separately. Ask a doctor or pharmacist if you are thinking of combining them or take any medicine.

Related pages

• NMN vs NR
• What NAD+ is and why it matters
• NAD+ supplements compared
• NMN: information only, no buy links
• NAD+ injections explained
• Our NR buying guide
• Longevity supplements for beginners: where this fits in a beginner’s routine
• All supplements A-Z

Talk to your doctor

This page is for general information and is not medical advice. Speak to a doctor or pharmacist before starting any supplement, especially if you are pregnant or breastfeeding, take any medicine, or have a health condition.

References

We cite only studies and official pages we checked against PubMed, the publisher or the agency’s own site. The A to E evidence grades are explained in our editorial policy. See also our medical disclaimer and affiliate disclosure.

1. Martens CR, Denman BA, Mazzo MR, et al. Chronic nicotinamide riboside supplementation is well-tolerated and elevates NAD(+) in healthy middle-aged and older adults. Nat Commun. 2018. PubMed · DOI
2. Conze D, Brenner C, Kruger CL. Safety and Metabolism of Long-term Administration of NIAGEN (Nicotinamide Riboside Chloride) in a Randomized, Double-Blind, Placebo-controlled Clinical Trial of Healthy Overweight Adults. Sci Rep. 2019. PubMed · DOI
3. Damgaard MV, Treebak JT. What is really known about the effects of nicotinamide riboside supplementation in humans. Sci Adv. 2023. PubMed · DOI
4. Remie CME, Roumans KHM, Moonen MPB, et al. Nicotinamide riboside supplementation alters body composition and skeletal muscle acetylcarnitine concentrations in healthy obese humans. Am J Clin Nutr. 2020. PubMed · DOI
5. Food Standards Agency. Authorised regulated products for Great Britain: NOVEL-96, nicotinamide riboside chloride (status authorised, 31 December 2020; page last updated 1 April 2025). data.food.gov.uk (accessed 1 November 2026)
6. Orr ME, Kotkowski E, Ramirez P, et al. A randomized placebo-controlled trial of nicotinamide riboside in older adults with mild cognitive impairment. Geroscience. 2024. PubMed · DOI