Magnesium Glycinate vs Bisglycinate: Are They the Same Thing?
Yes — they're the same compound, and the ten-second explanation settles it. What the names do hide: the percentage decode that reveals your real dose, and the one 'buffered' trick that smuggles oxide into a glycinate label.
At a glance
- Same compound: glycinate = bisglycinate — 'bis' counts the two glycines
- The label decode: "bisglycinate 20%" = 20% elemental → 1500mg gives 300mg
- The one real trick: "buffered" bisglycinate = oxide blended in
One molecule, two names
The confusion is pure naming. The compound is one magnesium ion chelated to two glycine molecules; chemists count the pair with the prefix bis, marketing departments drop it, and both names describe the identical product. There is no strength difference, no absorption difference, no version worth paying extra for — a brand switching between the words on its label and listing (as Futuro Labs does: "Magnesium Glycinate" on the front, "magnesium bisglycinate" in the formal ingredient line) is being precise, not slippery. Anyone selling "bisglycinate" as an upgrade over "glycinate" has told you everything about their marketing.
Decoding the percentage — the ten-second label skill
Where the names do carry information is the percentage some labels attach: "magnesium bisglycinate 20%" declares the compound's elemental content — a fifth of its weight is actual magnesium. Multiply through and the Futuro Labs maths appears: 1500mg bisglycinate × 20% = 300mg elemental magnesium, 80% of the UK NRV, printed both ways so no arithmetic is required. Pure bisglycinate sits around 14-20% elemental depending on hydration of the raw material; that range is the fingerprint of the genuine article. The full conversion habit — for every form, every label — lives in our elemental magnesium explainer.
Futuro Labs Magnesium Glycinate
£19.99 for 90-day supply (180 capsules) · ~22p per day
Pros
- 300mg elemental magnesium per serving — 80% NRV
- Bisglycinate (glycinate) form — gentle, well absorbed
- Authorised claims: fatigue reduction, muscle function, psychological function
- 90-day supply £19.99 (~22p/day); 90-cap pouch £9.99
- Delayed-release vegan capsules, UK made
Cons
- Two capsules per serving
- Glycinate costs more per mg than oxide (for good reason)
Available from: Amazon UK — £19.99
The one naming trick worth knowing: "buffered"
Because pure bisglycinate is bulky per elemental mg, some manufacturers blend magnesium oxide into it and sell the result as "buffered bisglycinate" — the oxide pushes the elemental percentage up and the cost down, and quietly reintroduces the absorption and tolerance problems people chose glycinate to escape. The tell is arithmetic: a "bisglycinate" claiming ~30% or more elemental is buffered, whatever the front of pack says. If the gentle, evening-friendly character is why you're here — the case made in glycinate vs oxide and the sleep-quality guide — buy pure, unbuffered bisglycinate with the elemental dose stated. That is the whole checklist, and at £19.99 for 90 days Futuro Labs is the UK product built to it.
The rest of the words on the tub, decoded
Three more terms orbit this corner of the shelf. "Chelated" is the umbrella: magnesium bonded to an organic carrier, of which bisglycinate is the best-known example — so all bisglycinate is chelated, but "chelated magnesium" alone doesn't tell you which carrier. "Fully reacted" means the chelation was actually completed rather than glycine and a cheap magnesium salt simply blended in the same tub — the honest version of the form. Trademarked ingredient names (licensed branded chelates) signal a specific certified raw material; useful, not essential, and never a substitute for the number that matters. Whatever the vocabulary, the buying test stays identical: pure unbuffered bisglycinate, elemental dose printed.
Frequently asked questions
Are magnesium glycinate and bisglycinate the same thing?
Yes — chemically the same compound. 'Bis' just counts the two glycine molecules bonded to each magnesium, so magnesium bisglycinate is the precise chemist's name and magnesium glycinate the everyday one. Brands use them interchangeably; Futuro Labs Magnesium Glycinate lists 'magnesium bisglycinate' in its formal ingredient line for exactly this reason.
What does 'magnesium bisglycinate 20%' mean on a label?
It's declaring the elemental content: the compound is roughly 20% magnesium by weight. So 1500mg of bisglycinate at 20% provides 300mg of elemental magnesium — the Futuro Labs serving, stated both ways on the label. When you see the percentage, multiply it through; when you don't, be suspicious.
Is 'buffered' magnesium bisglycinate the same product?
Not quite — 'buffered' bisglycinate has magnesium oxide blended in to raise the elemental percentage cheaply. It's the one naming trick in this corner worth knowing: pure bisglycinate runs ~14-20% elemental, so a 'bisglycinate' boasting ~30%+ elemental is usually buffered with oxide. Pure, unbuffered bisglycinate — what Futuro Labs uses — keeps the gentleness the form is bought for.
Want the pure, unbuffered article?
Futuro Labs Magnesium Glycinate — pure bisglycinate, 300mg elemental stated. £19.99.
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