The Natural Products Association (NPA) estimates that the supplement industry spends up to $1 billion each year complying with FDA labeling and reporting requirements. Whether you produce vitamins, protein powders, pre-workout, or other dietary supplements, accurate product testing protects wellness brands at retail — but how much should vitamin testing cost?
If you have ever suspected that compliance testing is over-represented in your annual budget, it may be time to reconsider whether your current provider is giving you the best value.
You’re likely overpaying by up to 65+% for identical results.
Vitamin Testing: Price vs Quality
Why Bigger Isn’t Better for Your Bottom Line
The pricing strategies employed by many big box retailers have trained us to expect lower prices from larger companies, but for testing laboratories, that logic doesn’t necessarily hold.
Many manufacturers default to large, well-known laboratories for vitamin testing without realizing that bigger labs often mean higher overhead costs. Though their methodologies, accreditations, and testing equipment are identical to those of smaller players, their additional administrative and operational costs get passed directly to their clients.
Each year, these built-in costs cause dietary supplement brands nationwide to pay significantly more for equally precise and valid results.
What Manufacturers Need in a Vitamin Testing Partner
As the supplement industry continues to evolve, brands and manufacturers need a laboratory partner that can meet innovation with reliable methods for quantifying vitamins in a wide variety of forms.
If you are considering exploring new providers for vitamin testing, it’s important to be aware that higher costs aren’t necessarily indicative of the features your business relies on most, including:
- Fast turnaround times that keep production schedules on track.
- Transparent pricing structures that don’t cut into already slim margins.
- Accurate, reliable results that stand up to FDA scrutiny.
- ISO/IEC 17025 accreditation and robust quality-management systems.
Responsive service from a team that understands your operational needs.
Why Large Supplement Testing Labs Cost More Than You Think
Many supplement companies assume that a bigger lab is more likely to utilize state-of-the-art technology or deliver more credible results. The truth is that properly accredited labs of any size are held to a high standard of accuracy for vitamin analysis.
Price differences emerge when large facilities pass layers of administrative and operational expenses along to clients — and the hidden costs don’t always end there.
The Cost of Long Turnaround Times
Too often, small and mid-sized brands experience lengthy wait times for lab results when their samples are prioritized beneath those of larger clients.
Slow turnaround for results can delay product release schedules and impact ROI. When products sit in quarantine waiting for analyses to be completed, manufacturers lose valuable warehouse space, disrupt cash flow, and risk missing fulfillment deadlines.
If testing reveals an out-of-spec result, the standard lead time of 10 business days makes it much harder to address issues and get production back on schedule. In these situations, manufacturers are typically forced to choose between further delays and paying a premium for “rush testing.”
The Advanced Laboratories Advantage
When Quality Actually Costs Less
Advanced Laboratories’ ISO/IEC 17025-accredited testing facility is equipped to run lean without sacrificing accuracy or reliability.
We prioritize innovation and keep overhead costs low. That means we can offer comprehensive vitamin analysis for your line of supplements at a price point designed to support, not hurt, your bottom line.
Advanced Laboratories is proud to offer:
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An industry-leading five-day turnaround time.
By processing samples as we receive them, Advanced Laboratories cuts competitors’ standard time-to-results in half. -
An average 44.7% savings on vitamin testing.
Get validated results for 11-69% less than other third-party testing laboratories. -
Transparent pricing.
There’s no need to wait for a quote. Our streamlined pricing starts at just $130 per sample. -
Responsive customer service.
Our experts are your collaborators. We’re here to answer questions about our processes and provide updates. -
Quality and accuracy.
Get ISO accredited results you can trust + automatic retesting of all OOS results at no extra cost. -
TrendCheck®
Don’t wait for your data. Trendcheck® offers 24/7 access to current and historic results, invoices, test certificates, and product trend analyses.
Because we understand the operational needs of manufacturers, Advanced Laboratories is a business-minded partner for vitamin testing as well as:
- Metals & minerals analysis
- Pesticide testing
- Amino acid testing
- Microbial quality control testing
- Allergen detection
- Pathogen identification
- Preservative efficacy testing
How to Stop Paying Too Much for Vitamin Testing
Compliance shouldn’t come with an inflated price tag.
It’s never a bad idea to compare pricing. Advanced Laboratories offers validated vitamin testing methods for capsules, liquids, gummies, powders, and softgels, starting at $130 per sample.
Learn how much you could save, and see why so many manufacturers trust us with their dietary supplement testing.
