In this article, I’ll be comparing Ostarine (MK-2866) and RAD 140 (Testolone).
By the end of this post, you’ll know exactly how these two SARMs compare against each other when it comes to strength, muscle gains, fat loss as well as their risk profiles.
Let’s jump right in by first going over what Ostarine and RAD 140 actually are.
Ostarine - Short Overview
Ostarine, also known as MK 2866, is a SARM (Selective Androgen Receptor Modulator) that’s most known for being the mildest but also the most researched SARM.
It has the most scientific data backing it than any other SARM on the market. It’s currently being researched to treat muscle wasting disorders and is currently in phase 2 clinical trials.
Ostarine has a very bright future in the medical space as it’s well on its way to getting FDA approval in the next 1-5 years.
It works by selectively targetting the androgen receptors. This means that it has a lot less side effects than, for example, steroids which aren’t selective and can cause side effects such as increased prostate size or overwhelming hair loss. However, it has many of the benefits of steroids such as increased muscle mass, strength, vascularity, etc.
For more information about MK 2866, check out my full Ostarine review.
RAD 140 - Short Overview
RAD 140, also known as Testolone is a SARM (Selective Androgen Receptor Modulator).
It has the same mechanism of action as other SARMs, by selectively targetting androgen receptors in the body.
RAD 140 is one of the stronger SARMs on the market. It’s able to produce significant results in terms of muscle, fat loss and especially strength. It’s not uncommon for somebody on RAD 140 to break through their PRs (Personal Records) on their compound lifts every week.
Testolone is also infamous for being one of the best SARMs for “looks”. It has a very distinct “dry look” and doesn’t cause any water retention (like for example LGD 4033 does). On top of that, you’ll experience insane pumps in the gym when on RAD 140. All of this combined means that you’ll end up looking a lot leaner and bigger during the RAD 140 cycle in the gym mirror.
For more information about Testolone, check out my full RAD 140 review.
Ostarine Vs Rad 140 - Half Life
Half-life is a very important concept when it comes to SARMs. It represents the time it takes for the compound’s levels to halve in your body. This is what we keep in mind when we designate dosages in SARMs protocols.
Ostarine has a half life of 24 hours. This is a very accepted fact at this point as there have been many human studies conducted that tracked the half life of MK 2866.
RAD 140, on the other hand, has a half life of 60 hours according to a recent human study done in 2020. Now this may seem shocking but it actually doesn’t really mean much. RAD 140 (for bodybuilding purposes) should still be dosed every 24 hours at a dosage of around 10mg per day. This is what works best for most people and doesn’t supress the natural Testosterone production as hard (read our RAD 140 PCT post for more information).
For context, the study that showed a 60 hour half life used dosages of around 100mgs-150mgs, almost 15x the recommeded dosage we usually use. It’s very possible that the high half-life they discovered was a result of the eormous dosages that they administered. At dosages of 10-15mgs or lower, dosing RAD 140 is best done once every 24 hours.
In conclusion, Ostarine has a half life of 24 hours and RAD 140 has a half life of 60 hours. However, they should both be dosed every 24 hours (at appropriate dosages).
Ostarine Vs Rad 140 - Benefits
Let’s compare the benefits that you can expect from Ostarine as compared to RAD 140. We’ll go over muscle building potentil, strength gains, fat loss and more. Now obviously RAD 140 will have more impressive benefits since it’s the stronger SARM.
This does not mean that RAD 140 is the better choice, you should read through this article and go over the side effects as well. That way you can compare the benefits with the side effects so you can decide for yourself which one is better for your specific goals.
If you’re interested in real examples of Ostarine or RAD 140 results, check out my Ostarine before and after results or RAD 140 before and after results compilation. There you’ll find real images of people that have sent me their transformations and regimens with these two compounds.
Muscle Mass
RAD 140 is a clear winner when it comes to muscle building potential.
You are likely to be able gain almost twice as much muscle mass on RAD 140 as you are on Ostarine.
Usually people are able to gain about 3-6 lbs of muscle with Ostarine and anywhere frm 4-8 with RAD 140.
It’s important to note that these supplements aren’t magic pills and that training and excercise will be two major factors. However, they do make it a lot faster and easier.
Strength
RAD 140 is one of the best SARMs for strength gains. Only a few of the strongest SARMs such as YK11 or S23 can compare.
Ostarine will definitely improve your strength considerably but it doesn’t come close to Testolone.
With RAD 140 you’re able to break through PRs almost every week.
Have you ever seen some of those fitness influencers lifting crazy numbers? A lot of those were likely on a RAD 140 cycle during that.
Strength does go down a bit after a RAD 140 or Ostarine cycle but with proper training an nutrition after the cycle you’ll be able to keep a majority of your strength gains, ending up stronger than you were before cycle.
Fat Loss
RAD 140 and Ostarine aren’t frequently used exclusively for fat loss. Usually, they are used for building muscle or body recomposition (losing fat and gaining muscle at the same time).
They are roughly equally as effective in terms of losing fat with the goal of body recomposition (or just fat loss). RAD 140 might make you build some more muscle on top of that but when it comes to measuring the fat lost, they can be both equally as good.
This does not mean that you can just eat whatever you want during a cycle and expect to lose fat.
You have to stay in a caloric deficit to lose fat, caloric maintenance to lose fat and gain muscle at the same time, or a slight caloric surplus (+100 or +200 kcal) to gain muscle and lose a small amount of fat at the same time.
Ostarine Vs Rad 140 - Side Effects
RAD 140 is a clear winner over Ostarine when it comes to just the benefits. However, we need to take a look at the side effects as well.
If we were to just care about the benefits, steroids would be the best thing in the world but we know that’s not the case.
Let’s dive in and compare the side effect profiles of MK 2866 and Testolone.
Testosterone Suppression
Both Ostarine and RAD 140 will suppress your prodution of natural Testosterone. However, Ostarine will no supress it nearly as much as RAD 140.
In fact, in the vast majority of cases, people are able to avoid doing a PCT (post cycle therapy) after their Ostarine cycle. For more information about this, read our Ostarine PCT guide.
RAD 140, on the other hand, can cause major suppression, especially when used in higher dosages. If this happens, you’ll likely need to do a proper PCT protocol for 4 weeks after the cycle.
I recommend sticking to lower dosages with RAD 140, this way you can avoid doing a PCT and you’re body is able to recover naturally after the cycle. For more information about this read our RAD 140 PCT guide where I go over examples of RAD 140 cycles that need or don’t need a PCT.
Aggression
Ostarine doesn’t cause aggression but RAD 140 does for some people. It’s a side effect that isn’t extremely common.
Some people report that they are easily thrown off during their RAD 140 cycle.
This has never happened to me before but it happens to some people and it’s worth keeping that in mind.
Liver Toxicity
All SARMs are hepatoxic (bad for the liver) to a certain extent. Some SARMs (like YK11) are more hepatoxic than others.
Dosages are also very important, a low dosage of Ostarine is a lot less hepatoxic than an extremely high dosage of the same compound.
RAD 140 is slightly more hepatoxic than Ostarine but they are both safe in normal dosages for the period of the cycle to the point where you don’t need to worry about this unless you have some innate liver problems (talk to your doctor).
Read more about this and how other compounds compare when it comes to hepatoxicity in our SARMs liver toxicity article.
Joint Pain
Same as with aggression, joint pain is a niche side effect that not a lot of people get.
I experience joint pain on SARMs when I reach higher dosages. In order to combat this, I always keep joint support on hand and make sure to stick with low-medium dosages.
Even though Ostarine is the milder SARM, I experience more joint pain on high dosages of Ostarine than high dosages of RAD 140.
Hair Loss
A lot of people, including me, want to keep their hair and hair loss on SARMs is an important factor to keep in mind.
Ostarine causes almost no hair loss in most people. Even if you shed some hair, you’ll likely gain it back after the cycle.
RAD 140 on the other hand, is a lot harsher on your hair. A lot of people report intense shedding on their RAD 140 cycle.
Personally, I take Finasteride and that has solved my hair loss problems/concerns. If you’re not on Finasteride or Dutasteride, a good idea is to administer RU 58841 during your cycle to mitigate the hair loss.
Read more about this topic in our SARMs hair loss guide.
Ostarine Vs Rad 140 - Pricing
There isn’t a major difference between Ostarine and RAD 140 when it comes to pricing.
Testolone is sometimes slightly (10-20%) more expensive than MK 2866 but that’s really a matter of 5-15$ which shouldn’t be a determining factor for you when it comes to research chemicals (which is what SARMs are at the end of the day).
If you’re high-quality sources (with discount codes to save as much money as possible), check out my company recommendation list. These are sources that I personally use and have verified. A lot of companies out there sell underdosed or even bunk products that can even be dangerous, just to make a bigger profit. I make sure to test and verify all my recommended sources multiple times per year to always include all the high-quality sources on the market.
Conclusion
In conclusion, RAD 140 and Ostarine are quite similar but RAD 140 is definitely a lot stronger and thus has more side effects.
Ostarine is a clear winner for a beginner but if you have some SARMs experience under your belt, RAD 140 might be the better choice for you.
I recommend to read everything about these two on sarmguide.com (the only non-biased SARMs information website) and make a decision based on that.
