Creatine Dose Calculator
Creatine loading and maintenance from weight.
What it does
Creatine helps muscles recycle short burst energy. Meat and fish carry 1 to 2 g per pound, while the liver and kidneys build the rest from amino acids. Vegetarians and large athletes sit at opposite ends of need, which is why dosing scales with body weight.
The tool above scales the standard rapid protocol. At 70 kg, loading is 21 g a day and maintenance is 4.2 g a day, with 147 g across the loading week. The imperial mirror at 154 lb gives the same daily grams with 146.7 g across the week, the gap coming from pound rounding. Splitting loading into four 5 g doses with carbohydrate uptake beats one large bolus.
Trials report 10 to 20% gains in high intensity repeat work after loading, with the clearest use for strength and sprint sports and less value for endurance. Safety reviews report short and long term tolerance in healthy groups, with weight gain from water retention as the common change. Evidence in youth, pregnancy, and kidney disease is thinner, so those groups need direct review.
This page plans grams only. It does not pick brands, test purity, or clear medical risk. Estimates for information only, not medical advice.
How to use
- Pick metric (kg) or imperial (lb).
- Enter body weight.
- Read loading grams per day first.
- Read maintenance grams per day.
- Read the 7 day loading total for shopping.
- Split loading across the day with water and food.
Formula
- weight
- Body weight in kg, converted from lb when imperial is picked.
- loading
- Rapid phase daily grams for 5 to 7 days, split in 4 doses.
- maintenance
- Daily grams after saturation, with food and fluids.
Rapid protocol is 5 g four times daily (near 0.3 g per kg) for 5 to 7 days, then 3 to 5 g daily. At very low weights the gram results fall near food level creatine; large athletes scale toward 5 to 10 g maintenance.
Worked example
Example: 70 kg creatine protocol
Defaults: metric 70 kg. Imperial mirror is 154 lb. Loading splits into 4 doses a day with fluids.
- Inputs (metric default): 70 kg body weight.
- Loading: 0.3 times 70 is 21 g per day for 5 to 7 days.
- Maintenance: 0.06 times 70 is 4.2 g per day.
- Week total: 21 times 7 is 147 g in 7 days.
- Imperial mirror (154 lb) gives 21 g per day, 4.2 g per day, 146.7 g in 7 days. Tool shows the same.
Reference table
| Weight | Loading | Maintenance |
|---|---|---|
| 70 kg | 21 g per day | 4.2 g per day |
| 90 kg | 27 g per day | 5.4 g per day |
| 50 kg | 15 g per day | 3 g per day |
| 154 lb | 21 g per day | 4.2 g per day |
| 100 kg | 30 g per day | 6 g per day |
Limits
- Healthy adult protocol. Youth and disease need review.
- Monohydrate basis. Other salts dose differently.
- No purity check. Third party tested products only.
- Food creatine ignored. Meat eaters start nearer saturation.
Common mistakes
- Loading once daily instead of split doses.
- Skipping fluids and cramping.
- Staying on loading grams for weeks.
- Comparing dry powder grams across salt forms.
- Expecting endurance gains from a sprint aid.
Try it yourself
Quick checks. Answers sit tucked under each question.
90 kg body weight?
Loading is 0.3 times 90 is 27 g per day. Maintenance is 5.4 g per day. Week is 189 g in 7 days.
50 kg body weight?
Loading is 0.3 times 50 is 15 g per day. Maintenance is 3 g per day. Week is 105 g in 7 days.
Questions
How is loading figured?
Loading is 0.3 g per kg a day (near 20 g for 70 kg). Here 21 g per day.
How is maintenance figured?
Near 0.06 g per kg a day, inside 3 to 5 g for most and up to 5 to 10 g for large athletes. Here 4.2 g per day.
Is there a no loading option?
Yes. Near 3 g a day for 28 days loads slowly without the 20 g phase.
Take with food or alone?
With carbohydrate or carbohydrate plus protein in most trials. Fluids matter throughout.
Is long term use safe?
Up to 30 g a day for 5 years is reported safe in healthy groups in the cited review, but personal risk needs a clinician.
Can anyone load creatine?
No. This is information only. Kidney disease, diuretics, and pregnancy need medical review first.