Informed Choice is a legitimate third-party certification program for supplements, run by LGC Group, a well-established testing organization with ISO 17025-accredited laboratories. The certification means a product has been screened for substances banned in sport, giving consumers a reasonable layer of assurance that what’s on the label isn’t contaminated with prohibited compounds. That said, it’s not the most rigorous tier of testing available, and understanding exactly what it does (and doesn’t) guarantee helps you decide whether it’s enough for your needs.
Who Runs Informed Choice
Informed Choice is operated by LGC Group, a UK-based science and measurement company that has been in the analytical testing business for decades. LGC’s laboratory holds ISO/IEC 17025:2017 accreditation through the American Association for Laboratory Accreditation (A2LA), valid through September 2027. That accreditation is the international gold standard for testing labs: it means the facility’s methods, equipment, and quality controls have been independently verified. This isn’t a rubber-stamp operation or a logo you can simply buy.
What the Certification Actually Tests
Products carrying the Informed Choice logo have been screened for substances on the World Anti-Doping Agency’s prohibited list, things like anabolic steroids, stimulants, and other compounds that could cause an athlete to fail a drug test. The testing covers over 285 prohibited substances using validated analytical methods.
Before a product ever reaches the testing stage, the manufacturing facility itself goes through a multi-step audit process. First, experienced auditors perform a desk-based review of the site’s policies and procedures. Then an on-site visit takes place, during which inspectors collect swab samples at critical control points throughout the factory. Those swabs are analyzed at LGC’s lab to check for cross-contamination with banned substances. Any problems found must be corrected before certification is granted, and the entire audit cycle repeats annually.
This facility-level screening matters because most supplement contamination isn’t intentional. It happens when a factory produces multiple products on shared equipment and traces of one ingredient end up in another. The swab testing is designed to catch exactly that kind of risk.
Informed Choice vs. Informed Sport
This is the distinction most people miss. LGC runs two certification tiers, and they’re not equivalent. Informed Choice tests randomly selected batches of a product for banned substances. Informed Sport tests every single batch. For a casual gym-goer who simply wants a cleaner supplement, Informed Choice provides meaningful reassurance. For a competitive or elite athlete whose career depends on passing drug tests, the gap between “random batches” and “every batch” is significant. Most anti-doping organizations and national sport institutes recommend Informed Sport (or its equivalent) for athletes subject to testing.
The Canadian Sport Institute Pacific, for example, specifically notes this difference when advising athletes on supplement safety. If you’re not subject to drug testing, Informed Choice is a solid quality signal. If you are, Informed Sport is the safer bet.
How It Compares to Other Certifications
Informed Choice isn’t the only third-party testing program on the market. NSF Certified for Sport is its most direct competitor and is widely recognized by professional sports leagues in North America, including the NFL, MLB, and NHL. NSF also tests for banned substances and audits manufacturing facilities, and its certification involves every-batch testing, putting it closer to Informed Sport than Informed Choice in terms of rigor.
Other programs like BSCG (Banned Substances Control Group) and USP (United States Pharmacopeia) offer their own testing protocols. USP focuses more broadly on supplement quality, verifying that a product contains what it claims and dissolves properly, while BSCG concentrates specifically on banned substance screening similar to LGC’s programs.
No single certification is universally “best.” What matters is that any of these programs represent a real step above an untested supplement. Studies have consistently found that a meaningful percentage of supplements on the open market contain undeclared ingredients, so any credible third-party screen reduces your risk substantially.
What It Doesn’t Guarantee
Informed Choice verifies the absence of specific banned substances. It does not verify that a supplement actually works, that its ingredients are dosed at effective levels, or that the health claims on the label are accurate. A protein powder could carry the Informed Choice logo and still contain less protein per serving than advertised, because that’s not what the program is designed to check.
It’s also worth noting that LGC’s Informed Manufacturer certification, which covers the factory audit and swab testing, is separate from finished product testing. A facility can earn manufacturer certification without any of its finished products being individually screened. The full Informed Choice or Informed Sport logo on a product label means both the facility and the product have been through the process, but it’s worth checking which logo you’re actually looking at.
Finally, no testing program can offer a 100% guarantee. Batch testing, even every-batch testing, works with representative samples. The risk of contamination is dramatically reduced, not eliminated entirely. WADA itself does not officially endorse any specific third-party certifier, and athletes are ultimately held responsible for any substance found in their system regardless of what certifications their supplements carry.
Is It Worth Looking For
If you’re choosing between two similar supplements and one carries the Informed Choice logo, it’s a meaningful point in that product’s favor. The testing is real, the lab is accredited, and the facility audits add a layer of quality control that most supplement brands never undergo. For the average consumer, it signals that a company has invested in transparency and is willing to submit to outside scrutiny.
For competitive athletes, Informed Sport or NSF Certified for Sport provides a higher level of protection. For everyone else, the Informed Choice logo is one of the more reliable quality markers in an industry where regulation is notoriously loose.