GH Secretagogues — Category Comparisons
Published · Researched 2026-09-21
Growth Hormone Secretagogues — Category Comparisons
Research date: 2026-09-20. Topic: peptides / biohacking peptides, GH secretagogue track. 13 items researched and complete. Social extraction: Threads, Facebook Groups, Instagram primary; 170 social posts parsed; Facebook Marketplace queried (zero peptide listings — off-platform sales signal).
Final item list
| # | Item | File | Validation tier | Regulatory status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | CJC-1295 (no DAC / Mod GRF 1-29) | cjc-1295-no-dac | Tier 1 | Research chemical — never approved |
| 2 | CJC-1295 (with DAC) | cjc-1295-dac | Tier 2 | Research chemical — never approved (ConjuChem discontinued 2008) |
| 3 | Ipamorelin | ipamorelin | Tier 1 | Research chemical — never approved |
| 4 | GHRP-6 | ghrp-6 | Tier 2 | Research chemical — never approved |
| 5 | GHRP-2 (Pralmorelin) | ghrp-2-pralmorelin | Tier 1 | Research chemical (outside Japan); Japan: approved single-dose diagnostic (GHRP Kaken 100) |
| 6 | Hexarelin (Examorelin) | hexarelin | Tier 1 | Research chemical — never approved (phase II discontinued) |
| 7 | Sermorelin | sermorelin | Tier 1 | Compounded prescription product; FDA-approved 1990–2008 (Geref, discontinued commercially) |
| 8 | Tesamorelin | tesamorelin | Tier 1 | FDA-approved drug (Egrifta / Egrifta SV / Egrifta WR) for HIV lipodystrophy |
| 9 | Alexamorelin | alexamorelin | Tier 3 | Research chemical — never approved; regulatory ghost |
| 10 | CJC-1295 (no DAC) + Ipamorelin stack | cjc-1295-ipamorelin-stack | Tier 1 | Combo of two unapproved research chemicals |
| 11 | Somatropin (rhGH) | somatropin-rhgh | Tier 2 | FDA/EMA-approved prescription drug |
| 12 | MK-677 / Ibutamoren (NOT a peptide) | mk-677-ibutamoren | Tier 1 | Research chemical — never approved |
| 13 | Macimorelin | macimorelin | Tier 3 | FDA-approved 2017 (Macrilen) oral diagnostic for adult GHD |
Substitution log: The brief's target list included both "GHRP-2" and "Pralmorelin" as separate items. Pralmorelin is the INN for GHRP-2 (verified via Wikipedia/BenchChem, 2026-09-20) — the same compound. Pralmorelin was therefore NOT duplicated; it was replaced with Macimorelin (FDA-approved oral ghrelin agonist, genuinely distinct molecule, community-adjacent). Justification: avoids a false duplicate and adds the only FDA-approved oral ghrelin-mimetic for contrast. Count kept at 13.
Table 1 — Specs head-to-head
| Item | Class / mechanism | Half-life | Route | Community-reported dosing* | Regulatory |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CJC-1295 no DAC | GHRH analog (29-aa, DPP-IV resistant) | ~30 min | SC injection | 100–300 mcg 1–3×/day, bedtime fasted | Research chem |
| CJC-1295 with DAC | GHRH analog + albumin-binding DAC | ~6–8 days | SC injection | 1,000–2,000 mcg/week | Research chem |
| Ipamorelin | Selective ghrelin-receptor (GHS-R1a) agonist, pentapeptide | ~2 h | SC injection | 100–300 mcg 1–3×/day | Research chem |
| GHRP-6 | First-gen GHS-R1a agonist, hexapeptide | Short (UNVERIFIED) | SC injection | 100–300 mcg 1–2×/day, 8–12 wk cycles | Research chem |
| GHRP-2 (Pralmorelin) | GHS-R1a agonist, hexapeptide | Short (~0.8 h rat) | SC (community); oral/IV/IN studied | 100–300 mcg 1–2×/day, 8–12 wk cycles; Japan Dx: 100 μg IV single dose | Japan diagnostic only |
| Hexarelin | GHS-R1a agonist, hexapeptide (GHRP-6 derived) | ~55 min | SC (community); IV/IN/oral studied | 100–200 mcg/pulse, short cycles | Research chem |
| Sermorelin | GHRH analog (GHRH 1-29-NH2) | Minutes (native-like) | SC (compounded) | 100–300 mcg 1–2×/day, nighttime | Compounded (ex-FDA) |
| Tesamorelin | GHRH analog (modified 44-aa) | Short (UNVERIFIED exact) | SC injection | Approved: 2 mg (Egrifta) / 1.4 mg (SV) daily; community 1–2 mg nightly | FDA-approved (Egrifta) |
| Alexamorelin | GHRP-class GHS-R1a agonist | UNVERIFIED | SC (assumed, UNVERIFIED) | None observed | Research chem |
| CJC-1295 no DAC + Ipamorelin | GHRH analog + selective GHS-R1a agonist (dual receptor) | Short-acting, pulsatile | SC injection | 100 mcg each 1–3×/day (canonical: 100 mcg 3×/day) | Two unapproved research chems |
| Somatropin | Recombinant human GH (191 aa, 22 kDa) — direct replacement | Short (SC) | SC injection | Indication/weight-based (labeled) | FDA/EMA-approved Rx |
| MK-677 | Oral non-peptide ghrelin mimetic (NOT a peptide) | ~24 h (community infographic; lit. UNVERIFIED) | Oral | 10–25 mg once daily (community) | Research chem |
| Macimorelin | Oral ghrelin agonist, diagnostic agent | Short (UNVERIFIED exact) | Oral granules | Single weight-based dose (diagnostic) | FDA-approved diagnostic |
*Community-reported dosing ranges are crowdsourced patterns from social sources, NOT medical guidance.
Table 2 — Value-for-money
| Item | Street price (2026-09-20) | Community-valued factors | Value verdict |
|---|---|---|---|
| CJC-1295 no DAC | Blend 5/5 mg $52–$70; CJC 10 mg ~$36.50 eff. | Sleep/recovery reports, dual-receptor synergy | Community default; best-documented stack economics |
| CJC-1295 with DAC | ~CAD $73/5 mg vial; community spread $13–$180/10 mg | Weekly dosing convenience | Cheaper per month but community has moved past it (safety anecdote) |
| Ipamorelin | 5 mg $22–$60 (vendor spread) | Clean pulse (no cortisol/prolactin) | Best-in-class selectivity per dollar in GHRP family |
| GHRP-6 | 5 mg €25.99 (EU) | Cheapest entry; bulking appetite | Budget pick, superseded by ipamorelin |
| GHRP-2 | Gray-market: UNVERIFIED | Potency edge over GHRP-6, less hunger | Niche budget/legacy |
| Hexarelin | Gray-market: UNVERIFIED | "Strongest pulse" lore | Poor value: desensitization limits cycles |
| Sermorelin | Compounded programs: UNVERIFIED (historic < HGH) | Clinical history, gentleness | Mid; ranked weakest GHRH option |
| Tesamorelin | Egrifta SV ~$10.5–$11.7k/mo; gray-market UNVERIFIED | Phase III VAT data, FDA credential | Worst legit-channel value; gray-market is where community use concentrates |
| Alexamorelin | UNVERIFIED | None | No value case — no product/community |
| CJC+Ipa stack | Sum of two vials (~$50–$130/mo gray) | Sleep/recovery, dual mechanism | Community's price/performance default vs HGH |
| Somatropin | Cash ~$1,000–3,000/mo (community-cited); black-market 24 IU $140 / 36 IU $210 (single gray list) | Direct predictable GH/IGF-1; no pituitary dependence | Reference standard; community's cost anchor — peptides exist in its price shadow |
| MK-677 | Street: UNVERIFIED (not collected; community cites tens of $/mo — UNVERIFIED) | Oral convenience, appetite, sleep | Highest discussion volume; worst signal-to-noise (spam + diabetes warnings) |
| Macimorelin | $4,403.50 per single test (drugs.com); $4,650–4,772 (WellRx) — verified 2026-09-20 | The only regulated oral ghrelin agonist | Credentialed bookend; zero community adoption |
Category winner (value): CJC-1295 no DAC + Ipamorelin stack — the community's price/performance default. Overpriced trap: Legit-channel Tesamorelin (Egrifta at ~$10k+/mo) for off-label body-composition use; CJC-1295 DAC marketed as "premium long-acting" despite the community's pulsatility objection and the 2026 insulin-resistance anecdote.
Table 3 — Social sentiment matrix
| Item | Threads | Facebook Groups | Facebook Pages | Net | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CJC-1295 no DAC | Active (stack Q&A) | Strong — dosing/protocol consensus | Very strong — educator reels, stack graphics | Vendor education | Positive; the default |
| CJC-1295 with DAC | Not surfaced | Debated | Cautionary (Johnson reel) | Rare | Mixed-negative; legacy |
| Ipamorelin | Active | Strong — timing threads | Very strong — selectivity praised | Vendor education | Positive; preferred GHRP |
| GHRP-6 | Not surfaced | Present | Moderate — legacy/bulking | Vendor promos | Lukewarm; superseded |
| GHRP-2 | General coverage | Discussion threads | Moderate — comparison tables | — | Neutral-positive; legacy |
| Hexarelin | Thin (Peptara Labs) | Stacking threads | Moderate — vendor-heavy ("strongest pulse") | Vendor promos (Titan) | Mixed; hype vs desensitization |
| Sermorelin | Cheat-sheet coverage | Detailed patient threads | Strong — physician educators | Clinic promos | Positive-gentle; "weakest GHRH" |
| Tesamorelin | Active (nighttime use, fat %) | Pencek reel discussion | Very strong — educator content | Clinic promos | Positive; price is the blocker |
| Alexamorelin | None | None | None | None | None — regulatory ghost |
| CJC+Ipa stack | Active | Very strong — protocol/cost debates | Dominant — canonical stack content | Clinic reels (Miami) | Strongest positive in category |
| Somatropin | Present (vs-peptides framing) | Cost threads | Strong — the reference standard | Pharma promos | Positive as benchmark; negative as purchase (cost/sides/counterfeits) |
| MK-677 | Active (timing debates) | Purchase-intent traffic | Very strong — testimonials + warnings + spam | Vendor promos | Split: effective-but-blunt vs diabetes-risk warnings |
| Macimorelin | None | None | None | Clinic pages (diagnostic) | None — clinical only |
Table 4 — Use-case fit & risk matrix
| Item | Best for (community framing) | Worst for | Failure modes | Support risk |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CJC-1295 no DAC | Sleep/recovery-focused stack base | Needle-averse; diabetics (glucose watch) | Flushing, water retention, headaches | Gray-market COA culture; no pharma support |
| CJC-1295 with DAC | Weekly-dosing convenience seekers | Anyone glucose-sensitive | "GH bleed", insulin-resistance anecdote, persistent water retention | Same gray-market; development dead |
| Ipamorelin | Selective pulse seekers; stack pairing | Appetite-gain seekers (weak orexigenic) | Flushing, pins-and-needles, desensitization debate (UNVERIFIED) | Gray-market |
| GHRP-6 | Bulking appetite; cheapest entry | Cortisol/prolactin-sensitive; cutters | Hunger, water retention, cortisol/prolactin rise | Gray-market |
| GHRP-2 | Legacy potency on budget | Selectivity seekers | Hunger (milder than GHRP-6), prolactin/ACTH/cortisol (lit.) | Gray-market; Japan diagnostic channel exists |
| Hexarelin | Short aggressive pulses (lore) | Long-term daily use | Desensitization 50–75% (literature), cortisol/prolactin | Gray-market; vendor-hype heavy |
| Sermorelin | Older adults; "gentle" entry; sleep | Max-GH seekers | Weak GH output (community ranking) | Compounding pharmacies; ex-brand |
| Tesamorelin | Visceral-fat focus (label); credentialed option | Cost-constrained; off-label casual use | Injection-site reactions, CTS-like symptoms, glucose elevation | Pharma support exists (Thera) but ~$10k/mo |
| Alexamorelin | None observed | Everyone | Mislabeling risk (no verified product) | None |
| CJC+Ipa stack | Default GH protocol (community) | Injection burden; glucose watch | Flushing, water retention, sleep disruption (minority) | Gray-market + clinic channel |
| Somatropin | The benchmark for direct GH effect | Cost-constrained; legal-risk-averse; glucose-sensitive | Counterfeits, insulin resistance, endogenous suppression | Full pharma support (labeled use) |
| MK-677 | Needle-averse; hard gainers (appetite); sleep | Diabetics/prediabetics; cutters (hunger) | Uncontrollable hunger/fat gain, edema, glucose elevation, lethargy | Gray-market COA culture; no pharma support |
| Macimorelin | Diagnosing adult GHD (its only job) | Any performance/body-comp use | N/A (single diagnostic dose) | Pharma/clinic channel |
Marketplace parts evidence: Facebook Marketplace returned zero listings for all peptide queries on 2026-09-20 — no used/parts market exists on-platform; failure-mode evidence therefore comes from community side-effect reporting, not "for parts" listings.
Headline takeaways
- The CJC-1295 (no DAC) + Ipamorelin stack is the undisputed community default — dual-receptor synergy, the most developed crowdsourced dosing consensus, and the best price/performance story vs HGH.
- The DAC vs no-DAC debate was settled socially in 2026: Bryan Johnson's biomarker worsening on CJC-1295 DAC became the cautionary tale; pulsatile no-DAC is the consensus.
- Tesamorelin is the most credentialed (FDA-approved, Phase III VAT data) but the least accessible (~$10k+/mo legit); nearly all community use is gray-market.
- Ipamorelin displaced GHRP-6/GHRP-2 as the preferred GHRP on selectivity (no cortisol/prolactin); hexarelin keeps a "strongest pulse" niche but documented desensitization limits it.
- Sermorelin is the gentle legacy option (ex-FDA, now compounded); Alexamorelin is a regulatory ghost with no community.
- Scam/spam is structural: admin-run supplier WhatsApp funnels in FB groups, copy-paste COA spam in IG comments, zero Marketplace presence pushing sales off-platform.
Social-pulse summary
- Dominant platform: Instagram (educator reels, comparison tables, clinic promos); highest-signal: Facebook Groups (real dosing threads, cost debates, dose guardrails).
- Threads: active Q&A layer (stack usefulness debates, tesamorelin nighttime use).
- Consensus strong: CJC+Ipa as default; no-DAC over DAC; ipamorelin over older GHRPs.
- Consensus split: whether tesamorelin's VAT edge justifies cost vs CJC-1295; whether ipamorelin truly desensitizes (creator claim, UNVERIFIED).
- Overhyped calls: CJC-1295 DAC ("premium long-acting" framing vs insulin-resistance anecdote); hexarelin "strongest pulse" (vendor-heavy, desensitization documented); MK-677 hype reels vs diabetes-risk warnings (split community).
Report index
13 dossiers (all complete) plus this comparison, in the category research set.
Images: 48 real photos total (all HEAD/GET-checked, magic-verified, JPEG, zero AI-generated), in img/:
- CJC-1295 no DAC: 4 (hero, side, detail, box) — rear/top/inuse/scale missing
- CJC-1295 with DAC: 4 (hero, side, rear, detail) — top/inuse/scale/box missing
- Ipamorelin: 4 (hero, side, rear, detail) — top/inuse/scale/box missing
- GHRP-6: 3 (hero, side, detail) — rear/top/inuse/scale/box missing
- GHRP-2: 4 (hero, rear, detail, box; filenames use
ghrp-2-prefix) — side/top/inuse/scale missing - Hexarelin: 4 (hero, side, detail, box) — rear/top/inuse/scale missing
- Sermorelin: 3 (side, rear, detail) — hero/top/inuse/scale/box missing
- Tesamorelin: 5 (hero, side, rear, detail, box) — top/inuse/scale missing
- Alexamorelin: 0 — no genuine product photo exists in indexed search; honestly logged
- CJC-1295 + Ipamorelin stack: 5 (hero, side, rear, detail, box) — top/inuse/scale missing
- Somatropin: 4 (hero, side, detail, box) — rear/top/inuse/scale missing
- MK-677: 5 (hero, side, rear, detail, box) — top/inuse/scale missing
- Macimorelin: 3 (hero, side, box) — rear/top/detail/inuse/scale missing
All missing views are named honestly on each dossier page; no image reused across views. Rejected during gathering: 404s, connection-refused CDNs, HTML-returning pages, an AI-generated image (filename literally "Gemini_Generated_Image"), and an RxList injection illustration (not a photo).
Not medical advice. Research documentation only.
Named sources
- Johnson reel — | CJC-1295 with DAC | Not surfaced | Debated | Cautionary (Johnson reel) | Rare | Mixed-negative; legacy |
- Pencek reel — | Tesamorelin | Active (nighttime use, fat %) | Pencek reel discussion | Very strong — educator content | Clinic promos | Positive; price is the blocker |
Source URLs were not recorded for these references.