Transparent Labs was founded in 2015–16 in American Fork, Utah. The founding premise was explicit: build a supplement brand with no proprietary blends, no artificial additives, and full label disclosure — a direct reaction to an industry where "proprietary formula" is often a euphemism for underdosed or substituted ingredients. The brand grew organically through direct-to-consumer online sales without outside investment.
In early 2020, Nutra Holdings acquired Transparent Labs. Nutra Holdings is a small private company that also owns Jacked Factory — a budget performance supplement brand known for aggressive Amazon positioning and lower price-point products. The acquisition was described by Nutra Holdings as being driven by alignment with TL's ingredient values, but Jacked Factory's product philosophy (lower cost, broader retail distribution) sits at a different point on the ingredient-quality spectrum.
Transparent Labs is primarily direct-to-consumer through transparentlabs.com, with no significant retail distribution. This model creates a cleaner margin structure — no retail markups to absorb, no slotting fees, no retailer co-promotion agreements that could influence product positioning. It also means no third-party retailer is selecting or merchandising TL product independently.
Pricing reflects the premium ingredient sourcing: approximately $1.75 per serving for the Grass-Fed Whey Isolate, compared to ~$0.85 for Gold Standard Whey. The premium is partially explained by grass-fed sourcing (more expensive raw material) and pure isolate formulation (more processing). No subscription lock-in, no upsell dark patterns documented. The brand does run ambassador and affiliate programs, which are disclosed.
The brand name is the marketing claim: Transparent Labs. It earns that name more directly than almost any competitor in the category. Key verifiable marketing claims: no proprietary blends (confirmed — every ingredient is listed with its quantity), no artificial sweeteners (confirmed — stevia only), no artificial flavors or colors (confirmed), grass-fed whey isolate (the primary protein is whey protein isolate from grass-fed cows, not a blend with concentrate).
The "clinically dosed" language used across the product line warrants examination but holds up for the core protein product — 28g of whey protein isolate per serving is well within ranges studied in the literature. Unlike brands that use "clinically dosed" to mean "doses that appeared in some study somewhere," TL's protein dosing is straightforwardly honest.
The protein source is 100% whey protein isolate — not a blend. Isolate is the most filtered form of whey protein, with the highest protein concentration per gram (typically 90%+), lowest lactose, and lowest fat. The grass-fed sourcing claim is consistent with the published COA documentation and third-party testing.
Each serving delivers 28g of protein — among the highest per-serving protein count in the whey isolate category. The full ingredient list: Whey Protein Isolate (grass-fed), Cocoa Powder (chocolate flavor), Natural Flavors, Salt, Sunflower Lecithin, Stevia Leaf Extract. No acesulfame potassium, no sucralose, no artificial colors. For consumers who prioritize clean formulations, this is the ingredient list.
In the October 2025 Consumer Reports heavy metals investigation, Transparent Labs confirmed it tests both raw ingredients and finished products for heavy metals — a more proactive stance than most competitors. The brand also confirmed post-publication that it tests to California Prop 65 standards, among the strictest available thresholds.
No FDA warning letters. No FTC enforcement actions. No class action settlements. Transparent Labs' regulatory record is clean.
The Informed Choice certification (LGC Group) is active and covers the Whey Protein Isolate product line. Batch-level COAs are publicly accessible on the TL website — consumers can verify the specific batch they purchased against tested results. This is the transparency practice that separates TL from most of the category, including Optimum Nutrition.
Consumer Reports' heavy metals testing included Transparent Labs and found no results requiring consumer concern. TL was among the brands that responded proactively after publication with a public statement detailing its testing methodology — a transparency posture that stands in direct contrast to Optimum Nutrition's decision to decline comment on the same study.
The science supporting whey protein isolate supplementation is strong and well-established. Whey isolate in particular — the fast-digesting, high-bioavailability form — aligns closely with the research literature on post-workout protein synthesis and leucine threshold triggering for muscle protein synthesis. This is a genuine science-product alignment advantage over brands using concentrate blends or slower-digesting proteins.
The partial score reflects that Transparent Labs does not fund product-specific clinical research, and the broader "clinically dosed" framing across their product line (including pre-workouts and greens powders beyond the protein) is applied more loosely in some products than the protein line. Evaluated on the whey isolate alone, the science backing is among the cleaner in the category. The yellow score is a category limitation, not a TL-specific failure.
Transparent Labs is one of the few supplement brands to earn a green safety transparency score. The combination that gets there: Informed Choice certification (active, covers banned substances), published batch COAs (consumers can verify their specific lot), ingredient and finished-product heavy metal testing (confirmed publicly), Prop 65 compliance threshold (tests to strictest available standard), and proactive disclosure when tested externally by Consumer Reports.
The one meaningful gap: TL does not hold NSF Certified for Sport, which is the most comprehensive third-party certification and the one Momentous holds. Informed Choice and NSF Certified for Sport both cover banned substances but NSF's contaminant testing protocols are broader. For most consumers who aren't competitive athletes subject to WADA testing, this distinction is marginal — TL's own contaminant testing and COA publication may exceed what NSF certification would add. For elite athletes with zero-tolerance testing requirements, Momentous remains the more conservative choice.