Peptide Cheat Sheet: Quick Reference Guide 2026

Your vendor told you 99% purity. Maybe they emailed you a glossy PDF labeled COA. But how do you actually know what is in the vial, what dose the research literature actually used, and whether you should be storing it in the fridge or the freezer? This cheat sheet is the single-page reference we wished existed when we started: ten of the most-asked-about peptides, their primary use case, the dosing ranges cited in published research, and the storage rules that decide whether your vial is still active or already degraded.

Two notes before the table. First, every peptide on this list is a research compound in the United States: none of these are FDA-approved for the use cases listed, with the exception of semaglutide and tirzepatide (approved for type 2 diabetes and chronic weight management). Second, dosing ranges below come from published studies and manufacturer prescribing information, not personal recommendations. Talk to your doctor before starting anything new.

Peptide Cheat Sheet: Quick Reference Table

Whatever the dose looks like on paper, the number that matters is what is actually in your vial. Verify your specific batch via the COA lookup before you reconstitute.

How to Use This Cheat Sheet

Honestly, the most common mistake people make with a reference like this is treating the dosing column as a prescription. It is not. These ranges are starting points pulled from published research and manufacturer labels, summarized so you can spot when a vendor protocol is out of bounds (a supplier suggesting 5 mg of BPC-157 per day, for example, is not citing the literature). Use the table to sanity-check what you read elsewhere, then go to the per-peptide breakdown below for the context that actually decides whether something fits your goals.

Per-Peptide Breakdown

BPC-157

What it is: a synthetic 15-amino-acid pentadecapeptide isolated from a protective protein in human gastric juice.

Primary use case: soft-tissue and gastrointestinal healing. The strongest evidence is in rat models: tendon-to-bone healing, gut barrier repair, and accelerated wound closure (Sikiric et al., 2018). Human trials are minimal.

Dosing range cited in research: animal studies routinely use 10 mcg/kg. There is no validated human dose. Community protocols commonly use 250-500 mcg per day subcutaneous, but that range has no published human pharmacokinetic basis.

Storage: lyophilized vials hold up at room temperature short-term and last longest in the freezer. Reconstituted vials live in the refrigerator and should be used within roughly 30 days.

COA verification: BPC-157 is the most-counterfeited peptide in the research market. Verify your batch via the COA lookup before reconstituting.

TB-500

What it is: a synthetic fragment (the active region) of the natural protein Thymosin beta-4.

Primary use case: tissue repair. Thymosin beta-4 itself has been studied in wound healing and cardiac repair models (Goldstein et al., 2005). TB-500 is the research-only fragment marketed for the same purpose.

Dosing range: there is no human trial dose for TB-500 itself. Community protocols typically use 2-2.5 mg once or twice weekly, derived from the parent Thymosin beta-4 dosing in early-stage trials.

Storage: lyophilized refrigerated, reconstituted refrigerated and used within about 30 days.

COA verification: verify your specific batch via the COA lookup. Purity variance batch-to-batch is common.

CJC-1295 (no DAC)

What it is: a synthetic growth-hormone-releasing hormone (GHRH) analog. The "no DAC" version has a short half-life and produces pulsatile GH release rather than sustained elevation.

Primary use case: stimulating endogenous GH release, almost always paired with a ghrelin agonist like ipamorelin. The pairing is the point: GHRH plus ghrelin agonist produces a synergistic GH pulse neither does alone (Teichman et al., 2006, on the long-acting CJC-1295 with DAC).

Dosing range: 100 mcg SC per dose is the standard community protocol, often combined 1:1 with ipamorelin.

Storage: refrigerated lyophilized; reconstituted vials degrade faster than BPC-157 and should be used within 14-21 days.

COA verification: verify your batch via the COA lookup.

Ipamorelin

What it is: a selective ghrelin receptor agonist and GH secretagogue. Unlike older secretagogues, ipamorelin does not raise cortisol or prolactin meaningfully.

Primary use case: clean GH release. Almost always stacked with CJC-1295.

Dosing range: 100-300 mcg SC per dose, one to three times daily, in published research protocols.

Storage: refrigerated lyophilized; reconstituted refrigerated, used within 14-30 days.

COA verification: verify your batch via the COA lookup.

Semaglutide

What it is: a GLP-1 receptor agonist, FDA approved as Ozempic (type 2 diabetes) and Wegovy (chronic weight management).

Primary use case: glycemic control and weight loss. Among the cheat-sheet ten, this is the only one with large-scale Phase 3 human efficacy data and FDA labeling for the use case people are actually buying it for.

Dosing range: per the Wegovy SmPC, titrate from 0.25 mg weekly to a maintenance dose of 2.4 mg weekly over 16-20 weeks.

Storage: refrigerated 2-8 C before first use. Once in use, the pen/vial is good for up to 28 days at or below 30 C, per the Wegovy product information.

COA verification: research-market semaglutide varies in purity. Verify your batch via the COA lookup. For deeper protocol context, see the semaglutide complete guide.

Tirzepatide

What it is: a dual GIP and GLP-1 receptor agonist, FDA approved as Mounjaro (type 2 diabetes) and Zepbound (chronic weight management).

Primary use case: same indications as semaglutide, with stronger weight-loss effect sizes in head-to-head trials.

Dosing range: per the Mounjaro SmPC, start at 2.5 mg weekly for four weeks, then titrate up by 2.5 mg every four weeks as tolerated to a maintenance dose between 5 mg and 15 mg weekly.

Storage: refrigerated 2-8 C; in-use pens or vials are good for up to 21 days at or below 30 C, per the Mounjaro product information.

COA verification: verify your batch via the COA lookup. For a side-by-side comparison with semaglutide, see semaglutide vs tirzepatide.

PT-141 (Bremelanotide)

What it is: a melanocortin receptor agonist (MC4R primarily). FDA approved as Vyleesi for hypoactive sexual desire disorder (HSDD) in premenopausal women.

Primary use case: sexual arousal and desire. Mechanism is central (CNS), not peripheral/vascular like sildenafil.

Dosing range: the approved Vyleesi label specifies 1.75 mg subcutaneous as needed, with no more than one dose per 24 hours and no more than eight doses per month (Kingsberg et al., 2018, on the Phase 3 RECONNECT trials).

Storage: refrigerated. The approved product is a single-use autoinjector. Research-market vials should be refrigerated lyophilized, reconstituted refrigerated.

COA verification: verify your batch via the COA lookup.

GHK-Cu

What it is: a naturally occurring copper-binding tripeptide (Glycyl-L-histidyl-L-lysine, complexed with copper).

Primary use case: skin remodeling, wound healing, and hair-related research applications. The strongest evidence is topical (dermatology and cosmetic literature), not injectable (Pickart and Margolina, 2018, review).

Dosing range: topical formulations in published dermatology studies use 0.05-0.2% concentrations. Injectable doses are not standardized in human trials. Anyone telling you the "correct" injectable GHK-Cu dose is extrapolating.

Storage: lyophilized vials are stable at room temperature short-term and longer in the refrigerator. Reconstituted vials should be refrigerated and protected from light because the copper complex is photosensitive.

COA verification: verify your batch via the COA lookup. For protocol context, see the GHK-Cu complete guide.

Selank

What it is: a synthetic heptapeptide based on the immunomodulatory peptide tuftsin, developed in Russia.

Primary use case: anxiolytic effects in published Russian intranasal trials. Outside of those trials, the human literature is thin.

Dosing range: 250-500 mcg per day intranasal in the published Russian protocols. Cut-if-unverified note: we have not found Western Phase 2/3 trials replicating those numbers.

Storage: refrigerated lyophilized; reconstituted refrigerated, used within 14-21 days.

COA verification: verify your batch via the COA lookup.

Semax

What it is: a synthetic analog of fragment ACTH(4-7), developed in Russia.

Primary use case: has been studied for cognitive and neuroprotective effects in Russian clinical literature. As with Selank, Western replication is limited and dose-response data outside of those trials is sparse.

Dosing range: 200-2000 mcg per day intranasal in published Russian protocols, with the higher end used in stroke recovery research.

Storage: refrigerated lyophilized; reconstituted refrigerated, used within 14-21 days.

COA verification: verify your batch via the COA lookup.

Verifying Supplier Quality

The dosing column in the table is meaningless if the vial does not contain what the label says. The single highest-leverage thing you can do before reconstituting anything is run the batch number through a third-party COA database. The COA lookup at peptidesrated.com/coa aggregates thousands of results across Janoshik Analytical, Finnrick, and Freedom Diagnostics, so you can confirm your specific lot was tested by a lab with no financial stake in a favorable result.

Two practical filters before you order. First, look at lab consistency: does the supplier use the same independent lab repeatedly, or do they cherry-pick which batches get published? Second, look at variance within a vendor: a supplier whose batches cluster between 98 and 99% purity tells you something different than one whose batches swing from 92% to 99.5%. For a deeper walkthrough on reading these results, see how to read a peptide COA. To compare suppliers head-to-head on COA track records, browse ranked suppliers or use the supplier comparison tool.

Common Cheat-Sheet Pitfalls

A reference table is a starting point, not a protocol. Here is what we see people get wrong with cheat sheets like this one.

1. Treating community protocols as research-validated doses. BPC-157 at 250-500 mcg/day, TB-500 at 2.5 mg twice weekly, CJC/ipamorelin at 100 mcg each: these are community conventions, not numbers backed by human Phase 2 trials. The animal-study dose for BPC-157 (10 mcg/kg) does not cleanly translate to human protocols, and most cheat sheets pretend it does.

2. Ignoring storage as a purity variable. A 99% pure peptide stored at room temperature for six weeks reconstituted is not 99% anymore. Degradation products do not show up on the original COA. Storage is part of dose accuracy, not separate from it. For the science, see the [peptide storage and reconstitution guide](https://peptidesrated.com/blog/peptide-storage-reconstitution).

3. Confusing units. mcg and mg differ by 1000x. Most peptide dosing errors we see are unit-conversion errors, not protocol errors. If a cheat sheet ever feels off by an order of magnitude, double-check the units before adjusting the dose.

4. Skipping the COA step because the vendor "looks legit." Marketing copy is free. Independent lab data is not. Verify the batch.

FAQ: Peptide Cheat Sheet

What dosing units do peptide cheat sheets actually use?

Most research peptide protocols use micrograms (mcg) for compounds dosed below 1 mg per administration (BPC-157, ipamorelin, CJC-1295, GHK-Cu) and milligrams (mg) for compounds dosed at 1 mg or higher (TB-500, semaglutide, tirzepatide). Insulin syringes are graduated in "units" rather than volume: 100 units equals 1 mL on a U-100 syringe.

How do I do reconstitution math without messing up the dose?

Two numbers: total peptide in the vial (e.g., 5 mg) and the volume of bacteriostatic water you add (e.g., 2 mL). Divide: 5 mg / 2 mL = 2.5 mg per mL, which equals 2500 mcg per mL. To dose 250 mcg, you need 0.1 mL, which is 10 units on a U-100 insulin syringe. For a worked example with multiple peptides, see the reconstitution guide.

How long does a reconstituted peptide actually last?

It depends on the peptide. Most lyophilized peptides, once reconstituted with bacteriostatic water and refrigerated, retain integrity for roughly 14 to 30 days. Semaglutide and tirzepatide have specific in-use windows from their manufacturer labels (28 and 21 days respectively). GHK-Cu is light-sensitive and degrades faster if stored in clear vials. The storage guide covers each peptide individually.

What should I do if my vendor cannot provide a COA for my specific batch?

Treat the absence as a data point. A legitimate research peptide supplier should be able to produce a batch-specific COA from a named independent lab on request. If they cannot, or they only provide a generic in-house result, you cannot independently verify what you received. Run the batch number through the COA lookup first; if no match, ask the vendor directly; if they cannot produce one, that is your answer.

Single-use vials versus multi-dose vials, what is the practical difference?

A single-use vial is intended for one reconstitution and one administration, then discarded. A multi-dose vial uses bacteriostatic water (water with a preservative, typically 0.9% benzyl alcohol) so it can be punctured repeatedly without bacterial contamination. Most research peptides ship as lyophilized powder you reconstitute into a multi-dose vial with bacteriostatic water. Use sterile water only for true single-use protocols. Wegovy and Mounjaro pens are designed as multi-dose devices with their own preservative system already built in.

Sources

1. Sikiric P et al. (2018). Brain-gut Axis and Pentadecapeptide BPC 157: Theoretical and Practical Implications. Curr Neuropharmacol. PubMed 29279461: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/29279461/

2. Goldstein AL et al. (2005). Thymosin beta4: actin-sequestering protein moonlights to repair injured tissues. Trends Mol Med. PubMed 16019766: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/16019766/

3. Ionescu M and Frohman LA (2006/published series). Pulsatile secretion of growth hormone with CJC-1295 (long-acting GHRH analog). PubMed 19519487: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/19519487/

4. European Medicines Agency. Wegovy (semaglutide) Product Information / SmPC: https://www.ema.europa.eu/en/documents/product-information/wegovy-epar-product-information_en.pdf

5. European Medicines Agency. Mounjaro (tirzepatide) Product Information / SmPC: https://www.ema.europa.eu/en/documents/product-information/mounjaro-epar-product-information_en.pdf

6. Kingsberg SA et al. (2018). Bremelanotide for the Treatment of HSDD: Phase 3 RECONNECT. PubMed 29333065: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/29333065/

7. Pickart L and Margolina A (2018). The Effect of the Human Peptide GHK on Gene Expression Relevant to Skin Conditions. PMC4082916: https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC4082916/

8. Diamond LE et al. (2006). Bremelanotide pharmacology and Phase 2 data review. PMC4961495: https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC4961495/

9. PeptidesRated COA Lookup Tool: https://peptidesrated.com/coa