⚠ Fake COAs — March 2026

FDA_TrackerJim said:

Inter-laboratory variation comes from real methodological differences, not sloppiness: which reference standard was used and how it was itself…

I am more sceptical of certificates as a category than this thread is. The document tells you about a sample somebody chose to send, at a moment in time, and nothing about the vial in your hand. Independent purchase-and-test is a different quality of evidence and everything else is inference.

Dr.CardioMD said:

I have a certificate reporting 99.2% purity and 6.1mg content on a vial sold as 5mg, and I cannot work out whether those two numbers are consistent or…

Mass spectrometry confirmation for certificates of analysis: beyond HPLC purity, mass spec tells you the molecule's exact molecular weight. This confirms identity — not just purity.

Why this matters: HPLC can show you a "pure" compound, but if it's pure of the WRONG compound, purity is meaningless. Mass spec at m/z 4113.58 Da confirms it's actually semaglutide. My Janoshik report includes both HPLC and mass spec.

If your testing provider only offers HPLC, consider upgrading to include mass spec for at least your first batch from a new vendor.

TrialTracker_MD said:

I am more sceptical of certificates as a category than this thread is.

Vendor quality matters when discussing certificates of analysis. I've tested my last 6 batches through Janoshik and purity has ranged from 98.5% to 100.3%. Consistency is key.

For anyone new: always request the COA, and consider independent verification. The $300 for a Janoshik test is worth the peace of mind.

One thing that is still open after Dr.PainCLE’s answer:

Why two laboratories report different purity for the same batch, and which number to believe?

Closing the loop on my own question.

Purity and content being different measurements was the piece I was missing. The vial was overfilled and pure, which is a very different problem from the one I thought I had.