Anabolic Insights vs Marek Health: Lab Prices, Coaching and Tracking Compared (2026)

Disclosure up front: I'm Drew, the founder of Anabolic Insights, so this comparison is biased. I was also a Marek Health patient, I once approached Marek about working together, and I previously worked at AlgoRx. Everything about Marek below comes from its public websites, FAQ, policies and checkout, or is clearly marked as my own experience. Prices were checked on October 11, 2026, and either company can change them.

A thank-you before the comparison

The meme at the top is meant sincerely. About six years ago I had some health issues and spent hours online trying to figure out how to order my own blood work. Marek Health was the first company I found that let someone like me take my health into my own hands, and I was grateful it existed. Marek was a real part of my health journey, and Marek and its founder, Derek of More Plates More Dates, did a lot to make self-directed labs normal for people who train.

Marek was great, until it wasn't, for me. About three lab draws in, I had a folder of PDFs and nowhere to see my blood work over time. I couldn't upload those reports anywhere to see trends or check what a protocol had actually done. I wanted to go deeper than a company working at Marek's scale could go with one patient. I also never got comfortable with the coaching model (more on that below).

As an engineer, I believed we could build something 10 times better for people like me, so I reached out to Marek about building it. Marek wasn't interested, so I joined AlgoRx for a while, working alongside former Marek employees, because the vision seemed similar. Eventually I realized I'd never get exactly what I wanted unless I built it myself. That's how Anabolic Insights started. I'll tell the full founder story in its own post. This one is the comparison.

The short answer

Anabolic Insights is the better fit if you want lower lab prices with no fees, transparent medication and TRT pricing, and tools to track your own labs: protocol overlays, charts, notes, wearables and uploads of your outside lab PDFs.

Marek Health is the better fit if you want hands-on, one-on-one coaching with monthly check-ins, a much larger test catalog, or treatment in a state we don't cover yet.

Here is how it breaks down:

• Lab panels: at Quest, our Advanced Men's Panel+ is $350 for 123 biomarkers. Marek's Total Health Panel Comprehensive is $495 for 80+, and its Executive panel is $1,950 for 130+.
• À la carte tests: total testosterone (LC/MS) plus sensitive estradiol (LC/MS) costs $38 with us. At Marek Diagnostics it's $82, including a $10 lab draw fee added automatically to orders under $199.
• Getting started: Marek's Guided Optimization program starts with a $299 intake deposit and a required lab panel of at least $450. We don't charge an intake fee.
• Medications: our prices are listed on every product page, with no provider fee and free shipping. Marek doesn't publish medication prices.
• TRT: ours is $99 a month in 14 states, with labs, provider visits and shipping included. Marek offers TRT in more states but doesn't publish the price.
• Tracking: Marek emails your results and doesn't accept outside labs into its program. We chart every result and let you upload outside PDFs, overlay protocols, add notes and connect wearables.

Anabolic Insights vs Marek Health at a glance

Sources: Anabolic Insights lab panels, Anabolic Insights individual tests, Anabolic Insights testosterone, Marek Health, Marek Health FAQ, Marek Diagnostics, Marek Diagnostics FAQ. Checked October 11, 2026.

Blood work: panel prices and biomarker counts

Marek sells labs two ways: on their own through Marek Diagnostics, and as part of the Marek Health coaching program. Both use the same tests, and both use Quest.

Marek Diagnostics' Total Health panels: Comprehensive (80+ biomarkers, $495), Complete (100+, $895) and Executive (130+, $1,950).

Our men's panels. Each panel's page lists every test it includes, by lab.

A note on these numbers: panels are hard to compare. Two panels with similar counts can test different markers or use different methods, and each company counts components differently. A true comparison means checking every biomarker in each panel, one by one, which is more than this post can cover. Use the counts as a rough guide, and before you order, open both panels' full test lists and check that the markers you care about are included.

Matched by size:

• Complete Men's Panel vs Marek Comprehensive: 85 vs 80+ biomarkers. Ours costs $256 less.
• Advanced Men's Panel+ vs Marek Complete: 123 vs 100+ biomarkers. Ours costs $545 less.
• Advanced Men's Panel+ vs Marek Executive: 123 vs 130+ biomarkers. Ours costs $1,600 less.

Marek's catalog is much bigger than ours, though. It includes gut, allergy, genetic and specialty tests we don't sell. If you need one of those, Marek may be the only place you can order it yourself.

À la carte tests: under half the price, no draw fee

We put the same two Quest tests in each cart: total testosterone by LC/MS and sensitive estradiol by LC/MS. Marek calls its estradiol test "Sensitive [LC/MS-MS]"; ours is listed as "Ultrasensitive, LC/MS."

Marek Diagnostics: $32.00 for total testosterone, $40.00 for sensitive estradiol, and a $10.00 "Venipuncture Lab Draw Fee" added automatically. Subtotal: $82.00.

Anabolic Insights: $14.00 for total testosterone, $24.00 for ultrasensitive estradiol, and no lab fee. Total: $38.00.

Marek's FAQ explains the fee: its built panels include the draw, but "if you're building a custom panel or testing biomarkers individually, a $10 venipuncture fee will be automatically added at checkout." The fee is waived once you spend $199 or more.

Getting started: what you pay before your first prescription

Marek Health's coaching program is called Guided Optimization. On every treatment page, Marek lists a $299 starting price, and the intake requires a lab panel of at least $450.

Marek Health's intake: $299, with a "minimum $450 lab panel purchase required."

So a new Marek Health client pays at least about $749 before any medication. Marek's refund policy says the booking payment is "a non-refundable deposit towards the provider exam." Monthly coaching costs and medication prices aren't published.

With Anabolic Insights, you can order labs without an intake fee, and medication prices are on every product page. Our testosterone membership is $99 a month, billed $297 quarterly. That price includes your blood work, provider visit, follow-up labs, medication if prescribed, and shipping, with a full refund if your provider decides you don't qualify.

Our TRT membership: every step is marked "included." Available in 14 states as of this writing.

To be fair on coverage: Marek says its program is available in all 50 states, with some treatments limited by state. If you're outside our 14 TRT states, Marek may be able to treat you when we can't.

What Marek patients report paying for medications

Because Marek doesn't publish medication prices, the best public data comes from patients. One r/trt poster shared the quotes they got after spending $400 on blood work and $250 on a provider consultation. They included $315 for a three-month supply of 5 mg tadalafil and $225 for three months of testosterone cypionate. Marek's official account replied that "costs vary depending on the individual."

r/trt: "Questioning the value of working with Marek". These are one patient's 2025 quotes, not published prices.

For comparison, our tadalafil 5 mg daily is $30 for a one-month supply, with no provider fee and free shipping.

The coaching model: my honest take

This is the part of Marek I'm most conflicted about, so to be clear, this section is my personal perspective as a former patient.

Marek's model is built around health coaches. A coach does your intake, reviews your labs, builds your protocol with the medical team, and checks in every month. For a lot of people that's exactly what they want, and many Marek patients love their coaches.

It didn't work for me. My understanding as a patient was that coaches earned commission on the medications they recommended. Marek hasn't published how its coaches are paid, so I can't confirm that. But I never felt the recommendations were completely pure. Even if they were, believing my coach was paid when I said yes spoiled it for me. I wanted my data and my decisions in my own hands, without a sales layer in between.

I'm not the only one who has raised this. Replying to Marek's official account on Reddit, one commenter claimed "the health coach's job is to sell you labs so they get 50% commission and mark up the scripts (also commissioned)." I couldn't verify that either.

r/PeterAttia: "Alternative to Marek Health: Just get a coach". An unverified claim from one commenter.

Two things Marek does publish are worth knowing. Coaching clients get "exclusive access to Marek Health's FDA-approved pharmacies and supplement dispensaries," and Marek sells its own supplement line. Marek's terms also say some of its shareholders, directors, officers or employees "may have a financial interest" in third parties and "may profit from" the sale of third-party goods and services to you.

Other patients report the opposite experience, and that matters too. In one r/PeterAttia thread, a four-year Marek patient said it "completely changed my life," and another said their coach was "much more reasonable" than the supplement list in their report. A third replied that "it is def hard sell once they get you."

r/PeterAttia: "Is Marek Health/Diagnostics good?".

Anabolic Insights takes a different approach. We don't have a sales-driven coaching layer. Our medication prices are public and the same for everyone, and when you're on our TRT membership, a licensed provider reviews your labs and decides what's appropriate. The tracking tools are there so you can see the effects yourself.

Track your own data: where Marek falls short

This is the gap that started Anabolic Insights. Marek Diagnostics emails your results. Marek's FAQ says its program won't accept recent outside labs; it requires, at a minimum, its own comprehensive panel. I found no results dashboard, trend charts, protocol tracking, notes or wearables integration.

Here's what you get with us instead.

Protocol overlays

Mark when you start or stop a medication, supplement, diet or training block, and every relevant biomarker chart shades that window.

A "Started TRT" protocol overlaid on every chart, with a pinned-draw panel that marks whether a draw was before or on protocol.

Charts and notes on every result

Every result is charted against lab or optimal ranges, and you can save a note on any single result, like what you were taking at the time.

A saved note on an ApoB result, on mobile.

Heart risk markers, and every result grouped by body system.

Upload the PDFs you already have

If you have years of Marek or clinic PDFs, upload them for free (LabCorp and most Quest PDFs) and they go into the same charts. That's the feature I wished existed when I was sitting on my own folder of Marek reports.

Wearables

Connect Garmin, Oura, Withings smart scales, Omron blood pressure cuffs, Cronometer, Apple Health and more, and see sleep, weight, blood pressure and nutrition next to your labs. A membership starts at $15 a month.

Five connected sources and a Garmin sleep chart.

Custom panels and Anabolic Cash

Build a panel, save it, and reorder it in one click. Share it, and you earn 10% in Anabolic Cash when someone buys it. Your referral link also earns 10% and gives your friend 10% off. Earnings clear after the 30-day refund window. Marek has no consumer rewards program.

A saved custom panel, ready to reorder.

What else Reddit says

People leaving Marek often cite price. One r/Biohackers poster called "almost $300 for cialis alone for 3 months" ridiculous and asked for alternatives. I replied from our company account as a former patient, and I was upfront that Marek has more protocols and a bigger physician network than we do.

r/Biohackers: "Alternative to marek health?". Usernames are blurred except for company accounts.

Marek also has a strong public reputation. Marek Health is rated 4.8 on Trustpilot from about 1,000 reviews, and its site says 60,000+ clients have gone through the program.

Where Marek Health is the better choice

Marek is a pioneer, and it's still a strong option. Choose Marek if:

• You want a coach. If you'd rather have someone build and adjust your protocol every month than track it yourself, that's Marek's core product.
• You need a specialty test. Marek's catalog includes gut, allergy, genetic and other specialty tests we don't offer.
• You need treatment in a state we don't cover. Marek says its program is available in all 50 states, with some limits by treatment.
• You want a wider range of treatments. Marek offers more protocols and has a larger provider network than we do.

Where Anabolic Insights is the better choice

Choose Anabolic Insights if:

• You want lower prices. Our panels cost less at every size, à la carte tests cost less than half as much, and we don't charge a draw fee.
• You want to see prices up front. Medication and TRT prices are on our product pages, with no intake fee, no provider fee and free shipping.
• You want TRT at one monthly price with labs and provider visits included.
• You want to track your own data. Charts, protocol overlays, notes, wearables and free uploads of your outside PDFs.
• You'd rather not have a commissioned middleman. Our prices are the same for everyone, and you see your data and make decisions with a licensed provider.

FAQs

Is Anabolic Insights cheaper than Marek Health?

For labs, yes. At Quest, our Advanced Men's Panel+ is $350 for 123 biomarkers, compared with $495 for Marek's 80+ biomarker Comprehensive panel and $1,950 for its 130+ biomarker Executive panel. Total testosterone plus sensitive estradiol costs $38 with us and $82 at Marek Diagnostics, including its $10 draw fee. Marek doesn't publish medication prices, so those can't be compared directly.

Does Marek Diagnostics charge a lab draw fee?

Yes. Marek adds a $10 "Venipuncture Lab Draw Fee" to custom or individual test orders under $199. Its built panels include the draw. Anabolic Insights charges no lab or draw fee.

How much does Marek Health cost to start?

Marek Health's Guided Optimization intake is listed at $299, and the intake requires a lab panel purchase of at least $450. Marek's refund policy calls the booking payment a non-refundable deposit toward the provider exam. Monthly coaching and medication costs aren't published.

Does Marek Health accept outside lab results?

No. Marek's FAQ says its program requires, at a minimum, its own comprehensive panel, even if you have recent labs. Anabolic Insights lets you upload LabCorp and most Quest PDFs for free and charts them with the rest of your results.

Does Marek Health offer TRT?

Yes. Marek offers testosterone therapy and says its program is available in all 50 states, with some treatments limited by state. It doesn't publish TRT pricing. Anabolic Insights offers a $99/month TRT membership in 14 states that includes labs, provider visits and shipping. Eligibility and any prescription are decided by a licensed provider after evaluation.

Do Marek Health coaches earn commission?

Marek hasn't published how its coaches are paid, and we couldn't verify it. As a former patient, my understanding was that coaches earned commission on medications they recommended, and some Reddit users make similar claims. Marek's terms say some insiders may profit from third-party goods and services sold to clients.

Can I track protocols, add notes or connect wearables with Marek?

No. Marek emails results and doesn't offer protocol overlays, notes on results or wearables integration. Anabolic Insights includes all three.

Is Marek Health HSA/FSA eligible?

Yes. Both Marek and Anabolic Insights are HSA/FSA eligible.

How we compared

We reviewed public pages on both companies' sites, and the Anabolic Insights dashboard, on October 11, 2026:

• Marek sources: Marek Health, the Marek Health FAQ, terms and refund policy, plus Marek Diagnostics, its FAQ and its cart.
• My experience: statements about Marek's coaching model that aren't linked to a source are my own perspective as a former patient.
• Biomarker counts: as each company publishes them for its Quest panels. Our counts come from each panel's test list.
• Screenshots: Anabolic Insights screenshots come from a live account. Reddit usernames are blurred except for company accounts.
• Prices: these are the prices shown on the date checked, including current sale prices, before tax and promo codes. Both companies change prices, so confirm at checkout.

Anabolic Insights publishes this post and has a financial interest in it. The author was a Marek Health patient, once approached Marek about working together, and has no current relationship with Marek. This comparison uses only Marek's public information and the author's own experience as a patient.

Want to see how we compare with another option? Read Anabolic Insights vs AlgoRx. If you want to see how the dashboard works, read how Anabolic Insights works, or browse lab panels.