Quick answer
No benefit of apple cider vinegar pills is established. Most research used liquid vinegar, often 15 to 30 mL a day, and in the one direct test, tablets swallowed whole did not act like the liquid after a meal. Pill labels may not state their acetic acid, the active part.1,2,3
Key facts
- FDA expects liquid cider vinegar to contain 4 g of acetic acid per 100 mL.4
- Tests of eight vinegar tablet products found wide differences in acid content, and doubt that some contained apple cider vinegar at all.3
- A 2020 systematic review of 13 human studies judged the evidence for health effects insufficient.5
- Capsules raised blood acetate more slowly than a vinegar drink with the same 750 mg of acetic acid.6
- A 2024 vinegar trial was retracted in 2025 after its analyses could not be replicated.7
What apple cider vinegar pills are
FDA's labeling guidance describes cider vinegar as the product of fermenting apple juice to alcohol and then to acetic acid, and expects it to contain 4 g of acetic acid per 100 mL. Vinegar diluted with water should never fall below 4 percent acid.4
Pills hold vinegar that has been dried into a powder. A label that lists milligrams of apple cider vinegar powder gives the weight of that powder, not the amount of acetic acid in it, and acetic acid is the defining ingredient researchers study.2
When researchers tested eight apple cider vinegar tablet products, they found wide differences in tablet size, acidity, acid content and label claims, and doubted that some contained apple cider vinegar at all.3
Acetic acid is in every vinegar: FDA guidance expects cider, wine, malt, sugar and distilled vinegar alike to contain 4 g of acetic acid per 100 mL.4
What the research shows, and what it does not
We grade no benefit for apple cider vinegar pills. The findings below explain why.
In 12 healthy young adults, four vinegar tablets swallowed whole had no measurable effect after a meal, although their label listed 1.5 g of acetic acid against 1.25 g in the liquid vinegar that did. Crushed and dissolved tablets fell in between.2
Capsules supplying 750 mg of acetic acid raised blood acetate to about 80 percent of the total seen with a vinegar drink of the same strength, a difference that was not statistically significant. The study measured acetate, not a health outcome, and was run by a vinegar maker.6
A 2025 pooled analysis of 10 randomized trials lasting 4 weeks or more found none that used capsules of vinegar powder; the trials gave liquid vinegar or an effervescent tablet.1
The trials in that pooled analysis gave vinegar to adults recruited for their weight or a medical condition, not to healthy people in general, and reported modest differences in body weight, mainly at 30 mL a day. One of the ten was retracted in September 2025, four days after the analysis was published.1,7
A 2020 systematic review of 13 human studies and 12 animal studies concluded that the evidence for health effects of apple vinegar is insufficient, because high-quality research is lacking.5
Appetite is a good example of how a result can mislead. In a breakfast study of 16 healthy young adults, vinegar drinks did lower appetite, but mostly because they made people feel queasy, and the authors advised against promoting vinegar as an appetite suppressant.8
Amounts used in studies
Trials of daily liquid apple cider vinegar used 5 to 30 mL a day, most often 15 or 30 mL.1
Those amounts are for the liquid. For pills, the one absorption study needed nine capsules to deliver 750 mg of acetic acid, and the tablets in the meal study listed 1.5 g across four tablets. The dosage guide converts liquid amounts into acetic acid and compares them with pill labels.2,6
What's in ours
What’s in ours
- Gut Health: Organic Apple Cider Vinegar Powder, 1,000 mg per serving, from the label
Our label lists the vinegar powder by weight and does not state its acetic acid content, so it cannot be compared with the liquid amounts above. The capsules also contain inulin, an enzyme blend and a probiotic. We make no benefit claim for this product.
If you take medicine for blood sugar
Liquid vinegar taken at the start of a meal lowered the rise in blood sugar over the next hour by 31% in a trial of 12 healthy young adults, while tablets swallowed whole did not. The authors cite earlier studies reporting similar effects of liquid vinegar in people with type 2 diabetes. Whether pills have any such effect is unknown.2
In 10 people with type 1 diabetes and slow stomach emptying (gastroparesis), 30 mL of apple cider vinegar a day for two weeks slowed emptying further, which the authors said could make blood sugar harder to control.9
If you use insulin or another medicine that lowers blood sugar, or you have diabetes with slow stomach emptying, ask your doctor before using vinegar in any form.9
Side effects, and who should ask first
A published report describes injury to the esophagus from an apple cider vinegar tablet.3
Vinegar can wear away tooth enamel. In a laboratory study, several vinegars drew minerals out of human enamel within hours, and a dental report traced worn enamel in a 15-year-old to a daily glass of apple cider vinegar.10,11
No tolerable upper intake level has been set for apple cider vinegar. Liquid vinegar has been studied at up to 30 mL a day for up to 12 weeks, and we found no long-term safety study of vinegar pills.1,5
- Ask first if you have trouble swallowing or a history of esophagus problems3
- Ask first if you are pregnant or breastfeeding, or under 18
- Take capsules with a full glass of water, as our label directs3
The DailyMed medicine labels and MedlinePlus pages we checked do not list an interaction with apple cider vinegar. That is not proof of safety: ask your pharmacist before combining vinegar products with any medicine.
Questions people ask
What do apple cider vinegar pills do for your body?
They deliver some acetic acid, though the label may not say how much. In the one capsule study, acetate from capsules reached the blood more slowly than from a drink. Whether pills do more than that is unknown: in the one test after a meal, tablets swallowed whole had no measurable effect.2,6
Are apple cider vinegar pills safe for diabetics?
Ask your doctor first. Liquid vinegar can lower the rise in blood sugar after a meal, and in 10 people with type 1 diabetes and slow stomach emptying, 30 mL a day slowed emptying further, which the authors said could make blood sugar harder to control. Whether pills do either is unknown.2,9
Are apple cider vinegar pills good for your skin?
We found no study of vinegar pills and skin. Applied directly to the skin, apple cider vinegar has caused chemical burns, including in a teenager who used it to try to remove moles at home.12
Do apple cider vinegar pills have benefits for men?
No study we found looked at men separately. The meal study comparing tablets with liquid vinegar enrolled young men and women, and found no effect from the tablets in either.2
See what we make
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Sources
- Castagna A, Ferro Y, Noto FR, et al. Effect of Apple Cider Vinegar Intake on Body Composition in Humans with Type 2 Diabetes and/or Overweight: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials. Nutrients. 2025;17(18):3000. Opened 2026-10-01.
- Feise NK, Johnston CS. Commercial Vinegar Tablets Do Not Display the Same Physiological Benefits for Managing Postprandial Glucose Concentrations as Liquid Vinegar. J Nutr Metab. 2020;2020:9098739. Opened 2026-10-01.
- Hill LL, Woodruff LH, Foote JC, Barreto-Alcoba M. Esophageal injury by apple cider vinegar tablets and subsequent evaluation of products. J Am Diet Assoc. 2005;105(7):1141-4. Opened 2026-10-01.
- U.S. Food and Drug Administration. CPG Sec. 525.825 Vinegar, Definitions; Adulteration with Vinegar Eels. Compliance Policy Guide, last revised March 1995. Opened 2026-10-07.
- Launholt TL, Kristiansen CB, Hjorth P. Safety and side effects of apple vinegar intake and its effect on metabolic parameters and body weight: a systematic review. Eur J Nutr. 2020;59(6):2273-2289. Opened 2026-10-07.
- Sugiyama S, Fushimi T, Kishi M, et al. Bioavailability of acetate from two vinegar supplements: capsule and drink. J Nutr Sci Vitaminol (Tokyo). 2010;56(4):266-9. Opened 2026-10-01.
- Abou-Khalil R, Andary J, El-Hayek E. Apple cider vinegar for weight management in Lebanese adolescents and young adults with overweight and obesity: a randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled study. BMJ Nutr Prev Health. 2024;7(1):61-67. Retracted: BMJ Nutr Prev Health. 2025;8(2):693. Opened 2026-10-01.
- Darzi J, Frost GS, Montaser R, Yap J, Robertson MD. Influence of the tolerability of vinegar as an oral source of short-chain fatty acids on appetite control and food intake. Int J Obes (Lond). 2014;38(5):675-681. Opened 2026-10-07.
- Hlebowicz J, Darwiche G, Björgell O, Almér LO. Effect of apple cider vinegar on delayed gastric emptying in patients with type 1 diabetes mellitus: a pilot study. BMC Gastroenterol. 2007;7:46. Opened 2026-10-01.
- Willershausen I, Weyer V, Schulte D, Lampe F, Buhre S, Willershausen B. In vitro study on dental erosion caused by different vinegar varieties using an electron microprobe. Clin Lab. 2014;60(5):783-790. Opened 2026-10-07.
- Gambon DL, Brand HS, Veerman EC. Unhealthy weight loss. Erosion by apple cider vinegar. Ned Tijdschr Tandheelkd. 2012;119(12):589-591. Article in Dutch. Opened 2026-10-07.
- Feldstein S, Afshar M, Krakowski AC. Chemical Burn from Vinegar Following an Internet-based Protocol for Self-removal of Nevi. J Clin Aesthet Dermatol. 2015;8(6):50. Opened 2026-10-07.
This page is information, not medical advice. Talk to your doctor or pharmacist about your own situation.