Ketone-IQ is a drinkable ketone from HVMN. Each two-ounce shot delivers a compound called R-1,3-butanediol, which the liver turns into beta-hydroxybutyrate, the same ketone your body makes when you fast. HVMN sells it as brain fuel for calm focus and steady energy. Numin is a stimulant-free powder you mix in water after lunch, designed to keep the quality of your decisions steady across a long working day.
The two sound alike on a label and work in opposite directions. Ketone-IQ is a supply strategy: it gives neurons another fuel to burn alongside glucose. Numin is a clearance strategy: every decision fires glutamate in the lateral prefrontal cortex, and when it accumulates faster than the brain clears it, signaling becomes less efficient and decision quality falls. Numin supports that clearance, so it prevents a decline from your baseline rather than pushing you above it.
Below, we compare the two on five criteria, using what HVMN publishes on its own product page and what the peer-reviewed record shows, checked on 22 October 2026.
Our verdict
The verdict on Numin vs Ketone-IQ
Ketone IQ is one of the more interesting products in the category. It has a real mechanism, a clearly labeled dose, and a research program that began with a Department of Defense contract. If you train hard or eat very low-carb, an extra fuel can matter.
The question for a knowledge worker is narrower: does it keep your decisions sharp at 3pm? Nobody has shown that a fuel shortage is what degrades judgment late in the day, and the only drink here that was tested on decision errors is Numin. We weighted the scoring toward that.
Numin
Wins 4 of 5 criteria
Ketone-IQ
Wins 1 of 5 criteria
For an afternoon of decisions that need to hold, Numin is the clear pick. It wins four of the five criteria, including the evidence on decision quality and the absence of caffeine, which matters because the +Caffeine version of the shot adds 100mg. Ketone-IQ wins on transparency, with a single, exactly dosed active ingredient, and it is the better fit if your priority is fuel for training.
Numin & Ketone-IQ at a glance
HVMN, short for Health Via Modern Nutrition, sells Ketone-IQ in two main versions. The No Caffeine shot carries 10g of ketones; the +Caffeine shot pairs 5g of ketones with 100mg of caffeine from green tea, about a cup of coffee's worth. HVMN Ketone IQ shots come in packs of 12 or 24, and the company recommends one to four servings a day.
Numin is sold as stick packs of powder, 20 or 30 servings to a box or pouch. Here are the two side by side.
Side A
Numin decision fatigue drink
$80 / 20-pack
Five named ingredients in a soft citrus stick pack, mixed in water once a day after lunch. No caffeine, no sugar. Works in about 60 minutes and holds for six hours or more.
Shop NuminSide B
HVMN Ketone-IQ
$119.95 / 24 shots
Two-ounce shots of R-1,3-butanediol: 10g of ketones in the No Caffeine shot, or 5g plus 100mg of caffeine in the +Caffeine shot. $83.95 for 24 on subscription.
What exogenous ketones do for your brain
Exogenous ketones are ketones you drink rather than make. Normally your liver produces ketone bodies when carbohydrate is scarce, during fasting or a strict ketogenic diet. Ketone supplements skip that step and raise blood ketones directly. Published human data on a single 10g dose of R-1,3-butanediol report blood ketones peaking at roughly 40 minutes and tapering over the next few hours.
The appeal of ketones for brain function is that neurons can burn them for energy alongside glucose, and ketones can supply a meaningful share of the brain's fuel when levels are high. That is a real effect. It is also a fuel effect, the same family of idea as glucose and, at a different step, creatine, which we reviewed in creatine and cognition.
The afternoon decline in decision quality does not behave like a fuel shortage. Brain glucose consumption stays relatively stable across an afternoon of hard thinking, while magnetic resonance spectroscopy work published in Current Biology in 2022 found glutamate rising in the lateral prefrontal cortex after a day of demanding decisions. More fuel does not move that. The bottleneck sits at clearance, which we explain in what glutamate does in the brain.
How Numin & Ketone-IQ score
Read what follows as a Ketone IQ review written by the company that makes the alternative, which is why every claim about HVMN's product comes from HVMN's own page. Where the evidence is thin for either side, we say so.
Each criterion below is scored from 0 to 10, with the reasoning under it. The evidence score draws on Numin's decision fatigue study, published as the Frontiers in Nutrition trial in 2025.
Clinical evidence on decision quality
Numin wins Numin 9 · Ketone-IQ 5
Numin was tested as a finished formula on decision quality under sustained load. In our randomized, placebo-controlled crossover trial, 23 healthy adults completed two 13-hour sessions of competitive decision-making with a seven-day washout between arms. On Numin they made 43% fewer decision errors than on placebo. The placebo arm declined significantly in cognitive efficiency after about four hours; the Numin arm held baseline to the end, with zero adverse events. One trial of 23 people is a strong first result, not a settled literature.
HVMN's page cites research on ketones and the brain, including a 7% improvement in cognitive performance and a 29.9% reduction in fatigue, and its ketone work began under a Department of Defense contract. That is more science than most energy drinks carry. We did not find a published trial of the finished shot measuring decision errors across a long working session, which is the outcome this comparison is about.
Caffeine & crash risk
Numin wins Numin 10 · Ketone-IQ 8
Numin contains no caffeine, no sugar and no stimulants. There is nothing to wear off at 5pm and nothing to carry into your sleep.
The No Caffeine shot has none either, and HVMN's reviewers often describe its energy as calm. The +Caffeine shot adds 100mg from green tea, roughly a cup of coffee, which brings the usual trade-off back if you take it after lunch. Pick the version carefully.
Onset & duration
Numin wins Numin 8 · Ketone-IQ 7
Numin begins working in about 60 minutes and holds for six hours or more, which is why we recommend it 30 to 60 minutes after lunch: it covers the window where decision quality would otherwise slip.
Ketone-IQ is faster to peak, with blood ketones topping out around 40 minutes after a 10g dose in published data, then falling over the following few hours. HVMN suggests taking a shot whenever you want to re-energize, so covering a full afternoon can mean two or more shots.
Ingredient transparency
Ketone-IQ wins Numin 8 · Ketone-IQ 9
Numin names all five of its ingredients and the job each one does: Rhodiola rosea, MSM, curcumin as Curcugen, L-tyrosine and chromium as Crominex 3+. The breakdown is on our science page.
Ketone-IQ is about as simple as a label gets: one active compound, R-1,3-butanediol, at an exact dose of 10g in the No Caffeine shot. On transparency alone, it edges Numin.
Price per serving
Numin wins Numin 8 · Ketone-IQ 7
A Numin 20-pack is $80 one-time, or $4.00 a stick pack. On subscription, the first order is $40 and each month after is $60, or $3.00 a stick pack.
A 24-shot pack of Ketone-IQ is $119.95 one-time, or $5.00 a shot, and $83.95 on subscription, about $3.50 a shot. If you need two shots to cover an afternoon, the daily cost doubles.
Ketone drink vs Numin side by side
A ketone drink and a clearance drink can sit on the same shelf and do unrelated jobs. The table below lines up what each one is, what it does and what it costs, from each company's own product page.
Neither is a stimulant in the No Caffeine version, which is a real point in Ketone-IQ's favor over energy drinks. The difference between raising output and protecting signaling is the subject of nootropics vs stimulants.
| Numin | Ketone-IQ | |
|---|---|---|
| Active ingredients | Five, all named | R-1,3-butanediol |
| What it does | Supports glutamate clearance | Adds ketones as brain fuel |
| Caffeine | None | None, or 100mg in +Caffeine |
| Published trial on decisions | 2025 crossover, 23 adults | None found for the shot |
| Onset | About 60 minutes | Ketones peak near 40 minutes |
| Duration | Six hours or more | A few hours a shot |
| Per serving | $4.00 ($3.00 subscribed) | $5.00 ($3.50 subscribed) |
| Format | Stick pack in water | Two-ounce shot |
Who each one is best for
People searching for the best nootropics for focus tend to compare everything that promises a clearer head, from stimulants to fuels to adaptogens. The more useful question is which problem you have. If you run out of steam in a long training session or on a low-carb day, fuel is a plausible answer. If your judgment slips after a morning of decisions, it is not.
Numin is a nootropic drink built for the second case, and Numin's five-ingredient nootropic drink is one stick pack after lunch.
Choose Numin if
- Your most consequential calls happen in the afternoon.
- You want no caffeine in any version of the product.
- You want evidence on decision errors, not on energy.
Ketone-IQ might suit you if
- You want a fast, single-ingredient fuel for training or fasting.
They are not mutually exclusive. Someone who takes a ketone shot before a morning run can still take Numin after lunch.
Ketone-IQ pros & cons vs Numin
Ketone IQ side effects are usually mild. The most common complaint with ketone drinks is stomach upset, especially on an empty stomach, and some reviewers dislike the taste. HVMN advises against the +Caffeine shot for children, pregnant or nursing women and anyone sensitive to caffeine.
Here are the strengths and limits of each, side by side.
Numin pros & cons
Pros
- 43% fewer decision errors than placebo in our published trial.
- No caffeine in any version, no sugar and no crash.
- Five named ingredients aimed at one mechanism.
- Covers six hours or more from one serving.
Cons
- Slower to feel than a ketone shot.
- Preventive, so take it after lunch rather than at 4pm.
- Four ingredients sit in one blend, listed by total weight.
Ketone-IQ pros & cons
Pros
- One active ingredient at an exact dose.
- A No Caffeine version with no sugar.
- Fast: ketones peak in about 40 minutes.
- A research program that began with defense funding.
Cons
- $5.00 a shot one-time, more if you need two.
- Stomach upset for some people.
- No trial of the shot on decision quality.
Numin vs Ketone-IQ questions
Answers to the questions we hear most, starting with Ketone IQ caffeine content, which depends on which shot you buy.
Does Ketone-IQ Have Caffeine?
It depends on the version. The No Caffeine shot has none and carries 10g of ketones. The +Caffeine shot pairs 5g of ketones with 100mg of caffeine from green tea, about the same as a cup of coffee. Numin has no caffeine in any form.
What Are the Side Effects of Ketone-IQ?
Most people report none, but ketone drinks can upset the stomach, particularly on an empty stomach, and some find the taste hard to like. The +Caffeine shot adds the usual caffeine effects. Check with your doctor if you are pregnant, nursing or managing a health condition.
Can You Take Ketone-IQ and Numin Together?
They work on different mechanisms, fuel and clearance, and neither interacts with the other's ingredients that we know of. A sensible split is Ketone-IQ around training and one stick pack of Numin 30 to 60 minutes after lunch. If you take medication, ask your doctor first.
Which Works Faster for Afternoon Focus?
Ketone-IQ peaks faster, at around 40 minutes. Numin takes about an hour to begin working and then holds for six hours or more. For a full afternoon of decisions, timing beats speed: take Numin after lunch, before the decline begins.
Our pick
Clearance, not more fuel, for the afternoon.
One stick pack in water after lunch, five named ingredients, no caffeine, and 43% fewer decision errors in our published trial. Your first subscription order is $40, it ships free, and you can pause or cancel anytime.
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