Where do I get the COA for my order?

Reply to your order confirmation email after the package ships. We send the COA tied to your specific batch the same business day. Subscription customers get the COA bundled with the shipment notification automatically.

What's the difference between a batch COA and a generic COA?

Generic COA = the manufacturer's standard test result for the product line, sometimes years old. Batch COA = the test run on the specific lot in your shipment. Generic COAs travel; batch COAs are tied to one production run. We send batch COAs.

What if the COA doesn't match what the page promised?

Reply to your order email with the discrepancy. We'll either replace from a different batch line or refund — your call. The COA is a contract, not a courtesy document.

Reading the COA

How to read a third-party COA without a chemistry degree.

A COA is five short sections. Most buyers only read one of them — the purity percentage — and miss the parts that decide whether the document is real. Five sections, in the order they appear, with what to actually check.

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Third-party accredited lab
Chromatogram included
Mass spec identity
Residual solvent panel
Signed + dated

The header — lab name, accreditation, dates.

First check: who ran the test? An independent lab name with an ISO/IEC 17025 accreditation number, a physical address, and a contact. "In-house QC" is not third-party. The header also lists the sample receipt date and the test completion date — those should be days apart, not the same day. Same-day means the test wasn't actually run.

HPLC purity — the chromatogram, not just the number.

High-Performance Liquid Chromatography separates the sample into peaks. The main peak is your compound; smaller peaks are impurities. Two things to check: the retention time of the main peak (should match the reference compound) and the area percent (the "99.x%" headline number). Without the chromatogram printed below the result, you only have the supplier's word.

Mass spec identity — confirms the molecule.

HPLC tells you it's pure; mass spec tells you it's the right thing. The MS section should list the observed molecular weight matching the theoretical to within a few daltons. Without MS confirmation, a 99% HPLC result only proves the sample is one thing pure — not that it's the molecule on the label.

Residual solvents — what's left from synthesis.

Synthesis uses solvents that have to be removed before release. The COA should list each solvent tested and its result against an ICH Q3C limit (or equivalent). "Below detection limit" is the answer you want for the harmful ones. Missing residual-solvent section = the test wasn't run, not that the sample is solvent-free.

The release signature — who signed and when.

A real COA ends with a name, a title, a date, and (often) a signature image or e-sig hash. "QC Department" with no name and no date is not a release. The signature is the person on the hook for the result; an unsigned COA is a draft.

Five sections, in order, every time. Once you've read one good COA, every other COA on the market either matches the structure or quietly skips a section.

Common questions

If you're still evaluating.

Where do I get the COA for my order?
Reply to your order confirmation email after the package ships. We send the COA tied to your specific batch the same business day. Subscription customers get the COA bundled with the shipment notification automatically.
What's the difference between a batch COA and a generic COA?
Generic COA = the manufacturer's standard test result for the product line, sometimes years old. Batch COA = the test run on the specific lot in your shipment. Generic COAs travel; batch COAs are tied to one production run. We send batch COAs.
What if the COA doesn't match what the page promised?
Reply to your order email with the discrepancy. We'll either replace from a different batch line or refund — your call. The COA is a contract, not a courtesy document.