Caffeine vs Beta-Alanine for Workout Performance: What the Research Shows

Caffeine and beta-alanine are routinely lumped together in pre-workout formulas and online discussion, but the underlying research describes them as solving different problems. Caffeine is a central nervous system compound that lowers perceived effort and improves performance across a broad range of exercise modalities. Beta-alanine is a substrate that, after several weeks of daily loading, raises intramuscular carnosine and buffers hydrogen ions during a narrow band of high-intensity efforts. The International Society of Sports Nutrition (ISSN) has published position stands on both — and it is striking how different the use-case sentences are. **Disclaimer.** Nutripedia summarises published research. We do not provide medical advice. Consult a UK GP, NHS pharmacist, or registered dietitian before starting any supplement, especially if pregnant, breastfeeding, on medication, or managing a chronic condition. Pre-workout products in particular often combine multiple stimulant ingredients; the safety data from single-ingredient trials does not necessarily transfer to multi-stimulant formulas. This article walks through the mechanism of each compound, what the controlled trials report, where the use-cases overlap and where they don't, and what the literature says about stacking them with creatine.