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A TRT (testosterone replacement therapy) dose depends on the form of testosterone, not on a formula. For the most common option, injections of testosterone cypionate or enanthate, the Endocrine Society’s guideline lists 75-100 mg once a week or 150-200 mg every two weeks, adjusted to blood tests. Gels, patches, pellets and long-acting injections each have their own label doses.
This page puts all of those doses in one TRT dosage chart. It then covers the math most people are looking for: how to turn a dose in milligrams into millilitres or syringe units, and how long a vial will last. It also explains how prescribers monitor and adjust a dose, and why bodybuilding doses are a different thing entirely.
Nothing here replaces a prescriber. Testosterone is a prescription drug, and the right dose is the one that brings your blood levels into the normal range with the fewest side effects.
Key Takeaways
- For testosterone cypionate or enanthate injections, the Endocrine Society lists 75-100 mg weekly or 150-200 mg every two weeks as replacement doses.
- No validated formula sets a TRT dose from age, body fat or activity level. The dose is adjusted to blood tests, aiming for the mid-normal range.
- Volume is simple math: mg per injection divided by the vial’s mg/mL. 100 mg from a 200 mg/mL vial is 0.5 mL, or 50 units on a U-100 insulin syringe.
- Testopel pellets are labelled at 150-450 mg (2-6 pellets) every 3-6 months. Aveed is 750 mg at the start, at 4 weeks, then every 10 weeks.
- TRT suppresses sperm production and can push hematocrit too high. Bodybuilding doses of 200-1,000 mg a week are several times a replacement dose and carry far more risk.
Typical TRT Dosage
TRT is meant to bring testosterone back into the normal range in men with a confirmed deficiency, not to push it above that range. The Endocrine Society’s guideline recommends diagnosing low testosterone only in men who have symptoms and consistently low morning, fasting total testosterone on at least two separate tests. It uses 264 ng/dL as the lower limit of normal; the American Urological Association uses 300 ng/dL. Our guide to average testosterone levels by age shows how those cut-offs compare with typical results.
For injectable testosterone cypionate or enanthate, the guideline lists 75-100 mg once a week, or 150-200 mg every two weeks. The original drug labels allow a much wider range (50-400 mg every two to four weeks), but those long intervals predate current practice. Most men are started within the guideline range and adjusted after blood work.
Two men on the same dose can end up with very different blood levels. That is why TRT dosing follows lab results and symptoms rather than a fixed number.
Typical TRT Frequency
Most men on injectable TRT inject once or twice a week. Every-two-week schedules are still used, but they create a high peak a few days after the injection and a low trough before the next one. Some men notice their symptoms coming back toward the end of the interval.
Splitting the same weekly dose into smaller, more frequent injections smooths out those swings. For example, 140 mg a week can be given as 70 mg twice a week. The total weekly dose stays the same; only the shape of the blood level changes. Consistency matters more than the clock, as our guide to the best time of day to inject testosterone explains.
Testosterone cypionate and enanthate vials are labelled for intramuscular injection. Many prescribers now also use small subcutaneous injections into belly fat, and one product, Xyosted, is a testosterone enanthate autoinjector made for subcutaneous use.
TRT Dosage Chart
The chart below brings together the label and guideline doses for the forms of testosterone used in TRT. These are starting points that a prescriber adjusts to blood tests, not doses to follow on your own.
| Form | Example Brands | Typical Starting Dose | Usual Range | Frequency |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Testosterone cypionate (injection) | Depo-Testosterone, generics | 100 mg weekly or 200 mg every 2 weeks | 75-100 mg weekly or 150-200 mg every 2 weeks | Weekly, twice weekly or every 2 weeks |
| Testosterone enanthate (injection) | Generics | 100 mg weekly or 200 mg every 2 weeks | 75-100 mg weekly or 150-200 mg every 2 weeks | Weekly, twice weekly or every 2 weeks |
| Testosterone enanthate (subcutaneous autoinjector) | Xyosted | 75 mg | 50-100 mg | Weekly |
| Testosterone undecanoate (injection) | Aveed (US) | 750 mg (3 mL) | 750 mg | At start, at 4 weeks, then every 10 weeks |
| Testosterone undecanoate (injection) | Nebido (outside the US) | 1,000 mg (4 mL) | 1,000 mg | At start, at 6 weeks, then every 10-14 weeks |
| Testosterone undecanoate (oral capsules) | Jatenzo, Tlando, Kyzatrex | Product-specific (Jatenzo: 237 mg twice daily) | Product-specific | Once or twice daily with food |
| Testosterone gel 1% | AndroGel 1%, Testim, generics | 50 mg (5 g of gel) | 50-100 mg (5-10 g of gel) | Daily |
| Testosterone gel 1.62% | AndroGel 1.62% | 40.5 mg (2 pump presses) | 20.25-81 mg | Daily |
| Testosterone patch | Androderm | 4 mg | 2-6 mg | Nightly |
| Nasal testosterone | Natesto | 11 mg (one pump per nostril) | 11 mg | Three times daily |
| Testosterone pellets | Testopel | 150-450 mg (2-6 pellets of 75 mg) | 150-450 mg | Every 3-6 months |
| Buccal testosterone | Striant (discontinued in the US) | 30 mg | 30 mg | Twice daily (every 12 hours) |
| Testosterone propionate (injection) | Rarely used for TRT | 25-50 mg | 25-50 mg | 2-3 times a week |
What the Chart Doesn’t Show
- Gels: Only about 10% of the testosterone in a gel is absorbed through the skin, so a 50 mg gel dose is not comparable to a 50 mg injection. Gels carry a boxed warning about passing testosterone to children or partners through skin contact, so the application site should be covered and hands washed.
- Aveed: Because of rare but serious oil microembolism and allergic reactions right after the injection, Aveed is only given in a clinic, followed by 30 minutes of observation.
- Pellets: Testopel pellets are implanted under the skin, usually in the hip or buttock, in a minor procedure. Once they are in, the dose can’t easily be lowered, and pellets occasionally work their way out of the skin.
- Oral undecanoate: The three products use different doses and are taken with food. They carry a warning that they can raise blood pressure.
- Propionate: A short-acting ester that needs injections every two to three days, which is why it has largely been replaced by cypionate and enanthate for TRT.
TRT Dosage Calculator: mg to mL and Syringe Units
Calculators that pick a TRT dose from your age, body fat or activity level have no clinical basis. No guideline sets a dose that way, and body fat has nothing to do with how many injections a week you need. The calculation that is genuinely useful is simpler: turning a prescribed dose into a volume you can draw up.
Step by Step
- Weekly dose: Start with the weekly dose your prescriber set, for example 140 mg.
- Dose per injection: Divide by the number of injections per week. 140 mg ÷ 2 = 70 mg.
- Volume: Divide by the concentration printed on the vial. 70 mg ÷ 200 mg/mL = 0.35 mL.
- Syringe units: On a U-100 insulin syringe, 1 mL is 100 units, so multiply mL by 100. 0.35 mL = 35 units.
For quick conversions, use our TRT testosterone calculator.
mg to mL Chart
| Dose per Injection | Volume at 100 mg/mL | Volume at 200 mg/mL | Units at 200 mg/mL (U-100 syringe) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 50 mg | 0.50 mL | 0.25 mL | 25 units |
| 60 mg | 0.60 mL | 0.30 mL | 30 units |
| 70 mg | 0.70 mL | 0.35 mL | 35 units |
| 75 mg | 0.75 mL | 0.375 mL | 37.5 units |
| 80 mg | 0.80 mL | 0.40 mL | 40 units |
| 100 mg | 1.00 mL | 0.50 mL | 50 units |
| 120 mg | 1.20 mL | 0.60 mL | 60 units |
| 140 mg | 1.40 mL | 0.70 mL | 70 units |
| 150 mg | 1.50 mL | 0.75 mL | 75 units |
| 160 mg | 1.60 mL | 0.80 mL | 80 units |
| 200 mg | 2.00 mL | 1.00 mL | 100 units |
Always check the concentration on your own vial. Testosterone cypionate comes as both 100 mg/mL and 200 mg/mL, so the same dose can mean twice the volume depending on the vial. If your vial has a different strength, divide the dose by that number instead.
How Long Will a Vial Last?
Two steps: milligrams in the vial = concentration × vial size in mL. Weeks the vial lasts = milligrams in the vial ÷ weekly dose.
| Vial | Total Testosterone | At 100 mg/week | At 140 mg/week | At 200 mg/week |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10 mL at 200 mg/mL | 2,000 mg | 20 weeks | About 14 weeks | 10 weeks |
| 10 mL at 100 mg/mL | 1,000 mg | 10 weeks | About 7 weeks | 5 weeks |
| 5 mL at 200 mg/mL | 1,000 mg | 10 weeks | About 7 weeks | 5 weeks |
Real-world numbers come in slightly lower, because a little oil is lost in the needle and syringe with every draw. Leave some margin when planning refills.
How a TRT Dose Is Monitored and Adjusted
Because the right dose differs from man to man, TRT is adjusted to blood tests. Endocrine Society guidance is to check testosterone and hematocrit 3-6 months after starting and then once a year, aiming for testosterone in the mid-normal range.
When to Test Testosterone on TRT
- Cypionate or enanthate injections: Midway between injections. If the result is above 700 ng/dL or below 400 ng/dL, the dose or the injection interval is adjusted.
- Gels: 2-8 hours after applying, once you have used the gel for at least a week.
- Pellets: At the end of the dosing interval.
- Aveed: Just before the next injection.
Other Blood Work
- Hematocrit: Testosterone increases red blood cell production. The guideline says to stop treatment if hematocrit rises above 54%, until it falls back to a safe level.
- PSA: In men in the prostate screening age range, before starting and again 3-12 months into treatment.
- Estradiol: The guideline does not call for routine estradiol tests. It is usually checked if breast tenderness or swelling appears.
Who Should Not Start TRT
The Endocrine Society advises against testosterone therapy in men who:
- Plan to father a child in the near future
- Have breast or prostate cancer, or a prostate nodule or raised PSA that hasn’t been checked by a urologist
- Already have a high hematocrit
- Have untreated severe sleep apnea or severe urinary symptoms
- Have uncontrolled heart failure, or had a heart attack or stroke in the last six months
- Have a blood clotting disorder
TRT also suppresses LH and FSH, the hormones that drive sperm production, so it can sharply lower sperm counts while you are on it. Men who want children are usually offered other treatments first.
On heart risk, the largest trial so far is reassuring. In the TRAVERSE trial, 5,246 men aged 45-80 with low testosterone and existing heart disease or a high cardiovascular risk used testosterone gel or a placebo. Testosterone did not increase major cardiac events such as heart attack and stroke. Atrial fibrillation, acute kidney injury and pulmonary embolism were more common in the testosterone group.
Testosterone Doses Used in Bodybuilding
Bodybuilding doses are not TRT. Commonly reported doses for a testosterone cycle range from about 200 to 1,000 mg a week, several times a replacement dose, and some users report going higher. These figures come from user reports, not medical practice.
The best controlled data on high doses comes from Shalender Bhasin’s research group. In a 1996 trial published in the New England Journal of Medicine, healthy men given 600 mg of testosterone enanthate a week for 10 weeks gained more fat-free mass and strength than men on placebo, and the gains were largest in men who also lifted weights. A later dose-response study gave men 25 to 600 mg a week for 20 weeks, with their own testosterone production switched off. Muscle size and strength rose with the dose, while HDL (“good”) cholesterol fell as the dose went up.
Those were short trials in screened men with medical follow-up. Outside a study, high-dose testosterone is linked to raised hematocrit, worse cholesterol, acne, gynecomastia from conversion to estrogen, and suppression of natural testosterone that can take months to recover after stopping. Using it without a prescription is also illegal in the US.
Differences Between Types of Testosterone
Every form in the chart delivers the same hormone. What changes is how it gets into the blood and how long it lasts. For injections, that comes down to the ester: a chemical chain attached to the testosterone molecule that slows its release from the oil.
| Ester | Commonly Cited Half-Life | Testosterone Content | Typical TRT Schedule |
|---|---|---|---|
| Propionate | About 1 day | About 83% | Every 2-3 days |
| Enanthate | About 4-5 days | About 72% | Weekly or twice weekly |
| Cypionate | About 8 days | About 70% | Weekly, twice weekly or every 2 weeks |
| Undecanoate (injection) | Long-acting | About 63% | Every 10-14 weeks after the first doses |
The testosterone content matters when comparing doses. Part of every milligram of a testosterone ester is the ester itself, so 100 mg of testosterone cypionate contains about 70 mg of actual testosterone. Cypionate and enanthate are close enough that guidelines dose them the same way. For more on how the hormone works, see our testosterone compound page.
Getting Tested and Prescribed
TRT starts with proper testing: two early-morning testosterone tests, plus LH and FSH to work out why levels are low. That matters, because low testosterone caused by a pituitary problem or another treatable condition needs a different workup.
Online TRT clinics can arrange the lab tests and prescribe if you qualify. Our comparison of the best online TRT clinics covers how the main providers compare.
Pros
- LegitScript-certified telehealth provider that uses licensed U.S. pharmacies.
- Licensed providers review every intake, and TRT plans include quarterly bloodwork.
- Direct-pay pricing with the consultation and shipping included and no membership fees.
- Fully remote, with no clinic visits and treatments shipped to your door.
Cons
- Serves U.S. patients only.
- Some treatments are compounded and have not been evaluated by the FDA for safety or effectiveness.
The Bottom Line
The right TRT dose is the one that brings your blood levels into the normal range with the fewest side effects, and only blood work can show what that is.
- For cypionate or enanthate injections, guideline doses are 75-100 mg weekly or 150-200 mg every two weeks. Weekly or twice-weekly injections give steadier levels than every two weeks.
- Turning a dose into a volume is simple math: mg per injection ÷ concentration = mL, and mL × 100 = units on a U-100 insulin syringe.
- Age, body fat and activity level don’t set a TRT dose. Testing at 3-6 months and then yearly, including hematocrit and PSA, is how a dose is adjusted safely.
Frequently Asked Questions
Disclaimer
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