Side by side
Afamelanotide vs AHK-Cu
Both are discussed for skin & hair. What this site records about each, side by side. Every figure is on the compound's own page with the source it came from.
| Afamelanotide | AHK-Cu | |
|---|---|---|
| What it is | The approved member of the melanotan family. Same idea as melanotan II, taken through a full regulatory process, and the contrast between them is instructive. | GHK-Cu's less-studied sibling, used topically for hair. Almost all the research people cite for it is actually GHK-Cu research. |
| EvidenceHow much human evidence exists, not how well it works. | Approved | Preclinical |
| Regulatory statusReviewed 2026-08-16 | Approved by the FDA (2019) and the EMA (2014) as Scenesse, a 16 mg subcutaneous implant for erythropoietic protoporphyria, inserted by a trained clinician every two months. Not approved for cosmetic tanning anywhere. Injectable powder sold as melanotan 1 is a research chemical — not the approved product — and does not share its delivery method, purity controls or supervision. | Sold as a cosmetic ingredient, not a drug. Cosmetics are not assessed for efficacy before sale, and no medicine containing it is approved for hair loss anywhere. |
| Routes | Subcutaneous | Topical |
| Half-life | 24 hours | Not recorded |
| Cheapest per mgVials only, read from vendors' own listings and dated on the price index. | $1.76/mg | $0.30/mg |
| Median per mg | $3.80/mg | $0.66/mg |
| Vendors with a price | 23 | 16 |
| Storage once mixed | Refrigerated at 2–8 °C. Do not freeze once mixed. | A finished cosmetic has a preservative system and lasts months. A serum mixed at home has none and will grow bacteria. That is the practical risk with any topical peptide. |
Compare two other compounds · The full price index
This page is educational. It describes what published research reports, not what you should do. Peptides discussed here are largely not approved for human use, and nothing on BioAlmanac is medical advice. Nothing here ranks these two against each other. A table can show that one has more human evidence behind it or costs less per milligram; neither of those is a recommendation, and the right comparison for any person is one their doctor makes with them.