Head to head

CJC-1295 without DAC vs MK-677

GH secretagogue

Two compounds that are more often stacked than compared — the side-by-side data, and what actually separates them.

Verdict

Usually stacked — and only MK-677 has human trial data

CJC-1295 without DAC and MK-677 appear in each other's stacks in this dataset, so the most common real-world use is together rather than instead of. If you are picking one, the evidence is the honest tiebreak: MK-677 has controlled human trials behind it, without an approval, while CJC-1295 without DAC has no controlled human data at all, so the numbers here come from practice, not a label. That is a difference in how much is known, not a verdict on how well either works.

What you are actually choosing between

Before anything else: the dataset lists CJC-1295 without DAC and MK-677 in each other's stacks. They are run together more often than they are chosen between, so if you came here for a winner, the first honest answer is that this may not be an either/or.

Both are classed here as growth hormone secretagogues, so this is a within-class choice: the mechanism is broadly shared and what separates them is kinetics, route, and how much has actually been tested.

The overlap is recovery and sleep and muscle growth. On this site's goal weighting — an editorial priority score, not a measure of effect size — CJC-1295 without DAC rates 4/5 for recovery and sleep and MK-677 rates 5/5. Outside that overlap only MK-677 goes further, carrying weight for appetite control; CJC-1295 without DAC's declared goals stop at the overlap.

The evidence

This is the part that decides most of it. MK-677 has controlled human trials behind it, without an approval — never approved, and trials flagged higher fasting glucose. CJC-1295 without DAC has no controlled human data at all, so the numbers here come from practice, not a label — the closest approved comparators are sermorelin and tesamorelin. That gap is the headline, and it is a statement about the literature rather than a promise about you: a compound with trial data can still do nothing for your case, and one without it is unproven rather than disproven.

How they differ in practice

CJC-1295 without DAC is a subcutaneous injection; MK-677 is taken by mouth. That is the difference most people actually feel: CJC-1295 without DAC means reconstituting a vial and injecting; MK-677 does not require either. If needles are the deciding factor, this line settles it before any of the rest matters.

The kinetics are roughly 48× apart — 24 h for MK-677 against 30 min for CJC-1295 without DAC — and yet both are dosed once daily. That schedule is convention rather than clearance, which is worth knowing before you assume the two behave the same way between doses.

Committed time differs: CJC-1295 without DAC runs 12 weeks, MK-677 runs 16 weeks.

Source notes

What the evidence actually says

Verbatim, so you can check the verdict above against what it was built from.

CJC-1295 without DAC (Mod GRF 1-29)

Tetra-substituted GHRH (1-29) with no Drug Affinity Complex, so it clears in roughly 30 minutes and produces a single discrete GH pulse. That short half-life is the whole point: it is dosed once to three times daily, typically around 100 mcg (roughly 1-2 mcg/kg, a saturating pulse dose) on an empty stomach, and is paired with a ghrelin agonist such as ipamorelin. It is NOT an approved medicine; the closest approved comparators are sermorelin and tesamorelin. Consumer supply is research-chemical grade and dosing convention comes from practice, not from a label.

MK-677 (Ibutamoren)

Orally active, long-acting ghrelin receptor (GHS-R1a) agonist that raises GH and IGF-1 for around 24 hours per dose. It has been through multiple human trials, including a two-year study in older adults, but was never approved for any indication and trials also flagged increased fasting glucose and reduced insulin sensitivity. It is a non-peptide small molecule, so it is taken by mouth rather than injected.

Side by side

The numbers

CJC-1295 without DAC compared with MK-677
Attribute	CJC-1295 without DAC	MK-677
Class	GH secretagogue	GH secretagogue
Routes	Subcutaneous	Oral
Dose range	100 mcg–300 mcg (typical 100 mcg)	10 mg–25 mg (typical 15 mg)
Frequency	Once daily	Once daily
Half-life	30 min	24 h
Cycle length	12 weeks	16 weeks
Experience	Intermediate	Intermediate
Evidence	Practice-derived only	Controlled human trials
Contraindications	Pregnant / nursing Active malignancy Under 18	Pregnant / nursing Active malignancy Under 18
Side effects	Injection site redness, itching or a short-lived welt Head rush, flushing or warmth in the minutes after injection Mild water retention Tingling or numbness in the hands Drowsiness when dosed pre-bed	Pronounced increase in appetite, often within the first few days Water retention, puffiness in the face and ankles, and rapid scale weight gain Raised fasting blood glucose and reduced insulin sensitivity — a real concern for anyone prediabetic or diabetic, and worth monitoring with bloodwork on longer runs Lethargy or grogginess the morning after a pre-bed dose Numbness or tingling in the hands, sometimes carpal-tunnel-like Vivid dreams and deeper but occasionally disrupted sleep Mild joint aches at higher doses

Turn a typical dose into a mark on the syringe: CJC-1295 without DAC

Goals

Where they overlap, and where they do not

Goal	CJC-1295 without DAC	MK-677
recovery and sleep	CJC-1295 without DAC: 4/5	MK-677: 5/5
muscle growth	CJC-1295 without DAC: 3/5	MK-677: 4/5
injury repair	CJC-1295 without DAC: 3/5	MK-677: 2/5
longevity	CJC-1295 without DAC: 2/5	MK-677: 2/5
appetite controlone only	CJC-1295 without DAC: —	MK-677: 5/5
fat lossone only	CJC-1295 without DAC: 2/5	MK-677: —
skin and hairone only	CJC-1295 without DAC: —	MK-677: 2/5

They overlap on 4 goals and diverge on 3. Weights are this site’s editorial priority score out of 5 — how central a goal is to why people use a compound. They are not effect sizes and two 5s do not mean two equal results.

Go deeper

MonographCJC-1295 without DAC (Mod GRF 1-29)Mechanism, protocol, storage, sources.MonographMK-677 (Ibutamoren)Mechanism, protocol, storage, sources.ToolReconstitution calculatorTurn either dose above into a mark on the syringe.

Other comparisons with these two

Educational information only, not medical advice. Talk to a licensed clinician before starting, changing, or stopping anything.