Kratom extracts vs leaf powder: what the labels mean

Canadian vendor menus put leaf powder, “enhanced” leaf, extracts and 7-hydroxymitragynine products side by side as if they were sizes of the same thing. They are not. The difference between them is concentration, and concentration is what the research, the regulators and the enforcement record all turn on. This guide explains what each product category is, how to read the labels, and why KratomSource reviews and tests leaf powder only. It is a description of the market, not a recommendation to use any of it.

Last reviewed: November 9, 2026. Part of the KratomSource knowledge base.

The four categories

Category	What it is	Typical mitragynine	7-OH
Leaf powder	Dried, de-veined, ground leaf	About 1–2% by weight	Trace, under 0.05%
Enhanced leaf	Leaf powder with extract blended back in	Often 3–10%, rarely labelled	Usually trace; should be tested
Extract	Alkaloids dissolved out of leaf and concentrated: powder, resin, liquid shot, tablet	10% to 70% or more	Varies; can rise with processing
7-OH product	Tablets, gummies or liquids built around concentrated or semi-synthetic 7-hydroxymitragynine	Low or none	Milligrams per serving, hundreds of times leaf levels

How extracts are made, and what “15x” means

An extract is made by soaking leaf in a solvent (water, ethanol, or an acidified mixture), filtering, and evaporating the liquid to leave a concentrate. Labels describe strength in two ways. A ratio such as 15x or 50x claims that many kilograms of leaf went into one kilogram of extract; it says nothing reliable about alkaloid content, because extraction efficiency varies and nobody audits the claim. A percentage such as “45% mitragynine” is a testable statement, and the only kind worth reading. An extract sold without a lot-specific certificate showing its alkaloid percentages is of unknown strength, and with a concentrate that matters far more than it does with leaf.

Why concentration changes the picture

• The research describes leaf. The large user surveys, the Malaysian cohort studies and the traditional-use record are all about leaf or leaf powder. Very little published human data exists for concentrates; see our research summary.
• Measurement error scales. A kitchen-scale error that is trivial with a 1.5% powder is a several-fold error with a 45% extract.
• 7-OH is pharmacologically different. It is several times more potent than mitragynine at the opioid receptor and, in animal studies, shows reinforcing effects that mitragynine does not. Our pharmacology guide covers the evidence.
• Regulators draw the line here. The US FDA moved in 2025 to recommend scheduling concentrated 7-OH while leaving leaf alone, and several US states cap 7-OH as a share of total alkaloids. Our 7-OH guide explains the threshold.
• Solvents become a testing question. Extracts need a residual-solvent panel that leaf does not.

The Canadian angle

Health Canada has not authorized any kratom product for consumption, and its recorded enforcement has targeted products presented for consumption: capsules, branded packets in smoke shops, anything with dosing language. Liquid shots, tablets, gummies, chocolate and drinks are consumable formats by design, so they sit much closer to that line than a bag of powder labelled as a botanical. Several Canadian vendors in our ranking sell extracts or edibles; we note it on their pages as a regulatory exposure and do not score those products. A few vendors state outright that they sell no 7-OH or strong extracts, and we record that too.

What to check on a concentrate’s label

• Mitragynine and 7-OH stated as percentages or milligrams per unit, not only as a ratio.
• A lot-specific certificate of analysis from a named lab showing those same numbers.
• For leaf sold as leaf: 7-OH below 0.05%. Higher means it has been enhanced or has oxidized.
• A residual-solvent result for any extract.
• An adulterant screen. Synthetic opioids and other drugs have been found in products sold as kratom extract in North America.

Our lab testing guide explains each panel and how to tell a real certificate from a decorative one.

Why we test leaf only

Leaf powder is what nearly every Canadian vendor sells, what the published evidence describes, and what can be compared like for like across stores. Scoring concentrates would mean ranking products on a potency scale, which is the opposite of what an independent safety-testing site should do. If a sample sold as leaf comes back with an extract-like alkaloid profile, we publish that as a finding.

Sources

• Kruegel AC, Grundmann O. The medicinal chemistry and neuropharmacology of kratom. Neuropharmacology 2018;134:108–120.
• Lydecker AG et al. Suspected adulteration of commercial kratom products with 7-hydroxymitragynine. J Med Toxicol 2016;12:341–349.
• Hemby SE et al. Abuse liability and therapeutic potential of the Mitragyna speciosa alkaloids mitragynine and 7-hydroxymitragynine. Addict Biol 2019;24:874–885.
• US FDA, FDA and Kratom, including 2025 statements on 7-hydroxymitragynine products.
• Health Canada, Recalls and Safety Alerts database; see our enforcement tracker.

Frequently asked questions

What does 15x mean on a kratom extract?

It claims that 15 kg of leaf went into 1 kg of extract. It is not an audited figure and says nothing reliable about alkaloid content; only a stated mitragynine percentage backed by a certificate does.

Is kratom extract stronger than powder?

Extracts concentrate alkaloids, typically to 10–70% mitragynine against about 1–2% in leaf powder. The published research on kratom describes leaf, not concentrates.

Does KratomSource review extracts or 7-OH products?

No. We review and lab-test leaf powder only, and flag extract, edible and 7-OH lines on vendor pages as a regulatory exposure.

How much 7-OH should leaf powder contain?

A trace, below 0.05% by weight. Higher levels in a product sold as leaf indicate enhancement or oxidation.