When it comes to cognitive enhancers, Adderall is one of the best. It is used by office workers, students, and other people requiring a mental boost.
And it’s because the drug is effective in stimulating the mind, enabling you to perform well. However, Adderall has several alternatives, which you can use if you do not like Adderall.
Even though Adderall is an effective brain enhancer, people don’t like it because it is also a performance enhancer for athletes.
It quickly increases physical and mental energy, reducing fatigue, attenuating pain, and increasing aggressive behavior.
Also, its long-term risks haven’t fully been understood. That’s why you and everyone else should be interested in knowing the available Adderall alternatives.
What Is Adderall?

Adderall is a medicine prescribed for the treatment of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) in children and adults. It also treats sleep related to ailments and narcolepsy.
Apart from that, it is a preferred nootropic drug, which students take off-prescription. As we observed earlier, it stimulates the central nervous system, improving studies, and other activities.
Why Do People Stay Away From Adderall?
There are several reasons for staying away from Adderall, which makes people seek alternatives. That has to do with the side-effects that one may have after taking the drug.
The following are some of the side-effects of Adderall on the human body.
- Increased blood pressure
- Fever
- Habit-forming and likely habit-forming
- Nausea
- Pain when urinating
- Diarrhea
- Fast, irregular heartbeats
- Hangover symptoms
- Twitching (tremors) muscles
- Possible erectile dysfunction
For that reason, it is essential to seek Adderall alternatives, which have equally-effective nootropic effects.
Nootropics are drugs that offer significant cognitive enhancement like (or even better than) Adderall, albeit without the side-effects.
Many of them are available in the form of supplements that you can take without a prescription.
Using nootropics can help you enjoy various benefits, including the following:

- Inability to be fatigued
- Improved memory and retention
- Enhancing overall cognition
- The intense focus for 8 to 12 hours
Top Adderall Alternatives to Help Enhance Your Cognition

Since you will get the same cognitive effects from Adderall alternatives, there is no need for you to go ahead and suffer the unwanted side-effects.
Now let’s review the different nootropic drugs you could use as replacements for Adderall.
1. Gorilla Mind Rush
Gorilla mind rush provides between 6 and 8 hours of focus and cognitive enhancement. If you are involved in work, ideas will start to flow at a high rate, enabling you to accomplish much.
As it does that, Gorilla Mind Rush doesn’t cause a hangover. Therefore, you get back to your familiar feeling as soon as the 6 to eight hours end.
It has a simple, comprehensive formula that includes 11 highly-potent, all-natural nootropic ingredients that boost mental acuity.
One of the reasons it can effectively mimic Adderall is N-acetyl-L-Tyrosine, which stimulates dopamine production.
Since third parties have tested it, it doesn’t contain toxic ingredients and excess fillers. Because of that, you are going to fall in love with this nootropic drug.
2. Pine Bark Extract
Pine bark extract isn’t just a nootropic but also an effective treatment for ADHD. It is also available under the brand name Pycnogenol and has been established to improve children with ADHD.
It works by increasing the levels of norepinephrine and dopamine in the brain. Doing so helps you feel energetic and more alert in situations when you need it.
Unlike Adderall, pine bark extract doesn’t have side-effects. Thus, you can take it without feeling nauseous, feverish, or pained. Besides, it lowers inflammation in the brain, enhancing the excellent and energetic feeling.
Due to its antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effects, the drug can also effectively reduce symptoms of osteoarthritis.
3. DLPA
DLPA (DL-Phenylalanine) is an effective Adderall alternative that helps your body produce high amounts of norepinephrine and dopamine.
It is an amino acid, which has been established to have multiple functions in the human body. For instance, DLPA can enhance your mood by generating dopamine (a feel-good hormone) in the brain.
Another effect of DLPA is increasing your phenylalanine (adrenaline or noradrenaline stimulant) levels. With more phenylalanine levels in your body, you will feel more energized and ready to work throughout the day.
The drug also makes your mind sharper since it can bind itself to glutamate AMPA receptors. Besides, it can relieve pain by helping your body produce increased amounts of opioids.
4. Noopept
Noopept is the #1 best-selling nootropic globally, mainly because of its potency and ability to treat ADHD. The drug can stimulate your brain on mild levels, helping you improve concentration and focus.
Unlike Adderall, it doesn’t produce the production of dopamine and norepinephrine but alters the glutamate system
When taking Noopept, experts advise that you use it in lower doses to gain nootropic benefits effectively. Apart from helping energize your mind, the drug can also help improve your metabolic effects.
Thus, it can help you to overcome physical trauma, oxidative stress, and mental trauma. Only that it may not act as an effective treatment against ADHD and other cognitive disorders.
5. NALT
NALT or n-acetyl-tyrosine is an amino acid derived from tyrosine and is used by people to improve their mood and focus. It works by stimulating the production of adrenaline, dopamine, and serotonin.
Adrenaline is a hormone that enhances your energy levels when its amount increases in the body. On the other hand, dopamine and serotonin are two neurotransmitters that improve mental acuity and concentration.
While tyrosine can do all of that, it is not as bioavailable as NALT. Therefore, using NALT means your body can absorb it faster and make use of it almost immediately.
It, thus, quickly provides you will get the same effects that you could have got from Adderall. Besides, NALT replenishes the building blocks for neurotransmitters, which Adderall may deplete.
6. Sulbutiamine
Sulbutiamine is a nootropic and one of the best Adderall alternatives with ingredients that make it an effective stimulant. It is a synthetic form of vitamin B1, which acts faster than natural vitamins.
That’s because it is fat-soluble and moves quickly between the blood and the brain. It works by increasing the brain levels of thiamine, thus helping you overcome fatigue and weakness.
However, that isn’t the only thing that Sulbutiamine is going to do for you. The drug can also help you improve your athletic performance, overcome pain, and erectile dysfunction.
Taken orally, Sulbutiamine is safer than Adderall, given that it has very few side-effects. However, some users may experience tiredness, headache, and nausea.
If you are pregnant or breast-feeding, you are advised not to use the drug since there isn’t enough information about it.
7. Aniracetam
Aniracetam or N-anisoyl-2-pyrrolidinone is a nootropic that acts as an excellent alternative to Adderall, improving creativity, memory, and motivation.
In Europe, Aniracetam is a prescriptive drug, even though it is yet to gain approval by the US Food and Drug Administration.
Instead, it is sold as a dietary supplement in the US, where people use it as a booster for memory and mental sharpness.
Among its benefits, Aniracetam regulates the nerve signals between your nerve cells, making you feel great. Therefore, you can use it to sharpen your memory, increase alertness, and improve concentration.
Some makers even say that the drug is an excellent treatment for Alzheimer’s disease, ADHD, sleep disorders, and motion sickness. Compared to Adderall, the drug has fewer side-effects, making it safer.
8. Adrafinil
Adrafinil is a nootropic supplement that acts as a prodrug for another drug known as Modafinil. Using it increases the concentration of Modafinil in your body, thus helping improve wakefulness and alertness.
Therefore, Adrafinil is a safe stimulant since it has limited side-effects, including hyperactivity. One of the best uses of Adrafinil is keeping you alert and awake for longer.
It works by controlling the dopamine levels in your blood, helping you stay alert. However, it also stimulates the glutamate, GABA, and histamine systems, thus making your life better than it was before.
No matter how much close to Adderall it might be, the drug isn’t addictive or capable of being abused. So, it is a good Adderall option, especially when it comes to having fewer or no side-effects.
9. Qualia Mind
If you are looking for a reliable Adderall alternative, then you should buy Qualia Mind, an over-the-counter supplement with nootropic properties.
It contains several ingredients like MucunaPruriens, N-Acetyl L-Tyrosine, and DL-Phenylalanine, improving concentration and mental focus by improving dopamine.
Therefore Qualia Mind helps improve brain function and gives you the ability to reason and concentrate.
Another important use of Qualia Mind is promoting metabolism, reducing fatigue, and improving energy levels. Still, the supplement contains vitamin C, which enhances immunity.
Even as it provides all the benefits of Adderall, Qualia Mind has few or no side-effects. It is, therefore, safe to take.
Adderall Alternatives- Conclusion
You don’t have to buy Adderall with all of the alternatives we have discussed above. All of them will give you the same benefits as Adderall but without the resultant side-effects.
Besides, they are mostly safe plant extracts that won’t cause you any harm.