How to Spot Fake Kirkland 5% Minoxidil Solution

Important Message

As of 2026, this article is outdated especially for regions outside of the USA. Please refer to our other article, Why You Should not Buy Kirkland Minoxidil in 2026

Article

Kirkland 5% minoxidil solution has really evolved over the past couple of years. An area in which we have noticed a significant number of changes is the packaging.

Changes in the packaging have led to widespread confusion within the minoxidil community, with many questioning the authenticity of their product.

This article documents some of the things we have learnt about kirkland minoxidil over the years.

Discoveries

Crystallisation

The original Kirkland minoxidil liquid treatment crystallizes when it dries up. Same way it does when it dries up on the skin too. The fake minoxidil does not crystallize.

The easiest way to test this is to place a few drops on the inside ridges of the bottle lid. These drops will end up crystallising and a crunching sound can be heard whenever the bottle is opened. It will eventually tun yellow.

Itchiness

Original Kirkland minoxidil should cause some slight itchiness and irritation where applied. This is especially true when the area of application is not kept moisturised or oiled.

Counterfeit kirkland minoxidil does not cause as much itchiness and drying.

Texture

Original Kirkland minoxidil should be of an oily texture. When on the skin, it should create a shine in the area of application which is very visible under the sun.

Counterfeit Kirkland minoxidil is less oily and will more or less be like water when applied.

Scent

Original kirkland minoxidil should have the scent of alcohol (vodka to be specific). This scent should have a denseness to it which lingers in your nose for a bit.

The scents from the fake kirkland minoxidil is also of alcohol but is a lot lighter. The scent will be easier to breath in and almost smell a bit fresher.

Packaging

The bottom of the bottle of original kirkland minoxidil should have two dents. The fake bottles, will be smooth.

Summary

These fake batches of Kirkland minoxidil are most likely being manufactured in China and contain a lower quality of the 5% minoxidil. It's still minoxidil, but will be less effective than original kirkland minoxidil.

Be very careful when it comes to the price as the cheaper prices tend to be an indicator that it was purchased from China at a much lower price than the original Kirkland minoxidil and is being sold much cheaper.

At this point, distinguishing authenticity through packaging is very hard since counterfeit packaging is almost identical but if you look at these five aspects above, you'll be able to distinguish between an original and counterfeit bottle.