Ashwagandha vs St. John's Wort for mood: which has better evidence?
A tie on evidence grade for mood (Ashwagandha Grade B vs St. John's Wort Grade B). For mood, the two are evidence-matched; the difference is in effect and safety.
Platform evidence comparison
These existing platform assessments are separate from the source-reported findings below. They do not represent a direct trial comparing these treatments.
| Ashwagandha | St. John's Wort | |
|---|---|---|
| Grade | grade B | grade B |
| Certainty | moderate | moderate |
| Effect | Meta-analysis of 22 studies: ashwagandha supplementation significantly reduced stress, depression, and anxiety scores versus control, with a dose-response relationship observed for stress. One of the more consistent mental-health signals in the ashwagandha literature, though study quality and dosing vary. | effective for mild-to-moderate depression in trials |
| Studied dose | dose-dependent; higher doses associated with greater stress reduction | 300 mg ×3/day |
| Population | adults | adults, mild-to-moderate depression |
| Safety | 2 modeled interaction(s) | 1 modeled interaction(s) |
Grade B / moderate: probably helps, and new studies are unlikely to reverse this — but could shrink the effect size.
Direct comparison evidence
There are no direct RCTs in our corpus comparing Ashwagandha and St. John's Wort head-to-head for mood. What we present above is an indirect comparison: each side's own trials, contrasted. This is standard practice for supplement comparisons — dose, population, and outcome-instrument differences between the two evidence bases add uncertainty on top of each side's own grade.
Can you take both?
Modeled interaction: moderate. Two serotonergic/sedating botanicals together may have additive effects. Full interaction page →
Decision guidance
- If certainty matters most — choose whichever side carries the higher certainty rating at a similar grade.
- If you're on medications — check each side's interaction pages before deciding; safety differences dominate small evidence-grade gaps.
- If your population is under-studied — the smaller-effect side with better population evidence often wins over the higher-grade side studied in a different demographic.
- If cost matters — form and dose page differences (Ashwagandha vs St. John's Wort) can invert the practical winner.
Grade history
No grade changes yet. Initial grade assigned; re-reviewed on every 12 months (Grade A/B) — next review by . Methodology v1.
Re-review cadence: every 12 months (Grade A/B) · next scheduled by · methodology v1.
Frequently asked
Which has stronger evidence: Ashwagandha or St. John's Wort for mood?
Ashwagandha carries Grade B at moderate certainty; St. John's Wort carries Grade B at moderate. The stronger evidence points to a tie, subject to the caveat that direct head-to-head trials are usually absent for supplement pairings.
Can I take Ashwagandha and St. John's Wort together?
Modeled interaction between Ashwagandha and St. John's Wort: severity moderate. Two serotonergic/sedating botanicals together may have additive effects.
Have Ashwagandha and St. John's Wort been compared head-to-head?
Direct RCTs comparing the two for mood are uncommon. This page contrasts each side's own trial evidence — that is an indirect comparison, which introduces confounds from population and dose differences. See the direct-comparison block above.
What decides between Ashwagandha and St. John's Wort for me?
Read the decision guidance below — the split usually comes down to population fit, interaction risk with your other medications, and how much certainty you want behind the recommendation.
Related
Cite this page
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Plain-text citation
Substrate. Ashwagandha vs St. John's Wort for mood. https://evidencebased.info/compare/ashwagandha-vs-st-johns-wort-for-mood. Updated 2026-07-14.
BibTeX
@misc{substrate_vsstjohnswortformood,
author = {Substrate editorial},
title = {Ashwagandha vs St. John's Wort for mood},
year = {2026},
url = {https://evidencebased.info/compare/ashwagandha-vs-st-johns-wort-for-mood},
note = {evidencebased.info}
}