Vitamin D supplements: drops, capsules, or tablets, D2 or D3
The essentials at a glance
Vitamin D supplements differ in two respects that you can identify on the shelf: the dosage form and the vitamin form. Drops, capsules, and tablets are a matter of handling. D3 (cholecalciferol, the form produced in the skin and found in animal-based foods) and D2 (ergocalciferol, the form from fungi and yeasts) differ in their origin.
This text puts what is stated on the package into context and stops where dosage begins. How much someone should take is not a question of packaging, but a question for medical practice and for two separate articles.
Chapter 2 explains D2 versus D3, Chapter 4 compares the dosage forms, Chapter 5 examines the term “high-dose,” and Chapter 7 shows what really matters on a label.
What to expect in this article
1. Why take a supplement at all?
2. D2 or D3: where the two forms come from
3. Fat-soluble: why the form matters
4. Drops, capsules, and tablets at a glance
5. What “high-dose” means on a package
6. With or without K2
7. Reading the label
8. Who a supplement is suitable for
9. What applies to the Vitamin D3 K2 Complex Shield
10. Measure rather than guess
11. What you can do now
Frequently asked questions
Sources
Why take a supplement at all?
Vitamin D is the exception among the vitamins: Most of it does not come from food but from your own skin. In its 2016 analysis, the Robert Koch Institute estimates that the body's own production accounts for 80% to 90% of the supply. The same report found that 30.2% of adults had blood levels below 30 nmol/l (nanomoles per liter, the unit used for vitamin D levels), based on data from 6,995 participants aged 18 to 79.
This does not mean that everyone needs a supplement. But it does explain why the shelf is so full: A nutrient whose supply depends on the season, location, and skin type is difficult to manage through food. In its 2025 FAQ, the Federal Institute for Risk Assessment names only a few foods with significant amounts, primarily fatty fish and, to a lesser extent, eggs, mushrooms, beef liver, and dairy products.
80–90 %
of the supply is estimated to come from the body's own production in the skin (Robert Koch Institute, 2016)
30,2 %
of adults were below 30 nmol/l (Robert Koch Institute, 2016)
100 µg
per day from all sources combined is the tolerable upper intake level for adults according to EFSA (EFSA, 2023)
20 µg
per day considers the Federal Institute for Risk Assessment acceptable in preparations (BfR, 2025)
Two terms accompany you throughout the text. One is the International Unit, abbreviated IU: an older unit of measurement that appears on many packages alongside micrograms. The other is the tolerable upper intake level, abbreviated UL in technical terminology – the amount per day considered safe with continuous intake from all sources. An upper limit is a ceiling, not a target.
One option is explicitly ruled out: the tanning salon. The German Federal Office for Radiation Protection writes in its agreed recommendation, status 2026: “Strong UV exposure without medical supervision (from the sun or a tanning salon) for the purpose of producing vitamin D, self-treating a vitamin D deficiency, or tanning is strongly discouraged.”
D2 or D3: where the two forms come from
Packaging states D3 or D2. The difference is initially one of origin. In its 2025 FAQ, the German Federal Institute for Risk Assessment explains that UV-B exposure increases the ergocalciferol content in mushrooms and yeasts, while the same process increases the cholecalciferol content in milk. Ergocalciferol is D2, and cholecalciferol is D3.
For supplements, this means: D2 comes from fungal or yeast-based production, while D3 traditionally comes from animal-derived raw materials. D3 from lichen is also offered as a vegan option. This classification is information provided by manufacturers, not a statement by an authority - anyone relying on it is relying on the label. The German Nutrition Society lists vitamin D as a critical nutrient in its 2024 position paper on vegan nutrition. More information can be found in the text on vegan vitamin D3.
What EFSA says about both forms
In its 2023 assessment, the European Food Safety Authority groups both forms under the term vitamin D and treats them the same when setting the upper limit: 100 µg of vitamin D equivalents per day for adults and adolescents between 11 and 17 years, and 50 µg for children from 1 to 10 years. For the labeling of calcidiol monohydrate, a precursor of active vitamin D, the Authority specifies a conversion factor of 2.5.
One advantage of D3 over D2 is described in the scientific literature. There is no institution on which a purchasing recommendation could be based, and therefore none is given here. What you can take away: If D2 is listed on the packaging, it is not a different nutrient, but a different source.
Fat-soluble: why the form matters
Vitamin D belongs to the fat-soluble vitamins. That is why drops are offered in oil and capsules as filled soft capsules.
Documented source
“Since vitamin D is fat-soluble, it can be stored very well in the body. The main storage sites for vitamin D are the adipose and muscle tissues of the human body; smaller amounts are also found in the liver.”
German Federal Institute for Risk Assessment (BfR)
FAQ “Selected questions and answers about vitamin D”, 2025
Storage capacity is the more important part of this sentence. In 2025, the BfR described that vitamin D can be stored very well in the body. That is precisely why there is an upper limit for vitamin D, and precisely why the amount on the label is the figure that matters.
What this explicitly does not imply: that one dosage form is superior to another. None of the evidence used in this text compares absorption from drops with absorption from tablets. The BfR also makes no statement in its FAQ about whether vitamin D should be taken with a meal. Where nothing is documented, nothing is stated here.
Drops, capsules, and tablets at a glance
The table compares handling, not effectiveness. It tells you how each form can be dosed, how it is handled in everyday life, and what the label particularly indicates for that form. The final column states honestly where no comparative evidence is available.
| Form | How it is dosed | Handling in everyday life | What the label indicates | What is documented |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Drops in oil | Through the number of drops, adjustable in small increments | Requires a steady hand and a spoon or glass; store the bottle upright | Amount per drop and per daily dose, oil used, D2 or D3 form | Oil as a carrier is plausible because vitamin D is fat-soluble (BfR, 2025). No comparative evidence of absorption versus other forms is available |
| Soft capsules | Fixed per capsule; there are no intermediate steps | Quick and tasteless; must be swallowed | Amount per capsule, capsule shell (gelatin or plant-based), D2 or D3 form | No comparative evidence of absorption versus drops or tablets |
| Tablets | Fixed per tablet; divisible only if a score line is present | Least sensitive when traveling and in warm conditions | Amount per tablet, tableting aids and anti-caking agents, D2 or D3 form | No comparative evidence of absorption versus drops or capsules |
| Combination of D3 and K2 | Both amounts are linked and can only be changed together | One product instead of two; with less flexibility as a result | Both amounts per daily dose shown separately; K2 stands for menaquinone, a form of vitamin K | Vitamin K is authorized for the contribution to normal blood clotting and the maintenance of normal bones (Regulation (EU) No 432/2012, OJ L 136 of 25.05.2012) |
| Micellar drops | Through the number of drops, as with oil drops | Mixes into water instead of floating on top | Amount per daily dose, emulsifier, D2 or D3 form | Micelles are tiny droplets in which a fat-soluble substance is dispersed in water. There is no evidence here of better absorption |
The practical conclusion from this table is unremarkable: Choose the form you can actually stick with in everyday life. Anyone who has difficulty swallowing tablets will eventually leave them unused, and a preparation left unused no longer has any properties worth arguing about.
What "high-dose" means on a package
"High-dose" is not a protected term. There is no threshold above which a manufacturer is allowed to use the word, and none above which it would have to refrain from using it. The only useful reference point is therefore the upper level set by an authority.
In its 2023 assessment, EFSA gives 100 µg of vitamin D equivalents per day for adults, corresponding to 4,000 I.U. This refers to the total from all sources, meaning food and preparations combined. In essence, the same assessment says that it is unlikely for European populations to exceed this value - with one exception: people who regularly use high-dose preparations.
The German Federal Institute for Risk Assessment sets a significantly lower level for preparations and considers up to 20 µg per day, or 800 I.U., acceptable in 2025. The German Nutrition Society cites the same order of magnitude as an estimate for cases in which no endogenous production takes place (DGE, 2012). Both figures are reference points, not instructions for you.
At a glance: high-dose or not
According to EFSA (2023), the tolerable upper intake level is 100 µg per day from all sources combined. In practice, this is reached only through regularly used high-dose preparations, not through food. How much your product contains is not stated in an advertising line, but in the amount per daily dose on the label. How much of it is appropriate for you should be clarified in a medical practice.
If the question of dosage is still bothering you, that is the right instinct - just the wrong text. The figures, timing of intake, and usage instructions are provided in the guide to the dosage of vitamin D3 drops.
With or without K2
The combination is also on the shelf. Vitamin K2, chemically menaquinone, is promoted as a partner to D3. What can legally be said is more limited than the advertising: For vitamin K, the contribution to normal blood clotting and the maintenance of normal bones is authorized, while for vitamin D, among other things, the contribution to the normal absorption and utilization of calcium and phosphorus is authorized (Regulation (EU) No 432/2012, OJ L 136 of 25.05.2012).
The form determines how you take it. The label determines how much.
In practical terms, the combination mainly means one thing: less flexibility. Two nutrients in one product can only be adjusted together. If you want to take both anyway, you save a package. If you want to adjust only one of the two, single-ingredient products offer more flexibility.
What can be said in detail about the combination is covered in the article on combining D3 and K2. The dosage question for this combination is addressed in the guide to dosing D3 with K2.
Reading the label
The front of a package is advertising. The back provides the information. Four details there answer what remains unclear on the front.
Four details that should appear on the back
Amount per daily dose
Not per 100 grams, and not per serving of unclear size. If the amount is given only per drop, convert it to the daily dose stated on the package. Both units are common: micrograms and I.U.
Which form it contains
Cholecalciferol refers to D3, and ergocalciferol to D2. In vegan products, the source is listed as lichen extract, and that is a manufacturer’s statement.
What else it contains
Carriers and capsule shell, sweeteners, flavors. For drops, this means which oil. For capsules: gelatin or a plant-based shell.
What else is added
A multivitamin, a combination product, and a single-ingredient supplement add up. The EFSA upper limit from 2023 applies to everything together, not to one package.
As for the question of pharmacy or online retailer: what the pharmacy offers is someone who can ask what else you are taking. A supplement test with a ranking does not replace this conversation, and you will not find such a test here.
Who a supplement is suitable for
The most honest answer to whether a supplement is right for you depends less on the product than on your situation. The following comparison is a sorting aid, not a recommendation for a specific product.
A supplement is a good fit if …
… you know your blood level and what it refers to.
… you get less sunlight on your skin in the winter half-year than in summer.
… your everyday life takes place indoors and time outdoors is the exception.
… you have discussed taking it with a doctor.
Clarify this first if …
… you have a known kidney disease.
… you regularly take medication.
… you are pregnant or breastfeeding.
… several supplements are taken together and the amounts add up.
… children are involved. In that case, the question belongs with a pediatrician, and EFSA has a separate upper limit for children aged 1 to 10 anyway (EFSA, 2023).
What applies to the Vitamin D3 K2 Complex Shield
Now for the part where you are right to become suspicious: mybody®x (MYBODY Lab GmbH) sells a vitamin D product itself, specifically as micelle drops. Therefore, the same rule as in the preceding chapters applies here. The form of administration is a question of handling, not a promise of efficacy, and the binding quantity information is stated on the product label.
Certain claims are authorized in the European Union for the three nutrients contained, in each case on the condition that a product is at least a “source of” the nutrient, meaning it provides at least 15% of the reference intake (EU Regulation 432/2012, as of 2012): for vitamin D, contributing to the maintenance of normal bones, the normal function of the immune system, and normal muscle function; for vitamin K, contributing to normal blood clotting; and for selenium, contributing to the protection of cells from oxidative stress and to normal thyroid function (Regulation (EU) No 432/2012, OJ L 136 of 25.05.2012). This is the framework for products of this kind, not a statement about what happens in your case.
Food supplement
Vitamin D3 K2 Complex | Shield
D3, K2, and selenium as micelle drops, meaning tiny droplets that can be dispersed in water. Developed and manufactured in Switzerland. The product measures nothing and does not show you how well supplied you are; the amount per daily dose is stated on the label and is authoritative there.
What this product does not do belongs here too: It does not tell you whether you need it. Only a blood value can provide that information, and no package provides one.
Measure instead of guessing
The entire question of choosing remains on shaky ground as long as the baseline value is unknown. What is measured in the blood is not the vitamin itself, but its storage form, 25-OH vitamin D, also called calcidiol. This value is the basis on which a medical practice makes an assessment, and it is also the reference point if, after some time, you want to know whether anything has changed.
How long it takes for a value to change, and what is realistic in the process, is explained in the text about the duration of vitamin D effects. The scale showing when a value is considered low belongs on the test result and in a discussion with your medical practice, not in an informational article.
What you can do now
The question you came into this chapter with was: Isn’t all of this the same thing, just packaged differently? Almost. The packaging is actually the smaller question, and you answer it based on your everyday life. The bigger question is on the back, in micrograms per daily dose, and you cannot answer it alone.
That sorts out what can be sorted: the form according to how it is used, and the source according to D2 or D3. The amount is stated on the label and should be interpreted medically. After that, it is no longer a matter of choosing, but of measuring. And a blood test answers that question more quickly than any shelf.
Frequently asked questions
Are drops absorbed better than tablets?
The sources used here contain no comparison for this. They establish only that vitamin D is fat-soluble and can therefore be stored well in the body (Federal Institute for Risk Assessment, 2025). This explains why drops are usually offered in oil, but says nothing about whether one form is superior to another. Anyone who reads such a comparison in an advertisement should ask for the source.
Is a supplement from a pharmacy better than one from an online retailer?
You can read the information on the back in both places. What a pharmacy additionally offers is a consultation in which someone can ask what else you are taking. That is where the difference lies, not in the quality of the packaging. This text deliberately does not include a ranking of individual products.
When is a supplement considered high-dose?
There is no binding threshold for this advertising term. The tolerable upper intake level set by the European Food Safety Authority serves as a benchmark: 100 µg of vitamin D equivalents per day for adults from all sources combined, equivalent to 4,000 IU (EFSA, 2023). The Federal Institute for Risk Assessment considers supplements providing up to 20 µg per day acceptable (BfR, 2025). Your doctor can clarify what is appropriate for you.
Can I get enough vitamin D from a tanning bed or solarium?
No. The Federal Office for Radiation Protection states in its consensus recommendation, as of 2026: “Strong, medically unsupervised UV exposure (from the sun or a tanning bed) for the purpose of producing vitamin D, self-treating a vitamin D deficiency, or tanning is strongly discouraged.” A tanning bed is therefore not a dosage form discussed in this text, nor is it an alternative to any of those mentioned.
How can I tell from the packaging whether it contains D2 or D3?
On the ingredients list. Cholecalciferol refers to D3, and ergocalciferol to D2. The source depends on this: ergocalciferol is produced in fungi and yeasts under UV-B exposure, while cholecalciferol comes from animal sources and UV-exposed milk (Federal Institute for Risk Assessment, 2025). In vegan products, D3 from lichen is specified, which is a manufacturer’s claim. For the maximum level, EFSA treats both forms equally.
Next step
Clarify the quantity first, then the form
Once you have clarified your choice, the question of quantity remains. It belongs in medical practice and in the guide that deals exclusively with it.
Regarding the dosage of D3 drops Vitamin D3 K2 Complex ShieldRead more
You might also be interested in this
An assessment of the combination without advertising claims.
What micelles are and what their structure means in everyday life.
Sources
- EFSA NDA Panel: Scientific opinion on the tolerable upper intake level for vitamin D, EFSA Journal 2023;21(8):e08145 (as of 2023) - pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
- Federal Institute for Risk Assessment: Selected questions and answers about vitamin D (as of 2025) - bfr.bund.de
- German Nutrition Society: Reference values for vitamin D (derived in 2012) - dge.de
- Robert Koch Institute, Rabenberg/Mensink: Vitamin D status in Germany, Journal of Health Monitoring 1(2) (as of 2016) - rki.de
- Federal Office for Radiation Protection: Agreed recommendation on UV radiation and vitamin D (as of 2026) - bfs.de
- European Commission: Regulation (EU) No 432/2012, Annex; OJ L 136 of 25.05.2012 (as of 2012), no link
The maximum value of 100 µg per day, the equal treatment of D2 and D3, and the conversion factor for calcidiol monohydrate are based on [1]. Fat solubility, storage, the origin of the two forms, and the acceptable amount in preparations are based on [2], while the estimated value of 20 µg comes from [3]. The proportions produced by the body itself and the proportion below 30 nmol/l come from [4], the statement about tanning beds from [5], and the authorized claims for vitamin D, vitamin K, and selenium from [6]. The note about lichen-based D3 is a manufacturer's statement; in its 2024 position paper on vegan nutrition, the German Nutrition Society lists vitamin D as a critical nutrient. Information about the product on mybody®x product pages, checked live on 09.09.2026.
mybody®x editorial & specialist team
Vitamin D Food supplements Blood values
This text is produced by the mybody®x specialist team using official sources and is updated when new assessments become available. The people working on it are listed on the authors' page.
Published on 09.09.2026 · Last updated on 09.09.2026
The content is intended for general information and does not replace medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Reference ranges depend on the laboratory, method, and age - the information on your test report is always decisive. Our products are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent diseases.
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