Products · Omega-3 & fish oil · Barlean’s
Barlean’s Ideal Omega 3 (Orange)
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A one-a-day fish oil from Alaska pollock with IFOS lot reports on file (TOTOX 7.34 in the lot we read) and an MSC listing. One softgel has 1,000 mg of EPA plus DHA, and it costs about twice as much per 500 mg as the budget IFOS oils.
Best for People who want an IFOS-tested, single-source fish oil from an established U.S. company and do not mind paying more for it.
- Our quality rating
- Good (4 of 5)
- Price range
- Premium
- Verified marks
- IFOS (Nutrasource): lot 26002413, TOTOX 7.34, MSC chain-of-custody (company-level; walleye pollock)
- Size
- 60 softgels (one a day); also 30
- Made in
- Alaska pollock (maker); company based in Ferndale, Washington
approx. $52 for 60 softgels
See it on Barlean’s’s site →We are not affiliated with Barlean’s. This link goes to the maker’s own page, with no tracking code. How we're funded.
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Your review
Reviews are personal experiences, not research, and they never change our quality ratings. Every review is read by our team before it appears.
How we evaluated it
Why we chose it What put it on our list
- IFOS lists it, with many lots on file. We opened the report for lot 26002413 (expires 07/2029): TOTOX 7.34, peroxide 2.01 meq/kg, anisidine 3.32, mercury below 0.0108 ppm, lead below 0.0058 ppm and PCBs 8.64 ppb.
- The label gives EPA and DHA separately: 750 mg EPA and 250 mg DHA per softgel. The IFOS lot tested at 782 mg and 265 mg.
- It names one source, “fish oil (pollock)”, which Barlean’s says is from Alaska. The MSC mark is on the bottle, and MSC’s own supplier directory lists Barlean’s Organic Oils, LLC of Ferndale, Washington as certified for walleye pollock.
- Vitacost shows a best-by date, and the IFOS report gives the lot and its expiry.
Trade-offs What to weigh before you buy
- The dose is high. One softgel is about 1,000 mg of EPA plus DHA, against 250 to 500 mg a day in our sources and dosing guide. Check with a clinician first if you take blood thinners or have atrial fibrillation (see omega-3 and heart health).
- It costs about $0.87 a softgel, or about $0.44 per 500 mg of EPA plus DHA, roughly twice the budget IFOS-listed oils.
- MSC’s listing is a company-level certificate for secondary processing, so it does not name this product or its fishery. The label says only “gelatin”, and Barlean’s FAQ says its softgels are made from bovine gelatin, so they are not vegan. It has natural orange flavor.
- We read one lot report. The registry lists others.
What to know Details worth knowing first
Barlean’s is a long-established U.S. supplement company, and Ideal Omega 3 is a concentrated fish oil in one softgel. It is in the IFOS program, which tests for potency, purity and freshness and publishes a report for each lot. The lot we opened had low oxidation figures and contaminants far below the limits.
The oil comes from one source, pollock, and the bottle carries the MSC mark. MSC’s own directory backs that with a company certificate for walleye pollock. The dose is the thing to weigh. One softgel is about 1,000 mg of EPA plus DHA, which is a lot more than the 250 to 500 mg a day in our guide to sources and dosing.
The price is the other. At about $0.44 per 500 mg of EPA plus DHA it costs about twice as much as the budget IFOS-listed oils, for what is, on the evidence we read, a similar level of testing.
Quality & testing How it measures up against our checklist
- Third-party tested
- Yes
- Tested by
- IFOS (Nutrasource)
| What we checked | What we found |
|---|---|
| Independent testing (IFOS) Verified | Listed in Nutrasource’s IFOS registry (entry BARL0001) with several lot reports. We opened the report for lot 26002413. |
| Freshness (TOTOX at or under 26) Verified | TOTOX 7.34 in lot 26002413. IFOS’s own limit is 19.5. One lot read. |
| Stated EPA and DHA Verified | 750 mg EPA and 250 mg DHA per softgel, per the label as copied by Vitacost and shown on the bottle in IFOS’s report. Lot 26002413 tested at 782 mg and 265 mg. |
| A named source and sustainability certification Verified | Pollock, per the label (“fish oil (pollock)”); Alaska is the maker’s word. MSC’s supplier directory (data of 2026-10-22) lists Barlean’s Organic Oils, LLC, 3660 Slater Road, Ferndale, as certified (MSC-C-52673) for walleye pollock. The MSC mark is on the bottle in IFOS’s report. |
| Lot or best-by date Verified | The IFOS report gives the lot and an expiry of 07/2029. Vitacost shows a best-by date. |
| Smell and taste Not verified | We have not handled a bottle. The maker says there is no fishy aftertaste. |
What the labels mean
- Verified We opened an independent record that confirms it: a certifier’s listing, a regulator’s list or a lab report. It is linked under Sources.
- Maker’s claim The maker says so on its own page or label. We read it but found no independent record.
- Not verified We looked and could not confirm it, or the maker does not say. Treat it as unknown.
Sources Where our facts come from
- Barlean’s Ideal Omega 3 product page. Maker’s page. Open ↗
- IFOS registry entry: Barlean’s Ideal Omega 3. Certifier or regulator listing. Lists lots with report links. The report links are built from andi.nutrasource.ca/files/. Open ↗
- IFOS product report, lot 26002413. Test report. Potency, PCBs, dioxins, oxidation values and heavy metals for one lot. Open ↗
- MSC supplier directory: certificate MSC-C-52673, Barlean’s Organic Oils, LLC. Certifier or regulator listing. Status certified; walleye pollock listed; main activity secondary processing. Matched to Barlean’s by name and the Ferndale address on the IFOS report. Open ↗
- Vitacost listing with supplement facts and ingredients. Independent source. Open ↗
Where to buy Other stores and the prices we saw
- Vitacost approx. $52 for 60 softgels; approx. $29 for 30. Vitacost says it buys from brands or authorized distributors and shows a best-by date. It matches Barlean’s own prices.
Prices as we saw them on October 22, 2026. They change often. These links carry no tracking code and earn us nothing.
Alternatives Other options to compare
- Sports Research Alaskan Omega-3 Fish Oil Also single-source Alaska pollock with an IFOS lot report and an MSC code, at less than half the price per 500 mg. About 950 mg of EPA plus DHA a softgel.
- Momentous Omega-3 IFOS and NSF Certified for Sport, about $40 for 60 softgels. Two softgels give 1,600 mg.