Forth positions itself around fitness and performance, and their brand resonates with people who train. But if you want more than a basic performance snapshot, the depth gap is worth knowing about.
| Feature | TrueVitals | Forth |
|---|---|---|
| Maximum biomarkers | 200+ (Signature) | ~45 (Edge) |
| Most popular panel | 114 biomarkers (Ultimate, £349) | ~22 (Baseline Plus, ~£79) |
| Entry panel | 74 biomarkers (Advanced, £269) | ~10 (Baseline, ~£49) |
| Collection method | Venous (clinic £19 / home £39) | Finger-prick (+~£45 for venous) |
| Full hormone panel | 9 hormones | Testosterone, cortisol, DHEA-S |
| Full thyroid | TSH + FT3 + FT4 + antibodies | TSH + FT4 in some panels |
| ApoB / Lp(a) | Both included | Not available |
| Insulin / HOMA-IR | Included in Ultimate | Not available |
| Tumour markers | 7 markers in Ultimate | Not available |
| Report format | 30+ page personalised AI report | Traffic-light dashboard |
| Turnaround | 48 hours | 2-5 working days |
| Custom panel builder | Panel-based only | Build your own panel |
| Fitness-specific positioning | Comprehensive health focus | Sport and performance panels |
Forth's sport and performance panels check testosterone, cortisol, iron, vitamin D, and a handful of inflammatory markers. For someone who trains, those are relevant. But they are a fraction of what an athlete's body actually needs monitored.
If you train seriously, your cardiovascular system is under more stress than the average person's. Your metabolic demand is higher. Your hormonal balance is more sensitive to training load, sleep debt, and caloric intake. Your immune system takes a hit during heavy training blocks. Your liver and kidney function need monitoring if you use supplements aggressively.
A 22-marker "performance" panel checks whether your testosterone is normal and whether your iron is low. A 114-marker comprehensive panel tells you whether your cardiovascular risk profile is actually good (ApoB, Lp(a), triglyceride/HDL ratio), whether your insulin sensitivity is holding up under your training load (insulin, HOMA-IR), whether your thyroid is converting properly (Free T3, not just TSH), whether your immune system is suppressed (immunoglobulins), and whether there are early warning signs worth investigating (tumour markers).
Athletes do not need less data. They need more. Read our guide to blood testing for athletes →
Forth delivers results as a traffic-light dashboard. Green means in range. Amber means borderline. Red means out of range. That tells you what is high or low, but not why, and not what to do about it.
If your ferritin is amber, is that because you are genuinely iron-depleted, or because you trained hard yesterday and it has not recovered? If your cortisol is high, is that a chronic stress issue or did you just have a bad night's sleep before the test? A traffic light cannot tell you. Cross-system analysis can.
TrueVitals' AI processes over 6,400 pairwise interactions across the Ultimate panel, cross-references your biomarker results with your lifestyle quiz data (training volume, sleep quality, stress, diet, goals, symptoms), and delivers a 30+ page personalised report. It explains what your results mean together, not just individually, and gives you specific supplement recommendations, calorie and protein targets, and training-relevant insights.
Forth defaults to finger-prick home kits. Venous collection is available as an upgrade for approximately £45 extra. For their smaller panels (10-22 markers), finger-prick is adequate. For anything comprehensive, the sample volume limitation becomes a problem.
Finger-prick samples are also more prone to haemolysis, where red blood cells rupture during collection and contaminate the sample. This can falsely elevate potassium, LDH, and liver enzymes. For an athlete whose ALT and AST are already elevated from training, haemolysis on top of that can produce misleading results.
TrueVitals uses professional venous collection for every panel. A trained phlebotomist draws blood from your arm at one of 350+ UK clinics (from £19) or at your home (£39). Larger sample, lower contamination risk, and the capacity to run 114 or 200+ markers from a single draw. Read about our lab and collection standards.
If you want a cheap, quick fitness check, Forth's Baseline Plus at approximately £79 gives you testosterone, cortisol, iron, vitamin D, cholesterol, and liver function. It is not comprehensive, but it is a low-cost starting point.
If you want to build a custom panel, Forth's panel builder lets you pick individual biomarkers and create your own test. TrueVitals is panel-based, which gives you comprehensive coverage but less flexibility for single-marker checks.
If you prefer the fitness branding, Forth's marketing speaks directly to people who train, with sport-specific panel names and fitness-focused content. TrueVitals is positioned as a comprehensive health service, not a fitness brand, though many of our customers are serious athletes.
But if you want to actually understand what is happening inside your body at a meaningful depth, rather than checking five or six markers and hoping everything else is fine, TrueVitals provides a fundamentally different level of insight. Take the quiz for a personalised panel recommendation.
Yes. Forth checks approximately 45 markers in their most comprehensive panel. TrueVitals Ultimate tests 114 including cardiovascular risk markers (ApoB, Lp(a)), metabolic profiling (insulin, HOMA-IR), full hormones, full thyroid, tumour markers, and immune function. For someone who trains seriously, more data means better decisions.
Forth defaults to finger-prick home kits. Venous collection is available at partner clinics for approximately £45 extra. TrueVitals uses professional venous collection for every panel, from £19 at a clinic or £39 at home.
Forth's Edge panel costs approximately £180 for ~45 biomarkers (£4.00 per marker). TrueVitals Advanced is £269 for 74 biomarkers (£3.64 per marker) and Ultimate is £349 for 114 (£3.06 per marker). TrueVitals is better value per biomarker at the comprehensive level, with a significantly more detailed report.
Yes. Every customer gets access to an online health dashboard where results are tracked across multiple tests. Your report also highlights changes from previous tests when available. Forth's app-based tracking is more polished for quick checks, but TrueVitals provides deeper longitudinal analysis across significantly more markers.
If you were using Forth's Edge or Vitality panel, the TrueVitals Advanced (74 biomarkers, £269) covers everything Forth tests plus full hormones, full thyroid, ApoB, and cardiac markers. For maximum depth, the Ultimate (114, £349) adds tumour markers, insulin resistance, immunoglobulins, and autoimmune screening. Take the quiz for a personalised recommendation.
Up to 200+ biomarkers. Venous collection. AI-powered personalised reporting. The data athletes actually need.
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