Oxandrolone vs Stanozolol
Written by Aaron CuhaReviewed Sep 2026
The short answer
Two steroid pills with medical histories that point different ways. Oxandrolone has bone density and growth results in burned children. Stanozolol's only real medical record is long term use in hereditary angioedema, a swelling disorder, where it works in a way unrelated to muscle.
- Oxandrolone people
- 0
- Oxandrolone nulls
- 0
- Stanozolol people
- 0
- Stanozolol nulls
- 0
Dose
No human dose established
No published study on this page has given this compound to people and reported a result.
1 human study where nobody was given it
Dose
No human dose established
No published study on this page has given this compound to people and reported a result.
1 human study where nobody was given it
First-hand reports are counted on each profile and never added together. This page sets two published records side by side. It does not pick a winner.
Column A
OxandroloneOxandrolone, oral 17-alpha-alkylated anabolic androgen
The steroid with the best medical record, from a place you would not guess. Badly burned children took it for up to two years, and it helped their bones and their growth.
Column B
StanozololStanozolol, 17-alpha-alkylated anabolic androgen
Best known from the 1988 Olympics. Its only real medical record is long-term use in a rare swelling disease, where it works in a way that has nothing to do with muscle.
Side by side, on the facts we can check
| What we compare | Oxandrolone | Stanozolol |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Muscle & Performance | Muscle & Performance |
| FDA status | Was FDA-approved as Oxandrin to help people regain weight lost after major surgery, long-term infection, severe injury and some other wasting conditions. A Schedule III controlled substance. The brand was discontinued in the United States, so today it mostly comes from compounding pharmacies or the grey market. | Was FDA-approved to prevent attacks of hereditary angioedema, an inherited condition that causes sudden swelling. Discontinued in the United States. A Schedule III controlled substance. |
| Half-life | Roughly 9 hours, short for an androgen, which is why it is dosed once or twice daily rather than weekly. | Roughly 9 hours for the oral form, so it is dosed daily. An injectable aqueous suspension also exists with different kinetics. |
| Molecular weight | 306.4 Da. A steroid, not a peptide. | 328.5 Da. A steroid, not a peptide. |
| How it works | Oxandrolone is a man-made steroid built from DHT, a strong form of testosterone. It has a small chemical change that lets it survive the liver and work as a pill. That same change is what makes this group of steroid pills hard on the liver. It attaches to the testosterone receptor, which tells muscle to build protein and hold on to protein. The body cannot turn it into estrogen. That is why people say it causes less water retention and less breast growth than testosterone. But that is not all good. In men, estrogen helps bones, mood and sex drive, so a steroid that cannot become estrogen takes those away. | Stanozolol is a man-made steroid built from DHT, a strong form of testosterone. It has a small chemical change that lets it work as a pill, and that change is what makes it hard on the liver. It attaches to the testosterone receptor. The body cannot turn it into estrogen. In the rare swelling disease, it works a totally different way. It makes the liver produce more of the protein those patients are missing. That cuts how often attacks happen, but it does not fix the gene problem. |
| Studies in people | 1 | 1 |
| Evidence | Preliminary: 1 human study where nobody was given it | Preliminary: 1 human study where nobody was given it |
| Legal status, US | Approved use exists; brand discontinued. Schedule III | Discontinued; Schedule III |
Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between Oxandrolone and Stanozolol?
Oxandrolone: The steroid with the best medical record, from a place you would not guess. Badly burned children took it for up to two years, and it helped their bones and their growth. Stanozolol: Best known from the 1988 Olympics. Its only real medical record is long-term use in a rare swelling disease, where it works in a way that has nothing to do with muscle.
Which has stronger research evidence, Oxandrolone or Stanozolol?
Each compound gets a band worked out from facts we counted, with the math shown. Oxandrolone is Preliminary (1 human study where nobody was given it). Stanozolol is Preliminary (1 human study where nobody was given it). That counts how much has been done in people. It does not rate whether either one works, and neither one is called the winner.
Are Oxandrolone and Stanozolol FDA-approved?
Oxandrolone: Was FDA-approved as Oxandrin to help people regain weight lost after major surgery, long-term infection, severe injury and some other wasting conditions. A Schedule III controlled substance. The brand was discontinued in the United States, so today it mostly comes from compounding pharmacies or the grey market.. Stanozolol: Was FDA-approved to prevent attacks of hereditary angioedema, an inherited condition that causes sudden swelling. Discontinued in the United States. A Schedule III controlled substance..
Reviewed Sep 2026. This page puts two published records side by side. It is for learning, and it is not medical advice. When this site shows a dose, it is the dose a trial or a clinic actually used, or what people say they did, with the source attached. None of it tells you what to take.