China's CN¥ 328.3B Nutritional Supplements Market: Four Trends Reshaping Consumer Demand in Q4 2023
By Jessie Wang
8 min read
Newer data: China Online Health & Wellness Sales Rose 9.5% in H1 2026
Executive Summary#
China's health products market reached CN¥ 328.3 billion in 2023, yet per-capita spending of just US$ 38 is a fraction of the level in developed markets, which we believe points to large untapped potential. Online health food sales across three leading Chinese marketplaces grew 31.1% YoY to CN¥ 65.76 billion in January-August 2023. Four structural shifts, the snackification of dosage formats, lifestyle wellness, customized nutrition and the diversification of ingredients, are changing how brands compete and will, we believe, decide where demand concentrates over the next three to five years.
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A Market With Large Headroom#
China's nutritional supplements market is large in absolute terms but small relative to its potential. Market size has more than doubled from CN¥ 144.6 billion in 2016 to an estimated CN¥ 328.3 billion in 2023, compounding at approximately 12.4% annually,[1] and international comparisons show how early-stage the market still is.
Per-capita annual health product spending in China stood at just US$ 38 in 2022, compared with US$ 194 in the United States, US$ 138 in Japan and US$ 110 in Canada. Even Western Europe's US$ 56 is 47% higher than China's. The gap in penetration is just as wide, and health product usage in every age group in China is 20-50 percentage points below the United States. China's penetration rate among people aged 65+ is 23% against 73% in the US, and even among those under 24 it is 19% against 30%.
The 35-44 age group, which has high purchasing power and responsibility for the family's health, shows the lowest penetration in China at just 11%, and we believe it is a priority group for brands that want to expand the category.
| Country/Region | Per-Capita Spending (US$/year) |
|---|---|
| Australia | 205.0 |
| United States | 194.0 |
| Japan | 138.0 |
| Canada | 110.0 |
| Western Europe | 56.0 |
| China | 38.0 |
Channel Dynamics: The Move to E-Commerce and Content#
E-commerce channels grew from 15% of health food distribution in 2012 to 45.8% in 2022. Over the same period the share of direct selling fell from 43% to 25.7%.[2] Within e-commerce, content-led commerce has become an important channel for health food.
Best-selling categories on content-led platforms included collagen peptide drinks, whey protein powder, probiotics and milk thistle liver protection tablets, all of them products that are easy to demonstrate in short-video and live-streaming formats. We believe content-led commerce had become essential by 2023 for brands that want to reach new consumers, particularly younger consumers, who often discover health products through content before they search for them.
Cross-border channels accounted for 40-50% of health food revenue on a leading marketplace, which reflects strong consumer trust in the production standards of the countries the products come from. On that marketplace, US brands accounted for 34.2% of the market and Mainland China brands for 31.1%.
Consumer Profile: Younger, More Female, and Urban-Concentrated#
The health food consumer base is changing. Female consumers rose to 73.2% of health product interest in H1 2023, up from 60.4% in H1 2022, a shift of 12.8 percentage points. Women's influence extends beyond their own consumption to purchasing decisions for the whole family, including elderly parents, spouses and children.
The combined share of the 21-30 age group increased from 29.8% to 33.4% between H1 2022 and H1 2023. "Health anxiety" among post-90s and post-95s consumers, driven by declining vision (90% prevalence), hair loss (90%), reduced athletic ability (40%) and weaker immunity (27%), is turning into sustained commercial demand. Geographically, Tier 1 cities increased their share of health food interest from 46.0% to 55.1%, and the top two city tiers accounted for 74.3% of total engagement.
Social media buzz around health foods grew 264.8% YoY from September 2022 to August 2023, reaching monthly peaks above 30,000 posts, up from just 2,820 posts in September 2021. Liver protection, eye care and brain health drove the largest gains in share of voice. We believe these social media trends are leading indicators of commercial demand, since categories whose social mentions are growing fast today tend to become the fastest-growing sales categories within 6-12 months.
Daily health maintenance is the top purchase driver for young and middle-aged consumers at 44.3%, followed by sleep-related concerns at 15.5% and exercise and fitness needs at 11.8%. Elderly consumers show a markedly different profile, as nutritional supplementation (48%) and disease management (32%) account for 80% of their reasons for buying, so the two age groups need different formulations and positioning.
Four Structural Trends Defining the Next Wave#
Trend 1: Snackification of Dosage Formats#
Traditional tablets and capsules still accounted for most sales on a leading marketplace in January-July 2023, over CN¥ 29 billion of CN¥ 40 billion, but newer formats grew faster. Candy and lozenge formats grew 109.8% YoY on that marketplace, while chewable formats rose 50.6%, soft capsules 45.4% and oral liquids 45.8%. Gummies, at CN¥ 793 million (+29.1% YoY), are the format that has taken snackification furthest.
We believe this trend goes beyond format innovation and repositions health products from medicinal necessity to lifestyle consumer goods. Ready-to-eat convenience, consumption with no water needed and portable form factors suit urban lifestyles, and brands that follow this shift reach consumers who would never consider traditional pill-format supplements.
Trend 2: Lifestyle Wellness, Emotional and Aesthetic Health#
Over 50% of Chinese adults are overweight or obese, and the lifetime prevalence of depressive disorder among adults is 6.8%. These health challenges are creating new supplement categories that combine traditional nutrition with the management of lifestyle health.
Monthly sales of weight management supplements on a leading marketplace nearly tripled between January 2022 and July 2023. Sales of emotional health supplements featuring St. John's Wort, Phosphatidylserine, Ashwagandha and Magnesium L-Threonate grew strongly from early 2021 to a peak in September 2022, and in July 2023 they were again well above their early-2021 level. Brands including GNC, Swisse (斯维诗) and Life Extension offer products in this emerging segment.
Trend 3: Customized Nutrition Solutions#
Personalized daily nutrition packs grew quickly on a leading marketplace from August 2022 onwards. In H2 2022, personalized products commanded a 43% price premium over the overall market average (CN¥ 397 against CN¥ 277 in November 2022). Prices converged in early 2023 as competitors entered, but the segment showed genuine consumer demand beyond promotional spikes. GNC's men's nutrition pack, segmented by age group (30, 40, 50), is an example of the "population-segmented personalization" model, which gives consumers a sense of customization at a scale that can be manufactured.
Trend 4: Ingredient Diversification via Natural Plant Extracts#
Health food ingredients are moving beyond vitamins, minerals and probiotics towards natural plant extracts. Across the major benefit categories, brands are extracting active compounds from botanical sources to differentiate their products: grape seed and white tomato for antioxidants, valerian and hops for sleep, milk thistle for liver protection, and turmeric, black cherry and spirulina for bone health. Natural plant extracts support "clean label" positioning. As the global supplement market, particularly the overseas brands already active in China, validates botanical ingredients, we believe domestic brands have an opportunity to develop their own plant extract formulations.
Sub-Market Performance: Where Growth Is Concentrating#
Growth in the online health food market varies widely by sub-market. Brain health supplements grew 99.6% YoY to CN¥ 4.10 billion. The demand came from elderly consumers who want to preserve cognitive function, from white-collar workers under pressure to perform and from students under academic pressure. Liver protection grew 76.4% to CN¥ 3.46 billion, driven by the pressures of urban life on younger consumers, and bone health grew 56.5% to CN¥ 8.37 billion, making it the second-largest sub-market.
Oral beauty remains the largest sub-market at CN¥ 13.08 billion (+22.0%), while cardiovascular health grew 67.1% to CN¥ 7.37 billion. Reproductive health and sports nutrition came under pressure in the same period, which we believe reflects saturation or increased competition in those segments.
Premium pricing is gaining ground across the market. The CN¥ 1,000+ segment grew 56.8% YoY, five times the overall market's growth of 11.4%, and its share of total sales rose from 19.4% to 26.4%, driven by anti-aging formulations (NMN, NAD+, ginsenosides) and high-priced bundle packs.
Key Takeaways#
- CN¥ 328.3 billion total market size in 2023, compounding at ~12.4% annually since 2016, yet per-capita spending at US$ 38 is 3.6x below Japan and 5.1x below the United States
- Online health food sales grew 31.1% YoY to CN¥ 65.76 billion across three leading Chinese marketplaces in Jan-Aug 2023
- Female consumers rose to 73.2% of health food interest, and the 21-30 age group gained share, driven by "health anxiety" about vision, hair loss and immunity
- Four structural trends (snackification, lifestyle wellness, customized nutrition and plant extract ingredients) are changing product innovation and brand positioning
- Brain health (+99.6%), liver protection (+76.4%) and bone health (+56.5%) are among the fastest-growing sub-markets, and the CN¥ 1,000+ price segment grew 56.8%, which confirms that the market continues to premiumize
## About the Data
This analysis draws on Moojing Market Intelligence data covering Q4 2023.
Moojing analyses brand and category performance across major Chinese e-commerce platforms. For full methodology and additional insights, see the complete Nutritional Supplements Trends whitepaper.
This content adheres to Moojing's editorial standards .
Frequently Asked Questions
Snackification of dosage formats, lifestyle wellness, customised nutrition, and ingredient diversification through plant extracts. Together they describe a category repositioning itself from medicinal necessity to lifestyle consumer good. Tablets and capsules still accounted for most sales on a leading marketplace in January-July 2023, over CN¥ 29 billion of a CN¥ 40 billion total, but the growth sat in newer formats. Candy and lozenge formats grew 109.8%, chewables 50.6%, oral liquids 45.8% and soft capsules 45.4%, and gummies, at CN¥ 793 million (+29.1%), were the breakthrough snackification format. Ready-to-eat, no-water, portable form factors reach demographics that would never consider a pill.
Younger, more female and more urban than the category assumes. Female consumers rose to 73.2% of health product interest in H1 2023 from 60.4% a year earlier, a 12.8 percentage point shift, and their influence extends past personal consumption into buying for parents, partners and children. The 21-30 group went from 29.8% to 33.4%, driven by health anxiety around deteriorating vision and hair loss, each reported at 90% prevalence in that cohort. Tier 1 cities moved from 46.0% to 55.1% of interest, with the top two tiers at 74.3%. Motivations split by age: daily maintenance leads for younger buyers at 44.3%, while nutritional supplementation (48%) and disease management (32%) account for 80% of elderly purchase rationale.
Brain health grew fastest, by 99.6% to CN¥ 4.10 billion, pulled by elderly cognitive preservation, white-collar performance demands and student academic pressure. Liver protection grew 76.4% to CN¥ 3.46 billion on urban lifestyle pressures among younger consumers, cardiovascular 67.1% to CN¥ 7.37 billion, and bone health 56.5% to CN¥ 8.37 billion as the second-largest sub-market. Oral beauty remains the largest at CN¥ 13.08 billion (+22.0%). Reproductive health and sports nutrition came under pressure in the same period, which we read as saturation or intensified competition in those segments.
Yes, and fastest in the top price band. The CN¥ 1,000+ segment grew 56.8% year on year, five times the overall market's 11.4%, moving from 19.4% to 26.4% of total sales, driven by anti-aging formulations such as NMN, NAD+ and ginsenosides, and by high-priced bundle packs. Personalisation carries a premium too: personalised daily nutrition packs commanded a 43% premium over the market average in H2 2022, CN¥ 397 against CN¥ 277 that November, though price convergence through early 2023 shows competitors entering. The workable version of personalisation is population-segmented, with packs built for an age band, which preserves the perception of customisation at manufacturable scale.
