You can't reliably tell a good shilajit from a bad one by looking at it. You can narrow it down with a few tests at home, but the only verdict that matters is the lab report.
What "fake" usually means
"Fake" shilajit is rarely just mud in a jar. Much more often it's:
- Adulterated: real shilajit mixed with cheap humic substances to stretch volume
- Misstandardized: reported fulvic acid % measured by cheap gravimetric methods, not HPLC
- Unsafe: heavy-metal contamination that was never tested
The tests you can do at home
- Dissolves slowly in warm water into a dark brown, coffee-like liquid, without leaving grit
- Does not dissolve in alcohol (real shilajit is water-soluble)
- Stretches when warm, hardens when cold — a rough indicator of resin character
These give you a sniff test. They don't give you real confidence.
The test that actually matters
Ask for the COA. Specifically:
- Fulvic acid % measured by HPLC, not GV
- ICP-MS for lead, arsenic, cadmium, mercury
- Microbial limits
If the brand can't produce a batch-specific COA, that's your answer.