I take 1000 mg (1 gram) of this product twice per day. How much you may need may vary according to your weight and other factors. I am a male who weighs 185 pounds. The 500mg capsules are the best value. I do not recommend the caplets/tablets, as I have not had as good of results with them. I began taking Ester-C after reading articles about how it was used to help improve the lives of large breed dogs that had hip dysplasia problems. At the time I was suffering from a lot of lower Back pain, and I did not want to take typical OTC pain relievers. I found that it takes 2-3 weeks for this product to begin to alleviate pain. For me, it truly has reduced pain! I have also learned from my experience, that if you discontinue the use of the Ester-C, the pain returns in about 2-3 weeks. So, it apparently has some residual qualities. If you take too much it will cause the runs, so be forewarned! While I primarily take Ester-C for Back pain, it does also help with hip and other joint pains. My primary, go to, supplement for arthritic joint pains is Boswellia Extract (I use Nature's Answer brand). Taking the Ester-C and the Boswellia Extact in combination leaves me feeling as nimble as someone much younger than my 55 years old. I am hoping to avoid the pain and mobility issues that are now crippling my aging father. So, I will continue to take and recommend these products. I believe that Ester-C has many other health benefits, but the pain relief is the most noteworthy one IMHO. I have experience zero negatives, other than it can cause the runs (as mentioned previously). I recommended it to my sister, and it has helped reduce her joint pains too