Benefits
Supports exercise performance and endurance output
In 12 trained cyclists, a dose supplying 200 mg of caffeine increased total work during a 15 minute cycling time trial by 4.6% versus placebo (effect size 0.8). This is one small crossover trial, funded by the manufacturer, and a second time trial performed the following morning showed no difference from placebo. The size of the gain is in line with what a comparable dose of ordinary caffeine produces in the wider literature.
Delivers a full 200 mg dose of caffeine
One 286 mg serving supplies 200 mg of caffeine, about the amount in two cups of coffee. Caffeine at that dose reliably raises wakefulness and vigilance, but that effect belongs to the caffeine rather than to the coffee cherry: in the single trial of this ingredient, self-rated alertness and motivation during exercise did not differ from placebo.
Helps reduce perceived effort during exercise
During 30 minutes of steady-state cycling, the 12 participants rated perceived exertion lower on the extract than on placebo, by about 9% at the 10 minute mark. Lower perceived effort is a commonly reported caffeine effect, and here it rests on a single small crossover trial.
Contains about 15 mg of coffee-fruit polyphenols
Each 286 mg serving carries roughly 15 mg of coffee-fruit polyphenols, mainly chlorogenic acids, and blood levels of those compounds did rise sharply after dosing in the cyclist trial. Fifteen milligrams is a small amount, and because that trial compared the extract against a placebo rather than against plain caffeine, nothing in it shows the polyphenols add an effect of their own. This describes what is in the capsule, not a measured benefit.
Mechanism of action
Adenosine receptor antagonism
Caffeine competitively blocks central and peripheral adenosine A1/A2A receptors, reducing perceived fatigue and drowsiness and increasing central drive, arousal and alertness. This is the primary driver of its energizing and ergogenic effects.
Reduced perception of effort and enhanced motor output
By dampening adenosine signaling and modulating pain and effort perception, caffeine lowers ratings of perceived exertion and can increase voluntary work output at a given intensity, which manifested as improved time-trial performance in the cyclist study.
Coffee-fruit polyphenol contribution
Chlorogenic acids and related polyphenols from the coffee fruit show antioxidant activity in laboratory work, and plasma chlorogenic acid concentrations rose up to tenfold after dosing in the cyclist trial. At the ~15 mg dose studied, with no comparison against plain caffeine, there is no evidence that they contribute anything to the effects observed.
Clinical trials
Double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled crossover trial (Pavis et al., 2026, Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition), run at the University of Exeter, UK. The paper describes the supplement only as a whole Coffea arabica coffee cherry extract supplied by FutureCeuticals and never prints the Caffinity name; FutureCeuticals identifies this study as its Caffinity trial. The work was funded by a FutureCeuticals grant and three of the six authors are FutureCeuticals employees. Registered as NCT05404841.
12 trained cyclists (11 male, 1 female)
A single pre-exercise dose supplying 200 mg caffeine plus ~15 mg coffee-fruit polyphenols improved cycling time-trial work output by 4.6% versus placebo (P<0.05, effect size 0.8) and lowered perceived exertion during steady-state cycling. Several outcomes were null: self-rated alertness and motivation did not differ, respiratory exchange ratio did not differ, a second time trial the next morning was unaffected, and it did NOT enhance post-exercise muscle glycogen resynthesis over 0-24 h beyond carbohydrate alone. Heart rate during steady-state cycling ran 1 to 2 percent higher on the extract at the 20 and 30 minute marks. The comparison was against placebo, not against an equal dose of ordinary caffeine. Findings come from one small crossover study and should be interpreted cautiously.