A customer asked us a very simple question today:
“How do you fill an empty capsule?”
If you have never used empty capsules before, it may not be obvious. For a small number of capsules, you do not necessarily need any special equipment.
How to fill an empty capsule by hand
Most empty capsules come in two pieces: a longer body and a shorter cap.
Gently pull the two halves apart. Put your powder into the longer body, then place the cap back over it and press the two halves together until the capsule is securely closed.
For just a few capsules, many people use a small spoon, spatula or folded piece of paper to guide the powder into the capsule.
Important: When closing the capsule, press from both ends towards the centre until you feel a click. This locks the cap and body together securely and helps prevent the powder from leaking out.
The main difficulty is usually not filling the capsule — it is choosing a capsule that is large enough for the amount of powder you want to use.
How much powder fits in a capsule?
Capsule size does not correspond to one fixed weight in milligrams. A fluffy powder and a dense powder can have exactly the same weight but occupy very different amounts of space.
Use our Empty Capsule Size Guide to compare sizes, or try the Capsule Size Calculator.
If you are considering the larger sizes, see our individual guides for Size 000, Size 00 and Size 0.
What if you need to fill 50 or 100 capsules?
Filling one or two capsules by hand is easy enough. Filling a larger batch individually becomes tedious very quickly. That is when a capsule filling machine becomes useful.
A manual capsule filling machine holds multiple capsule bodies upright while you add the powder. One important point causes quite a few customer problems: the filling machine must match the capsule size.
If you have Size 0 capsules, you need a Size 0 machine. For example, see our Size 0 capsule filling machine. A machine made for one capsule size will not normally fit every other size.
Gelatin or vegetarian capsules — does filling work differently?
For ordinary dry powders, the basic hand-filling process is essentially the same. You can choose gelatin, HPMC vegetarian, pullulan or other capsule shells depending on what you need.
For a straightforward vegetarian option, see our Size 00 clear HPMC vegetarian capsules.
There are also specialist shells. DRcaps® delayed-release capsules are designed to delay the release of their contents compared with conventional immediate-release capsules.
Not every capsule is suitable for every filling material. In particular, do not assume that a capsule intended for dry powder can be filled with water, oils or other liquids.
Start with the powder, not the capsule
If you are unsure what to buy, tell us what you want to put inside, approximately how much you need per capsule, and how many capsules you want to fill at a time. From there, it is much easier to work out the appropriate capsule size and whether filling by hand or using a capsule filling machine makes more sense.
If you are still unsure, contact us on WhatsApp: +44 7714 409366. We are happy to help you choose the correct size before you order.
