Is testosterone a controlled substance? Yes: Schedule III.

The short answer

Yes. Testosterone is item (84) in the anabolic steroids paragraph of Schedule III, 21 CFR 1308.13(f), listed as "testosterone (17β-hydroxyandrost-4-en-3-one)". The paragraph carries a single class code, 4000, for the whole list.

The statute behind every schedule is Title 21 U.S.C. 812, part of the Controlled Substances Act. The regulation that lists substances one by one is 21 CFR part 1308, sections 1308.11 to 1308.15. This page quotes both. The CFR text was read from the eCFR versioner API for the issue current through October 29, 2026, and the statute from the 2024 U.S. Code edition published on govinfo. This is a classification page only: it contains no dosing, use, acquisition or synthesis information.

How the anabolic steroid paragraph is built

Paragraph (f) of 1308.13 reads: "Anabolic steroids. Unless specifically excepted or unless listed in another schedule, any substance meeting the definition of anabolic steroid as set forth in § 1300.01 of this chapter, including any material, compound, mixture or preparation containing any quantity of the following substances, including its salts, esters and ethers (4000)". The code number 4000 sits once in the lead-in, not beside each substance, so the individual items such as testosterone have no code of their own in this list.

The list has 86 items. Among them: (61) methyltestosterone, (64) nandrolone, (76) oxandrolone, (78) oxymetholone, (81) stanozolol, (84) testosterone, (85) tetrahydrogestrinone and (86) trenbolone. Because the list is introduced by a definition, it is not the whole of what counts, as the next section shows.

The definition behind the list

Section 1300.01 defines the term in its first sentence: "Anabolic steroid means any drug or hormonal substance, chemically and pharmacologically related to testosterone (other than estrogens, progestins, corticosteroids, and dehydroepiandrosterone), and includes (but is not limited to) those substances listed in § 1308.13(f) of this chapter." The definition goes on to carve out certain steroids approved for administration to cattle and other nonhuman species and to add rules for substances that are not listed but are derived from, or structurally substantially similar to, listed steroids. Read the full definition in the eCFR if a specific substance is in question.

Statute and findings

The CFR listing is made under the Schedule III findings of 21 U.S.C. 812(b)(3): a potential for abuse less than Schedules I and II, a currently accepted medical use in treatment in the United States, and abuse that may lead to moderate or low physical dependence or high psychological dependence. This page is only a statement of classification. It gives no information on use, dosing, obtaining or performance, and says nothing about sport or employment rules.

The Schedule III listing, in the CFR's own words

The lead-in of 21 CFR 1308.13(f) reads:

(f) Anabolic steroids. Unless specifically excepted or unless listed in another schedule, any substance meeting the definition of anabolic steroid as set forth in § 1300.01 of this chapter, including any material, compound, mixture or preparation containing any quantity of the following substances, including its salts, esters and ethers (4000):

Entries from selected entries of the anabolic steroids list at 1308.13(f):

• (61) methyltestosterone
• (64) nandrolone
• (76) oxandrolone
• (78) oxymetholone
• (81) stanozolol
• (84) testosterone
• (85) tetrahydrogestrinone
• (86) trenbolone

What the statute requires for Schedule III

Title 21 U.S.C. 812(b) says a drug or other substance "may not be placed in any schedule unless the findings required for such schedule are made". For Schedule III the findings are: (A) The drug or other substance has a potential for abuse less than the drugs or other substances in schedules I and II. (B) The drug or other substance has a currently accepted medical use in treatment in the United States. (C) Abuse of the drug or other substance may lead to moderate or low physical dependence or high psychological dependence.

Those findings are the statutory test for putting a substance into the schedule. They are not a description of any person's use of a drug, and they are not a medical statement. The CFR sections 1308.11 to 1308.15 then list, substance by substance, what has been placed in each of the five schedules.

How to read and re-check a schedule listing

A schedule entry has a fixed shape. A lead-in sentence says which class of substance follows and often that the listing extends to salts, isomers and salts of isomers. Each line then names a substance and, in most sections, a four-digit DEA Controlled Substances Code Number. The opening paragraph of 1308.11 to 1308.14 says each substance "has been assigned the DEA Controlled Substances Code Number set forth opposite it". The number identifies the line; it is not a rating of risk.

1. Open the section for the schedule you want: 21 CFR 1308.11 (Schedule I), 1308.12 (II), 1308.13 (III), 1308.14 (IV) or 1308.15 (V) in the eCFR.
2. Find the paragraph for the class of substance: opiates, opium derivatives, hallucinogenic substances, depressants, stimulants, narcotic drugs, anabolic steroids and so on, each introduced by a lead-in sentence.
3. Read the entry by its official or chemical name, not by brand name, and note the four-digit DEA Controlled Substances Code Number printed beside it.
4. Check for words such as "unless specifically excepted" or "except" in the lead-in or the line itself, which limit what the entry covers.
5. Confirm the date: the eCFR shows an "as of" date, and the schedules change by rulemaking.

Limits of this page

This page quotes the text of 21 CFR 1308.11 to 1308.15 as published in the eCFR, current through October 29, 2026 (last substantive amendment dates per the eCFR versioner: 1308.11 October 21, 2026, 1308.12 December 21, 2022, 1308.13 April 28, 2026, 1308.14 August 31, 2026, 1308.15 June 1, 2022), and parts of 21 U.S.C. 812. It reports federal classification only. It does not describe any state law, any registration, record-keeping or prescription requirement, any penalty, or any use of a drug, and it does not tell you whether a particular product, person or activity is lawful. The eCFR is an editorial compilation, not the official legal edition of the Federal Register, and the schedules change by rulemaking, so check the current text and DEA before relying on it. Questions about law go to a qualified attorney, and questions about a medicine go to a pharmacist or physician.

Sources

Sources opened and read November 2, 2026.

• eCFR: 21 CFR 1308.13, Schedule III (current through October 29, 2026) (read November 2, 2026)
• eCFR: 21 CFR part 1308, Schedules of controlled substances (current through October 29, 2026) (read November 2, 2026)
• GovInfo: 21 U.S.C. 812, Schedules of controlled substances, United States Code, 2024 Edition (read November 2, 2026)
• eCFR: 21 CFR 1300.01, Definitions relating to controlled substances (anabolic steroid) (current through October 29, 2026) (read November 2, 2026)