Simms Research vs Apex Peptides (2026): The Definitive Comparison

Until the morning of September 23, 2026, Apex Peptides was a working online store, shipping research peptides out of a building in North Sioux City, South Dakota, with free shipping over $300 and next-business-day dispatch. That morning, federal agents searched the building. By the next day apexpeptides.com was closed, and four days later its customers still have no word on open orders, refunds or a reopening.

For researchers who bought from Apex, the question now is a practical one: where the same compounds can be bought, what they cost, and what paperwork comes with them. This comparison sets Simms Research against everything Apex put in writing while it was open, from the catalog and prices to lab testing, checkout, shipping and refunds. Apex’s side comes from its own store data, which still loads behind the maintenance notice, and Simms’s from its live site, both checked on September 27, 2026.

What happened to Apex Peptides, day by day

Apex Peptides belongs to a cluster of Apex-branded companies around Sioux City, the corner where South Dakota, Iowa and Nebraska meet. Business filings put the peptide store, Apex Waste Management and Apex Research at 617 1st Street in Sergeant Bluff, Iowa, while the Better Business Bureau lists Apex Peptides at 503 Prosperity Way in North Sioux City, the building that was searched. How the store and the companies around it came together, and came apart:

The U.S. Postal Inspection Service is leading the case, with the FBI and IRS Criminal Investigation. Investigators have not said what the search concerns or tied it publicly to peptides, and no court filing explaining it has been released. Behind the maintenance notice, the store’s product listings and prices are still in place. The full account of the search day is in What Happened to Apex Peptides?

Simms Research vs Apex Peptides at a glance

Simms Research is built around paperwork a buyer can read before paying: a public record for each batch it sells, and prices, shipping terms and refund rules published in full on its site. Set against what Apex published, the two compare like this:

Retatrutide, tirzepatide and 12 more: prices compared

Apex’s most expensive products were its weight-loss line, which it listed under codes with a single vial size each: “GLP-1 R” for retatrutide at 12mg, “GLP-1 T” for tirzepatide at 10mg and “GLP-1 S” for semaglutide at 5mg. Simms Research sells Retatrutide (GLP-3) and Tirzepatide (GLP-2) in 10, 20, 30 and 60mg vials. On retatrutide, Apex’s 12mg vial works out to about $29 per milligram. Simms’s 10mg vial is $8.40 per milligram, and its 60mg vial under $4.35.

Across the compounds both stores list, Apex’s last prices and Simms’s current prices line up as follows:

Simms carries 27 compounds and blends in all, 16 of them compounds Apex also sold. Apex’s catalog also ran to semaglutide, HCG, oxytocin, IGF-1 LR3, follistatin, BDNF, LL-37, GHRP-2 and several growth-hormone blends, none of which Simms stocks. For GLP research, Simms puts its range into the two compounds it does carry, with four vial sizes and published lab records for each.

Lab records: what each supplier put on paper

Simms Research puts its lab records where a buyer can read them before paying. Its lab results page holds batch records for 22 compounds, each showing the batch number, test date, purity, measured content and contaminant screens. Here is the current retatrutide record beside what Apex published for its retatrutide:

Tirzepatide follows the same pattern: Simms’s latest batch, 2026-TZ295, came in at 99.777% purity with 10.57mg in a 10mg vial and the same screens passed. How to Read a Peptide Certificate of Analysis explains what each of those fields means.

Apex’s product pages, all of them, carry no lab report, purity figure, batch number or lab name. What the site offered instead were claims: “High Purity & Quality Assurance” on the About page, and a “WHO/GMP and ISO 9001:2008 approved facility” and “100% Made in the USA” on the home page, with no facility named. The 2008 edition of ISO 9001 was withdrawn in favor of the 2015 edition, and certificates issued under it lapsed in September 2018.

Paying and shipping

At Simms Research, checkout takes Visa, Mastercard, American Express and Discover cards, Apple Pay and Google Pay, and Klarna for paying in installments. Buyers can check out without an account, and nothing is added to the total for the payment method chosen. Crypto and Cash App aren’t accepted, so an order is paid for and confirmed in one step. Orders in before 5 PM EST leave the same day, by UPS Standard (3–5 business days) or FedEx 2-Day Express, which costs nothing on orders over $200. Simms ships to every US state and abroad, with any import duties paid by the buyer, and emails tracking as soon as the order ships. Details are on the payment options and shipping policy pages.

Apex’s terms promised “major credit cards and other payment methods as listed on our Site,” but the list never appeared, and the checkout itself ran a single payment option. Orders shipped the next business day, and shipping was free from $300. Which carrier would bring the box, and how long it would take, were never stated. International buyers ordered at their own risk, with Apex disclaiming customs seizures, delays and lost parcels.

When an order goes wrong

Simms Research doesn’t take returns, but it spells out what happens when something is wrong. A free Delivery Guarantee comes with every order: if a package goes missing in transit, disappears after a delivery scan or turns up damaged, Simms replaces it at no cost and deals with the carrier itself. Where a replacement can’t be sent, the products and any shipping paid are refunded. A defective or incorrect item reported to support@simmsresearch.com within 48 hours of delivery, with photos, gets the same replacement or refund. The full wording is in the refund and return policy.

Apex didn’t take returns either, and left refunds for damaged, defective or wrong items to its own discretion, promising to process approved ones within 10 business days. Its terms refer buyers to a separate refund policy, but no such page exists on the site. The governing-law clause was never completed; it still reads “[Your Jurisdiction].” The site lists one email address for help, and the terms give a phone number with a Wyoming area code, while the Better Business Bureau lists a different number with an Iowa area code.

For Apex customers: open orders, vials on hand and lookalike stores

An order that was paid for and never shipped

Apex hasn’t said whether it will fill or refund orders placed before the search. A card payment is the one with a clear way back: the buyer’s card issuer can open a dispute for goods not received, and card networks set the deadline, commonly 120 days from the expected delivery date. The order confirmation email and any replies from Apex are what the issuer will ask for.

Vials already in the fridge

Without batch records, there is nothing to hold an Apex vial up against. An independent peptide lab can test a single vial for identity, purity and content. For dosing math on the vials already at hand, including Apex’s 12mg retatrutide and 10mg tirzepatide, Simms’s peptide reconstitution calculator takes any vial size.

Stores with Apex in the name

The store that was searched is apexpeptides.com. Other peptide sellers trade under similar Apex names on different web addresses, and none of them appears in the reporting on the search. For anyone shopping after the shutdown, the exact web address is the thing to check before paying.

Moving the research to Simms

Sixteen of the compounds Apex sold are on the Simms shelf, and the GLP line runs up to 60mg, so one vial can stand in for several of Apex’s smaller ones. Freeze-dried peptide rides out transit at room temperature and goes into the refrigerator or freezer on arrival; Simms’s refrigeration guide covers storage before and after mixing.

Which supplier fits which researcher

Frequently asked questions

Is Apex Peptides legit?

Federal agents searched the building Apex Peptides is listed at on September 23, 2026, and the store has been closed since, with no public statement from the company. No one has been charged. While it was open, it published no lab reports for anything it sold, and its terms of service still carried an unfilled “[Your Jurisdiction]” placeholder.

Is Apex Peptides shut down?

It isn’t taking orders. As of September 27, 2026, apexpeptides.com shows a maintenance notice, and Apex hasn’t said if or when the store will return.

Is Apex Peptides third-party tested?

No test results were ever posted. Not one Apex product page names a lab or gives a purity figure or batch number. Simms Research posts a record for each batch on its lab results page.

What did Apex Peptides charge for retatrutide?

$350 for one 12mg vial, sold as “GLP-1 R.” At Simms Research, Retatrutide (GLP-3) runs from $84 for 10mg to $259 for 60mg, with six batches on record.

Is there an Apex Peptides discount code?

No Apex code works while the store is closed. New Simms Research customers who come through a partner’s link or code get 10% off their first qualifying order.

Where is Apex Peptides located?

Its business filings give 617 1st Street, Sergeant Bluff, Iowa. The Better Business Bureau lists 503 Prosperity Way, North Sioux City, South Dakota, the building searched on September 23, 2026.

Where can Apex customers find a peptide calculator?

Simms Research’s reconstitution calculator works with any vial size, Apex vials included.

Is Simms Research better than Apex Peptides?

Simms Research is open, posts a lab record for each batch, sells retatrutide and tirzepatide in four sizes each, takes cards, Apple Pay, Google Pay and Klarna without a surcharge, ships free on FedEx 2-Day from $200, and replaces a lost, stolen or damaged package free. Apex is closed, and while it was open it published no lab records, no carriers and no refund policy.