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    4-HO-MET molecular structure

    4-HO-MET Stats & Data

    Psychedelic Research-chemical
    Metocin Methylcybin 4homet homet
    PubChem CID 21786582
    NPS DataHub
    MW218.3
    FormulaC13H18N2O
    CAS77872-41-4
    IUPAC3-[2-(ethyl-methylamino)ethyl]-1H-indol-4-ol
    SMILESCCN(C)CCc1cnc2cccc(O)c12
    InChIKeyORWQBKPSGDRPPA-UHFFFAOYSA-N
    Tryptamines; 2020/5.1 Indol-3-alkylamine; 2021/5.1 Indol-3-alkylamine; 2022/5.1 Indol-3-alkylamine
    Chemical Class Tryptamine
    Psychoactive Class Psychedelic
    Half-Life Unknown in humans; effect-duration ~4–6 h suggests a moderate elimination rate.

    Receptor Profile

    Receptor Actions

    Agonists
    5-HT2A receptor agonist (partial)
    5-HT2B receptor agonist
    5-HT2C receptor agonist
    5-HT1A receptor agonist
    Other
    Serotonin transporter interaction
    Norepinephrine transporter interaction (partial)

    Subjective Effects

    Physical
    • Spontaneous tactile sensations: The "body high" of 4-HO-MET can be described as a pleasurable, warm, soft and all-encompassing tingling sensation. This maintains a consistent presence that steadily rises with the onset and hits its limit once the peak has been reached.
    • Sedation: In terms of its effects on the physical energy levels of the tripper, 4-HO-MET is considered by most to be relaxing, stoning and mildly sedating. This sense of sedation is often accompanied by compulsive yawning.
    • Nausea
    • Pupil dilation
    Cognitive
    • Current mind state enhancement
    • Thought connectivity
    • Thought acceleration
    • Novelty enhancement
    • Immersion enhancement
    • Time distortion
    • Analysis enhancement
    • Thought loops
    • Personal bias suppression
    • Conceptual thinking
    • Direct communication with the subconscious
    • Memory suppression
    • Ego death
    • Feelings of interdependent opposites
    • Delusions
    • Unity and interconnectedness
    • Wakefulness
    Sensory
    Auditory
    • Enhancements
    • Distortions
    • Hallucinations
    Visual · Distortions

    As for visual distortions and alterations, the effects experienced are detailed below:

    • drifting: (melting, flowing, breathing and morphing) - In comparison to other psychedelics, this effect can be described as highly detailed, cartooon-like in style, slow and smooth in motion and static in appearance.
    • Tracers
    • After images
    • Symmetrical texture repetition
    • Colour shifting
    • Scenery slicing
    Visual · Enhancements

    4-HO-MET presents a full and complete array of possible visual enhancements which generally includes:

    • Acuity enhancement
    • Colour enhancement
    • Pattern recognition enhancement
    Visual · Hallucinatory States

    4-HO-MET and its various other forms produce a full range of high level hallucinatory states in a fashion that is more consistent and reproducible than that of many other commonly used psychedelics. These effects generally include:

    • Transformations
    • Internal hallucinations: (autonomous entities; settings, sceneries, and landscapes; alterations in perspective and scenarios and plots) - This effect is very consistent in dark environments at appropriately high doses. They can be comprehensively described through their variations as lucid in believability, interactive in style, new experiences in content, autonomous in controllability, geometry-based in style and almost exclusively of a religious, spiritual, mystical, science fiction or transcendental nature in overall theme.

    Forked from Subjective Effect Documentation work by Josie Kins, September 2015. Via dose.wiki (CC0).

    Toxicity

    PsychonautWiki

    The toxicity and long-term health effects of recreational 4-HO-MET use do not seem to have been studied in any scientific context and the exact toxic dose is unknown. This is because 4-HO-MET is a research chemical with very little history of human usage. However, there are reports of very high doses leading to drug induced psychosis. Anecdotal evidence from those who have tried 4-HO-MET suggests that there are no negative health effects attributed to simply trying the substance by itself at low to moderate doses and using it very sparingly (but nothing can be completely guaranteed). Independent research should always be done to ensure that a combination of two or more substances is safe before consumption.

    Effect Profile

    Curated + 132 Reports
    Psychedelic 8.0

    Strong visuals, auditory effects, body load, and headspace

    Visual Intensity×3
    10105.5
    Headspace Depth×3
    8104.8
    Auditory Effects×1
    10103.6
    Body Load / Somatic Effects×1
    10103.0
    Catalog Erowid BlueLight
    Based on reports from:
    Effect Index Wracked with Color — nervewing Effect Index Unity with a Friend — Josie Effect Index My Fourth Experience with Unity — Josie Effect Index Cosmic Copyright Warning — Rho Effect Index Extreme Psychosis — Cocoanatta TiHKAL TiHKAL #21: 4-HO-MET Bluelight Big & Dandy Thread Erowid Experience Reports PsychonautWiki 4-HO-MET The Drug Users Bible 4-HO-MET

    Duration Timeline

    Bluelight
    Onset Comeup Peak Offset After Effects
    Oral
    15-40 minutes
    30 minutes - 1.0 hours
    2-3 hours
    1-1.5 hours
    2-12 hours
    Total: 4-6 hours
    Insufflated
    0-1 minutes
    2-8 hours
    Total: 3-7 hours
    Intravenous
    1-10 minutes
    3.0-7.0 hours
    2.0-8.0 hours
    Total: 3-7 hours
    Smoked
    15 seconds-2 minutes hours
    2-8 hours
    Total: 25-45 minutes hours

    Community Effects

    TripSit
    Positive
    visual enhancement euphoria color enhancement music enhancement sociability
    Negative
    nausea body load anxiety

    Tolerance & Pharmacokinetics

    drugs.wiki
    Half-Life
    Unknown in humans; effect-duration ~4–6 h suggests a moderate elimination rate.
    Addiction Potential
    Low; not considered habit-forming. No established physical dependence or withdrawal syndrome reported.

    Tolerance Decay

    Full tolerance 6h Half tolerance 7d Baseline ~14d

    Estimates reflect typical serotonergic psychedelic patterns; individual variability is high and data are anecdotal/community-derived. Redosing within the same day produces diminishing returns.

    Cross-Tolerances

    Psilocybin/Psilocin
    70% ●○○
    LSD and analogues
    60% ●○○
    Other 4-substituted tryptamines (e.g., 4-AcO-MET/4-HO-MiPT)
    70% ●○○

    Experience Report Analysis

    Erowid BlueLight
    104 Reports
    2007–2025 Date Range
    94 With Age Data
    33 Effects Detected

    Demographics

    Gender Distribution

    Age Distribution

    Reports Over Time

    Effect Analysis

    Erowid + Bluelight

    Effects aggregated from 132 experience reports (104 Erowid + 28 Bluelight)

    132 Reports
    135 Effects Detected
    64 Positive
    42 Adverse
    29 Neutral

    Effect Sentiment Distribution

    Confidence Distribution

    Positive Effects 64

    Color Enhancement 60.6% 89%
    Music Enhancement 50.8% 86%
    Euphoria 47.0% 90%
    Joy 46.4% 86%
    Geometric Imagery 39.3% 90%
    Introspection 37.1% 82%
    Awe 35.7% 83%
    Stimulation 33.4% 80%
    Surface Breathing 32.1% 87%
    Empathy 31.8% 82%
    Contentment 28.6% 82%
    Entity Imagery 28.6% 83%
    Tactile Enhancement 27.3% 85%
    Focus Enhancement 27.3% 82%
    Visual Trails 21.4% 82%
    Patterning 21.4% 92%
    Insight 21.4% 84%
    Thought Acceleration 17.9% 81%
    Bliss 17.9% 88%
    Empathogenic Connection 17.9% 81%

    Adverse Effects 42

    Anxiety 59.9% 82%
    Body Load 42.9% 75%
    Confusion 34.1% 77%
    Nausea 30.3% 90%
    Fear 25.0% 88%
    Panic 17.9% 86%
    Thought Disorganization 17.9% 81%
    Muscle Tension 17.3% 70%
    Memory Suppression 15.9% 75%
    Depersonalization 14.3% 86%
    Thought Loops 13.6% 77%
    Dysphoria 10.7% 83%
    Sweating 10.6% 85%
    Pupil Dilation 10.6% 87%
    Headache 9.9% 75%
    Jaw Clenching 7.5% 82%
    Paranoid Ideation 7.1% 80%
    Frequent Urination 7.1% 78%
    Derealization 7.1% 85%
    Identity Confusion 7.1% 88%

    Dose-Response Correlation

    How effect frequency changes across dose levels

    View data table
    Effect Light (n=15) Common (n=22)
    Anxiety 60.0% 95.5%
    Visual Distortions 93.3% 90.9%
    Color Enhancement 53.3% 77.3%
    Music Enhancement 60.0% 72.7%
    Nausea 53.3% 45.5%
    Sedation 53.3% 22.7%
    Stimulation 53.3% 40.9%
    Confusion 26.7% 45.5%
    Closed-Eye Visuals 33.3% 40.9%
    Euphoria 33.3% 40.9%
    Empathy 40.0% 22.7%
    Introspection 33.3% 36.4%
    Tactile Enhancement 26.7% 36.4%
    Auditory Effects 33.3% 27.3%
    Focus Enhancement 26.7% 31.8%

    Dose–Effect Mapping

    Experience Reports

    How reported effects shift across dose tiers, based on 104 experience reports.

    Limited tier coverage — most reports fall within the Light / Common range. Effects at other dose levels may not be represented.

    Oral dose range: 10.0–25.0 mg (median 20.0 mg)
    Effect Light (n=15) Common (n=22)
    anxiety
    60%
    96%
    		↑
    visual distortions
    93%
    91%
    		→
    color enhancement
    53%
    77%
    		↑
    music enhancement
    60%
    73%
    		↑
    nausea
    53%
    46%
    		→
    sedation
    53%
    23%
    		↓
    stimulation
    53%
    41%
    		↓
    confusion
    27%
    46%
    		↑
    closed-eye visuals
    33%
    41%
    		↑
    euphoria
    33%
    41%
    		↑
    empathy
    40%
    23%
    		↓
    introspection
    33%
    36%
    		→
    tactile enhancement
    27%
    36%
    		↑
    auditory effects
    33%
    27%
    		↓
    focus enhancement
    27%
    32%
    		↑
    ego dissolution
    13%
    32%
    		↑
    memory suppression
    27%
    14%
    		↓
    creativity enhancement
    13%
    23%
    		↑
    headache —
    23%
    		→
    body high
    20%
    14%
    		↓

    Showing top 20 of 30 effects

    Risk Escalation

    Sentiment Analysis

    Average frequency of positive vs adverse effects across dose tiers

    Light n=15
    10 positive 36.0% 8 adverse 27.5%
    Common n=22
    10 positive 39.5% 9 adverse 29.8%
    View effect breakdown

    Adverse Effects

    Effect Light (n=15) Common (n=22) Change
    Anxiety
    60%
    96%
    		+59%
    Nausea
    53%
    46%
    		-14%
    Confusion
    27%
    46%
    		+70%
    Memory Suppression
    27%
    14%
    		-49%
    Headache —
    23%
    		0%
    Pupil Dilation
    13%
    14%
    		2%
    Muscle Tension —
    14%
    		0%
    Motor Impairment
    13%
    		— 0%
    Increased Heart Rate
    13%
    		— 0%
    Jaw Clenching
    13%
    		— 0%
    Thought Loops —
    9%
    		0%
    Sweating —
    9%
    		0%

    Positive Effects

    Effect Light (n=15) Common (n=22) Change
    Color Enhancement
    53%
    77%
    		+45%
    Music Enhancement
    60%
    73%
    		+21%
    Stimulation
    53%
    41%
    		-23%
    Euphoria
    33%
    41%
    		+22%
    Empathy
    40%
    23%
    		-43%
    Introspection
    33%
    36%
    		9%
    Tactile Enhancement
    27%
    36%
    		+36%
    Focus Enhancement
    27%
    32%
    		+19%
    Creativity Enhancement
    13%
    23%
    		+70%
    Body High
    20%
    14%
    		-32%

    Dosage Distribution

    Dose distribution from experience reports

    Median: 20.0 mg IQR: 10.0–25.0 mg n=48

    Real-World Dose Distribution

    62K Doses

    From 137 individual dose entries

    Oral (n=108)

    Median: 20.0mg 25th: 10.0mg 75th: 27.25mg 90th: 35.75mg
    mg/kg median: 0.25 mg/kg 75th: 0.316

    Insufflated (n=6)

    Median: 17.5mg 25th: 15.0mg 75th: 23.75mg 90th: 25.0mg
    mg/kg median: 0.245 mg/kg 75th: 0.278

    Intramuscular (n=5)

    Median: 10.0mg 25th: 10.0mg 75th: 30.0mg 90th: 36.0mg
    mg/kg median: 0.161 mg/kg 75th: 0.331

    Sublingual (n=5)

    Median: 20.0mg 25th: 20.0mg 75th: 27.0mg 90th: 34.2mg
    mg/kg median: 0.383 mg/kg 75th: 0.411

    Common Combinations

    Most co-occurring substances in experience reports

    Form / Preparation

    Most common forms and preparations reported

    Body-Weight Dosing

    Dose relative to body weight from reports with weight data

    Median: 0.269 mg/kg IQR: 0.176–0.303 mg/kg n=46

    Redose Patterns

    Redosing behavior across 69 reports

    13.0% Redosed
    1.2 Avg Doses
    20m Median Interval
    Read full reports on Erowid →

    Legal Status

    Country Status Notes
    Austria 4-HO-MET is illegal to possess, produce and sell under the NPSG (Neue-Psychoaktive-Substanzen-Gesetz Österreich).
    Canada 4-HO-MET is unscheduled in Canada.
    Finland Scheduled in the "government decree on psychoactive substances banned from the consumer market".
    Germany 4-HO-MET is ruled under the Neue-psychoaktive-Stoffe-Gesetz (NpSG) since July 18, 2019. Production and Import with intent to distribute is punishable. Possession is forbidden but not punishable, although ordering it in small quantities can still be seen as an intent to distribute it and be punished. 4-Propionoxy-N-methyl-N-ethyltryptamine (also referred to as 4-PrO-MET) is the ester prodrug of 4-HO-MET. Unlike many other tryptamine derivatives, it is currently not explicitly listed under the German Neue-psychoaktive-Stoffe-Gesetz (NpSG). This means that, while its use as a recreational substance is not legally permitted, the compound may be obtained and handled for legitimate research purposes, provided all other relevant legal requirements and safety regulations are observed.
    Japan 4-HO-MET is a controlled substance in Japan effective March 25th, 2015.
    Sweden The Swedish Riksdag added 4-HO-MET to Schedule I ("substances, plant materials and fungi which normally do not have medical use") as narcotics in Sweden as of May 1, 2012, published by Medical Products Agency in their regulation LVFS 2012:6.
    Switzerland 4-HO-MET is a controlled substance specifically named under Verzeichnis E.
    United Kingdom 4-HO-MET is a class A drug in the United Kingdom, as a result of the tryptamine catch-all clause.
    United States 4-HO-MET is not scheduled at the federal level in the United States, but it is possible that it could be considered an analogue of psilocin, in which case purchase, sale, or possession could be prosecuted under the Federal Analogue Act. It is a schedule I substance in some states, such as South Dakota and West Virginia.

    Harm Reduction

    drugs.wiki

    4-HO-MET is a 4-hydroxylated tryptamine analogous to psilocin; community and Shulgin/TiHKAL notes place oral activity around 10–20 mg with 4–6 h total duration, but sensitivity varies widely—always titrate from low doses with an accurate milligram scale or volumetric dosing. Research chemicals are frequently misrepresented; use drug checking: Ehrlich reagent should turn positive for indoles but only confirms an indole, not identity—use multiple reagents (e.g., Hofmann/Marquis/Mecke) and prefer lab testing when available. Most retail 4-HO-MET is the fumarate salt due to better stability; keep airtight, dry, opaque, and cold (freezer with desiccant) to slow oxidation/darkening; color change does not reliably indicate potency loss, but degradation is possible over time. Avoid vaporizing/smoking salts; 4-substituted tryptamines tend to thermally degrade and give unreliable effects; oral is most characterized and predictable. Insufflation has a faster onset and shorter duration but is irritating and moreish; nasal care (saline rinse) helps, and redosing is often less efficient due to rapid tachyphylaxis. Dangerous interactions include MAOIs (potentiate/instability), lithium (documented seizures with serotonergic psychedelics), and tramadol (seizure and serotonin toxicity risk); avoid triptans near dosing windows for added serotonergic/vasoconstrictive risk. SSRIs/SNRIs commonly blunt psychedelic effects and make dose-response unpredictable; do not increase dose to compensate without caution. Combining with stimulants or empathogens can markedly increase cardiovascular load and anxiety; if combining at all, use lower doses than usual and cool environments. Cannabis can strongly amplify visuals and anxiety on 4-HO-MET; introduce late and gently if at all. Keep a calm, trusted sitter for first trials; if severe anxiety/overstimulation occurs, a measured benzodiazepine dose can de-escalate but impairs memory/coordination—avoid alcohol and other depressants concurrently. Tolerance to serotonergic psychedelics rises rapidly after a session and decays over about 7–14 days; cross-tolerance occurs with LSD/psilocybin/other tryptamines—spacing sessions reduces dose creep and preserves psychological integration.

    References

    Data Sources

    Cited References

    Additional references

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