A blotter sold as LSD can carry a different substance, and you cannot see, smell or reliably taste the difference. In 2015 the Dutch drug checking service DIMS analysed samples that people had bought as LSD: 73% contained LSD, 11% an NBOMe, 9% DOC and 7% no active substance at all (Trimbos, DIMS annual report 2015). In its 2023 report DIMS still lists blotters that carry LSD-like substances and sometimes completely different ones, such as NBOMes (DIMS 2023).
FRANK notes that LSD is cheap to produce and usually not cut with other drugs, although its quality can vary with how it was made (FRANK). The real question with a blotter is whether there is LSD on it at all.
What NBOMe is and why it ends up on blotters
NBOMes are a group of synthetic psychedelics, mainly 25I-NBOMe, 25B-NBOMe and 25C-NBOMe. They appeared on the drug market in the early 2010s, are active in extremely small amounts and cost much less to produce than LSD. Researchers describe them as highly potent and toxic alternatives to LSD that are sold on blotters, as powder, liquid or tablets (Zawilska et al. 2020).
They are sold both openly and as LSD itself. A German forensic study notes that these substances are sold "as a cheaper replacement or deceptively as LSD itself" (Lützen et al. 2020). Forensic analyses of blotters sold as LSD in two Colombian cities found mixtures of DOB, 25I-NBOMe and MDMA (Mendoza-Valencia et al. 2019).
Why that difference matters
LSD and NBOMe can feel alike at first, but their risks are not alike. The review by Zawilska and colleagues lists seizures, agitation, violent behaviour, overheating, a racing heart and high blood pressure among the adverse effects of NBOMes, along with organ failure and deaths. In Indiana, two teenagers died in 2014 after taking 25B-NBOMe and 25I-NBOMe; the authors note that NBOMes are sold both as a legal alternative to LSD and as LSD to people who do not know it (Shanks et al. 2015).
A second problem is the paper itself. The German study found that NBOMe was spread unevenly over a blotter sheet, with hotspots that carry far more than the rest. Two squares from the same sheet can therefore differ strongly.
Some people rely on taste. Users and researchers describe a metallic taste and a numb tongue and mouth after NBOMe blotters, and name that numbness as a key difference from blotters with LSD (Bersani et al. 2014). Taste is still no test: a numbing or bitter blotter is a warning sign, and a blotter that tastes of nothing proves nothing.
What a reagent test shows
A reagent test reacts with a tiny piece of the sample and gives a colour. The Dope or Nope LSD test, sold at Dutch-Smart as the LSD test "Good or Bad", is made for blotters, microdots and liquid sold as LSD. Dutch-Smart describes it as a fast and sensitive test that identifies drugs from colour changes and reaction times.
- A colour on the chart means LSD is probably present.
- No reaction, or a colour that is not on the chart, means the sample is not LSD. Do not use it.
- It does not measure amount. A positive result says nothing about how strong the blotter is.
- It does not see everything. Another substance can sit on the same paper.
The official brand site dopeornopetest.com explains the LSD test step by step, with what a result does and does not tell you. A positive result does not make a trip safe, and it does not change the law: LSD stays illegal (see the law).
Which test, and how many
There is one LSD test, and the choice is how many to bring. Each pack holds one single-use test.
| Situation | What to use |
|---|---|
| One blotter, or squares from the same sheet | One LSD test (it checks what is on the paper, not how much) |
| Blotters from two sources or with two different designs | One LSD test each |
| Microdots or a liquid sold as LSD | One LSD test per sample |
| You want to know the amount or what else is on it | Lab analysis at a drug checking service, such as DIMS in the Netherlands |
A reagent test answers one question quickly at home. A lab analysis answers more, but takes days and is only available in some countries.
Dutch-Smart
LSD Test - Good or Bad
Single-use reagent test for a blotter, microdot or drop. A colour on the chart: LSD probably present. No reaction: not LSD.
€2.75 per test, incl. VAT
View at Dutch-Smart How the test works on dopeornopetest.comTesting in the Netherlands
The test is sold by Dutch-Smart, a smartshop in the Netherlands, and sells only to adults. LSD itself is on list I of the Dutch Opium Act, and so are 25B-NBOMe, 25C-NBOMe and 25I-NBOMe (Opiumwet, list I). DIMS offers anonymous drug checking at test locations across the country.
Continue with what it feels like or the timeline.