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Ethylone
3,4-methylenedioxy-N-ethylcathinone
bk-MDEA, MDEC, 3,4-MDEC
Ethylone is a synthetic entactogen and stimulant of the cathinone class.citation needed It is the β-keto analog of MDEA and emerged commercially around 2011 with minimal prior documentation of human use. Ethylone is commonly sold as a substitute or counterfeit for MDMA and methylone due to methylone's declining market availability. It is reported to be less potent than methylone, with effects that lean more toward classical stimulation than entactogenic warmth.
Dosage & Duration
Dosage
Doses are population estimates that vary widely between individuals.
Threshold~75 mg
Light75-150 mg
Moderate150-225 mg
Strong225-325 mg
Heavy325+ mg
Duration
Onset15-45 minutes
Peak1-1.5 hours
Offset1-2 hours
After Effects2-12 hours
Total2-4 hours
Subjective Effects
Legacy content. A statistically backed ontology from Mindstate Design Labs is coming soon.
The experience is that of a mild entactogen, broadly comparable to MDMA in character but consistently reported as subtler and less satisfying. Users frequently describe the effects as underwhelming relative to expectations, with the emotional warmth and euphoria of related empathogens present in a muted form. It is also reported to be less potent than its close relative methylone.
Physical
A mild stimulating effect accompanies the experience, consistent with its cathinone stimulant profile.
Cognitive
The headspace is a gentle, empathogenic one, with mild mood elevation and social warmth that fall noticeably short of the intensity associated with MDMA.
Emotional
Empathogenic effects are present but notably weaker than those of MDMA, often leaving users underwhelmed.
Pharmacology
Pharmacodynamics
Ethylone functions as a mixed monoamine reuptake inhibitor and releasing agent, acting on the serotonin, norepinephrine, and dopamine transporters.citation needed Relative to methylone, it displays approximately three-fold lower affinity for the serotonin transporter while maintaining similar affinity for the norepinephrine and dopamine transporters, resulting in a more balanced catecholaminergic-to-serotonergic activity profile. Although ethylone retains robust releasing capabilities, its overall pharmacological character has been described as more consistent with reuptake inhibition than with monoamine release.
Pharmacokinetics
Based on analysis of human and rat urine, ethylone undergoes metabolism via two primary pathways: N-deethylation to the corresponding primary amine and reduction of the beta-keto group to the respective alcohol.citation needed
Dangerous
Highest riskThese combinations are considered extremely harmful and should always be avoided. Reactions to these drugs taken in combination are highly unpredictable and have a potential to cause death.
Tolerance
Tolerance timelines are rules of thumb, not exact schedules, and vary widely between individuals and use patterns.
Full Tolerance
Repeated ethylone use over time can produce tolerance to many effects, causing users to need larger doses for comparable results.
Baseline Reset
1-2 weeks
Half Tolerance
3-7 days
Cross Tolerance
Dopaminergic stimulants
Harm Potential
Addiction & Dependence
Psychological
ModerateChronic use is regarded as moderately addictive, carries a high abuse potential, and can produce psychological dependence. If addiction develops, stopping suddenly may cause cravings.
Physical
LowWithdrawal effects may occur with sudden cessation of chronic use, though the nature and severity of physical withdrawal symptoms have not been well characterizedcitation needed due to limited research.
Psychosis Risk
As with other stimulants, abuse at high dosages for prolonged periods may result in stimulant psychosis presenting with paranoia, hallucinations, or delusions. Psychosis very rarely arises from occasional or moderate use.
Seizure Risk
Seizure risk from ethylone alone has not been documented in the available literature.
History & Culture
Ethylone is a synthetic cathinone that represents the β-keto analogue of MDEA, a substance colloquially known as "Eve."1 The compound has only a brief history of documented human use, with minimal records of consumption prior to its commercial emergence around…
Legality
International
Ethylone is not listed under the 1961 Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs. It is listed in a schedule of the 1971 Convention on Psychotropic Substances. It is not listed under the 1988 Convention against Illicit Traffic in Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances.
By Country
Illegal24
United StatesIllegalEthylone is listed in Schedule I under the federal Controlled Substances Act as 1-(1,3-benzodioxol-5-yl)-2-(ethylamino)propan-1-one. It is subject to the federal controls applicable to Schedule I controlled substances.
By state
Across the 50 states, D.C., and the permanent territories, most jurisdictions treat Ethylone consistently with federal control; listed entries record independently verified differences in state classification or coverage.
AlaskaIllegalAlaska Stat. § 11.71.150(e)(15)52
Alaska controls ethylone as a Schedule IIA substance through its substituted-cathinones category. That state classification differs from the federal Schedule I classification, while possession and distribution remain prohibited except as authorized by law.
TexasIllegalTex. Health & Safety Code § 481.10353
Texas places ethylone in Penalty Group 2 rather than in a state Schedule I list. Possession, manufacture, delivery, and related conduct are prohibited under the Texas Controlled Substances Act's Penalty Group 2 provisions.
ArgentinaIllegalArgentina lists ethylone as “Etilona” (bk-MDEA), identified as 3,4-metilendioxi-N-etilcatinona, in Annex I to Decree No. 560/2019. The decree treats listed substances as estupefacientes under article 77 of the Penal Code. Unauthorised production, manufacture, trafficking, supply, and possession of estupefacientes are criminal offences under Law No. 23.737.
AustraliaIllegalEthylone is listed under its chemical synonym 3,4-methylenedioxyethcathinone (MDEC) as a controlled drug in Schedule 1 to the Criminal Code Regulations 2019. The Commonwealth Criminal Code criminalises conduct involving controlled drugs, including trafficking, manufacture and possession, with quantity-based offences and penalties. The Schedule sets ethylone's commercial quantity at 0.75 kilograms, marketable quantity at 250 grams, and trafficable quantity at 0.75 grams.
AustriaIllegal (analog/blanket ban)Neue-Psychoaktive-Substanzen-Verordnung (NPSV), Anlage II Z 4, read with § 4 Neue-Psychoaktive-Substanzen-Gesetz (NPSG)8910
Ethylone (bk-MDEA; 3,4-MDEC) is covered as an alpha-keto-benzylamine compound under Anlage II of Austria’s Neue-Psychoaktive-Substanzen-Verordnung. The annex includes derivatives with a methylenedioxy ring system, which encompasses ethylone’s 3,4-methylenedioxy-substituted alpha-keto-benzylamine structure. Under § 4 NPSG, producing, importing, exporting, supplying, or procuring a substance covered by a defined chemical class for another person’s psychoactive use, for gain, is punishable by imprisonment of up to two years.
ChinaIllegalNon-medical Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Control Measures; Supplementary Control List12
Classified as a controlled substance as of October 2015 under national drug control regulations.
DenmarkIllegalEthylone is listed as Ethylon in Liste B of Denmark's Bekendtgørelse om euforiserende stoffer, which entered into force on 29 March 2026. The regulation permits use of euphoriant substances only for medical or scientific purposes and limits possession, production, sale, purchase, import, export, and related handling to the regulation's authorized channels.
FinlandIllegalValtioneuvoston asetus huumausaineina pidettävistä aineista, valmisteista ja kasveista (543/2008)1516
Ethylone is listed as etyloni in List II of Finland's Decree on substances, preparations and plants considered narcotics. The decree treats the substances in Annexes I–V as narcotics, and the Narcotics Act prohibits their production, manufacture, import, export, transport, distribution, trade, handling, possession and use, subject to statutory medical, research, supervisory and industrial exceptions.
FranceIllegal (analog/blanket ban)Arrêté du 22 février 1990 fixant la liste des substances classées comme stupéfiants, annexe IV17
France classifies cathinone and its derivatives as narcotics in Annex IV to the national narcotics schedule. Ethylone is 3,4-methylenedioxy-N-ethylcathinone and is covered by that cathinone-derivative definition.
IndiaIllegalEthylone is listed as a psychotropic substance in the Schedule to India’s Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act, 1985. S.O. 821(E), published on 27 February 2018, inserted Ethylone at serial number 110Q. The Act prohibits possession, manufacture, production, sale, purchase, transport, warehousing, use, consumption, import into India, export from India, and transshipment of psychotropic substances except for medical or scientific purposes and in the manner authorised by the Act and its rules.
IndonesiaIllegalPeraturan Menteri Kesehatan Republik Indonesia Nomor 30 Tahun 2023 tentang Perubahan Penggolongan Narkotika23
Ethylone is listed as Etilon, with the aliases bk-MDEA and MDEC, in Indonesia's Narkotika Golongan I list. The listing expressly includes its racemic mixture and all stereoisomers. The regulation took effect on its promulgation on 22 August 2023; Group I narcotics may be used only for scientific development and not for therapy.
ItalyIllegalMinistero della Salute, Decreto 25 giugno 2018, updating the tables under D.P.R. 9 ottobre 1990, n. 3092425
Ethylone (bk-MDEA; 3,4-MDEC) is listed by name in Italy’s Tabella I under the Ministero della Salute decree of 25 June 2018. The decree took effect on 27 July 2018. Under Article 73 of D.P.R. 309/1990, unauthorized production, manufacture, sale, distribution, transport, import, export, acquisition, receipt, or possession for non-exclusively personal use of a Table I substance is punishable by criminal penalties.
JapanIllegalEthylone (bk-MDEA) is listed as a narcotic under Japan's Cabinet Order Designating Narcotics, Narcotic Raw Materials, Psychotropics and Narcotic and Psychotropic Raw Materials. The listing includes its salts and has applied since 19 January 2014; the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare states that manufacture, import, sale, possession, use, and administration of the newly designated narcotics are prohibited.
NetherlandsIllegalOpiumwet28
The Opiumwet places ethylon on lijst I. Article 2 prohibits importing or exporting, producing, preparing, processing, selling, supplying, transporting, and possessing substances on lijst I.
NorwayIllegalForskrift om narkotika (narkotikaforskriften) (FOR-2013-02-14-199)29
Ethylone is listed as "Etylon (bk-MDEA)" in Norway's Narkotikalisten under P II. The listing refers to section 5 of the Narkotikaforskriften, which prohibits manufacture, acquisition, sale, import, export, storage, possession, and use of the substance.
PolandIllegalRozporządzenie Ministra Zdrowia z dnia 17 sierpnia 2018 r. w sprawie wykazu substancji psychotropowych, środków odurzających oraz nowych substancji psychoaktywnych303132
Ethylone (ETYLON; 2-etyloamino-1-(3,4-metylenodioksyfenylo)propan-1-on) is listed as a Group II-P psychotropic substance in Poland’s ministerial controlled-substances schedule. The schedule entered into force on 21 August 2018, and ethylone is subject to the controls for psychotropic substances under the Act on Counteracting Drug Addiction.
PortugalIllegalEthylone (etilona; bk-MDEA; 3,4-MDEC) is listed in Tabela II-A of Portugal’s Decreto-Lei n.º 15/93. Lei n.º 8/2019 added ethylone to that table and took effect on 2 February 2019. The decree makes unauthorized trafficking acts involving substances in Tables I to III, including production, sale, supply, import, export, and illicit possession outside the statutory exception, punishable by four to twelve years’ imprisonment.
South KoreaIllegal (analog/blanket ban)Ethylone is controlled as a methcathinone analogue under Annex 3 of the Enforcement Decree of the Narcotics Control Act, which classifies it as a psychotropic drug under Article 2(3)(a) of the Act. Without the approval provided by decree, the Act prohibits possession, ownership, use, management, import or export, manufacture, sale, solicitation or brokering of sale, and transfer of Annex 3 psychotropic drugs.
SwitzerlandIllegal (analog/blanket ban)
UkraineIllegalCabinet of Ministers Resolution No. 770 of 6 May 2000, On approval of the list of narcotic drugs, psychotropic substances and precursors46
Ukraine lists ethylone (bk-keto MDEA) in List No. 2 of Table I to Cabinet of Ministers Resolution No. 770. List No. 2 is the list of especially dangerous psychotropic substances whose circulation is prohibited, so ethylone is prohibited in Ukraine. The schedule identifies ethylone chemically as 2-ethylamino-1-(3,4-methylenedioxyphenyl)propan-1-one.
References
Source Pages
Citations
- 3,4-Methylenedioxyethcathinone (Ethylone) ["Bath salt," bk-MDEA, MDEC]. (2019). https://www.deadiversion.usdoj.gov/drug_chem_info/ethylone.pdf1
- Decreto N° 560/2019. argentina.gob.ar (n.d.). https://www.argentina.gob.ar/normativa/nacional/decreto-560-2019-326675/texto1
- Decreto N° 560/2019. argentina.gob.ar (n.d.). https://www.argentina.gob.ar/normativa/326675_dec560-1_pdf/archivo1
- Decreto N° 560/2019. argentina.gob.ar (n.d.). https://www.argentina.gob.ar/normativa/nacional/ley-23737-138/actualizacion1
- Criminal Code Regulations 2019. legislation.gov.au (n.d.). https://www.legislation.gov.au/F2019L00561/latest/text1
- Criminal Code Regulations 2019. legislation.gov.au (n.d.). https://www.legislation.gov.au/F2025C01260/latest/text1
- Criminal Code Regulations 2019. legislation.gov.au (n.d.). https://www.legislation.gov.au/C2004A04868/latest/text1
- Neue-Psychoaktive-Substanzen-Verordnung (NPSV), Anlage II Z 4, read with § 4 Neue-Psychoaktive-Substanzen-Gesetz (NPSG). ris.bka.gv.at (n.d.). https://www.ris.bka.gv.at/eli/bgbl/ii/2011/468/ANL2/NOR402614411
- Neue-Psychoaktive-Substanzen-Verordnung (NPSV), Anlage II Z 4, read with § 4 Neue-Psychoaktive-Substanzen-Gesetz (NPSG). ris.bka.gv.at (n.d.). https://www.ris.bka.gv.at/Dokumente/Bundesnormen/NOR40261441/II_106_2024_Anlage_II.pdf1
- Neue-Psychoaktive-Substanzen-Verordnung (NPSV), Anlage II Z 4, read with § 4 Neue-Psychoaktive-Substanzen-Gesetz (NPSG). ris.bka.gv.at (n.d.). https://www.ris.bka.gv.at/eli/bgbl/i/2011/146/P4/NOR401344471
Further Reading
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Josie Kins · Updated the article · also 1,4-Butanediol, 1B-LSD, 1cP-AL-LAD and 573 more
Josie Kins · Updated the article · also 1,4-Butanediol, 1B-LSD, 1cP-AL-LAD and 573 more
Josie Kins · Updated the article · also 1,4-Butanediol, 1B-LSD, 1cP-AL-LAD and 573 more
Josie Kins · Updated the article · also 1,4-Butanediol, 1B-LSD, 1cP-AL-LAD and 573 more
Josie Kins · Updated the article · also 1,4-Butanediol, 1B-LSD, 1cP-AL-LAD and 573 more
Josie Kins · Updated the article · also 1,4-Butanediol, 1B-LSD, 1cP-AL-LAD and 573 more
Josie Kins · Updated the article · also 1,4-Butanediol, 1B-LSD, 1cP-AL-LAD and 573 more
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