"Pink cocaine" is one of the most misleadingly named substances in circulation. It generally contains no cocaine. It also, despite being named after it, usually contains none of the drug the name refers to. What it does contain is a mixture — and the mixture is the point.
Key Takeaways
- Tusi is typically ketamine plus MDMA, not cocaine — ketamine appeared in 93.2% of 470 tested samples
- 2C-B, the drug the name comes from, was found in only 3.6% of those samples
- The pink color is dye and a branding device; it tells you nothing about the contents
- Composition varies batch to batch, which is what makes dosing unpredictable and risky
What Pink Cocaine Actually Is
Tusi — also written tuci or tucibí, and sold as "pink cocaine" — is not a single drug. It is a pink-dyed powder mixture that emerged in Latin America and spread through nightlife scenes in Europe and the United States [1]. Because it is a brand rather than a compound, no two batches are reliably alike.
That distinction matters more than it sounds. With a named drug, you at least know what class of thing you are dealing with. With tusi, the name describes a color.
What the Testing Data Shows
Drug-checking services in several countries have analyzed large numbers of tusi samples, and the results are remarkably consistent [1][2]:
| Substance found | Spain (470 samples, 2020–24) | US samples |
|---|---|---|
| Ketamine | 93.2% | 94.7% |
| MDMA | 92.1% | 63.2% |
| 2C-B (the drug it’s named after) | 3.6% | rare |
Caffeine is frequently present, and other stimulants — amphetamine, methamphetamine, MDA — turn up regularly. Cocaine appears in some batches but is not a defining ingredient. The trend is toward a simpler and stronger mixture: ketamine concentration in tested samples rose from roughly 28% to 48% between 2020 and 2024 [1].
Why It's Called That
"Tusi" is a phonetic rendering of 2C-B, a synthetic psychedelic. The pink dye was reportedly introduced to mask 2C-B's harsh taste. Over time 2C-B largely dropped out of the formulation — DEA testing of 960 samples found only four containing any at all [1] — but the color and the name were commercially useful, so they stayed.
The word "cocaine" attached itself the same way: as marketing, describing a white-ish powder sold in similar settings. Someone who believes they are taking a small amount of a stimulant may in fact be taking a dissociative anesthetic.
Why the Mixture Is the Danger
Ketamine and MDMA do close to opposite things. Ketamine is a dissociative anesthetic that at higher amounts produces immobility and detachment from one's surroundings. MDMA is a stimulant that raises heart rate and body temperature [3]. Taken together, in an unknown ratio, in a hot and crowded environment, that combination carries real cardiovascular and overheating risk — and the dissociative component makes it harder for someone to recognize or communicate that they are in trouble.
Ketamine also carries its own dependence risk. Sustained heavy use is associated with tolerance, compulsive use, and serious damage to the bladder and urinary tract. Its supervised clinical use for treatment-resistant depression is a different setting with different controls, and it does not make unregulated use safe.
The Contamination Problem
Fentanyl is not a typical tusi ingredient, and it would be inaccurate to say otherwise. But a Miami-Dade case series found high fentanyl levels in people who died after using tusi, in cases where no fentanyl was detected in the product recovered at the scene [1] — a pattern that points to polysubstance exposure across a night rather than a single contaminated bag.
The general principle holds regardless: fentanyl cannot be seen, smelled, or tasted, and nearly 70% of stimulant-involved overdose deaths in 2023 also involved it [4]. No visual inspection of a pink powder rules anything out.
When it stops being occasional
Most people reading this are looking something up, not looking for treatment — and that's a legitimate reason to be here. But club-drug use has a way of becoming routine quietly, particularly when it's doing a job: managing anxiety, social discomfort, or a low mood that was there before the drugs were. Where that's the case, treating the substance use and the underlying condition together is what actually works — addressing either one alone tends not to hold.
If you're worried about someone rather than yourself, our Families & Loved Ones team can help you think through how to raise it.
Overdose is a medical emergency. Unresponsiveness, trouble breathing, seizure, chest pain, or a dangerously high body temperature — call 911 immediately. Give naloxone if it's available, even if no opioid was knowingly involved; it causes no harm if none is present. If this brings up thoughts of suicide or self-harm, call or text 988, the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline.
FAQs
- Is pink cocaine actually cocaine?
- Usually not. Despite the name, cocaine is not a standard ingredient. Drug-checking programs analyzing hundreds of samples consistently find ketamine and MDMA as the main components. Cocaine turns up in some batches, but it is not what defines the product.
- What is tusi made of?
- Most commonly ketamine combined with MDMA, often with caffeine and sometimes other stimulants such as amphetamine or methamphetamine. In 470 samples analyzed in Spain between 2020 and 2024, ketamine appeared in 93.2% and MDMA in 92.1%. US samples showed ketamine in 94.7%. The pink color is dye, not an ingredient.
- Does tusi contain 2C-B?
- Rarely, even though the name comes from 2C-B. Only 3.6% of the Spanish samples contained it, and DEA testing of 960 samples found just four containing any 2C-B. The name survived; the drug it referred to largely did not.
- Why is pink cocaine pink?
- It is dyed, usually with food coloring, and often given a strawberry or fruit scent. The color originally helped mask the taste of 2C-B, but once 2C-B dropped out of the formulation the pink stayed on as a branding device. It signals nothing about what is in a given batch.
- What makes tusi dangerous?
- Chiefly that you cannot know what is in it or how much. Ketamine and MDMA affect the body in very different ways, the ratio varies batch to batch, and ketamine concentrations in tested samples nearly doubled between 2020 and 2024. Combining a dissociative and a stimulant also carries cardiovascular and overheating risks, and mixing either with alcohol or other depressants raises the danger further.
- Can pink cocaine contain fentanyl?
- It is not a typical ingredient, but contamination of the broader street supply is real, and one Miami-Dade case series found high fentanyl levels in people who died after using tusi even though no fentanyl was detected in the product recovered at the scene. Because fentanyl cannot be seen, smelled, or tasted, no visual check rules it out.
- Is ketamine addictive?
- Yes. Ketamine has recognized potential for tolerance, compulsive use, and psychological dependence, and heavy sustained use is associated with serious bladder and urinary tract damage. Its use in supervised clinical settings for depression is a different context entirely from unregulated recreational use.
- Does insurance cover treatment for this kind of drug use?
- Most major plans cover medically necessary substance use treatment, including for polysubstance and club-drug use. You can verify coverage for free in a few minutes.
Sources
- Abukahok N, Fitzgerald ND, Palamar JJ. Current Addiction Reports (2025), NIH/PMC. An Update on the Epidemiology of Tusi (“Pink Cocaine”).
- Fitzgerald ND, Abukahok N, Palamar JJ. International Journal of Drug Policy (2025), NIH/PMC. When Pink Powders Shift the Drug Landscape: Tusi (“Pink Cocaine”) and Other Colored Powders.
- National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA). MDMA (Ecstasy/Molly).
- National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA). Drug Overdose Deaths: Facts and Figures.
This article is for informational purposes only and is not a substitute for professional medical advice. It is not guidance on obtaining, testing, or using any substance.
Written by
Executive Director
Dominic Perry is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW), Licensed Clinical Alcohol and Drug Counselor (LCADC), Master Addiction Counselor (MAC), and DOT Substance Abuse Professional (SAP) with approximately eight years of experience in behavioral health and substance use treatment. Dominic began his work with Virtue as a therapist at the Corbett residential facility before progressing into leadership, and now serves as Executive Director of Virtue Recovery Center – Outpatient in Las Vegas. He earned his Bachelor of Social Work from UNLV and his Master of Social Work from the University of Nevada Reno.
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