Abstract: The present invention pertains to: a culture additive for animal cells, said culture additive containing an amino acid and/or glucose; a culture medium for animal cells, said culture medium containing an amino acid and/or glucose in addition to medium component(s); and a culture method for animal cells, said method comprising culturing animal cells with the use of the medium or adding the additive to a culture. According to the present invention, the proliferation ability of animal cells can be improved particularly in the case where the animal cells are cultured using a serum-free medium or a low-albumin medium.