Atypical Antidepressants
TrazodoneTrazodone Hydrochloride
Trazodone is an older antidepressant that is now prescribed far more often, at low doses, as a sleep aid than for depression. It is an inexpensive generic tablet.
This page is general information about a medication and how cash prices for it are set. It is not medical advice and does not replace the label, your prescriber or your pharmacist. How we handle medical information
All strengths are generic from multiple manufacturers.
About Trazodone
Trazodone blocks certain serotonin receptors and, at higher doses, inhibits serotonin reuptake. At the low doses used for sleep its sedating and antihistamine-like effects dominate; at the higher doses used for depression the antidepressant effect emerges. Because it is not a controlled substance and has less dependence potential than benzodiazepines or the so-called Z-drugs, prescribers often reach for it when someone has both low mood and poor sleep.
It is approved only for major depression, so use for insomnia is off-label but extremely common. It is taken at bedtime for sleep or in divided doses for depression. Next-morning grogginess, dizziness on standing and dry mouth are the usual complaints. Priapism, a prolonged painful erection, is a rare but serious side effect that needs emergency care.
Trazodone tablets are scored, and the 150 mg tablet is scored so it can be divided into three. Dose adjustments are made by the prescriber.
Why the cash price for Trazodone differs from pharmacy to pharmacy
Trazodone is a commodity generic and its cash price is almost entirely dispensing fee and margin. For a bedtime dose that continues for months or years, the spread between pharmacies matters more than it looks on a single fill.
Because it is often prescribed at low doses, the number of tablets per fill is small and the dispensing fee becomes the majority of the price. A pharmacy with a low fee, or a flat-price generic list that includes trazodone, will beat one with a higher fee regardless of drug cost.
Ways to pay less for Trazodone without insurance
- Ask for a ninety-day prescription.
- Ask whether trazodone is on the pharmacy’s flat-price generic list.
- If your dose is a fraction of a tablet, ask the prescriber whether a scored higher-strength tablet could be split.
- Compare independents and mail-order pharmacies.
- Upload your prescription to Script Unlock so licensed pharmacies can quote their cash price. You pay the pharmacy directly.
How Script Unlock gets you a cash price for Trazodone
Prices on this site come from pharmacies responding to a real prescription. We do not publish estimated, average or "typical" prices, because none of those would be your price.
- 1You upload your prescription
A photo of your Trazodone prescription is enough. Nothing is sold on the site; you are asking pharmacies to quote.
- 2Licensed pharmacies respond
Pharmacies that Script Unlock has verified see the request and each can reply with its own cash price for your exact drug, strength and quantity.
- 3You choose and pay the pharmacy
You compare the responses, pick a pharmacy, and pay that pharmacy directly when you collect. Script Unlock never takes a patient payment and never sets the price.
Questions to ask your pharmacist about Trazodone
- 1.How long before bed should I take it?
- 2.Should I take it with food?
- 3.Is it safe with my other medicines, especially other antidepressants or sleep aids?
- 4.What should I do if I feel dizzy when I get up at night?
- 5.What are the warning signs of priapism or serotonin syndrome?
Related medications
Sources
Script Unlock is a marketplace that lets licensed pharmacies quote a cash price on your prescription. It does not prescribe, dispense or sell medication, does not process patient payments, and does not give medical advice. Always follow the instructions of your prescriber and pharmacist and read the medication guide supplied with your medicine.