Over-the-counter medicine: active ingredient, price per tablet, and the label

At Target, a 100-count bottle of Tylenol Extra Strength costs $10.99. Target's own up & up acetaminophen, with the same 500 mg of the same active ingredient per caplet, costs $1.99. That gap repeats across the medicine cabinet, and it is the one part of this decision you can check without any medical knowledge. Which medicine suits you, and how much to take, is for the label and a pharmacist.

The short answer. Compare the first line of the Drug Facts label, the active ingredient and its amount per tablet. Where they match, the store brand cost roughly a fifth to a third of the national brand in every pair we checked. FDA says generic medicines are made to be the same as the brand in strength, dosage form, safety and intended use, though inactive ingredients can differ and, in a minority of people, may affect tolerability. The warnings travel with the ingredient, so a cheaper box carries the same ones. Before buying at all, check what you already own.

The data, at a glance

Price per tablet in the explorer, scored so that cheaper sits higher:

What the prices show

Shelf prices on Target's own pages, before coupons, checked September 2026:

Target's cetirizine and loratadine pages say "Compare to" the brand's active ingredient. Prices move, and other chains sell their own labels; the same check works anywhere.

Why matching ingredients matter

Generic equivalence. FDA defines a generic as a medicine made to be the same as the brand in dosage form, safety, strength, route, quality, performance and intended use, and says generics are expected to have the same clinical effect. Colour can differ. FDA also notes that inactive ingredients can, in a minority of patients, affect tolerability or absorption, so if you react to a dye or filler, show both labels to a pharmacist.

How each product is authorised. DailyMed, the US National Library of Medicine's label database, shows it. Target's ibuprofen label lists an approved generic application (ANDA). Its acetaminophen is listed under an OTC monograph, which FDA has described, GAO reports, as a "rulebook" setting active ingredients, uses, dosage forms and labelling for products such as aspirin and cough medicine. Either way, the Drug Facts label must list the active ingredient and its amount first.

The warnings are the same. Target's acetaminophen label on DailyMed carries the same severe liver damage warning as Tylenol Extra Strength, including the risk of taking it with other products that contain acetaminophen. Advil's and Target's ibuprofen labels both carry the NSAID warnings about stomach bleeding and heart attack and stroke. Benadryl's label says "marked drowsiness may occur"; Zyrtec's says "drowsiness may occur". Read them on the pack every time.

Check the cabinet first

FDA warns that many OTC medicines have similar brand names with different active ingredients, and the reverse happens too: the same ingredient under different names. Before you buy, read the active ingredient on what you already have. You may already own it, and doubling up is what the acetaminophen and ibuprofen labels warn against. For a mild fever, Cleveland Clinic's page explains when medicine is usually not needed and when to call a provider.

If you care most about...

There is no single best choice here, only a cheapest version of the same ingredient and the question of whether that ingredient suits you, which this guide cannot answer.

What we're not telling you

We do not say which medicine to take, how much, or for how long. Pregnancy, children, older age, liver, kidney, heart or stomach conditions, and other medicines all change what is safe, and the label's "Ask a doctor or pharmacist" lines exist for that. We compared six ingredients at one US retailer on one date.

How we made this

We take no money from any drug maker or retailer. Every price and label line above comes from a page we opened in September 2026. Tell us through Contribute if a price has moved or a label has changed.

Sources

• Target, Tylenol Extra Strength 100 count, checked 2026-09
• Target, up & up acetaminophen 100 count, checked 2026-09
• Target, Advil 100 count, checked 2026-09
• Target, up & up ibuprofen 100 count, checked 2026-09
• Target, Zyrtec 30 count, checked 2026-09
• Target, up & up cetirizine 30 count, checked 2026-09
• Target, Claritin 30 count, checked 2026-09
• Target, up & up loratadine 30 count, checked 2026-09
• Target, Pepcid AC Maximum Strength 50 count, checked 2026-09
• Target, up & up famotidine 50 count, checked 2026-09
• Target, Benadryl Ultratabs 100 count, checked 2026-09
• Target, up & up diphenhydramine 100 count, checked 2026-09
• DailyMed, Tylenol Extra Strength label, checked 2026-09
• DailyMed, Target acetaminophen label, checked 2026-09
• DailyMed, Advil label, checked 2026-09
• DailyMed, Target ibuprofen label, checked 2026-09
• DailyMed, Zyrtec label, checked 2026-09
• DailyMed, Benadryl label, checked 2026-09
• FDA, generic drugs questions and answers, checked 2026-09
• FDA, the over-the-counter Drug Facts label, checked 2026-09
• GAO, over-the-counter drugs (GAO-20-572, 2020), checked 2026-09
• Cleveland Clinic, fever, checked 2026-09

Compare over-the-counter medicines on price per tablet, label warnings and availability by your own weighting in the over-the-counter medicine explorer.