LEXAPRO 20 MG TABLET
FDA nonproprietary name: escitalopram
For 30 tablets
Pharmacies pay
$482.82 filed
30 × $16.09413 per EA
CMS NADAC · nadac-national-average-drug-acquisition-cost-20261014.csv · eff. 2026-09-23 · as of 2026-10-14 · retrieved 2026-10-17
Medicare Part D paid
$421.31 filed
30 × $14.04358 per EA, Part D average
Medicare's price is not your price.
Medicare Part D · DSD_PTD_RY26_P04_V10_DY24_BGM.csv · eff. 2024-01-01 to 2024-12-31 · as of 2026-06-25 · retrieved 2026-10-18
The spread
0.87× estimated
Medicare paid 13% less than pharmacies pay.
Part D averages every strength and form sold under “Lexapro” / “Escitalopram Oxalate” into one figure, so it is not specific to this NDC.
OpenBill calculation · DSD_PTD_RY26_P04_V10_DY24_BGM.csv + nadac-national-average-drug-acquisition-cost-20261014.csv · NADAC eff. 2026-09-23 (file of 2026-10-14, retrieved 2026-10-17) · Part D 2024-01-01 to 2024-12-31 (file of 2026-06-25, retrieved 2026-10-18)
Cost-plus estimate
$560.24 estimated
$482.82 + $72.42 (15%) + $5.00 fee per fill = $560.24
This is a model, not a price any pharmacy quoted. Shipping is not included. How it is worked out
OpenBill calculation · nadac-national-average-drug-acquisition-cost-20261014.csv · NADAC eff. 2026-09-23 (file of 2026-10-14, retrieved 2026-10-17)
Open the interactive card Change the quantity, type what you were charged, and see every record in full.
What it is
LEXAPRO 20 MG TABLET is how the CMS NADAC file names this product. The FDA NDC Directory lists it as escitalopram, under the trade name “Lexapro”.
FDA gives its dosage form as tablet, film coated and its route as oral.
The labeler, the company named on the label, is Allergan, Inc.
FDA’s Established Pharmacologic Class for it is Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitor.
The NADAC file of 2026-10-14 prices it under one NDC (National Drug Code), 00456-2020-01.
NADAC classes it as a brand-name drug (rate-setting class B), and does not mark it as sold over the counter.
What pharmacies pay
Pharmacies pay $482.82 for 30 tablets (30 × $16.09413 per EA, rounded to the cent), by the CMS NADAC file of 2026-10-14; that price took effect on 2026-09-23. That is what pharmacies pay their suppliers, not what they charge you.
NADAC’s explanation code for it: 1, calculated from the most recently completed pharmacy survey.
NADAC also lists, on the row of one brand NDC, what pharmacies pay for the generic equivalent, a different product: $0.06316 per EA filed.
CMS NADAC · nadac-national-average-drug-acquisition-cost-20261014.csv · eff. 2026-09-23 · as of 2026-10-14 · retrieved 2026-10-17
What NADAC measures · Why 30 tablets · NADAC explanation codes
The NDC
- 00456-2020-01 · Allergan, Inc. · $16.09413 per EA · eff. 2026-09-23 filed
Other strengths, forms and brands
7 other products in the NADAC file share the FDA nonproprietary name escitalopram with LEXAPRO 20 MG TABLET.
| Product | Pharmacies pay per unit | Medicare per unit |
|---|---|---|
| ESCITALOPRAM 5 MG TABLET | $0.04157 per EA filed | $0.19025 per EA filed |
| ESCITALOPRAM 10 MG TABLET | $0.03945 per EA filed | $0.19025 per EA filed |
| ESCITALOPRAM 15 MG CAPSULE | $5.45324 per EA filed | $0.19025 per EA filed |
| ESCITALOPRAM 20 MG TABLET | $0.06316 per EA filed | $0.19025 per EA filed |
| ESCITALOPRAM OXALATE 5 MG/5 ML | $0.14255 per ML filed | We don’t know yet |
| LEXAPRO 5 MG TABLET | $14.74325 per EA filed | $14.04358 per EA filed |
| LEXAPRO 10 MG TABLET | $15.41264 per EA filed | $14.04358 per EA filed |
| LEXAPRO 20 MG TABLET this page | $16.09413 per EA filed | $14.04358 per EA filed |
Part D is one average per brand and generic name, over every strength and form.
CMS NADAC · nadac-national-average-drug-acquisition-cost-20261014.csv · eff. 2026-01-02, 2026-09-23 · as of 2026-10-14 · retrieved 2026-10-17
Medicare Part D · DSD_PTD_RY26_P04_V10_DY24_BGM.csv · eff. 2024-01-01 to 2024-12-31 · as of 2026-06-25 · retrieved 2026-10-18
Compared with its class
Its NADAC price is $16.09413 per EA filed.
Of the 58 other products in FDA’s Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitor class priced per EA, 1 has a higher middle NADAC price and 57 a lower one. The one in the middle is PAROXETINE ER 37.5 MG TABLET, at $0.3974 per EA filed (eff. 2026-09-23).
Prices are compared per unit, whatever the strength or dose, and a class is not a list of substitutes.
CMS NADAC · nadac-national-average-drug-acquisition-cost-20261014.csv · eff. 2026-09-23 · as of 2026-10-14 · retrieved 2026-10-17
What Medicare paid
Medicare Part D paid $421.31 for 30 tablets, at an average of $14.04358 per EA in 2024 (2024-01-01 to 2024-12-31) for “Lexapro” and “Escitalopram Oxalate”, every strength and form sold under that name together (Medicare Part D Spending by Drug, file of 2026-06-25).
That average covers 20,281 Part D claims (fills, including refills) for 2024-01-01 to 2024-12-31, across every maker, strength and form under the name.
Medicare's price is not your price.
What Part D spending measures · Which Medicare figure OpenBill compares · How the spread is worked out
What to ask at the counter
None of these figures is your price: what you pay depends on your pharmacy, your insurance, coupons and discounts.
- What is your cash price for 30 tablets? Is it lower than what I would pay through my insurance?
- If you have Medicare Part D: what is my plan’s copay or coinsurance for it? The Part D average on this page is not what you pay.
- These are questions about price, not medical advice. Do not change or stop a medicine without talking to your prescriber or pharmacist.
Questions
- Why is the comparison with Medicare for LEXAPRO 20 MG TABLET labelled estimated?
- Beyond what the card shows, the records give these reasons: The Part D figure covers 2024-01-01 to 2024-12-31; the NADAC price is from the file of 2026-10-14. Part D spending basis, as the Part D record states it: Part D 2024 average spend per dosage unit for Lexapro / Escitalopram Oxalate: all makers, strengths, forms and routes combined, claim-weighted; gross cost incl. dispensing fees and patient pay, before rebates. Unit taken as NADAC's EA. Joined on brand name.
Related pages
Its pharmacologic class
Related in the same class
- TRAZODONE 100 MG TABLET
- SERTRALINE HCL 100 MG TABLET
- FLUOXETINE HCL 10 MG TABLET
- CITALOPRAM HBR 10 MG TABLET
- PAROXETINE HCL 10 MG TABLET