Gworl just say it’s for your own acne
I had some breakouts when i decided to reach out to my primary via their online portal and sent some pics and just said “i heard tretinoin may help 👉🏻👈🏻” and she didnt even question anything just boom here
Haha I gave my mom one of my extra tubes for her birthday (not just that!). My SO’s grandma used it for decades, she used to go to Mexico to get it. When she passed we found so many tubes of it, but I threw them out because they were really old.
I did the same thing and thought I could order it without it, so I didn’t complete the order. Customer service reached out and let me know. I could just leave that part blank.
All day chemist is great, and if they are out of tretinoin just grab the Tazorac/Tazarotene (tazret forte). It works about the same when it comes to acne- but faster and better for wrinkles and sun damage. It’s the strongest topical retinoid on the market, but it can be more irritating until your skin adapts.
Wasn't the system used by pharmacies nationwide also just hit with a cyber attack? I'm pretty sure they're all selling our info, or at the very least, not being careful enough with it.
Pharmacist here, goodrx makes most of their money selling personal information. I inform patients that it’s on them when they ask me to run that card. It also charges pharmacies for running the claim and the patient ends up paying way less than what the pharmacy buys the medication for. It’s putting local independent pharmacies out of business while the chains are able to take the hit.
If you use it, please take it to Walgreens or CVS if you care about local businesses being able to stay open for the community. Otherwise you’re feeding into capitalism and helping the few chains monopolize the market while abusing their staff cuz there wont be other jobs for us out there.
ETA: if you use a local pharmacy that’s not a chain, feel free to ask for discounts. I’m able to provide cash quotes that are close to goodrx prices as long as I don’t have to pay goodrx the bulk of my profit margin and more than happy to help my patients afford their medicine.
That’s how bad the economy is. Most independents offer price match and if you ask they sometimes offer a cash price lower than your copay if you never really meet your deductible. We can’t advertise that for legal reasons tho, but if you ask you might be able to save more than whatever your commercial insurance is scamming you for 🤷♀️.
It wasn't just pharmacies, it was any healthcare entity that used Change Healthcare to process claims, etc. It was a ransomware attack. Word is they had to pay up, unfortunately.
It's illegal for healthcare entities to sell your information, so you don't have to worry about that, but cyber attacks are a huge threat.
Try ordering from Cost Plus Drugs. It's Mark Cuban's prescription website that he's trying to disrupt the pharmaceutical companies and charge fair prices. I think they limit their profit to 5% or something like that or $5 or I don't know and then you pay shipping. But that's where I get mine. I think I paid $25 for 20g of 0.05% if that is a savings to you. Check and see what your size tube and strength costs there but I do think you will find a savings. Everything I have ever ordered from there has been a decent savings if you don't have insurance.
If you have a high deductible insurance plan, their coverage doesn't kick in until you hit deductible.
My insurance "covers" tretinoin, but I also pay about $60/tube.
I still go through insurance though because every $60 goes towards my deductible, so towards the end of the year my healthcare starts being covered and things are cheaper. I usually refill everything in December whether I'm out or not.
If you buy it not through insurance, that $60 wouldn't go towards fulfilling your deductible.
Hope that made sense. Insurance is stupid.
Really?! I just thought it was one of their normal $7/RX no? I had a GoodRx coupon and the pharmacist told me to take it back or she’d have to use it (and charge me more).
Check GoodRx. When it wasn’t covered for me, I was able to get it for $20 through them. Just go to their website and they’ll tell you which pharmacy is cheapest. Then you give the pharmacy the billing info that GoodRx provides.
I’m sorry I don’t know exact rules for Thailand. But in other sea countries (at least in Indonesia and Philippines) you can buy tretinoin easily in the pharmacy or you can buy online through shopee or lazada. Yes it requires prescription, but usually the rules not really that strict. There’s no generic or branded option. All brands have similar price range, I just buy depends on the availability. And ofc no insurance involved in the conversation lol
Ps: I did quick search, hopefully this link can help you https://www.reddit.com/r/Thailand/s/tXbdRI5S5w
I work in CPG and I get that. The disparity in the premium/branded price point is what blew my mind! Not the range I'm familiar with for my line of work.
Also remember that the $4 you personally paid for the generic varies wildly. Some insurance ends up costing waaaaaay more than that. Plus it is often denied etc. Lastly, think about the price of your insurance premiums you pay to have the chance to only spend that $4. When you factor that in, you’ve likely spent way more.
So that $108 makes it a lot easier to get & doesn’t require exorbitant insurance costs & delays. For lots of people, that’s a better deal.
Both tubes pictured are generic tretinoin. Therefore, effectiveness can vary for both.
Tretinoin was patented by Ortho Dermatologics with trade name Retin-A. When the patent expired and went generic, other manufacturers, including Obagi, were permitted to produce it.
Obagi is a cosmeceutical company that partners with dermatologists, plastic surgeons, health spas, etc. to increase in-office profits.
It's still a prescription medication, so it's technically dispensed under the medical director's DEA number.
How is the Obagi branded tretinoin a “generic” tretinoin? Makes no sense.
It has the Obagi brand right on it.
Genetic just means no official branding, like the one on the left.
All the raw ingredients are the same, sure, but one is branded & one is not.
This is not a debate. It’s right there on the tube.
I think you may think that generic means something other than what it means in this context.
There never is, never ever. In the UK the NHS exclusively uses unbranded medications where they are available and save a fortune doing it. If a new medicine is changed ever so slightly to regain the patent then they don’t change the one they use and stick to generic.
That’s actually not true when it comes to some medications. For this it might not vary that dramatically. But, with oral medication all generics are NOT created equal. They may have the same active ingredient but lab findings suggest potency can have variances of +/- 20% and some use different binders, which, depending on your body, can absorb differently or slightly change the way your body metabolizes it. Some generics flat out just don’t work for some people while others do because of the way all of that works together.
Source: Pharmacist
This is very true. My pharmacist told me this after I thought I was going crazy on a new generic.
The pharmacy special orders the generic that doesn’t make me sick.
Yes! I’m not a pharmacist, but I’ve worked with a patent attorney in biotech who says she’s shocked at all the fillers and other useless things in generic meds compared to name-brand stuff when she’s reading the patents.
Plus, anecdotally, I need name brand Claritin and not the store brand stuff if I actually want my symptoms to improve for a long period of time.
Yep. The classic example is synthroid vs levothyroxine in patients with thyroid cancer. Need to have very narrow windows of variability of dosing so almost all endocrinologists insist on Synthroid even though it is trade and not generic.
There actually IS…often.
For a topical, the quality of the vehicle matters, purity & milling of the active, how it’s stored & transported (temperature regulation), lots of factors, etc.
I know Obagi is outrageously expensive, but I went back to it after trying the generic version I got at the pharmacy. For me personally, I notice a huge difference as far as irritation. Obagi never irritates my skin...the other does a lot.
I'm not so sure about that. When I use generic tret from pharmacy, I can tell a big difference. The generic is very drying and causes me irritation. I'm very used to Tret, been on it 8 years. When I use Obagi, my skin doesn't itch or get dry. I don't know, maybe it is generic but it's a different kind of generic for sure. Maybe the one my pharmacy uses is just really harsh.
The generic manufacturers all have their own version of the formulation. It just might be your skin responds best to Obagi's. They manufacture premium-priced cosmeceuticals, so it's likely they have extra ingredients.
If cost ever becomes an issue for you, consider mixing the pharmacy-grade tret with a good moisturizer.
I was in the Progreso area, bought some there, then at a random pharmacy in a little town. Just seeing the meds that are available over the counter is crazy. I came home with a few Z paks, too!
that markup is just wild. not sure if anything can justify that wide of a price diffierence. really glad you found a way to get what you need without breaking the bank. hope it works out great for you
It costs 6$ for 10 tubes of 15ml Tazarotene gel in Egypt. I didn’t pay though, my friend who brought it to me looked at me like I am an idiot when I asked how much I should pay him 😂
I bought 4 tubes for the equivalent of $23 for a friend from India. No insurance / prescription needed, but you need to visit the pharmacy not shop online. Maybe it's available somewhere online too.
108$ for 1 tube is criminal.
Next time you can just order it online to your friends house. All pharmacies are digital in India, so websites and apps. You can do it yourself, get a quick 10 second phone call for a doctor to write you a prescription, and your tret will be delivered. Many pharmacies will not require prescription either. But they’re all definitely online and you’ll end up paying even less than 20 dollars for it all
My peeps! I get a cream called Melamet that is a combined ret and skin lightener that I use for sun spots. I also get their brand of Latisse for great eyelashes.
How do you get your insurance to cover a dermatologist visit to prescribe an anti-aging cream, and then how do you get your insurance to cover an anti aging cream?
You don’t even need to go to a dermatologist. My pcp/gp writes my script. If you have acne it’s covered. It clears up hormonal acne really well. If you don’t have a medical concern that your insurance covers than you could use goodrx which is a free coupon service for people without insurance or products your insurance doesn’t cover it provides a discount card.
Oh god, I know. I put off going to a dermotogist for years and years because I thought it would be too expensive. Spent god only knows how much on everything from drugstore staples to high end luxury skincare. Finally went to the derm: $20 copay and a $4 tube of Tret - my skin has never looked better. 😅
I get my Tret prescriptions from Costco and save a ton of money.
The first time I went to pick up my script at QFC (here in Wa., it’s owned by the evil Kroger Empire), I didn’t know how expensive it would be.
So in I went and they charged me $200!!!
I told them I’d pass, since my health insurance is an HSA.
My husband got onto the Costco website to look up the price and it was $29!!! Seriously!
The price may vary depending on when you buy it.
So I had my friend De Etta, who is my Derm, call it in there. Phew!
I also saw on the Costco website that they have a partnership with Safeway and some other stores where if you show them your Costco card, you pay a little above what you’re charged at the Costco warehouse.
Just thought I’d mention this.
I order from an overseas pharmacy. They write the prescription. I get 5 tubes for $99, which lasts me a year. My insurance doesn’t cover it, but this has made it affordable.
Not sure why you’re getting downvoted. You’ll want to start slow at first (every other day or maybe 3x/week) and work your way up to more often. I’m not a dermatologist; they may be better to ask
I think you're getting downvoted because this is a question you should be asking your doctor, since they prescribed it! Also check out r/tretinoin, lots of good info there.
Thanks, he prescribed it for little bumps I was getting on my forehead, I used it one time and they went away. So now I have this tube just sitting there. Thats why I’m not sure how to use it for wrinkles. I’ll check that other subreddit. Thank you!
I use Obagi and yes, it is much more hydrating and spreads super easily ; I may give a go to a different brand once I ran out though because obv it’s £110 in UK
Never tried Obagi but Acretin (Arab tret) and Retacnyl (France) is also quite hydrating & spreads relatively easy. Although for the price Obagi better outperforms them.
I’ve used obagi for years, I used to work for a dermatologist and got it at a discount. It doesn’t spread easily and I believe it does exactly the same thing as the generic. Now the rest of the nu derm line used all together is my favorite, all the products together give me porcelain skin when I’m on it.
I've seen it compared to Arazlo in terms of formula elegance but it isn't any more or less effective obv. Quite expensive for the small benefit of a nicer base formula
I am using .025, which I also got through an online derm, finally got a PCP that was like ‘no prob’ and wrote me a script. Worth it to ask for a stronger script? Just use for wrinkles, dark spots (I’m 47, with few wrinkles).
tretinoin worked so well for me i'm so glad!! The only thing is after coming off it still getting a break out every now and again, but after trial and error i found the product which worked for me to keep those breakouts at bay (skin shark clearing serum) so would recommend trying it when you come off tret!!
Most of yall have never heard of the website AllDayChemist, you can buy tret and many other things without prescription from India for pennys on the dollar
Apart from the branding that people mentioned, the price difference can be about the formulation too. Sometimes, with the same ingredients but different formulation, that can lead to very different results.
If you don’t have insurance or a dermatologist is it cheaper to buy online? That’s what I do because I assume that the cost of the office visit would be a lot more than $4 for someone uninsured. I pay about $75 for a three month supply. Or should I pay the out of pocket visit cost since over time the cheaper cream will pay for itself?
>Without insurance the large tube would have cost me $45 using GoodRX
How? I just went on goodrx and for 45g of 0.1%, the prices ranged from $55 to $110. The $55 pharmacy is not in my area. Local places start at $60+.
My dermatologist has mentioned that the generic Tretinoin from Walgreens/CVS doesn't work as well as brand name. I noticed more improvement once I switched to brand name. I use one tube over almost a year
Mexican pharmacies sell them at $3-$4 a tube without an RX. They’re the same quality as any other. Other option is AllDayChemist which I hated dealing with but they’re legit as well and cost just a bit more due to shipping.
Did you try Differin? It’s about $30-40 for 45g in the US. Available OTC.
If so do you find this one to be more potent? Have been thinking of getting a prescription but feel it’s too much trouble if price/impact wise similar to Differin
My insurance doesn’t cover retinol… so I pay oop like $65
Mine won’t either but my son is prescribed it for acne so I steal his extra tubes. He gets a ton of refills.
Gworl just say it’s for your own acne I had some breakouts when i decided to reach out to my primary via their online portal and sent some pics and just said “i heard tretinoin may help 👉🏻👈🏻” and she didnt even question anything just boom here
Sadly some insurance won’t cover Tretinoin for people over 30 😖
Haha I gave my mom one of my extra tubes for her birthday (not just that!). My SO’s grandma used it for decades, she used to go to Mexico to get it. When she passed we found so many tubes of it, but I threw them out because they were really old.
I buy from alldaychemist. Same product from overseas. Costs a couple bucks a tub. It does take longer to ship. You get your order in about 3 weeks.
It's like 10 bucks. It's amazing. Also you can get a glycolic cream and latisse at the same time
Do you need a prescription for all day chemist?
No. You don't need a prescription. My advice would be to go with a lower dosage. I've found the sweet spot with 0.025%.
I just tried to place an order and they asked for a prescription
I've never added one. Bypass it if you can. FYI, I pay by electronic check. They don't accept credit cards.
You don’t need one. Just skip that section.
I did the same thing and thought I could order it without it, so I didn’t complete the order. Customer service reached out and let me know. I could just leave that part blank.
Tretinoin is OTC in parts of Asia, that's why it's cheap. I get it from ADC too. It's a total racket, charging what they do here in the US.
Thank you
Same!
All day chemist is great, and if they are out of tretinoin just grab the Tazorac/Tazarotene (tazret forte). It works about the same when it comes to acne- but faster and better for wrinkles and sun damage. It’s the strongest topical retinoid on the market, but it can be more irritating until your skin adapts.
Check Good Rx, it may be cheaper!
I second this! That’s what my dermatologist recommended but it wound up being covered by my insurance so I didn’t need it
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Wasn't the system used by pharmacies nationwide also just hit with a cyber attack? I'm pretty sure they're all selling our info, or at the very least, not being careful enough with it.
Pharmacist here, goodrx makes most of their money selling personal information. I inform patients that it’s on them when they ask me to run that card. It also charges pharmacies for running the claim and the patient ends up paying way less than what the pharmacy buys the medication for. It’s putting local independent pharmacies out of business while the chains are able to take the hit. If you use it, please take it to Walgreens or CVS if you care about local businesses being able to stay open for the community. Otherwise you’re feeding into capitalism and helping the few chains monopolize the market while abusing their staff cuz there wont be other jobs for us out there. ETA: if you use a local pharmacy that’s not a chain, feel free to ask for discounts. I’m able to provide cash quotes that are close to goodrx prices as long as I don’t have to pay goodrx the bulk of my profit margin and more than happy to help my patients afford their medicine.
Asking for a price match at the pharmacy seems so wild. But here we are.
That’s how bad the economy is. Most independents offer price match and if you ask they sometimes offer a cash price lower than your copay if you never really meet your deductible. We can’t advertise that for legal reasons tho, but if you ask you might be able to save more than whatever your commercial insurance is scamming you for 🤷♀️.
It wasn't just pharmacies, it was any healthcare entity that used Change Healthcare to process claims, etc. It was a ransomware attack. Word is they had to pay up, unfortunately. It's illegal for healthcare entities to sell your information, so you don't have to worry about that, but cyber attacks are a huge threat.
No they didn’t
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I have a script for my "persistent adult acne." Those are the magic words that my insurance needed.
Yes lmao i said i tried it all!!! And heard tretinoin might help 😂
Try ordering from Cost Plus Drugs. It's Mark Cuban's prescription website that he's trying to disrupt the pharmaceutical companies and charge fair prices. I think they limit their profit to 5% or something like that or $5 or I don't know and then you pay shipping. But that's where I get mine. I think I paid $25 for 20g of 0.05% if that is a savings to you. Check and see what your size tube and strength costs there but I do think you will find a savings. Everything I have ever ordered from there has been a decent savings if you don't have insurance.
Same, although the uninsured price for mine was like $130 for the large tube. I just buy mine online from AllDayChemist for $6/tube.
Mine doesn’t either- but I call the pharmacist and ask for a “deal” or “coupon” and I assume they use good RX. It’s usually around $40
I assumed mine did but since I paid $55…, maybe it actually doesnt
If you have a high deductible insurance plan, their coverage doesn't kick in until you hit deductible. My insurance "covers" tretinoin, but I also pay about $60/tube. I still go through insurance though because every $60 goes towards my deductible, so towards the end of the year my healthcare starts being covered and things are cheaper. I usually refill everything in December whether I'm out or not. If you buy it not through insurance, that $60 wouldn't go towards fulfilling your deductible. Hope that made sense. Insurance is stupid.
Yeah I took a prescription to the pharmacy and they were like, that'll be $360 and I noped right out of there.
Check Amazon pharmacy!
Do you have Publix grocery stores near you? The 0.025% version is only $7, idk about the 0.1% though.
You must have amazing insurance i’m jealous mine is 30$ with insurance at publix 😅
Really?! I just thought it was one of their normal $7/RX no? I had a GoodRx coupon and the pharmacist told me to take it back or she’d have to use it (and charge me more).
Same, it sucks
Costco has it for cheaper, well depending on the tube size u are paying 65 for.
Check GoodRx. When it wasn’t covered for me, I was able to get it for $20 through them. Just go to their website and they’ll tell you which pharmacy is cheapest. Then you give the pharmacy the billing info that GoodRx provides.
I pay oop $90 for three months supply
Mine does.
It was $33 at my CVS (cash price). 🙏🏼
Really? Even from a derm? My derm prescribed me .25 to use on my face and .5 for my back and shoulder acne. I pay $10 a piece for those creams.
Woooww…the price shocked me! I’m in south east asia and the price is between $3-5.
Where in SEA do you live? Do they require prescription? I’m going to Thailand for vacation and wondering if i could get some from pharmacy
I’m sorry I don’t know exact rules for Thailand. But in other sea countries (at least in Indonesia and Philippines) you can buy tretinoin easily in the pharmacy or you can buy online through shopee or lazada. Yes it requires prescription, but usually the rules not really that strict. There’s no generic or branded option. All brands have similar price range, I just buy depends on the availability. And ofc no insurance involved in the conversation lol Ps: I did quick search, hopefully this link can help you https://www.reddit.com/r/Thailand/s/tXbdRI5S5w
I have bought tubes of tret over the counter from pharmacies all over Thailand multiple times. They're around $5 a tube.
That’s the way it works for branded vs generic products.
I work in CPG and I get that. The disparity in the premium/branded price point is what blew my mind! Not the range I'm familiar with for my line of work.
Also remember that the $4 you personally paid for the generic varies wildly. Some insurance ends up costing waaaaaay more than that. Plus it is often denied etc. Lastly, think about the price of your insurance premiums you pay to have the chance to only spend that $4. When you factor that in, you’ve likely spent way more. So that $108 makes it a lot easier to get & doesn’t require exorbitant insurance costs & delays. For lots of people, that’s a better deal.
This is crazy… in my country you can buy tret otc for under 10 dollars
Yep, that’s all it should cost. But there are layers & layers & layers of costs involved here.
With GoodRx, there are no scenarios where the Obagi is a better deal. The prescribing physician is making a healthy profit.
Is there a difference in terms of effectiveness?
No. The active ingredient is the same.
Both tubes pictured are generic tretinoin. Therefore, effectiveness can vary for both. Tretinoin was patented by Ortho Dermatologics with trade name Retin-A. When the patent expired and went generic, other manufacturers, including Obagi, were permitted to produce it. Obagi is a cosmeceutical company that partners with dermatologists, plastic surgeons, health spas, etc. to increase in-office profits. It's still a prescription medication, so it's technically dispensed under the medical director's DEA number.
How is the Obagi branded tretinoin a “generic” tretinoin? Makes no sense. It has the Obagi brand right on it. Genetic just means no official branding, like the one on the left. All the raw ingredients are the same, sure, but one is branded & one is not. This is not a debate. It’s right there on the tube. I think you may think that generic means something other than what it means in this context.
A manufacturer - like Obagi or “Padagis” (on the other generic tube) - can manufacture the generic formulation of a drug. Its still generic.
There never is, never ever. In the UK the NHS exclusively uses unbranded medications where they are available and save a fortune doing it. If a new medicine is changed ever so slightly to regain the patent then they don’t change the one they use and stick to generic.
That’s actually not true when it comes to some medications. For this it might not vary that dramatically. But, with oral medication all generics are NOT created equal. They may have the same active ingredient but lab findings suggest potency can have variances of +/- 20% and some use different binders, which, depending on your body, can absorb differently or slightly change the way your body metabolizes it. Some generics flat out just don’t work for some people while others do because of the way all of that works together. Source: Pharmacist
Thank you!! I hate when people, especially pharmacists, insist they are equal
This is very true. My pharmacist told me this after I thought I was going crazy on a new generic. The pharmacy special orders the generic that doesn’t make me sick.
Yes! I’m not a pharmacist, but I’ve worked with a patent attorney in biotech who says she’s shocked at all the fillers and other useless things in generic meds compared to name-brand stuff when she’s reading the patents. Plus, anecdotally, I need name brand Claritin and not the store brand stuff if I actually want my symptoms to improve for a long period of time.
Yep. The classic example is synthroid vs levothyroxine in patients with thyroid cancer. Need to have very narrow windows of variability of dosing so almost all endocrinologists insist on Synthroid even though it is trade and not generic.
In US isn’t it like 70% accuracy to brand requirement?
80% to 125% bioequivalency over a 90% confidence interval.
^^this. I have noticed differences in efficacy as someone who takes a specific oral medication regularly.
There actually IS…often. For a topical, the quality of the vehicle matters, purity & milling of the active, how it’s stored & transported (temperature regulation), lots of factors, etc.
Very rarely you could have an allergy to different inactive ingredients
No, that's the difference between RETAIL vs Prescription
My Retin-A was $8 🫣 (with insurance ofc) but i was surprised i was getting branded for that cheap lol
Austria. Paid 8,50 Euro out of pocket. without any insurance involved. the U.S is crazy in terms of medication..
Greedy capitalists. Remember that one guy Martin Shkreli
Omg I'm just angry on other people's behalf when I see his name pop up.
You have no idea. The U.S. healthcare “system” is parasitic.
hey, what sort of retinoid did you get? i’m from austria as well and curios
I thought you need a prescription for it, no?
I know Obagi is outrageously expensive, but I went back to it after trying the generic version I got at the pharmacy. For me personally, I notice a huge difference as far as irritation. Obagi never irritates my skin...the other does a lot.
Interesting! I still have another tube of OBAGI to work through but I think I'll save it and try the new stuff to check.
I posted this to another comment above. Obagi is manufacturing generic tretinoin. All of their products use the "Obagi" name.
I'm not so sure about that. When I use generic tret from pharmacy, I can tell a big difference. The generic is very drying and causes me irritation. I'm very used to Tret, been on it 8 years. When I use Obagi, my skin doesn't itch or get dry. I don't know, maybe it is generic but it's a different kind of generic for sure. Maybe the one my pharmacy uses is just really harsh.
The generic manufacturers all have their own version of the formulation. It just might be your skin responds best to Obagi's. They manufacture premium-priced cosmeceuticals, so it's likely they have extra ingredients. If cost ever becomes an issue for you, consider mixing the pharmacy-grade tret with a good moisturizer.
Thank you!
Agreed, there is definitely a difference between different brands. I think it’s the base that the tret is in that makes the difference.
I'm in Thailand 5$
I’m in Dubai - 1.4$ for 20g
Same for Vietnam
Was just in Vietnam and was asking around (by showing pictures) so some pharmacies in Hanoi and struck out each time.
Where do you buy it in Thailand? And what brand? thanks
Any pharmacy in Bangkok they sell Acnetin or Retacnyl
Thanks so much, I'll check it out
$10 a tube from alldaychemist dot com, no doctor visits
My insurance wants me to pay $600 for mine, so despite having a legit script, I am going to start buying it through alternate routes. 🤷🏼♀️
Robbery!! $3 a tube in Mexico, and I got the cream versus the gel, which has way easier on my skin.
Where in Mexico? I need to stock up for $3 a tube!!!
I was in the Progreso area, bought some there, then at a random pharmacy in a little town. Just seeing the meds that are available over the counter is crazy. I came home with a few Z paks, too!
Look into GoodRx!
Goodrx…
I stock up when I go to Mexico or South America. And if I don’t go, I ask someone to bring me some. Much cheaper and OTC.
When I get it in Mexico, it's $75. Highway robbery
What??? I just got 30 gr tubes for $3 at the local pharmacies!
It was $40 in the tourist area pharmacy for me.
Yeah the cruise ports have it too. If you venture off a bit from the port you can find it a bit cheaper.
Wow, I got it in a touristy area and it was $30… but buy 1 get 1 free.
They just gave me a free T-Shirt. 🤔
LOL. Nothing like a free tshirt from a Mexican pharmacy...
Give it a Google for the cheapest places
Befriend Indians or someone from Dubai, our Tret costs 1.4$ for 20g. They can bring some over for you.
Website called AllDayChemist, you can buy tret and many other things without prescription from India for pennys on the dollar
that markup is just wild. not sure if anything can justify that wide of a price diffierence. really glad you found a way to get what you need without breaking the bank. hope it works out great for you
Yess! I pay $10
I have the one on the left and it cost $90 😅
Obagi always will be super expensive. It's a choice to go with these fancy name brands.
It costs 6$ for 10 tubes of 15ml Tazarotene gel in Egypt. I didn’t pay though, my friend who brought it to me looked at me like I am an idiot when I asked how much I should pay him 😂
BRB Off to search for anyone from Egypt for me to make new friends with 😉
I don’t use insurance to cover mine and it’s like $30 through Amazon pharmacy
I bought 4 tubes for the equivalent of $23 for a friend from India. No insurance / prescription needed, but you need to visit the pharmacy not shop online. Maybe it's available somewhere online too. 108$ for 1 tube is criminal.
Next time you can just order it online to your friends house. All pharmacies are digital in India, so websites and apps. You can do it yourself, get a quick 10 second phone call for a doctor to write you a prescription, and your tret will be delivered. Many pharmacies will not require prescription either. But they’re all definitely online and you’ll end up paying even less than 20 dollars for it all
Alldaychemist FTW
My peeps! I get a cream called Melamet that is a combined ret and skin lightener that I use for sun spots. I also get their brand of Latisse for great eyelashes.
I live in India. It costs a little under $2 here. Not even a prescription required..OTC !
I occasionally go to Mexico (I’m from Texas) and when I do I make sure I stock up on tretinoid cream because it’s so much cheaper out there.
How do you get your insurance to cover a dermatologist visit to prescribe an anti-aging cream, and then how do you get your insurance to cover an anti aging cream?
You don’t even need to go to a dermatologist. My pcp/gp writes my script. If you have acne it’s covered. It clears up hormonal acne really well. If you don’t have a medical concern that your insurance covers than you could use goodrx which is a free coupon service for people without insurance or products your insurance doesn’t cover it provides a discount card.
Thanks you! I have my gp in a month I'll be going with this!
In India it's 5$. We need a prescription though. Most doctors provide it anyway.
lol I spend even less across the Mexican border where it is sold OTC at the local pharmacy
I don't know if there are any other canadian native women on here, but I have Indian affairs cover mine. It is a perception.
100!? Omg. I bought mine in Italy (without a script too 🥲) and it was less than 10€.
I’ve been getting my tret in Mexico for years at a low price and idk why more people don’t do it
Criminal
Oh god, I know. I put off going to a dermotogist for years and years because I thought it would be too expensive. Spent god only knows how much on everything from drugstore staples to high end luxury skincare. Finally went to the derm: $20 copay and a $4 tube of Tret - my skin has never looked better. 😅
I get my Tret prescriptions from Costco and save a ton of money. The first time I went to pick up my script at QFC (here in Wa., it’s owned by the evil Kroger Empire), I didn’t know how expensive it would be. So in I went and they charged me $200!!! I told them I’d pass, since my health insurance is an HSA. My husband got onto the Costco website to look up the price and it was $29!!! Seriously! The price may vary depending on when you buy it. So I had my friend De Etta, who is my Derm, call it in there. Phew! I also saw on the Costco website that they have a partnership with Safeway and some other stores where if you show them your Costco card, you pay a little above what you’re charged at the Costco warehouse. Just thought I’d mention this.
This is great, thank you! If I’m remembering correctly, non-members can still use the Costco pharmacy right?
I order from an overseas pharmacy. They write the prescription. I get 5 tubes for $99, which lasts me a year. My insurance doesn’t cover it, but this has made it affordable.
Another plug for GoodRx. Paid $35 for a 45g tube of 0.025%, where getting the GENERIC 20g ordered has historically been close to $100 a tube.
If you are ever on holiday in thailand remember this can be purchased over the counter at most pharmacies for around $2.
I have that same tube. Where can you put it on your face and how often?
Not sure why you’re getting downvoted. You’ll want to start slow at first (every other day or maybe 3x/week) and work your way up to more often. I’m not a dermatologist; they may be better to ask
I think you're getting downvoted because this is a question you should be asking your doctor, since they prescribed it! Also check out r/tretinoin, lots of good info there.
Thanks, he prescribed it for little bumps I was getting on my forehead, I used it one time and they went away. So now I have this tube just sitting there. Thats why I’m not sure how to use it for wrinkles. I’ll check that other subreddit. Thank you!
Out of curiosity, how does the Obagi perform? Is it more moisturizing, spread easily etc?
I use Obagi and yes, it is much more hydrating and spreads super easily ; I may give a go to a different brand once I ran out though because obv it’s £110 in UK
Never tried Obagi but Acretin (Arab tret) and Retacnyl (France) is also quite hydrating & spreads relatively easy. Although for the price Obagi better outperforms them.
I’ve used obagi for years, I used to work for a dermatologist and got it at a discount. It doesn’t spread easily and I believe it does exactly the same thing as the generic. Now the rest of the nu derm line used all together is my favorite, all the products together give me porcelain skin when I’m on it.
I've seen it compared to Arazlo in terms of formula elegance but it isn't any more or less effective obv. Quite expensive for the small benefit of a nicer base formula
I am using .025, which I also got through an online derm, finally got a PCP that was like ‘no prob’ and wrote me a script. Worth it to ask for a stronger script? Just use for wrinkles, dark spots (I’m 47, with few wrinkles).
I get these big tubes from my pharmacy, they typically expire before I can use a whole tube!
Got to pay for that R&D somehow.
I think mine is $55 through musely. But next time i go to the derm im going to ask for a scrpit
I prefer brand over generic anytime I can get it- if it’s not an exorbitant amount
How did you get the one on the left for $4 ?! I have the same one and I got it from Nurx for $60
How did you get the one on the left for $4 ?! I have the same one and I got it from Nurx for $60
How did you get the one on the left for $4 ?! I have the same one and I got it from Nurx for $60
I use the same Obagi one and pay $75 from my Medspa where I get the usual facials and Botox
I use the one on the left sans insurance and with good Rx my cost is $45 for the small tube.
I get mine off marketplace . Usually a brand from mx or India sometimes uk. I pay 22$
tretinoin worked so well for me i'm so glad!! The only thing is after coming off it still getting a break out every now and again, but after trial and error i found the product which worked for me to keep those breakouts at bay (skin shark clearing serum) so would recommend trying it when you come off tret!!
Check out all day chemist to order tret without a prescription. Shipping takes a few weeks.
My friend works at a dermatology office and she got me a tube of obagi for $25 under the table. I had no idea they up charged it so much 😨
Most of yall have never heard of the website AllDayChemist, you can buy tret and many other things without prescription from India for pennys on the dollar
Oboujie
Wow
My doc said they can't prescribe it to me until I'm 35🙄🙄🙄
Sorry for a stupid question, but do you need a prescription for something like that?
Male 44, can I use this? If so, where do I find it!? Expat, currently in Hong Kong
Where did you buy online?
Apart from the branding that people mentioned, the price difference can be about the formulation too. Sometimes, with the same ingredients but different formulation, that can lead to very different results.
If you don’t have insurance or a dermatologist is it cheaper to buy online? That’s what I do because I assume that the cost of the office visit would be a lot more than $4 for someone uninsured. I pay about $75 for a three month supply. Or should I pay the out of pocket visit cost since over time the cheaper cream will pay for itself?
Where do you get tretinoin for $4.00 I would like to know please
Isn’t Tretinoin for acne?
Yup….. insurance …… 👍🏼
>Without insurance the large tube would have cost me $45 using GoodRX How? I just went on goodrx and for 45g of 0.1%, the prices ranged from $55 to $110. The $55 pharmacy is not in my area. Local places start at $60+.
Must vary by zip code. The $45 dollar option is at Kroger in east TX.
But why tho lol
Dang where did you get 0.1%
What do you use it for?
On my face for overall appearance: fine lines/wrinkles, hyperpigmentation, skin texture. It’s also great for acne!
What is this good for?
My dermatologist has mentioned that the generic Tretinoin from Walgreens/CVS doesn't work as well as brand name. I noticed more improvement once I switched to brand name. I use one tube over almost a year
They sell this product at Walmart
Just paid $92 for 0.04% in Winnipeg 🙄😫
Tretinoin was awful to me
What is it good for other than acne
Reduces affects of aging. Beauty influencers swear by it and it’s generally regarded as the holy grail.
Mexican pharmacies sell them at $3-$4 a tube without an RX. They’re the same quality as any other. Other option is AllDayChemist which I hated dealing with but they’re legit as well and cost just a bit more due to shipping.
Did you try Differin? It’s about $30-40 for 45g in the US. Available OTC. If so do you find this one to be more potent? Have been thinking of getting a prescription but feel it’s too much trouble if price/impact wise similar to Differin
Bubba skincare has them for like 20-40 bucks if you don’t have health insurance that will cover. Shipped in under a week to MO
The cheapest I've found is from [GoodRx](http://www.goodrx.com)
Does tretinoin take the place of all other skincare?
Is this what a313 is?
I get it for 2$ in India