Desferal vs. generic deferoxamine: side by side

How to pay the least

Ask for the cash price

Generic deferoxamine

No pharmacy we check posts a price for it.

Ask your pharmacy for the cash price of generic deferoxamine.Find pharmacies near you
Ask one or two other pharmacies too. Cash prices for the same generic can differ a lot from store to store.

A regular generic has the same active ingredient as Desferal, and the FDA requires it to work the same way.

Compare every option

Brand nameDesferal

Authorized genericdeferoxamine

Regular genericdeferoxamine

What you’d pay

Cash priceAsk the pharmacyUsually the highest price

Not soldThere isn’t one

Cash priceAsk the pharmacyUsually the lowest

Same as Desferal?

The original

–

Same active ingredientFillers and dyes can differ

Brand nameNo maker’s card

We didn’t find a savings card or cash price from Desferal’s maker. Ask the pharmacy for Desferal’s cash price. With insurance, ask what your plan charges.

Authorized genericNot sold

There isn’t one. An authorized generic is Desferal itself, from the same company, sold without the brand name, and usually for less. A regular generic is sold, with the same active ingredient: ask the pharmacy for its price.

See the regular generic →

Regular genericWho makes it

3 companies sell a generic of Desferal that the FDA rates a substitute. A pharmacy fills whichever one it stocks. To get a certain maker, ask for it by name; most pharmacies can order it in a day or two.

It’s mostly filled by specialty pharmacies. Your prescriber’s office or insurer can tell you which one to use.

Apotex2 g, 500 mg

Made by Gland Pharma

Packages and NDCs

2 g

Package NDC
Carton of 4 60505-6237-6

500 mg

Package NDC
Carton of 4 60505-6236-6

FDA label
Fresenius Kabi95 mg/mL

Packages and NDCs

95 mg/mL

Package NDC
Box of 5.3 mL 63323-597-10

95 mg/mL

Package NDC
Box of 21.1 mL 63323-599-30

FDA label
Hospira2 g

How it looks, what’s in it, NDCs

2 g

Package NDC
Carton of 4 0409-2337-25

Inactive ingredients: water
FDA label

Package	NDC
Carton of 4	60505-6237-6

Package	NDC
Carton of 4	60505-6236-6

Package	NDC
Box of 5.3 mL	63323-597-10

Package	NDC
Box of 21.1 mL	63323-599-30

Package	NDC
Carton of 4	0409-2337-25

Who sells it: FDA and Medicaid records, updated weekly. Each maker’s page, card and program is from its own site.

What to say at the pharmacy

“Before you fill my Desferal, can you tell me what I’d pay for the brand and for a generic?”

Paying cash? Ask for each one’s cash price. With insurance, ask what your plan charges for each.

What it’s used for

What the FDA label says

DESFERAL is an iron-chelating agent indicated:

As an adjunct to standard measures for the treatment of acute iron intoxication.
For the treatment of transfusional iron overload in patients with chronic anemia.

Limitations of Use

Desferal is not indicated for the treatment of primary hemochromatosis (since phlebotomy is the method of choice for removing excess iron in this disorder).

Source: the FDA label for Desferal (Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corporation), June 17, 2025. Full label on DailyMed

Good to know

A regular generic may look different from Desferal. The FDA requires it to work the same way.
We didn’t find a savings card from Desferal’s maker.
Don’t stop or change a medicine without talking to your pharmacist or prescriber.

Prices change: confirm with the pharmacy before you fill. drugalt.com/drug/desferal/