Isopto Carpine vs. its authorized generic and generics

How to pay the least

Ask for the cash price

Generic pilocarpine

No pharmacy we check posts a price for it.

Ask your pharmacy for the cash price of generic pilocarpine.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 Isopto Carpine, and the FDA requires it to work the same way.

Compare every option

Brand nameIsopto Carpine

Authorized genericpilocarpine

Regular genericpilocarpine

What you’d pay

Not soldNo longer sold

Cash priceAsk the pharmacyUsually among the lowest

Same as Isopto Carpine?

–

Same medicine

Same active ingredientFillers and dyes can differ

Brand nameNot sold

Isopto Carpine itself isn’t sold as a prescription anymore. Its generic versions, if any, are in the other tabs.

See the authorized generic →

Authorized genericThe NDC to ask for

The same medicine as Isopto Carpine, without the brand name. Give the pharmacy its NDC to get it.

pilocarpine

Sold by

SandozThe company behind Isopto Carpine

Your strength

NDC to ask for

1%drops
- 61314-203-1511-digit: 61314-0203-1515 mL per bottle
2%drops
- 61314-204-1511-digit: 61314-0204-1515 mL per bottle
4%drops
- 61314-206-1511-digit: 61314-0206-1515 mL per bottle

Source: FDA, updated October 30, 2026

What to say at the pharmacy

“Before you fill my Isopto Carpine, can you tell me what I’d pay for the brand, for the authorized generic from Sandoz, and for a regular generic?”

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

Brand and authorized generic labels

Official labels and ingredient lists from DailyMed (U.S. National Library of Medicine).

1% drops

Isopto Carpine itself isn’t sold anymore, so there’s no current brand label to compare. Here’s the authorized generic’s label.

Authorized generic package label from Sandoz — Authorized genericSandoz

See the ingredients

Active: pilocarpine hydrochloride 1%

Inactive:

Benzalkonium chloride
Boric acid
Hydrochloric acid
Hypromellose 2910
Sodium chloride
Sodium citrate
Sodium hydroxide
Water

2% drops

Isopto Carpine itself isn’t sold anymore, so there’s no current brand label to compare. Here’s the authorized generic’s label.

See the ingredients

Active: pilocarpine hydrochloride 2%

Inactive:

Benzalkonium chloride
Boric acid
Hydrochloric acid
Hypromellose 2910
Sodium citrate
Sodium hydroxide
Water

4% drops

Isopto Carpine itself isn’t sold anymore, so there’s no current brand label to compare. Here’s the authorized generic’s label.

See the ingredients

Active: pilocarpine hydrochloride 4%

Inactive:

Benzalkonium chloride
Boric acid
Hydrochloric acid
Hypromellose 2910
Sodium citrate
Sodium hydroxide
Water

Regular genericWho makes it

2 companies sell a generic of Isopto Carpine 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.

Amneal PharmaceuticalsAll 3 strengths

How it looks, what’s in it, NDCs

1%

Package NDC
Carton of 15 mL 69238-1745-8

2%

Package NDC
Carton of 15 mL 69238-1746-8

4%

Package NDC
Carton of 15 mL 69238-1747-8

Inactive ingredients: benzalkonium chloride, boric acid, hydrochloric acid, hypromellose 2910 (10000 mpa.s), sodium chloride, sodium citrate, sodium hydroxide, water
FDA label
Somerset TherapeuticsAll 3 strengths

Product page on somersetpharma.com

How it looks, what’s in it, NDCs

1% Clear Colorless Solution

Package NDC
Carton of 15 mL 70069-181-01

2% Clear Colorless Solution

Package NDC
Carton of 15 mL 70069-191-01

4% Clear Colorless Solution

Package NDC
Carton of 15 mL 70069-201-01

Inactive ingredients: benzalkonium chloride, hypromellose 2910 (4000 mpa.s), boric acid, sodium citrate, sodium chloride, hydrochloric acid, sodium hydroxide, water
FDA label

Package	NDC
Carton of 15 mL	69238-1745-8

Package	NDC
Carton of 15 mL	69238-1746-8

Package	NDC
Carton of 15 mL	69238-1747-8

Package	NDC
Carton of 15 mL	70069-181-01

Package	NDC
Carton of 15 mL	70069-191-01

Package	NDC
Carton of 15 mL	70069-201-01

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

What it’s used for

Glaucoma and high eye pressure
Sudden (acute) angle-closure glaucoma
Preventing high eye pressure after laser eye surgery
Making the pupil smaller (miosis)

What the FDA label says

Pilocarpine hydrochloride ophthalmic solution is a muscarinic cholinergic agonist indicated for:

The reduction of elevated intraocular pressure (IOP) in patients with open-angle glaucoma or ocular hypertension.
The management of acute angle-closure glaucoma.
The prevention of postoperative elevated IOP associated with laser surgery.
The induction of miosis.

Source: the FDA label for Pilocarpine Hydrochloride (Sandoz Inc), May 19, 2020. Full label on DailyMed

Good to know

It may look different from Isopto Carpine (color, shape, or markings). That’s normal for an authorized generic.
If your prescription says “dispense as written,” the pharmacy needs your prescriber’s OK to give you the authorized generic.
Cash prices can differ a lot from one pharmacy to the next, so it can pay to ask two. With insurance, what you pay depends on your plan.
If your pharmacy doesn’t stock it, they can often order it within a day or two.
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/isopto-carpine/