Protopic vs. its authorized generic and generics

How to pay the least

Ask for the cash price

Generic tacrolimus

No pharmacy we check posts a price for it.

Ask your pharmacy for the cash price of generic tacrolimus.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 Protopic, and the FDA requires it to work the same way.

Compare every option

Brand nameProtopic

Authorized generictacrolimus

Regular generictacrolimus

What you’d pay

Not soldNo longer sold

Cash priceAsk the pharmacyUsually among the lowest

Same as Protopic?

–

Same medicine

Same active ingredientFillers and dyes can differ

Brand nameNot sold

Protopic 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 Protopic, without the brand name. Give the pharmacy its NDC to get it.

tacrolimus

Sold by

Padagis Israel PharmaceuticalsMade by LEO Pharma, the company behind Protopic

Your strength

NDC to ask for

0.03%ointment
- 45802-390-0011-digit: 45802-0390-0030 g per tube
- 45802-390-0111-digit: 45802-0390-0160 g per tube
- 45802-390-0211-digit: 45802-0390-02100 g per tube
0.1%ointment
- 45802-700-0011-digit: 45802-0700-0030 g per tube
- 45802-700-0111-digit: 45802-0700-0160 g per tube
- 45802-700-0211-digit: 45802-0700-02100 g per tube

Source: FDA, updated October 30, 2026

What to say at the pharmacy

“Before you fill my Protopic, can you tell me what I’d pay for the brand, for the authorized generic from Padagis Israel Pharmaceuticals, 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).

0.03% ointment

Protopic 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 Padagis Israel Pharmaceuticals — Authorized genericPadagis Israel Pharmaceuticals

See the ingredients

Active: tacrolimus 0.03%

Inactive:

dl-alpha-tocopherol
Butylated hydroxytoluene
Mineral oil
Paraffin
Petrolatum
Propylene carbonate
White wax

0.1% ointment

Protopic 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: tacrolimus 0.1%

Inactive:

dl-alpha-tocopherol
Butylated hydroxytoluene
Mineral oil
Paraffin
Petrolatum
Propylene carbonate
White wax

Regular genericWho makes it

2 companies sell a generic of Protopic 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.

Fougera PharmaceuticalsAll 2 strengths

How it looks, what’s in it, NDCs

0.03%

Package NDC
Carton of 30 g 0168-0417-30
Carton of 60 g 0168-0417-60
Carton of 100 g 0168-0417-99

0.1%

Package NDC
Carton of 30 g 0168-0416-30
Carton of 60 g 0168-0416-60
Carton of 100 g 0168-0416-99

Inactive ingredients: mineral oil, paraffin, propylene carbonate, petrolatum, white wax
FDA label
Glenmark PharmaceuticalsAll 2 strengths

Product page on glenmarkpharma-us.com

How it looks, what’s in it, NDCs

0.03%

Package NDC
Carton of 30 g 68462-881-35
Carton of 60 g 68462-881-65
Carton of 100 g 68462-881-94

0.1%

Package NDC
Carton of 30 g 68462-534-35
Carton of 60 g 68462-534-65
Carton of 100 g 68462-534-94

Inactive ingredients: mineral oil, paraffin, propylene carbonate, petrolatum, white wax
FDA label

Package	NDC
Carton of 30 g	0168-0417-30
Carton of 60 g	0168-0417-60
Carton of 100 g	0168-0417-99

Package	NDC
Carton of 30 g	0168-0416-30
Carton of 60 g	0168-0416-60
Carton of 100 g	0168-0416-99

Package	NDC
Carton of 30 g	68462-881-35
Carton of 60 g	68462-881-65
Carton of 100 g	68462-881-94

Package	NDC
Carton of 30 g	68462-534-35
Carton of 60 g	68462-534-65
Carton of 100 g	68462-534-94

The FDA doesn’t rate Encube Ethicals’s version of tacrolimus a substitute for Protopic, so a pharmacy can’t swap it in without your prescriber’s OK.

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

Eczema (atopic dermatitis)

What the FDA label says

Tacrolimus Ointment, both 0.03% and 0.1% for adults, and only 0.03% for children aged 2 to 15 years, is indicated as second-line therapy for the short-term and non-continuous chronic treatment of moderate to severe atopic dermatitis in non-immunocompromised adults and children who have failed to respond adequately to other topical prescription treatments for atopic dermatitis, or when those treatments are not advisable.

Tacrolimus Ointment is not indicated for children younger than 2 years of age (see boxed WARNING, WARNINGS and PRECAUTIONS: Pediatric Use ).

Source: the FDA label for Tacrolimus (Padagis Israel Pharmaceuticals Ltd), November 15, 2021. Full label on DailyMed

Good to know

It may look different from Protopic (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/protopic/