Two medicines, side by side

Alprazolam vs buspirone

Alprazolam and buspirone are both labeled for anxiety. Drugs@FDA records approvals of alprazolam since 1981 and of buspirone since 1986. Pharmacies paid $0.0236 per alprazolam 0.25 mg tablet and $0.043 per buspirone HCl 15 mg tablet (NADAC, October 7, 2026); the strengths differ, so the two prices are not like for like. Only the alprazolam label carries a boxed warning.

Check it at the source: the alprazolam FDA label on DailyMed (effective January 18, 2023); the buspirone FDA label on DailyMed (effective December 22, 2023).

Highlights of the alprazolam record

Alprazolam (Xanax) · label of January 18, 2023

Boxed warning

RISKS FROM CONCOMITANT USE WITH OPIOIDS; ABUSE, MISUSE, AND ADDICTION; and DEPENDENCE AND WITHDRAWAL REACTIONS

Concomitant use of benzodiazepines and opioids may result in profound sedation, respiratory depression, coma, and death. Reserve concomitant prescribing of these drugs for patients for whom alternative treatment options are inadequate. Limit dosages and durations to the minimum required.

Used for

From the label: indications
XANAX is indicated for the: • acute treatment of generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) in adults. • treatment of panic disorder (PD), with or without agoraphobia in adults. XANAX is a benzodiazepine indicated for the: • Acute treatment of generalized anxiety disorder in adults. ( 1 ) • Treatment of panic disorder with or without agoraphobia in adults.

On the market

Earliest approval on file: October 16, 1981
Generic labelers: 30 labelers
Pharmacy cost: $0.0236 per tablet

Supply and safety

Shortage: No current entry
Recalls: 23

Highlights of the buspirone record

Buspirone (Buspar) · label of December 22, 2023

Used for

From the label: indications
Buspirone hydrochloride tablets, USP are indicated for the management of anxiety disorders or the short-term relief of the symptoms of anxiety. Anxiety or tension associated with the stress of everyday life usually does not require treatment with an anxiolytic. […]

On the market

Earliest approval on file: September 29, 1986
Generic labelers: 47 labelers
Pharmacy cost: $0.043 per tablet

Supply and safety

Shortage: No current entry
Recalls: 10

Source: FDA drug labels via openFDA (Alprazolam label of January 18, 2023, Buspirone label of December 22, 2023); NDC Directory, Drugs@FDA, NADAC, FDA shortages and recalls (October 8, 2026)

How do alprazolam and buspirone differ on the record?

Only the alprazolam label carries a boxed warning.

Half-life, in each label's words: Alprazolam, “Elimination The mean plasma elimination half-life (T 1/2 ) of alprazolam is approximately 11.2 hours (range: 6.3 to …”; Buspirone, “The average elimination half-life of unchanged buspirone after single doses of 10 mg to 40 mg is about 2 to 3 hours.”

Generics: alprazolam since 1993; buspirone since 2001 (Drugs@FDA).

DEA schedule: alprazolam CIV; buspirone none.

	Alprazolam	Buspirone
Labeled for	Anxiety	Anxiety
Pharmacologic class	Benzodiazepine	n/a
How it works (label)	Alprazolam is a 1,4 benzodiazepine.	n/a
Half-life (label)	Elimination The mean plasma elimination half-life (T 1/2 ) of alprazolam is approximately 11.2 hours (range: 6.3 to 26.9 hours) in healthy adults.	The average elimination half-life of unchanged buspirone after single doses of 10 mg to 40 mg is about 2 to 3 hours.
Earliest approval on file (Drugs@FDA)	October 16, 1981	September 29, 1986
First generic approved	October 19, 1993	March 28, 2001
Generic labelers (NDC)	30 labelers	47 labelers
Pharmacy cost (NADAC, each one's most listed form; strengths differ)	$0.0236 per tablet (Alprazolam 0.25 mg tablet)	$0.043 per tablet (Buspirone HCl 15 mg tablet)
12-month price change	-1%	-9%
Boxed warning	Yes	No
Shortage now	No current entry	No current entry
Recalls recorded	23	10
FAERS reports (a report is not proof of cause; counts follow how widely a medicine is used)	204,916	10,970
DEA schedule	CIV	none

Source: Drugs@FDA, FDA NDC Directory, CMS NADAC of October 7, 2026, FDA shortages and recalls, FAERS via openFDA (FDA files October 8, 2026)

What do the labels say about using others of their kind?

Alprazolam label, drug interactions
CNS Depressants Clinical implication The benzodiazepines, including alprazolam, produce additive CNS depressant effects when coadministered with other CNS depressants.

Buspirone label, warnings
Serotonin Syndrome The development of a potentially life-threatening serotonin syndrome has been reported with SNRIs, SSRIs, and other serotonergic drugs, including buspirone, alone but particularly with concomitant use of other serotonergic drugs (including triptans), with drugs that impair metabolism of serotonin (in particular, MAOIs, including reversible MAOIs such as linezolid and intravenous methylene blue) …

Source: FDA drug labels via openFDA

What next?

Alprazolam: the full record
Buspirone: the full record
Alternatives to alprazolam: every medicine labeled for the same conditions