Two medicines, side by side
Ivabradine vs metoprolol
Ivabradine and metoprolol are both labeled for heart failure. Drugs@FDA records approvals of ivabradine since 2015 and of metoprolol since 1978. Pharmacies paid $0.761 per ivabradine HCl 5 mg tablet and $0.085 per metoprolol succ ER 100 mg tablet (NADAC, October 7, 2026); the strengths differ, so the two prices are not like for like. Metoprolol's other strengths are brand-only: $1.20 per mL (Lopressor 10 mg/mL oral solution). In FDA's classes, ivabradine is a hyperpolarization-activated cyclic nucleotide-gated channel blocker and metoprolol a beta-adrenergic blocker.
Check it at the source: the ivabradine FDA label on DailyMed (effective November 10, 2025); the metoprolol FDA label on DailyMed (effective March 3, 2026).
Highlights of the ivabradine record
Ivabradine (Corlanor) · label of November 10, 2025
Used for
From the label: indicationsINDICATIONS AND USAGE Corlanor (ivabradine) is a hyperpolarization-activated cyclic nucleotide-gated channel blocker indicated: To reduce the risk of hospitalization for worsening heart failure in adult patients with stable, symptomatic chronic heart failure with reduced left ventricular ejection fraction. […]
On the market
- Earliest approval on file
- April 15, 2015
- Generic labelers
- 11 labelers
- Pharmacy cost
- $0.761 per tablet
Supply and safety
- Shortage
- A presentation being discontinued
- Recalls
- 2
Highlights of the metoprolol record
Metoprolol (Lopressor) · label of March 3, 2026
Used for
From the label: indicationsTOPROL-XL, metoprolol succinate, is a beta-adrenergic blocker indicated for the treatment of: Hypertension, to lower blood pressure. Lowering blood pressure reduces the risk of fatal and non-fatal cardiovascular events, primarily strokes and myocardial infarctions. ( 1.1 ) Angina Pectoris. […]
On the market
- Earliest approval on file
- August 7, 1978
- Generic labelers
- 74 labelers
- Pharmacy cost
- $0.085 per tablet
Supply and safety
- Shortage
- A presentation being discontinued
- Recalls
- 39
Source: FDA drug labels via openFDA (Ivabradine label of November 10, 2025, Metoprolol label of March 3, 2026); NDC Directory, Drugs@FDA, NADAC, FDA shortages and recalls (October 8, 2026)
How do ivabradine and metoprolol differ on the record?
In FDA's classes, ivabradine is a hyperpolarization-activated cyclic nucleotide-gated channel blocker and metoprolol a beta-adrenergic blocker.
How each works, in its label's words: Ivabradine, “Corlanor blocks the hyperpolarization-activated cyclic nucleotide-gated (HCN) channel responsible for the cardiac pacemaker I f current, which regulates heart rate.”; Metoprolol, “Metoprolol is a beta 1 -selective (cardioselective) adrenergic receptor blocking agent.”
Half-life, in each label's words: Ivabradine, “Ivabradine plasma levels decline with a distribution half-life of 2 hours and an effective half-life of approximately 6 …”; Metoprolol, “Elimination Elimination is mainly by biotransformation in the liver, and the plasma half-life ranges from approximately …”
Generics: ivabradine since 2021; metoprolol since 1993 (Drugs@FDA).
| Ivabradine | Metoprolol | |
|---|---|---|
| Labeled for | Heart failure | High blood pressure, Angina, Heart failure, Heart attack and coronary artery disease |
| Pharmacologic class | Hyperpolarization-activated Cyclic Nucleotide-gated Channel Blocker | beta-Adrenergic Blocker |
| How it works (label) | Corlanor blocks the hyperpolarization-activated cyclic nucleotide-gated (HCN) channel responsible for the cardiac pacemaker I f current, which regulates heart rate. | Metoprolol is a beta 1 -selective (cardioselective) adrenergic receptor blocking agent. |
| Half-life (label) | Ivabradine plasma levels decline with a distribution half-life of 2 hours and an effective half-life of approximately 6 hours. | Elimination Elimination is mainly by biotransformation in the liver, and the plasma half-life ranges from approximately 3 to 7 hours. |
| Earliest approval on file (Drugs@FDA) | April 15, 2015 | August 7, 1978 |
| First generic approved | December 30, 2021 | December 21, 1993 |
| Generic labelers (NDC) | 11 labelers | 74 labelers |
| Pharmacy cost (NADAC, each one's most listed form; strengths differ) | $0.761 per tablet (Ivabradine HCl 5 mg tablet) | $0.085 per tablet (Metoprolol succ ER 100 mg tablet) |
| 12-month price change | -75% | -8% |
| Boxed warning | No | No |
| Shortage now | A presentation being discontinued | A presentation being discontinued |
| Recalls recorded | 2 | 39 |
| FAERS reports (a report is not proof of cause; counts follow how widely a medicine is used) | 6,817 | 353,609 |
| DEA schedule | none | 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 next?
- Alternatives to ivabradine
- every medicine labeled for the same conditions