Two medicines, side by side
Oxybutynin vs solifenacin
Oxybutynin and solifenacin are both labeled for overactive bladder. Drugs@FDA records approvals of oxybutynin since 1975 and of solifenacin since 2004. Pharmacies paid $0.048 per oxybutynin 5 mg tablet and $0.162 per solifenacin 10 mg tablet (NADAC, October 7, 2026); the strengths differ, so the two prices are not like for like. Oxybutynin's other strengths are brand-only: $2.74 per unit (Oxytrol for women 3.9 mg/24hr). How each works, in its label's words: Oxybutynin, “Oxybutynin chloride exerts a direct antispasmodic effect on smooth muscle and inhibits the muscarinic action of acetylcholine on smooth muscle.”; Solifenacin, “Solifenacin is a competitive muscarinic receptor antagonist.”
Check it at the source: the oxybutynin FDA label on DailyMed (effective December 16, 2025); the solifenacin FDA label on DailyMed (effective February 4, 2026).
Highlights of the oxybutynin record
Oxybutynin (Ditropan) · label of December 16, 2025
Used for
From the label: indicationsOxybutynin chloride extended-release tablets are a muscarinic antagonist indicated for the treatment of overactive bladder with symptoms of urge urinary incontinence, urgency, and frequency. Oxybutynin chloride extended-release tablets are also indicated for the treatment of pediatric patients aged 6 years and older with symptoms of detrusor overactivity associated with a neurological condition (e.g., spina bifida). […]
On the market
- Earliest approval on file
- July 16, 1975
- Generic labelers
- 39 labelers
- Pharmacy cost
- $0.048 per tablet
Supply and safety
- Shortage
- No current entry
- Recalls
- 9
Highlights of the solifenacin record
Solifenacin (Vesicare) · label of February 4, 2026
Used for
From the label: indicationsSolifenacin Succinate Tablets are indicated for the treatment of adults with overactive bladder with symptoms of urge urinary incontinence, urgency, and urinary frequency. Solifenacin Succinate Tablets are a muscarinic antagonist indicated for the treatment of adults with overactive bladder with symptoms of urge urinary incontinence, urgency, and urinary frequency.
On the market
- Earliest approval on file
- November 19, 2004
- Generic labelers
- 20 labelers
- Pharmacy cost
- $0.162 per tablet
Supply and safety
- Shortage
- No current entry
- Recalls
- 6
Source: FDA drug labels via openFDA (Oxybutynin label of December 16, 2025, Solifenacin label of February 4, 2026); NDC Directory, Drugs@FDA, NADAC, FDA shortages and recalls (October 8, 2026)
How do oxybutynin and solifenacin differ on the record?
How each works, in its label's words: Oxybutynin, “Oxybutynin chloride exerts a direct antispasmodic effect on smooth muscle and inhibits the muscarinic action of acetylcholine on smooth muscle.”; Solifenacin, “Solifenacin is a competitive muscarinic receptor antagonist.”
Both are in FDA's class cholinergic muscarinic antagonists.
Generics: oxybutynin since 1988; solifenacin since 2014 (Drugs@FDA).
| Oxybutynin | Solifenacin | |
|---|---|---|
| Labeled for | Overactive bladder | Overactive bladder |
| Pharmacologic class | Cholinergic Muscarinic Antagonist | Cholinergic Muscarinic Antagonist |
| How it works (label) | Oxybutynin relaxes bladder smooth muscle. Oxybutynin chloride exerts a direct antispasmodic effect on smooth muscle and inhibits the muscarinic action of acetylcholine on smooth muscle. | Solifenacin is a competitive muscarinic receptor antagonist. Muscarinic receptors play an important role in several major cholinergically mediated functions, including contractions of urinary bladder smooth muscle. |
| Half-life (label) | n/a | Elimination The elimination half-life (t 1/2 ) of solifenacin following chronic dosing is approximately 45-68 hours. |
| Earliest approval on file (Drugs@FDA) | July 16, 1975 | November 19, 2004 |
| First generic approved | November 14, 1988 | April 2, 2014 |
| Generic labelers (NDC) | 39 labelers | 20 labelers |
| Pharmacy cost (NADAC, each one's most listed form; strengths differ) | $0.048 per tablet (Oxybutynin 5 mg tablet) | $0.162 per tablet (Solifenacin 10 mg tablet) |
| 12-month price change | -2% | -3% |
| Boxed warning | No | No |
| Shortage now | No current entry | No current entry |
| Recalls recorded | 9 | 6 |
| FAERS reports (a report is not proof of cause; counts follow how widely a medicine is used) | 37,662 | 1,846 |
| 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 do the labels say about using others of their kind?
Oxybutynin label, drug interactionsDRUG INTERACTIONS The concomitant use of oxybutynin with other anticholinergic drugs or with other agents which produce dry mouth, constipation, somnolence (drowsiness), and/or other anticholinergic-like effects may increase the frequency and/or severity of such effects.
Source: FDA drug labels via openFDA
What next?
- Alternatives to oxybutynin
- every medicine labeled for the same conditions