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Over-the-counter medicine

Calcium carbonate

Calcium carbonate is an over-the-counter medicine. No generic is listed; pharmacies paid $0.0315 per tablet (Antacid ex-str 750 mg tablet chewable) in the October 7, 2026 NADAC survey.

  • No generic listed
  • Over the counter

Check it at the source: the calcium carbonate FDA label on DailyMed (effective December 5, 2024); every calcium carbonate label on DailyMed.

Highlights of the record

FDA label of December 5, 2024; NDC Directory, Drugs@FDA and Orange Book, October 8, 2026; NADAC October 7, 2026

Used for

From the label: indications and usage

relieves

heartburn

acid indigestion

sour stomach

upset stomach associated with these symptoms

Forms and strengths

  • 55 mg
  • 90 mg
  • 200.4 mg
  • 250 mg
  • 400 mg
  • 420 mg
  • 500 mg
  • 648 mg
  • 750 mg
  • 1000 mg
  • 1177 mg
  • 1250 mg

Chewable tablet; tablet; lozenge; suspension; chewable bar.

On the market

Generic approvals
No generic approved
Labelers listed (NDC)
157 of which 0 under generic applications, 0 under brand applications, repackagers included

Supply and safety

Pharmacy cost (NADAC)
$0.0315 per tablet Antacid ex-str 750 mg tablet chewable
Shortage (FDA)
No current entry
Recalls by its makers (FDA)
1 since 2013 0 Class I among all firms' recalls; latest June 7, 2022; 20 more by firms not listed as its makers
FAERS reports
66,848 through July 30, 2026

What is calcium carbonate used for?

From the label: indications and usage

relieves

heartburn

acid indigestion

sour stomach

upset stomach associated with these symptoms

Conditions named in the indications of calcium carbonate's FDA labels, with every medicine labeled for each:

From other calcium carbonate labels

Acid reflux and ulcers: Temporarily relieves heartburn sour stomach acid indigestion upset stomach

Source: FDA drug label (TUMS EX), Haleon US Holdings LLC, effective December 5, 2024 (SPL set 593a0494-d669-4bcf-8412-b92645b2d76c), via openFDA; the full label on DailyMed

Is there a generic for calcium carbonate?

No generic calcium carbonate is approved (Drugs@FDA, October 8, 2026).

Source: Drugs@FDA, FDA NDC Directory and the Orange Book (openFDA bulk files, October 8, 2026)

What do pharmacies pay for calcium carbonate?

In CMS's NADAC survey of October 7, 2026, pharmacies paid $0.0315 per tablet (Antacid ex-str 750 mg tablet chewable), about the same as a year earlier. The chart's scale runs from the lowest to the highest price shown, not from zero. NADAC is what retail pharmacies paid their wholesalers, per unit, in CMS's monthly survey; what a patient pays depends on insurance and the pharmacy.

  • Antacid ex-str 750 mg tablet chewable (generic)
$0.033
$0.0263
January 2024October 2026
NADAC per unit, October 7, 2026
Strength and formBrand or genericPharmacy cost30 tablets, or one pen or vial12-month change
Antacid 500 mg chewable tabletGeneric$0.0169 per tablet$0.506-2%
Antacid 500 mg chewable tabletGeneric$0.0169 per tablet$0.506-2%
Antacid 750 mg chewable tabletGeneric$0.0315 per tablet$0.946-0.8%
Antacid ex-str 750 mg tablet chewableGeneric$0.0315 per tablet$0.946-0.8%
Antacid ultra str 1,000 mg chwGeneric$0.037 per unitn/a+3%
Antacid ultra tablet chewableGeneric$0.037 per tablet$1.11+3%
Antacid xtra strength chewable tabletGeneric$0.0315 per tablet$0.946-0.8%
Cal-gest 500 mg tablet chewableGeneric$0.0169 per tablet$0.506-2%
Calcium antacid 500 mg chw tabletGeneric$0.0169 per tablet$0.506-2%
Calcium antacid 750 mg chewable tabletGeneric$0.0315 per tablet$0.946-0.8%
Calcium carb 1,250 mg/5 mL susGeneric$0.0204 per mLn/a+0.9%
Calcium carbonate 648 mg tabletGeneric$0.0081 per tablet$0.242+2%
Ft antacid 500 mg chewable tabletGeneric$0.0169 per tablet$0.506-2%
Ft antacid ex-str 750 mg chewableGeneric$0.0315 per unitn/a-0.8%

Source: CMS National Average Drug Acquisition Cost (NADAC) survey, October 7, 2026: what retail pharmacies paid per unit; not a counter price

Has calcium carbonate been recalled?

The FDA's Enforcement Report lists 21 recalls naming calcium carbonate since 2013: 0 Class I (the most serious), 20 Class II, 1 Class III; 14 still ongoing. 20 of them are by firms that FDA's NDC Directory does not list as a maker of calcium carbonate and that hold no application for it in Drugs@FDA, such as compounding pharmacies or bulk-ingredient suppliers; the recall notice names the product recalled. A recall names products and lots, not every product of the medicine.

StartedClassCompanyReason
May 28, 2026Class IIGuardian Drug Co. Inc. not a listed makerPresence of foreign substance: small metallic particles in chewable tablets.
November 11, 2024Class IISafecor Health, LLC not a listed makercGMP Deviations: Observations were made that some blister card-foils were separating from the blister cavity.
December 2, 2022Class IIGlaxoSmithKline Consumer Healthcare Holdings LLC not a listed makerPresence of Foreign Substance: The foreign material is primarily comprised of glass mineral wool.
June 7, 2022Class IIPlastikon Healthcare LLCCGMP Deviations: products manufactured under conditions which reflect manufacturing processes that were not adequately controlled.
July 7, 2016Class IISafecor Health, LLC not a listed makerCGMP Deviations
July 18, 2013Class IIIGlaxoSmithKline, LLC. not a listed makerPresence of Foreign Tablets/Capsules: Product labeled TUMS Ultra Assorted Berries 1000mg Chewable tables, may contain EX TUMS Assorted Berries 750mg tablets

Source: FDA Enforcement Report (drug recalls) via openFDA, through October 8, 2026

What does the calcium carbonate label say about other medicines?

The calcium carbonate label names no other medicine on this site. The labels of 10 other medicines name calcium carbonate. The sentences are the labels' own; a label lists what its studies and reports found, not every interaction.

Other labels that name calcium carbonate

Check calcium carbonate against other medicines

Source: FDA drug label (TUMS EX), Haleon US Holdings LLC, effective December 5, 2024 (SPL set 593a0494-d669-4bcf-8412-b92645b2d76c), via openFDA; the full label on DailyMed

What do FAERS reports show for calcium carbonate?

The FDA Adverse Event Reporting System holds 66,848 reports that list calcium carbonate among the medicines taken, through July 30, 2026, each a report of something that happened, not proof the medicine caused it; 9,276 are coded as a death and 28,152 as a hospital stay. Counts follow how widely a medicine is used and watched, and they are not a measure of how risky it is.

Reports received each year

The most reported reactions

  • Fatigue6,493
  • Nausea5,947
  • Off Label Use (a use or a product term, not a reaction)5,216
  • Diarrhoea5,203
  • Pain5,136
  • Drug Ineffective (a use or a product term, not a reaction)5,011
  • Chronic Kidney Disease4,971
  • Dyspnoea4,938

Source: FDA Adverse Event Reporting System (FAERS) via openFDA, reports through July 30, 2026

What else is labeled for the same conditions as calcium carbonate?

20 other medicines are given the same way (oral) and in the same FDA class as calcium carbonate or labeled mainly for the same use (acid reflux and ulcers), the same class first. Acid reflux and ulcers lists all 27 medicines labeled for it, by any route. The first 8 are below. They are listed as records, not as substitutes: whether one can replace another is a prescriber's decision.

MedicineShared indicationGeneric labelers (oral)Pharmacy costShortage
OmeprazoleAcid reflux and ulcers121 labelers$0.0295 per capsule 20 mg capsuleA presentation being discontinued
FamotidineAcid reflux and ulcers144 labelers$0.0289 per tablet 20 mg tabletNo current entry
EsomeprazoleAcid reflux and ulcers117 labelers$0.145 per capsule 20 mg capsuleNo current entry
PantoprazoleAcid reflux and ulcers52 labelers$0.0358 per tablet 40 mg tabletNo current entry
LansoprazoleAcid reflux and ulcers59 labelers$0.106 per capsule 30 mg capsuleNo current entry
SucralfateAcid reflux and ulcers43 labelers$0.173 per tablet 1 g tabletNo current entry
MetoclopramideAcid reflux and ulcers28 labelers$0.0439 per tablet 10 mg tabletNo current entry
Sodium bicarbonateAcid reflux and ulcersnone listed$0.0128 per tablet 650 mg tabletIn shortage

Every medicine labeled for the same conditions as calcium carbonate

Source: FDA drug labels (indications), NDC Directory, NADAC of October 7, 2026, FDA shortages (October 8, 2026)

How does calcium carbonate compare with medicines for the same use?

5 side-by-side pages set calcium carbonate beside a medicine whose label shares a use: approvals, generics, pharmacy cost, warnings and supply.

What next?

Alternatives to calcium carbonate
20 medicines for the same use
Calcium carbonate side effects
the label's list beside FAERS reports
Check an interaction
what two or more labels say about each other