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Prescription and over-the-counter medicine

Fluticasone Brand names: Flonase, Flovent, Arnuity, Xhance; first approved as Cutivate

Fluticasone (Flonase) is a prescription and over-the-counter medicine with an FDA approval on record since 1990. FDA's NDC Directory lists it from 71 generic labelers, and pharmacies paid $0.243 per gram (Fluticasone prop 0.05% cream) in the October 7, 2026 NADAC survey.

  • Generic listed

Check it at the source: the fluticasone FDA label on DailyMed (effective December 19, 2024, Haleon US Holdings LLC); the NDA 19957 record on Drugs@FDA; every fluticasone label on DailyMed.

Highlights of the record

FDA label of December 19, 2024; NDC Directory, Drugs@FDA and Orange Book, October 8, 2026; NADAC October 7, 2026

Used for

From the label: indications and usage

Temporarily relieves these symptoms of hay fever or other upper respiratory allergies:

nasal congestion

itchy nose

runny nose

itchy, watery eyes

sneezing

Forms and strengths

  • 0.1g
  • 0.05 mg/g
  • 0.5 mg/g
  • 0.5 mg/ml

Spray (metered); powder (metered); cream; aerosol (metered); ointment.

On the market

Earliest approval on file
December 14, 1990 Cutivate, Fougera; Drugs@FDA’s file, where older or withdrawn approvals can be missing
Generic approvals
25 first May 14, 2004; 18 with a marketed status in Drugs@FDA
Labelers listed (NDC)
76 of which 71 under generic applications, 6 under brand applications, repackagers included
Last listed patent
October 15, 2028 Flonase Sensimist Allergy Relief spray; not a generic launch date

Supply and safety

Pharmacy cost (NADAC)
$0.243 per gram Fluticasone prop 0.05% cream
Shortage (FDA)
No current entry
Recalls by its makers (FDA)
5 since 2018 0 Class I among all firms' recalls; latest February 14, 2024; 1 more by firms not listed as its makers
FAERS reports
139,949 through July 30, 2026

What is fluticasone used for?

From the label: indications and usage

Temporarily relieves these symptoms of hay fever or other upper respiratory allergies:

nasal congestion

itchy nose

runny nose

itchy, watery eyes

sneezing

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

From other fluticasone labels

Allergies: Uses Temporarily relieves these symptoms of hay fever or other upper respiratory allergies:

Asthma: Fluticasone Propionate HFA is indicated for the maintenance treatment of asthma as prophylactic therapy in adult and pediatric patients aged 4 years and older.

Eczema (atopic dermatitis): Fluticasone propionate lotion is a corticosteroid indicated for the relief of the inflammatory and pruritic manifestations of atopic dermatitis in patients 3 months of age or older.

FDA pharmacologic class: Corticosteroid.

Source: FDA drug label (FLONASE ALLERGY RELIEF), Haleon US Holdings LLC, effective December 19, 2024 (SPL set b6134ba0-b70a-4eac-9a82-cef64b242c1d), via openFDA; the full label on DailyMed

Is there a generic for fluticasone (Flonase)?

The FDA approved the first generic fluticasone on May 14, 2004. 25 generic applications are approved; 18 of them carry a current (not discontinued) marketing status in Drugs@FDA; that status is not evidence that the generic is on sale.

FDA's NDC Directory lists fluticasone from 71 labelers under a generic (ANDA) application and from 6 brand labelers. A listing means the company has registered the product for sale; it does not show that every pharmacy stocks it.

The Orange Book lists 3 patents for Flonase Sensimist Allergy Relief spray, the last expiring on October 15, 2028; a patent listed only for Armonair Respiclick powder runs to January 6, 2041. A patent or exclusivity date is not the date a generic goes on sale: court cases and settlements move it either way.

  • 1990 earliest approval on file
  • 2004 first generic approved
  • 2028 last listed patent
  • red ticks recalls

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

What do pharmacies pay for fluticasone (Flonase)?

In CMS's NADAC survey of October 7, 2026, pharmacies paid $0.243 per gram (Fluticasone prop 0.05% cream), about the same as a year earlier. Prices per unit in the table differ many-fold by strength, form and brand, so compare like with like. 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.

  • Fluticasone prop 0.05% cream (generic)
  • Arnuity ellipta 100 mcg inhaler (brand)
$6.68
$0.205
January 2024October 2026
NADAC per unit, October 7, 2026
Strength and formBrand or genericPharmacy cost30 tablets, or one pen or vial12-month change
Fluticasone ellipta 100 mcg inhalerGeneric$4.28 per inhalern/a+3%
Fluticasone ellipta 200 mcg inhalerGeneric$5.71 per inhalern/a-2%
Fluticasone ellipta 50 mcg inhalerGeneric$4.22 per inhalern/a+3%
Fluticasone prop 0.005% ointmentGeneric$0.433 per gramn/a-5%
Fluticasone prop 0.05% creamGeneric$0.243 per gramn/a-0.1%
Fluticasone prop 0.05% lotionGeneric$2.96 per mLn/a-0.6%
Fluticasone prop 100 mcg diskusGeneric$2.05 per unitn/a-0.6%
Fluticasone prop 250 mcg diskGeneric$2.69 per unitn/a+1%
Fluticasone prop 50 mcg diskusGeneric$1.92 per unitn/a+0.6%
Fluticasone prop 50 mcg sprayGeneric$0.676 per gramn/a-10%
Fluticasone propionate hfa 110 mcg inhalerGeneric$13.59 per gramn/a-0.5%
Fluticasone propionate hfa 220 mcg inhalerGeneric$21.79 per gramn/a+1%
Fluticasone propionate hfa 44 mcg inhalerGeneric$11.82 per gramn/a+2%
Ft allergy relief 50 mcg sprayGeneric$0.742 per mLn/a-1%

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

Has fluticasone been recalled?

The FDA's Enforcement Report lists 6 recalls naming fluticasone since 2018: 0 Class I (the most serious), 6 Class II, 0 Class III; 2 still ongoing. 1 of them is by a firm that FDA's NDC Directory does not list as a maker of fluticasone and that holds 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
February 14, 2024Class IIGolden State Medical Supply Inc.CGMP Deviations:Suspected potential presence of Burkholderia cepacia complex
February 9, 2024Class IIApotex Corp.CGMP Deviations: potential presence of Burkholderia cepacia complex
January 26, 2022Class IICARDINAL HEALTHCARECGMP Deviations: Products were exposed to temperatures outside of the products labeled storage conditions.
March 15, 2021Class IICardinal Health Inc.CGMP Deviations: Intermittent exposure to temperature excursion during storage.
May 31, 2018Class IIApotex Inc.Presence of foreign substance: glass particles
February 9, 2018Class IIAmerican Pharmaceutical Ingredients LLC not a listed makerCGMP Deviations: Lack of stability data and controls to support the manufacturers assigned retest or expiration date in firm's container/closure system.

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

What does the fluticasone label say about other medicines?

The fluticasone label names 9 other medicines in its interaction, contraindication or warning sections. The labels of 19 other medicines name fluticasone. The sentences are the labels' own; a label lists what its studies and reports found, not every interaction.

Medicine namedSectionWhat the label says
Atazanavirdrug interactions (prescription label)The use of strong CYP3A4 inhibitors (e.g., ritonavir, atazanavir, clarithromycin, indinavir, itraconazole, nefazodone, nelfinavir, saquinavir, ketoconazole, telithromycin, conivaptan, lopinavir, voriconazole) with XHANCE is not recommended because increased systemic corticosteroid adverse effects may occur.
Clarithromycindrug interactions (prescription label)The use of strong CYP3A4 inhibitors (e.g., ritonavir, atazanavir, clarithromycin, indinavir, itraconazole, nefazodone, nelfinavir, saquinavir, ketoconazole, telithromycin, conivaptan, lopinavir, voriconazole) with XHANCE is not recommended because increased systemic corticosteroid adverse effects may occur.
Itraconazoledrug interactions (prescription label)The use of strong CYP3A4 inhibitors (e.g., ritonavir, atazanavir, clarithromycin, indinavir, itraconazole, nefazodone, nelfinavir, saquinavir, ketoconazole, telithromycin, conivaptan, lopinavir, voriconazole) with XHANCE is not recommended because increased systemic corticosteroid adverse effects may occur.
Ketoconazoledrug interactions (prescription label)DRUG INTERACTIONS Strong cytochrome P450 3A4 inhibitors (e.g., ritonavir, ketoconazole): Use not recommended.
Nefazodonedrug interactions (prescription label)The use of strong CYP3A4 inhibitors (e.g., ritonavir, atazanavir, clarithromycin, indinavir, itraconazole, nefazodone, nelfinavir, saquinavir, ketoconazole, telithromycin, conivaptan, lopinavir, voriconazole) with XHANCE is not recommended because increased systemic corticosteroid adverse effects may occur.
Nelfinavirdrug interactions (prescription label)The use of strong CYP3A4 inhibitors (e.g., ritonavir, atazanavir, clarithromycin, indinavir, itraconazole, nefazodone, nelfinavir, saquinavir, ketoconazole, telithromycin, conivaptan, lopinavir, voriconazole) with XHANCE is not recommended because increased systemic corticosteroid adverse effects may occur.
Prednisonewarnings and precautionsPatients who have been previously maintained on 20 mg or more of prednisone (or its equivalent) may be most susceptible, particularly when their systemic corticosteroids have been almost completely withdrawn.
Ritonavirdrug interactions (prescription label)DRUG INTERACTIONS Strong cytochrome P450 3A4 inhibitors (e.g., ritonavir, ketoconazole): Use not recommended.
Voriconazoledrug interactions (prescription label)The use of strong CYP3A4 inhibitors (e.g., ritonavir, atazanavir, clarithromycin, indinavir, itraconazole, nefazodone, nelfinavir, saquinavir, ketoconazole, telithromycin, conivaptan, lopinavir, voriconazole) with XHANCE is not recommended because increased systemic corticosteroid adverse effects may occur.

Other labels that name fluticasone

Check fluticasone against other medicines

Source: FDA drug label (FLONASE ALLERGY RELIEF), Haleon US Holdings LLC, effective December 19, 2024 (SPL set b6134ba0-b70a-4eac-9a82-cef64b242c1d), via openFDA; the full label on DailyMed

What do FAERS reports show for fluticasone?

The FDA Adverse Event Reporting System holds 139,949 reports that list fluticasone among the medicines taken, through July 30, 2026, each a report of something that happened, not proof the medicine caused it; 7,141 are coded as a death and 33,738 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

  • Drug Ineffective (a use or a product term, not a reaction)12,051
  • Dyspnoea10,004
  • Fatigue9,079
  • Headache (named in the label)8,900
  • Nausea (named in the label)7,964
  • Off Label Use (a use or a product term, not a reaction)7,188
  • Pain6,926
  • Diarrhoea6,716

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

What else is labeled for the same conditions as fluticasone?

7 other medicines are given the same way (nasal) and in the same FDA class as fluticasone or labeled mainly for the same use (allergies), the same class first. Allergies lists all 36 medicines labeled for it, by any route. They are listed as records, not as substitutes: whether one can replace another is a prescriber's decision.

MedicineShared indicationGeneric labelers (nasal)Pharmacy costShortage
TriamcinoloneAllergies24 labelers$0.739 per mL 55 mcg nasal sprListed; available
MometasoneAllergies5 labelers$1.59 per gram 50 mcg spryNo current entry
BudesonideAllergies5 labelers$1.41 per mL 32 mcg nasal sprayNo current entry
BeclomethasoneAllergiesnone listed$30.23 per gram 80 mcg nasal sprayNo current entry
Mometasone and olopatadineAllergiesnone listed$7.67 per gram 665-25 mcg sprayNo current entry
AzelastineAllergies16 labelers$0.273 per mL 0.1% (137 mcg) spryNo current entry
OlopatadineAllergies4 labelers$0.850 per gram 665 mcg nasal spryNo current entry

Every medicine labeled for the same conditions as fluticasone

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

How does fluticasone compare with medicines for the same use?

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

What next?

Alternatives to fluticasone
7 medicines for the same use
Other corticosteroids
the pharmacologic class, with prices and generics
Fluticasone side effects
the label's list beside FAERS reports
Check an interaction
what two or more labels say about each other