Over-the-counter medicine
Sennosides
Sennosides is an over-the-counter medicine. No generic is listed; pharmacies paid $0.0258 per senna 8.6 mg tablet in the October 7, 2026 NADAC survey.
- No generic listed
- Over the counter
Check it at the source: the sennosides FDA label on DailyMed (effective May 30, 2024); every sennosides label on DailyMed.
Highlights of the record
FDA label of May 30, 2024; NDC Directory, Drugs@FDA and Orange Book, October 8, 2026; NADAC October 7, 2026
Used for
From the label: indications and usageRelieves occasional constipation (irregularity) Generally causes bowel movement in 6 to 12 hours
Forms and strengths
- 8.6 mg
- 15 mg
- 17.2 mg
- 25 mg
- 8.8 mg/5ml
- 17.2 mg/17.21
- 25 mg/15ml
- 26.4 mg/15ml
- 417.12 mg/237ml
Tablet; film-coated tablet; liquid; syrup; chewable tablet.
On the market
- Generic approvals
- No generic approved
- Labelers listed (NDC)
- 96 of which 0 under generic applications, 0 under brand applications, repackagers included
Supply and safety
- Pharmacy cost (NADAC)
- $0.0258 per tablet Senna 8.6 mg tablet
- Shortage (FDA)
- No current entry
- Recalls by its makers (FDA)
- 0 since 2013 0 Class I among all firms' recalls; 3 more by firms not listed as its makers
- FAERS reports
- 41,594 through July 30, 2026
What is sennosides used for?
From the label: indications and usageRelieves occasional constipation (irregularity) Generally causes bowel movement in 6 to 12 hours
Conditions named in the indications of sennosides's FDA labels, with every medicine labeled for each:
From other sennosides labelsConstipation: Uses Relieves occasional constipation (irregularity) Generally causes bowel movement in 6 to 12 hours
Source: FDA drug label (Senna), Patrin Pharma, Inc., effective May 30, 2024 (SPL set a9f1ef8d-8700-481f-a709-972bb9d27153), via openFDA; the full label on DailyMed
Is there a generic for sennosides?
No generic sennosides 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 sennosides?
In CMS's NADAC survey of October 7, 2026, pharmacies paid $0.0258 per Senna 8.6 mg tablet, up 4% from $0.0247 on October 8, 2025. 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.
- Senna 8.6 mg tablet (generic)
- Senokot 8.6 mg tablet (brand)
| Strength and form | Brand or generic | Pharmacy cost | 30 tablets, or one pen or vial | 12-month change |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chocolated laxative | Generic | $0.106 per unit | n/a | +0.4% |
| Ft senna laxative 8.6 mg tablet | Generic | $0.0258 per tablet | $0.774 | +4% |
| Gnp senna lax 8.6 mg tablet | Generic | $0.0258 per tablet | $0.774 | +4% |
| Laxative 15 mg tablet | Generic | $0.0673 per tablet | $2.02 | -0.5% |
| Laxative 25 mg tablet | Generic | $0.116 per tablet | $3.49 | no change |
| Qc laxative 8.6 mg tablet | Generic | $0.0258 per tablet | $0.774 | +4% |
| Senna 8.6 mg tablet | Generic | $0.0258 per tablet | $0.774 | +4% |
| Senna 8.8 mg/5 mL liquid | Generic | $0.0369 per mL | n/a | -8% |
| Senna 8.8 mg/5 mL syrup | Generic | $0.0369 per mL | n/a | -8% |
| Senna-lax 8.6 mg tablet | Generic | $0.0258 per tablet | $0.774 | +4% |
| Senna-time 8.6 mg tablet | Generic | $0.0258 per tablet | $0.774 | +4% |
| Sennosides 8.6 mg tablet | Generic | $0.0258 per tablet | $0.774 | n/a |
| Senokot 8.6 mg tablet | Brand | $0.247 per tablet | $7.41 | +1% |
| Senokot extra str 17.2 mg tablet | Brand | $0.416 per tablet | $12.49 | -0.1% |
Source: CMS National Average Drug Acquisition Cost (NADAC) survey, October 7, 2026: what retail pharmacies paid per unit; not a counter price
Has sennosides been recalled?
The FDA's Enforcement Report lists 3 recalls naming sennosides since 2013: 0 Class I (the most serious), 3 Class II, 0 Class III; 0 still ongoing. 3 of them are by firms that FDA's NDC Directory does not list as a maker of sennosides 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.
| Started | Class | Company | Reason |
|---|---|---|---|
| May 7, 2018 | Class II | RIJ Pharmaceutical LLC not a listed maker | CGMP Deviations: Products are being recalled due to an out of specification total aerobic microbial count in a water sample. |
| July 2, 2013 | Class II | Aidapak Services, LLC not a listed maker | Labeling:Label Mixup; SENNOSIDES Tablet, 8.6 mg may be potentially mislabeled as SACCHAROMYCES BOULARDII LYO, Capsule, 250 mg, NDC 00414200007, Pedigree … |
| July 2, 2013 | Class II | Aidapak Services, LLC not a listed maker | Labeling: Label Mixup: SENNOSIDES, Tablet, 8.6 mg may have potentially been mislabeled as one of the following drugs: FEXOFENADINE HCL, Tablet, 180 mg, NDC … |
Source: FDA Enforcement Report (drug recalls) via openFDA, through October 8, 2026
What do FAERS reports show for sennosides?
The FDA Adverse Event Reporting System holds 41,594 reports that list sennosides among the medicines taken, through July 30, 2026, each a report of something that happened, not proof the medicine caused it; 6,517 are coded as a death and 20,773 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
Source: FDA Adverse Event Reporting System (FAERS) via openFDA, reports through July 30, 2026
What else is labeled for the same conditions as sennosides?
15 other medicines are given the same way (oral) and in the same FDA class as sennosides or labeled mainly for the same use (constipation), the same class first. Constipation lists all 20 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.
| Medicine | Shared indication | Generic labelers (oral) | Pharmacy cost | Shortage |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Docusate | Constipation | none listed | $0.0276 per unit 100 mg softgel | No current entry |
| Polyethylene glycol 3350 | Constipation | 73 labelers | $0.0286 per gram 3350 powd | No current entry |
| Bisacodyl | Constipation | none listed | $0.0441 per tablet 5 mg tablet | No current entry |
| Magnesium hydroxide | Constipation | none listed | $0.0095 per mL Milk of magnesia suspension | No current entry |
| Magnesium citrate | Constipation | none listed | $0.0066 per mL Magnesium citrate solution | No current entry |
| Lubiprostone | Constipation | 10 labelers | $0.651 per capsule 24 mcg capsule | No current entry |
| Prucalopride | Constipation | 18 labelers | $0.639 per tablet 1 mg tablet | No current entry |
| Psyllium husk | Constipation | none listed | n/a | No current entry |
Every medicine labeled for the same conditions as sennosides
Source: FDA drug labels (indications), NDC Directory, NADAC of October 7, 2026, FDA shortages (October 8, 2026)
How does sennosides compare with medicines for the same use?
5 side-by-side pages set sennosides beside a medicine whose label shares a use: approvals, generics, pharmacy cost, warnings and supply.
What next?
- Alternatives to sennosides
- 15 medicines for the same use
- Sennosides side effects
- the label's list beside FAERS reports
- Check an interaction
- what two or more labels say about each other