What the FDA labels say about taking them together
Alprazolam and venlafaxine
Venlafaxine's FDA label (Venlafaxine Hydrochloride) of July 31, 2025 names alprazolam in its drug interactions section; the alprazolam labels PlainMeds reads (2) do not name venlafaxine.
Check it at the source: the alprazolam FDA label on DailyMed (effective January 18, 2023, PHARMACIA & UPJOHN COMPANY LLC); the venlafaxine FDA label on DailyMed (effective August 15, 2023, Viatris Specialty LLC).
What does the alprazolam label say about venlafaxine?
Alprazolam's label (effective January 18, 2023) and its 1 other brand-application label do not name venlafaxine in these sections. A label lists what its studies and reports found; it is not a complete list.
Source: FDA drug label (Xanax), PHARMACIA & UPJOHN COMPANY LLC, effective January 18, 2023 (SPL set 388e249d-b9b6-44c3-9f8f-880eced0239f), via openFDA; the full label on DailyMed
What does the venlafaxine label say about alprazolam?
Venlafaxine Hydrochloride label (Trigen Laboratories, LLC, July 31, 2025), drug interactionsThis finding was confirmed in vivo by clinical drug interaction studies in which venlafaxine did not inhibit the metabolism of several CYP3A4 substrates, including alprazolam, diazepam, and terfenadine.
Source: FDA drug label (Venlafaxine Hydrochloride, NDA022104), Trigen Laboratories, LLC, effective July 31, 2025 (SPL set fdaed1c2-dd0a-4bf3-975a-86fe3e7f0c97), via openFDA
Source: FDA drug label (Effexor XR), NDA020699 (Upjohn), as published by Viatris Specialty LLC, effective August 15, 2023 (SPL set c848a5d8-ba94-4c84-80e3-0bf35fb8e32e), via openFDA; the full label on DailyMed
These are the labels' own sentences. PlainMeds does not grade interactions; a pharmacist or prescriber can say what they mean for one person's medicines.
Both medicines on the record
| Alprazolam | Venlafaxine | |
|---|---|---|
| Labeled for | Anxiety | Depression, Anxiety |
| Boxed warning | Yes | Yes |
| Pharmacy cost (NADAC) | $0.0236 per tablet 0.25 mg tablet | $0.0799 per capsule 75 mg capsule |
| Shortage now | No current entry | No current entry |
Source: FDA NDC Directory, CMS NADAC of October 7, 2026 and the FDA Drug Shortage Database (FDA files October 8, 2026)
What next?
- Check more medicines together
- up to five at once