Is Generic Finasteride as Good as Propecia?

Hello Doctor,

I am a 29 year old male who has been taking propecia for around 8 years. It has worked well at halting my hairloss. Recently, my dermatologist told me I should try generic finasteride to save money. Will generic finasteride work as well as propecia?

Yes, the generic finasteride will work as well as the non-generic finasteride. It is the same drug – just that the generic is available in 5mg tablets (same as Proscar), where Propecia is in 1mg pills. The 5mg pills should be cut down to 1/4 tablet taken each day to minimize side effects. For more about cutting the 5mg tablets down to the dosage used for treating hair loss, please see:

• Cutting Proscar
• Pill Cutters and Creativity