I’m a Pharmacist – Best Value Medications at Dollar Tree

Over-the-counter drug prices can be a huge headache — but if you’re looking in the right place, they don’t have to be.

Grant Harting, a pharmacist licensed in Pennsylvania, Ohio and Virginia, says there are plenty of medications worth picking up for just $1.25 at Dollar Tree, and he’s highlighted some of the best bargains—and the ones that don’t. not worth a dime and a quarter. — on TikTok.

Pharmaceutical companies spend billions of dollars every year advertising their brand name drugs, but generic versions are made with the same active ingredients.

“Brand name drugs are not always better. Many of them are very expensive,” said Dr. Niteesh K. Choudhry, a professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School, for Harvard Health Publishing.

Grant, who has dedicated his TikTok to educating people about affordable medication, visited a Pittsburgh Dollar Tree to share items he thinks are good value.

Absorb the pain

The best product of all, he said, is Iodent Maximum Strength Oral Analgesic Gel, which is made with benzocaine to numb cuts and sores in your mouth. Similar products are sold by brands like Orajel and Kanka, with typical online prices ranging from $7 to $12.

“Twenty-five bucks and you get almost a whole ounce,” he said. “This is almost a lifetime supply. That’s seriously, like ten, eleven bucks at the next drugstore. This is the best product Dollar Tree has. I use this myself. I love it, I love it, I love it.”

Cream of the crop

In general, he added, the best value you’ll find are creams, and he’s a fan of Dollar Tree Brand’s CareAll Arthritis Cream and Muscle Pain Relief. Its active ingredient is 0.025% capsaicin, which he says costs $6 to $8 anywhere else.

Another “great deal” is CareAll brand anti-itch cream, which is made with diphenhydramine, the same active ingredient in Benadryl. It is sold as an itch and pain reliever for things like insect bites, poison ivy and sunburn.

An almost identical product is sold at CVS for $5.99, while a version of Benadryl with a similar formulation costs $7.79 at the major drugstore chain.

Pain relief

While the gel and cream are his favorite buys, he also recommends Dollar Tree’s Valuhealth Pain Relief PM, which comes in a pack of 24 caps. The active ingredients are acetaminophen, the pain reliever in Tylenol, plus an overnight sleep aid.

The same size bottle of Tylenol PM sells for $7.79 at CVS.

Finally, the pharmacist is also a “big fan” of cough syrups like Dollar Tree’s Assured Tussin & Chest Congestion DM DM cough syrup, noting that they are the perfect size.

Fret not, buyers

But not everything gets his stamp of approval. He warned that their hemorrhoid cream is not good at all, because similar creams are often quite cheap in other stores. He also encourages skipping their children’s allergy relief liquid, which he compared to Benadryl.

Finally, in the supplement category, he warned that the $1.25 melatonin is neither a good deal — nor does he think the 3 mg dose is effective, suggesting people should take at least 5 mg.

The Cleveland Clinic recommends starting with just 1 mg and increasing the dose one milligram at a time, up to 10 mg.