Pharmacies pay ≈$0.70 to acquire that quantity (NADAC, price effective August 19, 2026; our copy from August 26, 2026); the estimate adds a $9–13 dispensing fee, the pharmacy's professional fee for filling a prescription.
What is this number?
This is what pharmacies themselves pay to buy this drug: the federal government surveys it and publishes it weekly (it's called NADAC). Think of it as the honest floor under every price you're quoted.
Compare a price you were quoted
At the counter?
Pharmacies pay about $0.70 to buy 30 tablets of this drug (federal NADAC survey, price effective August 19, 2026; our copy from August 26, 2026). With a typical $9–13 fee for filling it, a fair cash price works out to $9.70–$13.70.
We do not have Cost Plus Drugs' price for this drug in our data. If Cost Plus Drugs (Mark Cuban's online pharmacy) carries it, their site shows the price; their published formula is the drug's cost plus a fixed 15% margin, plus flat pharmacy and shipping fees.
What to say
Ask for the cash price:"What would this cost if I paid cash, without my insurance?"
A normal question; pharmacists hear it every day. For generics the cash price often beats an insurance copay.
If an online pharmacy lists it for less:"Could you match this online price?"
Show the listed price on your phone. The pharmacy can say no; many will try to help.
Show the pharmacist
Screenshot the card below, or print this page; printing gives just the card.
Atorvastatin 10 Mg Tablet
Fair cash price estimate for 30 tablets
$9.70–$13.70
Pharmacies pay about $0.70 to buy that quantity (federal NADAC survey). The estimate adds a typical $9–13 filling fee.
Source: CMS NADAC (price effective August 19, 2026; our copy from August 26, 2026). A benchmark of pharmacy cost, not a price anyone owes. CounterScript · rx.agentlookups.ai
One honest caveat: for brand-name drugs your insurance copay may still be your cheapest path; this benchmark bites hardest on generics. Cash payments usually do not count toward your deductible.
NADAC is the national average price pharmacies PAY to acquire this drug. It is a benchmark, not a price you owe.
The fair cash estimate adds a dispensing fee, the pharmacy's professional fee for filling a prescription ($9-13, per state Medicaid surveys), to acquisition cost. Pharmacies may lawfully charge more or less.
If you have insurance, your copay may be lower than any cash price, and paying cash usually does not count toward your deductible.
Not medical advice. Generic alternatives listed are FDA therapeutic-equivalence matches for the same ingredient, strength, and form; only your prescriber can decide what you should take.