Aspirin: uses, dosing, side effects & brands
Aspirin is a medicine sold in the U.S. under 4 brand and generic names. Below: what the FDA label says, every product that contains it, what the pills look like, and its recall record.
Key facts
- Available as
- Tablet, extended release · Capsule, extended release · Capsule
- Sold as
- 4 products — 8-Hour Bayer, Durlaza and Measurin, and others
- Prescription?
- Both Rx and OTC forms
- Generic available?
- Not in our catalog
- Half-life
- about 20 minutes (the label also states 0.33 hours) for aspirin itself
- What the pharmacy pays
- about $0.78 for a 30-count supply — not your price
Can you take aspirin with…?
Source-cited answers for the combinations people actually ask about — each with a verdict and what to watch for.
Every aspirin product we track (4)
Same active ingredient — different manufacturer, form, price and FDA recall record. That last one is what our independent score measures.
| # | Drug | Rating | Type | Form | Generic? | Pharmacy pays | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Not yet rated | Prescription | Tablet | Generic | $1 | View → | |
| 2 | Not yet rated | Prescription | Capsule | Generic | $1 | View → | |
| 3 | Not yet rated | Prescription | Tablet | Generic | $1 | View → | |
| 4 | Not yet rated | Over-the-counter | Capsule | Generic | $1 | View → |
What aspirin pills look like
Imprint codes, colour and shape from the FDA’s labelling data. Match the imprint on your pill — or search any imprint.
| Imprint | Strength | Colour | Shape | Maker |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| HH6 | 65 mg / 250 mg | white | capsule | — |
| ASPIRIN;44;157 | 325 mg | white | round | — |
| ASPIRIN;44;157 | 325 mg | white | round | — |
| 44;157;ASPIRIN | 325 mg | white | round | — |
| TCL370 | 250 mg / 250 mg / 65 mg | white | capsule | — |
| FR1 | 500 mg | white | round | — |
| 44;157;ASPIRIN | 325 mg | white | round | — |
| ASPIRIN;44;157 | 325 mg | white | round | — |
| I1 | 250 mg / 65 mg / 250 mg | white | capsule | — |
| I1 | 250 mg / 65 mg / 250 mg | white | capsule | — |
| TCL370 | 250 mg / 250 mg / 65 mg | white | capsule | — |
| S77 | 250 mg / 250 mg / 65 mg | green | round | — |
Combination products containing aspirin
A combination is a different drug — different dosing, different warnings. It is listed here so you can find it, not so you can substitute it.
Aspirin recalls
From the FDA Enforcement database. A recall covers specific lots — not the drug as a whole.
Aspirin and breastfeeding
From LactMed, the US National Library of Medicine’s Drugs and Lactation Database — quoted, not rewritten.
Full LactMed record for aspirin: levels in milk, effects in breastfed infants, and the drugs it would consider insteadAfter aspirin ingestion, salicylic acid is excreted into breastmilk, with higher doses resulting in disproportionately higher milk levels. Long-term, high-dose maternal aspirin ingestion probably caused metabolic acidosis in one breastfed infant. Reye's syndrome is associated with aspirin administration to infants with viral infections, but the risk of Reye's syndrome from salicylate in breastmilk is unknown. An alternate drug is preferred over continuous high-dose, aspirin therapy. With low-dose aspirin (75 to 325 mg daily), no aspirin is excreted into breastmilk and salicylate levels are low. If a nursing mother uses aspirin, monitor the infant for bruising and bleeding.
National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, record revised April 15, 2026. LactMed states its information is not a substitute for professional judgement.
What people report to the FDA about aspirin
The FDA Adverse Event Reporting System (FAERS) collects reports from patients and clinicians. It holds 617,938 reports naming aspirin, and the FDA flagged 70% of those reports as serious. The effects reported most often — leaving out reports about overdose, misuse or the condition being treated, which dominate the raw list for common medicines:
- fatigue38,665 reports
- dyspnoea32,333 reports
- nausea31,918 reports
- diarrhoea31,783 reports
- dizziness26,852 reports
- headache23,945 reports
- asthenia22,452 reports
- fall22,039 reports
Read these as a signal, not a rate. A report does not mean aspirin caused the effect — anyone can file one, and many describe people taking several medicines for several conditions. Crucially there is no denominator: FAERS does not record how many people took the drug, so these counts cannot be turned into “X% of patients” — a bigger number often just means a more widely used or more talked-about drug. Duplicates exist, and publicity drives reporting. For what is actually established, read the FDA label.
Source: openFDA drug/event (FAERS), retrieved August 25, 2026.
How long aspirin stays in your system
The elimination half-life of aspirin is about 20 minutes (the label also states 0.33 hours) for aspirin itself. Aspirin's own half-life is misleadingly short: the label says aspirin "is rapidly hydrolyzed in plasma to salicylic acid, with a half-life of 20 minutes," so aspirin behaves essentially as a prodrug and salicylic acid is the active moiety that persists. The label gives salicylic acid a half-life of 1.71 hours at these doses, "correspond[ing] well with data from the literature at lower doses which state a resultant half-life of approximately 2 to 3 hours." Salicylate elimination is saturable: "at higher doses, the elimination of salicylic acid follows zero-order kinetics... with an apparent half-life of 6 hours or higher," and "following toxic doses (10 to 20 g), the plasma half-life may be increased to over 20 hours." Renal clearance of free salicylate is urine-pH dependent (rising from <5% to >80% as urinary pH goes above 6.5). This label does not quantify a half-life change by age; for organ impairment it does not give altered half-life numbers but instructs that aspirin be avoided in severe renal failure (GFR <10 mL/min) and in severe hepatic insufficiency. Note also that aspirin's antiplatelet effect far outlasts both half-lives, because it irreversibly acetylates platelet COX-1 for the platelet's lifespan — half-life does not predict duration of effect here. Half-life figures are pharmacokinetic, not a drug-test detection window and not dosing guidance.
DailyMed — ASPIRIN AND EXTENDED-RELEASE DIPYRIDAMOLE capsule, extended release (Clinical Pharmacology / Pharmacokinetics: Aspirin) ↗Half-life is how long the body takes to clear half a dose. It is not the same as how long a drug test can detect it, and it varies with age, kidney and liver function.
Is aspirin safe during pregnancy?
The label says use only if clearly needed
The label tells anyone pregnant or breast-feeding to ask a health professional before use, and states it is especially important not to use aspirin during the last 3 months of pregnancy unless definitely directed to do so by a doctor, because it may cause problems in the unborn child or complications during delivery. Consult your prescriber.
This is what aspirin’s FDA label says — not a recommendation to take or stop it. In pregnancy, that decision is your prescriber’s; do not start or stop a medicine on your own.
Low Dose Aspirin - DailyMed label ↗Related guides
Related calculators
Frequently asked questions
Is aspirin safe during pregnancy?
The label tells anyone pregnant or breast-feeding to ask a health professional before use, and states it is especially important not to use aspirin during the last 3 months of pregnancy unless definitely directed to do so by a doctor, because it may cause problems in the unborn child or complications during delivery. Consult your prescriber. This is what aspirin's FDA label says; whether to use it in pregnancy is your prescriber's decision.
How long does aspirin stay in your system?
The elimination half-life of aspirin is about 20 minutes (the label also states 0.33 hours) for aspirin itself — that is how long the body takes to clear half of a dose. Aspirin's own half-life is misleadingly short: the label says aspirin "is rapidly hydrolyzed in plasma to salicylic acid, with a half-life of 20 minutes," so aspirin behaves essentially as a prodrug and salicylic acid is the active moiety that persists. The label gives salicylic acid a half-life of 1.71 hours at these doses, "correspond[ing] well with data from the literature at lower doses which state a resultant half-life of approximately 2 to 3 hours." Salicylate elimination is saturable: "at higher doses, the elimination of salicylic acid follows zero-order kinetics... with an apparent half-life of 6 hours or higher," and "following toxic doses (10 to 20 g), the plasma half-life may be increased to over 20 hours." Renal clearance of free salicylate is urine-pH dependent (rising from <5% to >80% as urinary pH goes above 6.5). This label does not quantify a half-life change by age; for organ impairment it does not give altered half-life numbers but instructs that aspirin be avoided in severe renal failure (GFR <10 mL/min) and in severe hepatic insufficiency. Note also that aspirin's antiplatelet effect far outlasts both half-lives, because it irreversibly acetylates platelet COX-1 for the platelet's lifespan — half-life does not predict duration of effect here. Half-life figures are pharmacokinetic, not a drug-test detection window and not dosing guidance. Half-life is not the same as how long a drug test can detect the drug, and it varies with age, kidney and liver function.
Can you take aspirin with other medicines?
It depends on the medicine. We check it against the FDA labels rather than guessing: our interaction checker searches each drug's own label for the other and quotes what it says, naming the section it came from. Run aspirin against whatever else you take — and remember that a label not naming a drug is not the same as that combination being safe.
What brand names is aspirin sold under?
We track 4 aspirin-containing products in the U.S.: 8-Hour Bayer, Durlaza, Measurin and Vazalore. They are the same active ingredient; they differ in form, manufacturer, price and FDA recall record.
What forms does aspirin come in?
Across the brands we track, aspirin is currently marketed as tablet, extended release, capsule, extended release and capsule, per the FDA's National Drug Code Directory. Each form is dosed differently — follow the label for the exact product you were prescribed.
Is there a generic aspirin?
We do not currently list a generic-labelled aspirin product. That does not always mean none exists — it means none appears under a generic name in the FDA data we track. Ask your pharmacist.
Has aspirin been recalled?
The FDA's Enforcement database lists 1 recall record whose product description mentions aspirin. The most recent: Aspirin Chewable tablet 81 mg (Nov 11, 2024). A recall applies to specific lots, not to the drug as a whole — check the record for the affected lot numbers.
What should I avoid while taking aspirin?
Other medicines: we hold source-cited interaction answers for Can you take aspirin with ibuprofen?, Can you take aspirin and Tylenol together? and Can you take Excedrin and naproxen (Aleve) together?. This is what the FDA label and our cited sources say — it is not a complete list. Your pharmacist can check your own combination.
Is aspirin a blood thinner?
Sort of — aspirin is an antiplatelet, not a true anticoagulant. It makes platelets less sticky (which is why low-dose aspirin is used to prevent heart attacks and strokes), but it works differently from anticoagulant 'blood thinners' like warfarin or apixaban. Combining aspirin with those, or with other NSAIDs, raises bleeding risk.
Cite this page
- APA
- pharmaranks. (2026, July 24). Aspirin: uses, dosing, side effects & brands. https://pharmaranks.com/drugs/aspirin
- MLA
- “Aspirin: uses, dosing, side effects & brands.” pharmaranks, 24 July 2026, https://pharmaranks.com/drugs/aspirin.
We summarise public FDA and NIH sources — for a clinical claim, cite the primary source we link to as well.
Sources: FDA openFDA drug label, National Drug Code Directory, and Enforcement (recall) database. This page reproduces public FDA data and is not medical advice. Dosing is set by your prescriber.
Read the full FDA label for aspirin on DailyMed (NIH) ↗.