Does cefixime expire?
The printed date covers the sealed pack. Once cefixime is opened, mixed or diluted, its label sets a second and usually much shorter limit — quoted below, per product.
Shortest limit on any cefixime label: 14 days
“Discard unused portion after 14 days.”
That applies to the product it is printed on, not to every form of cefixime — check which one you have against the list below.
What the labels say
“Discard unused portion after 14 days.”
On the label for Cefixime · DailyMed
How the label says to keep cefixime
Storage is the other half of the question: the stability behind any date assumes these conditions, and a medicine kept outside them ages faster than the calendar says.
- “Prior to Reconstitution : Store drug powder at 20° to 25°C (68° to 77°F) [see USP Controlled Room Temperature].”
- “Store at room temperature or under refrigeration.”
- “Store at 20°C to 25°C (68°F to 77°F) [See USP Controlled Temperature].”
- “16 HOW SUPPLIED/STORAGE AND HANDLING Cefixime for oral suspension USP, 100 mg/5 mL is an off-white to pale yellow colored powder.”
- “Store drug powder at 20°C to 25°C (68°F to 77°F) [See USP Controlled Room Temperature].”
- “Store at 20 °C to 25°C (68°F to 77°F) [See USP Controlled Temperature].”
- “Store at 20 to 25°C (68 to 77°F) [See USP Controlled Room Temperature].”
- “Store at 20°C to 25°C (68°F to 77°F) [See USP Controlled Room Temperature Repackaged and Distributed By: Remedy Repack, Inc.”
Frequently asked questions
Does cefixime expire?
Two different clocks apply and only one of them is the printed date. The date on a sealed pack is the manufacturer's guarantee for the unopened product. Once it is opened, mixed or diluted, the label imposes its own limit — as tight as 14 days on some cefixime products, and that is the number quoted on this page.
Can I still use cefixime after the date on the box?
This page cannot tell you that, and nor can any page. The FDA's own shelf-life programme found 88% of tested lots stayed within specification at least a year past expiry — and concluded in the same breath that lot-to-lot variation means this can only be confirmed by testing each lot. What you can check at home is the in-use limit above and whether the product has been stored as the label requires. Ask a pharmacist about a specific pack; they will also dispose of what you no longer need.
Why do different cefixime products have different limits?
Because they are different formulations. A suspension that gets mixed with water, a pen that gets carried at room temperature, and a sealed tablet do not behave alike, so each manufacturer's label sets its own limit and each is shown here with the product it belongs to. We never merge them into one number for the molecule.
More on cefixime
Quoted from FDA labels for reference, not medical advice, and not a suggestion to use anything past its limit. If you are unsure whether a pack is still good, a pharmacist can tell you and can dispose of it safely.