Safety
Boxed warning: minoxidil tablets contain a powerful blood pressure medicine that can cause serious side effects, including fluid around the heart (pericardial effusion, sometimes progressing to tamponade) and worsening angina. The label reserves the tablets for high blood pressure that has not responded to other medicines. At hair-loss doses, a 1,404-patient study reported unwanted body and facial hair (15.1%), lightheadedness (1.7%), fluid retention (1.3%) and a fast heartbeat (0.9%). Tell a clinician about any heart condition, chest pain, swelling or sudden weight gain. Finasteride: Finasteride has no boxed warning, but its label lists postmarketing reports of depression, suicidal ideation and behavior, and sexual problems (erectile, libido, ejaculation and orgasm disorders) that continued after stopping, plus male infertility and male breast cancer. In year-one trials, decreased libido (1.8% vs 1.3% on placebo), erectile dysfunction (1.3% vs 0.7%) and ejaculation disorder (1.2% vs 0.7%) were more common than on placebo. Women who are or may be pregnant should not handle crushed or broken tablets. Finasteride lowers PSA, and 5-alpha reductase inhibitors may raise the risk of high-grade prostate cancer. Tell a clinician about any mood change.
Legal status
Prescription only; compounded and not FDA-approved. Oral finasteride and minoxidil combination is prepared by a compounding pharmacy for an individual prescription. Compounded products are not FDA-approved, and the FDA does not review them for safety, effectiveness or quality. Compounded and not FDA-approved. It combines two ingredients we list with warnings: oral finasteride (label warnings on suicidal ideation and persistent sexual effects) and low-dose oral minoxidil (off-label, with a boxed warning on the tablets).
What oral finasteride and minoxidil combination is
Oral finasteride and minoxidil combination contains finasteride and minoxidil.
Dosing
Chewable or capsule, once a day. Set by the prescriber; each provider uses its own strengths of each ingredient.
How well it works
No trial has tested the compounded chews and capsules. Oral finasteride is FDA-approved for men on its own trials; oral minoxidil for hair loss is off-label, and in a 24-week trial of 90 men, 5 mg a day was not superior to 5% topical minoxidil. Individual results vary.
Oral finasteride and minoxidil combination cost
$35 to $90 a month at the providers that publish a monthly price, as of October 2026. For a full breakdown, read How much does minoxidil cost?. For the steps, read How to get a finasteride prescription online.