The same box of montelukast can cost £9 on one site and £25 on another. If you came here to save money and not get scammed, youre in the right place. I9ll show you how to find legit UK pharmacies, what a fair price looks like in 2025, the risks people dont talk about (yes, the mental health warning matters), and when a different treatment might work better and cheaper. I live in Glasgow where NHS prescriptions are free, so I9m blunt about this: online works well, but only if you do it safely and compare it to your NHS options first.
Quick expectations check: montelukast (generic Singulair) is prescription-only in the UK. A trustworthy site will ask for a GP prescription or run a proper online consultation before sending it. Any website shipping it without a prescription is a risk you dont need to take.
What you9ll get here: clear steps to buy generic Singulair safely online, realistic price ranges, red flags to avoid, and simple decision rules so you dont spend more than you should or pick the wrong medicine for your symptoms.
What is generic Singulair (montelukast) and why buy it online?
Generic Singulair is montelukast, a leukotriene receptor blocker. That9s a fancy way of saying it calms down chemicals that tighten airways and trigger inflammation. It9s used for two main things: as an add-on for asthma control, and for allergic rhinitis (hay fever). Some people also use it for exercise-induced breathing symptoms. The generic contains the same active ingredient, dose, and clinical effect as the brand. If you9re comparing cheap prices online, remember: a legit generic is clinically equivalent to Singulair.
Key points in plain English:
- Names you9ll see: montelukast 10 mg tablets (adults), 5 mg chewable (kids 6 64 years), 4 mg chewable or granules (younger kids). Typical pack: 28 0930 tablets.
- How it9s taken: once daily, usually in the evening. Your prescriber may tailor timing.
- Who it suits: people whose asthma isn9t fully controlled with inhalers, those with exercise-triggered symptoms, or those with allergic rhinitis who haven9t done well on antihistamines/nasal sprays.
- Who should pause and talk to a clinician first: anyone with a history of depression/anxiety or sleep problems; parents of children starting it for the first time; anyone with worsening asthma control.
Why online might make sense:
- Convenience: repeat supplies at the click of a button, useful if your GP access is tight or you9re between appointments.
- Price transparency: you can compare per-tablet prices across sites in a few minutes.
- Choice of pack size/brand: handy if one manufacturer works better for you.
Where online is not your best move:
- Acute or worsening asthma: don9t wait for the post. Use your reliever inhaler and contact urgent care if you9re struggling to speak in full sentences or your reliever isn9t working.
- First-ever prescription: your GP or asthma nurse will check your control and inhaler technique. Montelukast is rarely the first-line step for mild asthma.
- Kids with new symptoms: always loop in a clinician before clicking buy.
Guideline context to keep you honest: UK and global guidance (NICE asthma guidance and GINA 2024) position montelukast as an add-on for asthma control rather than the first thing to try. For hay fever, steroid nasal sprays and non-drowsy antihistamines usually come first. That doesn9t mean montelukast is wrong; it just shouldn9t be your only plan if your asthma or allergies aren9t under control.
UK pricing, terms, and how to buy safely online in 2025
What does a fair price look like right now? For a private online order in the UK, a 28 0930 pack of montelukast 10 mg generally sits between £9 and £22 before delivery. Add £0 095 for postage, and sometimes a consultation/prescribing fee (£0 0925, often included). If you have an NHS prescription in England, you9ll pay the standard prescription charge per item (set at £9.90 in 2024; check the current figure). In Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland, NHS prescriptions are free at the point of use.
Here9s a quick comparison to anchor your budget.
| Route | What you pay | Typical 2025 price | Good for | Watch-outs |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| NHS prescription (England) | Fixed NHS charge per item | ~£9.90 | People with ongoing scripts | Check if a prepayment certificate saves you money |
| NHS prescription (Scotland/Wales/NI) | £0 at point of use | £0 | Anyone registered locally | Make sure your GP repeats are set up |
| Private online with your GP script | Medicine + postage | £9 0922 + £0 095 delivery | When you need it fast without GP appointment | Verify the site is UK-registered |
| Private online with online consultation | Medicine + included/extra prescriber fee + postage | £12 0930 + £0 0925 consult + £0 095 delivery | When you don9t have a paper script | Beware upsells; compare per-tablet prices |
Those ranges reflect common price bands across reputable UK online pharmacies as of 2025. Always compare per-tablet cost and shipping at the final checkout screen; small fees add up.
How to buy safely, step by step:
- Confirm prescription status. Montelukast is Rx-only in the UK. A legit site will either ask you to upload a valid prescription or offer a proper clinical questionnaire reviewed by a UK prescriber.
- Check the pharmacy is registered. Look for a General Pharmaceutical Council (GPhC) registration number and verify it on the GPhC public register by the pharmacy9s name. If they won9t share their registration details, walk away.
- Look for a real UK address and a working customer service channel. Test it: send a pre-sale question. Ghosting now means trouble later.
- Compare the total price. Note medicine price, consultation fee (if any), delivery speed and cost, and whether they split packs or substitute brands.
- Read the patient information and safety warnings on the product page. Make sure neuropsychiatric side effects are clearly mentioned. If a site hides or downplays these, that9s a red flag.
- Pay securely. Use a card with buyer protections. Be wary of bank transfers or crypto.
- When it arrives, check the pack: UK-licensed product, batch number, expiry date, leaflet in English, manufacturer name, and the strength your prescriber intended.
Quick checklist before you hit 22Buy 22:
- GPhC registration verified by name/number
- Asks for a prescription or offers a proper online consultation
- Transparent total cost (medicine + any consult fee + postage)
- Clear returns/refund policy (note: medicines are usually non-returnable)
- Realistic delivery times (1 093 working days domestic; next day often extra)
- Side effects and warnings visible on the page
Ways to pay less without cutting corners:
- In England, check if an NHS Prescription Prepayment Certificate (PPC) would save you money if you get 3+ items a month.
- Ask your GP for repeats if montelukast is long-term. In Scotland, Wales, NI, that9s your £0 route.
- Compare per-tablet price across 2 093 reputable sites a0 a0don9t forget to include delivery.
- Bundle orders to spread one delivery fee across several items you actually need.
- Be flexible on manufacturer. Generic is generic; switching from one MHRA-licensed brand to another is usually fine unless you9ve had issues.
Terms that often surprise people:
- Returns: pharmacies rarely accept returns for medicines, even unopened. Order sensibly.
- ID checks: if your details don9t match, expect extra verification. It9s for safety and legal compliance.
- Supply hiccups: if a specific brand is out of stock, the pharmacist may offer an alternative generic equivalent. If you prefer a specific manufacturer, state it upfront.
Risks, side effects, and alternatives a0 9 make a smart, safe choice
Montelukast has an important safety flag. In 2020, the US FDA added a boxed warning about serious neuropsychiatric reactions (including agitation, sleep disturbance, depression, and suicidal thoughts). The UK9s MHRA issued similar safety updates and asks clinicians to discuss these risks and advise patients to stop and seek help if they notice mood or behavior changes. This warning applies to adults and children.
What that means for you: if you or your child develop new or worsening mood changes, night terrors, vivid dreams, irritability, hallucinations, or suicidal thinking after starting montelukast, stop the medicine and contact a healthcare professional urgently. Keep your household looped in so someone else can spot changes you might miss.
Common side effects include headache, abdominal pain, thirst, and upper respiratory symptoms. Less common but reported: liver enzyme changes (rare), allergic reactions including eosinophilic conditions. Report side effects via the UK Yellow Card scheme if you experience anything concerning.
Interactions and cautions, stripped of jargon:
- Some medicines can lower montelukast levels (for example, rifampicin and certain anti-epileptics like phenytoin or phenobarbital), which can make it less effective.
- Others may raise levels (for example, gemfibrozil). Always list your meds during an online consultation.
- Pregnancy/breastfeeding: not a hard no, but this needs a conversation with your clinician about benefits vs risks.
- Asthma plan: montelukast is not a reliever. Always keep your reliever inhaler. If you9re using your reliever more than two days a week, your control isn9t ideal a0 9 get a review.
When montelukast makes particular sense:
- Exercise-induced bronchoconstriction where pre-exercise inhalers or plans aren9t enough.
- Aspirin-exacerbated respiratory disease (AERD), where leukotriene pathways play a bigger role.
- Allergic rhinitis that9s persistent despite trying a steroid nasal spray and a non-drowsy antihistamine.
When a different option might beat it on results and price:
- For day-to-day asthma control: inhaled corticosteroids (ICS) are the backbone. Many adults do well on low-dose ICS or as-needed ICS-formoterol, as per GINA 2024.
- For hay fever: a once-daily steroid nasal spray (fluticasone, mometasone, beclometasone) plus a non-drowsy antihistamine (cetirizine, loratadine, fexofenadine) is often cheaper and more effective for nose and eye symptoms.
- For occasional symptoms: targeted use (e.g., before a specific trigger) may be smarter than daily tablets.
Simple decision guide you can run through in a minute:
- If you have asthma and aren9t on a preventer inhaler yet: speak to your GP/asthma nurse first. Montelukast usually isn9t the first step.
- If your asthma control is still patchy on a preventer: montelukast could be an add-on. Check your inhaler technique and adherence before adding tablets.
- If you mainly have hay fever: try a steroid nasal spray and a non-drowsy antihistamine for two weeks. If you still struggle, montelukast may help.
- If you9ve had anxiety, depression, nightmares, or sleep issues: weigh the risks carefully with a clinician and make a plan for monitoring.
Credible sources behind this advice: FDA boxed warning (2020) on montelukast, MHRA Drug Safety Updates reminding prescribers to discuss neuropsychiatric risks, GINA 2024 global asthma strategy, and NICE guidance on chronic asthma management and allergic rhinitis. You don9t need to memorise the documents a0 9 the take-home is that montelukast is useful for specific cases, not a cure-all.
What to do next, depending on your situation:
- I already have an NHS prescription: in England, check if your NHS charge or a PPC makes sense; in Scotland/Wales/NI, use your £0 route. If you want it delivered, ask your local pharmacy about home delivery before you go private online.
- I don9t have a prescription but I9ve used montelukast before: use a UK-registered online pharmacy that offers a proper consultation. Be ready to answer questions about your asthma/allergy history and mental health.
- I need it tonight: call your local pharmacy to check stock for a same-day collection with an NHS script. Private online won9t beat the clock.
- I9m buying for my child: paediatric doses differ (4 mg/5 mg). Get a clinician to confirm the dose and monitor for behavior or sleep changes.
- I9ve had mood changes on montelukast before: don9t restart without medical advice. Discuss alternatives.
Ethical, safe call to action: use a UK-registered online pharmacy, verify its GPhC registration, and either upload your GP prescription or complete their clinical consultation honestly. Compare the total price across two or three reputable sites, factor in delivery, and only proceed if you9re comfortable with the side-effect profile and the plan your clinician has set. If you have access to NHS prescriptions (free in Scotland like I do in Glasgow), check that route first a0 9 it9s often the simplest and cheapest path.
Medications
Molly Britt
September 12, 2025 AT 14:07Why are people still buying this online? The NHS gives it free in Scotland, and even in England it's under £10. This whole post feels like a sponsored ad for shady pharmacies.
Jamie Gassman
September 13, 2025 AT 05:23Let me guess - the FDA warning was buried because Big Pharma doesn't want you to know montelukast turns kids into screaming zombies and adults into depressed husks. They've been covering this up since 2008. The NHS? A government puppet. Online pharmacies? The only real option left for free minds. I've seen three people lose their jobs after starting this. No one talks about it because they're too busy being lobotomized by the system.
Julisa Theodore
September 13, 2025 AT 06:45So we're now treating asthma like it's a Netflix subscription? Buy it, swipe right, hope it doesn't make you cry into your pillow at 3am. I get it - convenience. But we're not buying socks here. We're handing our brains to a website that doesn't even know our name. I'm not against generics. I'm against turning mental health into a footnote in a shipping confirmation email.
Lenard Trevino
September 13, 2025 AT 12:51I used to take this for years - not because I wanted to, but because my GP kept saying, 'Try it first.' I didn't realize until I stopped that I'd been having nightmares so vivid I'd wake up screaming, convinced my cat was plotting to eat me. I thought it was stress. Turns out, it was montelukast. The worst part? The pharmacy didn't even mention the mental health risks on their site. They just had a tiny link under 'Side Effects' that said 'may include mood changes.' That's not a warning - that's a dare. I've been off it for 18 months. My dreams are back to normal. My cat is safe. And I'm not spending a penny online ever again.
Paul Maxben
September 14, 2025 AT 13:24if u r buyin this online u r a dumbass. the nhs is free in scotland and u still wanna risk your brain for 5 quid off? i had a cousin who started this and he started yelling at his dog like it was a secret agent. then he tried to sell his car on ebay for 50p because 'the government is listening'. he never came back. just sayin.
Nick Cd
September 16, 2025 AT 12:46they're watching you through your pills now i swear to god they put tracking chips in the coating and when you take it they get your location and your mood data and then they sell it to insurance companies who raise your rates if you had a bad dream last night i saw a documentary about this and the guy who made it disappeared after posting it
Patricia Roberts
September 18, 2025 AT 11:39Oh, so the NHS is free in Scotland? How quaint. I guess you just walk into a castle, whisper 'I need asthma help,' and a knight in a lab coat hands you a box of pills with a side of haggis? I'll stick with my shady online pharmacy - at least they don't make me wait three weeks for a GP who says 'try yoga' before prescribing anything.
Adrian Clark
September 20, 2025 AT 04:39Let me get this straight - you're proud of how cheap this is? You're proud you saved £10 while risking your child's sanity? You're not saving money, you're outsourcing your moral responsibility to a website that doesn't even have a phone number. This isn't a deal. It's a surrender. And you're celebrating it like it's Black Friday.
Barnabas Lautenschlage
September 22, 2025 AT 04:38I appreciate the thorough breakdown of pricing, safety, and alternatives. It’s rare to see this level of detail on something as mundane as a prescription. I’ve been on montelukast for five years - no issues, but I’ve always had my GP review it annually. The key takeaway for me: compare options, don’t skip the mental health check-in, and if you’re on the NHS in Scotland, just use it. No need to overcomplicate. Also, GPhC registration is non-negotiable - I once got a package from a site that didn’t list it. The pills were fine, but the lack of transparency made me return them. Better safe than sorry.
Ryan Argante
September 23, 2025 AT 05:16Let’s be clear: this isn’t about price. It’s about accountability. If you’re going to self-manage a medication with documented neuropsychiatric risks, you owe it to yourself - and your loved ones - to do it with full transparency. That means verifying the pharmacy, reading the leaflet, and having one honest conversation with a clinician. The NHS route isn’t just cheaper - it’s safer because someone is checking in. Don’t mistake convenience for care.
Jeanette Case
September 24, 2025 AT 14:13Y'all are acting like montelukast is a magic potion. I'm a nurse. I've seen kids on it. I've seen parents panic because their kid started sleepwalking and talking in Spanish (true story). I've also seen people with terrible asthma finally breathe because of it. It's not evil. It's not a miracle. It's a tool. Use it with eyes open, not panic. And if you're in the UK - yeah, just use the NHS. No drama. No risk. Just medicine.
Leonard Buttons
September 24, 2025 AT 17:16got my montelukast from a legit uk site last month. paid £14 for 30 tabs with free shipping. uploaded my script. got a call back from the pharmacist to confirm my asthma history. they even emailed me a pdf of the patient leaflet. no weird upsells. no crypto. no ghosting. just good service. i'm not a fan of online but this was fine. nhs is still easier if you can.
Alice Minium
September 25, 2025 AT 16:45so i bought it online last year cause my gp was on vacation and i was having asthma attacks every night and the website said 'no prescription needed' and i was like cool and now i think i might be depressed and i keep dreaming about flying squirrels and i dont know if its the pills or my life but i think its the pills and now i dont know how to stop taking them without a doctor and i hate myself for being so dumb
Stephen Maweu
September 27, 2025 AT 02:09if you're in the uk and you're thinking about buying this online - just call your local pharmacy. most of them will give you your nhs script delivered for free. no waiting. no risk. no weird side effects from sketchy websites. i did this last winter when i was snowed in. they dropped it off at my door. no one asked for my soul. just a smile and a bag of pills. sometimes the simplest thing is the best thing.
anil kharat
September 28, 2025 AT 18:20in india we pay $2 for a month's supply. why are you paying £25? this is colonial capitalism. you're being robbed by western pharma. the same pill made in india is sold in uk for 1000% markup. you think you're saving? you're being exploited. go to a trusted indian pharmacy - they ship to uk. i've done it for 5 years. no mental side effects. just cheap, clean medicine. the system wants you scared. don't be. be smart.
Daniel Taibleson
September 30, 2025 AT 17:19Thank you for the clear, well-referenced breakdown - especially the GINA and NICE guidelines. I’ve been a long-term user of montelukast and appreciate the emphasis on not using it as a first-line treatment. Many patients don’t realize that a simple steroid nasal spray can be more effective for allergic rhinitis. Also, the point about checking inhaler technique before adding another medication is critical. Too often, the problem isn’t the drug - it’s the delivery. I’ve seen patients on five medications who just needed a spacer.
Adrian Clark
October 2, 2025 AT 09:19You say "just use the NHS" like it's a moral victory. What if you’re a gig worker with no GP? What if your doctor won’t refill your script for 6 weeks? What if you’re 22, living in a flat, and your asthma flares when your landlord turns the heat off? The NHS is a luxury for people with stability. For the rest of us? Online pharmacies aren’t a choice - they’re survival. And if you’re going to judge, at least acknowledge that.