How much ADHD medication costs privately depends on the pharmacy’s price for the medicine and your clinic’s prescription fees. At NHS reference prices a 30-day supply ranges from about £6 (atomoxetine) to £89 (lisdexamfetamine), and pharmacies usually charge private patients more. Under NHS shared care in England you pay £9.90 per item; in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, nothing.

ADHD medication prices are the cost most people underestimate. The assessment fee is paid once. Medication is a monthly cost that runs for as long as you take it, and for many adults that means years. If you are still comparing assessment fees, we cover the full cost of a private ADHD assessment and first year separately.

This guide covers what happens after diagnosis. It gives the official NHS reference price for each ADHD medicine and strength, explains how a private prescription bill is built, and works through what a year costs on private prescriptions compared with NHS shared care. If you have not yet been diagnosed, start with a private ADHD assessment, which is where any decision about medication begins.

What this page does not do is recommend a medicine. Which medicine you take, and at what dose, is a clinical decision you make with your prescriber, guided by NICE guideline NG87. Price is shown here so you can budget, not so you can choose.

How much does private ADHD medication cost per month in the UK? The three parts of the bill

A private monthly bill for ADHD medication has three parts. Two are charged by the pharmacy and one by the clinic.

Cost part	Who charges it
Medicine price	The pharmacy
Dispensing and controlled-drug handling	The pharmacy (varies, and is often bundled into the price)
Prescribing, review and repeat-prescription fees	The clinic

The point that surprises people most is that private clinics issue prescriptions, not medicines. The terms on the pricing page of Harley Street Mental Health (HSMH) say so directly: “We only provide prescriptions and not medicines. You will be liable for the cost of medication.” You take the prescription to a pharmacy, and the pharmacy charges you for what it dispenses. Most private ADHD services in the UK work this way.

So the monthly formula looks like this:

Monthly private cost = the pharmacy’s private price for the medicine + any pharmacy dispensing or handling charge + the clinic’s prescribing and review fees.

During titration, the first few weeks or months when your dose is being adjusted, there is a fourth cost: appointment fees. At HSMH a medication titration appointment is £150 virtual or £250 in person for 15 minutes (see our current fees), and the medicine price can change as the dose changes. Titration is a phase in its own right, and we explain how ADHD titration works in a separate guide.

ADHD medication prices per month, by medicine (NHS reference prices, October 2026)

The most reliable public benchmark for ADHD medication prices is the NHS Drug Tariff, Part VIIIA. It sets the basic price the NHS pays a community pharmacy in England for each medicine. It is published monthly by the NHS Business Services Authority and is the closest thing the UK has to an official price list.

It is not what a private pharmacy will charge you. When you hand in a private prescription, the pharmacy sets its own price, which is commonly higher than the Tariff figure. Treat the table below as a floor: the reference price the pharmacy itself works from, before any margin or fees.

Table 1. ADHD medication cost UK: NHS reference prices per 30 days, October 2026

Medicine (generic)	Form and pack	Strengths in Tariff	Pack price (Tariff)	Approx. 30-day cost at NHS price	Controlled drug?
Lisdexamfetamine	Capsules, 28	20 / 30 / 40 / 50 / 60 / 70 mg	£54.62 / £58.24 / £62.82 / £68.60 / £75.18 / £83.16	£58.52 to £89.10	Yes, Schedule 2
Methylphenidate, modified-release tablets	Tablets, 30	18 / 27 / 36 / 54 mg	£31.19 / £36.81 / £42.45 / £36.80	£31.19 to £42.45	Yes, Schedule 2
Methylphenidate, modified-release capsules	Capsules, 30	5 / 10 / 20 / 30 / 40 / 50 / 60 mg	£24.04 / £25.00 / £30.00 / £35.00 / £57.72 / £62.52 / £67.32	£24.04 to £67.32	Yes, Schedule 2
Methylphenidate, immediate-release tablets	Tablets, 30	5 / 10 / 20 mg	£2.91 / £2.80 / £5.56	about £3 to £17*	Yes, Schedule 2
Atomoxetine	Capsules, 28	10 / 18 / 25 / 40 / 60 / 80 / 100 mg	£11.73 / £8.81 / £10.94 / £5.73 / £10.29 / £11.82 / £6.68	£6.14 to £12.66	No
Guanfacine, modified-release	Tablets, 28	1 / 2 / 3 / 4 mg	£56.00 / £58.52 / £65.52 / £76.16	£60.00 to £81.60	No

Source: NHS Drug Tariff Part VIIIA, October 2026 (NHSBSA). 30-day cost = pack price ÷ pack size × 30. Prices exclude pharmacy dispensing fees and margin. The medicine and dose are decided by your prescriber.

*Immediate-release methylphenidate is usually taken more than once a day, so a 30-day supply can be 60 to 90 tablets. For example, three 10 mg tablets a day is 90 tablets, or three packs of 30 at £2.80, which is £8.40 at the Tariff price. Three 20 mg tablets a day would be £16.68.

Dexamfetamine tablets are also listed in the Tariff (5 mg × 28 = £19.85; 10 mg × 30 = £39.78; 20 mg × 30 = £79.56). NICE NG87 (recommendation 1.7.14) positions it for adults whose symptoms respond to lisdexamfetamine but who cannot tolerate its longer effect profile.

See all current fees: HSMH pricing

What the table shows

• Price does not rise in step with strength. The 54 mg modified-release methylphenidate tablet is listed at £36.80 for 30, lower than the 36 mg at £42.45. Atomoxetine 40 mg is the lowest-priced atomoxetine strength in the list.
• A dose made from two strengths means two pack prices. If your prescriber builds a dose from two capsules of different strengths, you pay for two packs privately, and under NHS charging in England that counts as two items.
• Atomoxetine, a non-stimulant, has the lowest NHS reference price in the table apart from immediate-release methylphenidate. NICE recommends it for adults in specific circumstances (recommendation 1.7.15), not as a cost choice.
• Guanfacine is included for completeness. For adults it is off-label, and NICE NG87 (recommendation 1.7.17) says it should not be offered without advice from a tertiary ADHD service. It is not an option to request on price.

Two clinical points sit behind these numbers. First, NICE NG87 recommends lisdexamfetamine or methylphenidate as first-line medicines for adults (recommendation 1.7.11), and notes that some uses, such as lisdexamfetamine or atomoxetine for adults whose symptoms did not start in childhood, are off-label. Second, modified-release methylphenidate products differ in how they release the medicine, so they are not all interchangeable. Your prescriber may specify a particular product, as the NHS Specialist Pharmacy Service advises, and the pharmacy should dispense exactly what is written.

Why a private pharmacy charges more than the NHS price

On an NHS prescription, the pharmacy is reimbursed by the NHS at the Drug Tariff price plus set NHS fees, and you pay the flat prescription charge (or nothing, if you are exempt or live outside England). The pharmacy’s costs are covered by that system.

A private prescription sits outside it. There is no NHS reimbursement, so the pharmacy sets a price that has to cover:

• the cost of buying the medicine from its wholesaler
• its margin
• the work involved in dispensing a controlled drug: entries in the controlled-drug register, secure storage in a locked cabinet, and identity checks when you collect

That is why two pharmacies on the same street can quote different prices for the same private prescription: each is pricing a service the NHS does not set for it.

No public list of private pharmacy prices exists, and most pharmacies do not publish their private charges. The practical step is to phone two or three pharmacies before you hand in the prescription. Give them three details:

1. the generic medicine name exactly as written on the prescription
2. the strength
3. the quantity (for example, 30 capsules)

Ask for the total price, including any dispensing fee, and whether they have that strength in stock. Stock varies between pharmacies and from month to month, and a stimulant prescription is only valid for 28 days (see below), so checking first saves a wasted trip.

We have not included sample retail prices here. Without a verified, dated set of quotes, any figure would be a guess, and a guess is not much use for a budget.

Controlled-drug rules that shape what you pay

Lisdexamfetamine, methylphenidate and dexamfetamine are Schedule 2 controlled drugs. That legal status affects cost as much as the price of the medicine does, because it controls how often you need a new prescription.

For private prescriptions dispensed in a community pharmacy in England, the rules work like this:

• The form. Private prescriptions for Schedule 2 and 3 controlled drugs must be written on a special private controlled-drug form, the FP10PCD, which carries the prescriber’s private prescriber identification number (NHSBSA controlled-drug prescribing guidance).
• The supply length. It is strongly recommended that a Schedule 2 prescription covers no more than 30 days’ supply (NHSBSA).
• The validity. The prescription is valid for 28 days from the date on it, so it must be dispensed within that window (PSNC guidance on controlled-drug prescription validity).

The cost consequence is simple. A stimulant patient needs about 12 to 13 prescriptions a year, whatever the dose. Each one is a separate pharmacy transaction, and any per-prescription fee charged by the clinic or the pharmacy applies every time. When you compare private costs, multiply any per-prescription charge, including any courier or postage charge for the paper prescription, by 12 or 13, not by four or six.

Atomoxetine and guanfacine are not controlled drugs, so the 30-day recommendation and the 28-day validity do not apply to them in the same way. How much is supplied on each prescription is a clinical decision for the prescriber, based on how stable your treatment is and how closely it needs to be monitored. This is a difference in paperwork, not a reason to prefer one medicine over another.

Private prescription vs NHS prescription charge: what changes under shared care

Most people who start ADHD treatment privately aim, once their dose is stable, to move their prescribing to their NHS GP under a shared care agreement. NICE NG87 (recommendation 1.7.29) says that after titration and dose stabilisation, prescribing and monitoring should be carried out under Shared Care Protocol arrangements with primary care. In practice, shared care means your GP issues NHS prescriptions while a specialist keeps oversight of your treatment.

GPs are not obliged to accept, and whether yours will is a separate question. We explain what happens if your GP refuses shared care in a dedicated guide. Here we look only at what shared care does to the monthly cost.

In England, an NHS prescription costs £9.90 per item. The charge is frozen at that level for 2026 to 2027 (gov.uk; Community Pharmacy England). A prescription prepayment certificate (PPC) covers all your NHS prescriptions for a fixed price: £32.05 for 3 months or £114.50 for 12 months.

In Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, NHS prescriptions are free. Scotland abolished charges in April 2011 (gov.scot), Wales in April 2007 for patients registered with a Welsh GP who collect from a pharmacy in Wales (gov.wales), and prescriptions dispensed in Northern Ireland are free for everyone (nidirect). Where you are registered and where you collect can matter if you live near a border, so check with your pharmacy.

Exemptions in England. You do not pay the £9.90 charge if, for example, you are under 16, aged 16 to 18 and in full-time education, or 60 or over. Some people on a low income are also exempt, including those receiving Universal Credit below an earnings limit, Pension Credit Guarantee Credit, or holding an HC2 certificate from the NHS Low Income Scheme. Pregnancy and the 12 months after birth are covered with a maternity exemption certificate. The full list is on the NHSBSA free prescriptions page. ADHD is not one of the conditions that qualifies for a medical exemption certificate.

If you have not been diagnosed yet and want an NHS-funded route, you may be able to request an NHS Right to Choose assessment in England.

Is a prepayment certificate worth it for ADHD medication?

It depends on how many items you collect a year. Using the 2026 to 2027 prices:

Your prescriptions	Pay per item	12-month PPC	Difference
1 item a month (12 a year)	£118.80	£114.50	PPC saves £4.30
1 item every 28 days (13 a year)	£128.70	£114.50	PPC saves £14.20
2 items a month (24 a year), e.g. a dose built from two strengths	£237.60	£114.50	PPC saves £123.10

With one ADHD item a month and nothing else, the saving is small. It grows quickly with a second item, and the PPC covers every NHS prescription you get, not only ADHD medication. The 12-month PPC can be paid in 10 monthly instalments by Direct Debit (NHSBSA), though not when bought at a pharmacy.

What a year of ADHD medication costs: three worked examples

The table below works through the same year after titration three ways: on private prescriptions, under shared care in England, and under shared care in Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland. The illustrative adult takes one medicine, one item a month, at one mid-range stimulant strength. We use lisdexamfetamine 30 mg only because its Tariff price (£58.24 for 28, or £62.40 per 30 days) sits in the middle of Table 1. It is an example for the arithmetic, not a suggestion.

Table 2. Illustrative 12-month cost, one patient on one monthly item

Line	Private prescriptions	Shared care, England	Shared care, Scotland / Wales / NI
Medicine (12 × 30 days)	The pharmacy’s private price × 12. NHS reference floor: £62.40 × 12 = £748.80. The private price is usually higher.	£9.90 × 12 = £118.80, or £114.50 with a 12-month PPC	£0
Clinic prescription fees	12 × the clinic’s repeat-prescription fee	Usually none for a GP prescription	Usually none
Annual specialist review (NICE NG87 1.10.1: at least once a year)	The clinic’s review fee	Depends on the local shared care protocol	Depends on the local shared care protocol

At the reference floor alone, the medicine costs at least £748.80 a year on private prescriptions, against £114.50 to £118.80 under shared care in England and nothing in the devolved nations. The private column then adds the pharmacy’s margin, 12 clinic prescription fees and a review fee. NICE NG87 (recommendation 1.10.1) says ADHD medication should be reviewed at least once a year by a healthcare professional with training and expertise in ADHD, so a review cost belongs in every budget.

These are illustrations, not quotes. Your own figures depend on the medicine and dose your prescriber chooses, the pharmacy you use, and your clinic’s fees.

The gap between the columns is why most people aim for shared care once their dose is stable. If a GP declines, the cost stays in the private column, and we explain what happens if your GP refuses shared care and the options from there.

Questions to ask before you set a monthly budget

A realistic budget needs a few numbers that only your clinic and pharmacy can give you. Before you commit to private prescribing, ask:

• Your clinic: what is the fee for each repeat prescription, and is it charged per prescription or per month? Is there a separate fee for the annual review, and for a shared care letter to your GP? How is the paper prescription sent to the pharmacy, and is there a charge for that?
• Your pharmacy: what is the total private price for this medicine, strength and quantity, including any dispensing fee? Is it usually in stock? Will the price change if the wholesaler’s price changes?
• Yourself: how long are you likely to stay on private prescriptions before shared care is in place, and what would the cost be if it took longer than you expect?

Multiply the monthly figure by 12 or 13, add the annual review, and you have a working annual cost. Revisit it once your dose has been stable for a few months, because that is when the shared care conversation usually begins.

If you are still at the start and want a specialist diagnosis, you can book a private ADHD assessment with HSMH.

Transferring an existing private prescription to HSMH

If you are already taking ADHD medication through another private provider, you can transfer your care rather than start again. People do this for many reasons, from continuity with one clinician to wanting in-person appointments.

HSMH lists a transfer-of-care appointment at £350 virtual or £450 in person for 30 minutes (our current fees). It includes a review of your previous diagnosis and medical records, a consultation with one of our specialist ADHD doctors, and a private prescription if one is clinically appropriate. Your medicine is still paid for at the pharmacy, so the cost formula above applies after the transfer.

It helps to have your diagnostic report, a summary from your current prescriber, and details of your current medicine and dose to hand. That lets the appointment focus on your care rather than on gathering records.

Transfer your ADHD care to HSMH

How HSMH prices ADHD treatment

We publish our fees on our pricing page, so you can budget before you book. The rows that matter for adult ADHD are below.

Service	Virtual	In person	What is included
Adult ADHD assessment (up to 90 minutes)	£715	£1,200	NICE-compliant assessment, ADHD report and personalised treatment plan, issuing of first prescription (medication costs not included)
Medication titration assessment (15 minutes)	£150	£250	Review of medication and side effects, issuing of a new prescription to a pharmacy of your choice
Transfer of care (30 minutes)	£350	£450	Review of previous diagnosis and records, consultation with a specialist ADHD doctor, private prescription if needed

Prices checked 6 October 2026 against https://hsmh.co.uk/our-pricing/.

[CONFIRM: HSMH repeat-prescription, shared-care letter and annual-review fees, once published on /our-pricing/]

A few points from our terms are worth knowing before you book. We issue prescriptions only, and the medication is paid for at the pharmacy. Prescriptions are valid at legal UK pharmacies only. Once you are stable on treatment, repeat prescriptions are authorised by your clinician after a short questionnaire and posted to your nominated pharmacy within 72 hours of authorisation.

Appointments can be held by video or in person at our clinic at 10 Harley Street, London.

Frequently asked questions

How much is ADHD medication per month privately in the UK?

At NHS reference prices, a 30-day supply runs from about £6 to £89 depending on the medicine and strength. Private pharmacies set their own price, which is usually higher. The clinic’s prescription and review fees come on top of the medicine cost.

Is ADHD medication free on the NHS?

NHS prescriptions are free in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. In England, each item costs £9.90 unless you are exempt, for example by age or on a low income. A 12-month prescription prepayment certificate caps the cost at £114.50 a year.

Why is my private prescription more expensive than the NHS price?

Pharmacies are only reimbursed at the Drug Tariff price for NHS prescriptions. For a private prescription they set their own price, which covers the medicine, their margin and the extra work of handling a controlled drug. That is why prices vary between pharmacies.

Can I take a private ADHD prescription to any pharmacy?

Any registered UK pharmacy that stocks the medicine can dispense a valid private prescription, although a pharmacist can decline to dispense. Stimulant prescriptions are valid for 28 days, so phone ahead to check the pharmacy has your strength in stock and to ask the price.

Does private health insurance pay for ADHD medication?

It depends on your policy. Insurers often treat outpatient medicines and long-term conditions differently from assessments, so cover varies widely. Check the policy wording with your insurer before you rely on it.

How often will I pay for a stimulant prescription?

Usually every month. Good practice limits controlled-drug prescriptions to 30 days’ supply, which means 12 to 13 prescriptions a year, and any per-prescription fee applies each time.

Does HSMH sell ADHD medication?

No. HSMH issues prescriptions only, and the medication is paid for at the pharmacy you choose. This is set out in the terms on our pricing page.

Book a private ADHD assessment at Harley Street Mental Health

If you are budgeting for ADHD treatment, the clearest place to start is a diagnosis you can trust and a clinic that publishes its fees. Our adult ADHD assessment is a full NICE-compliant assessment and includes your report, treatment plan and first prescription if medication is appropriate. You can be seen by video or in person on Harley Street.