The same medication costs half the price online versus offline—what pricing logic is hidden behind it?

21st Century Business Herald Reporter Zhu Yiyi

“Same batch, same production date and expiration date, the price of Oseltamivir Phosphate from Meituan Waimai and offline pharmacies is half.” On social media, a Zhejiang netizen recently shared their experience purchasing the same medication from an offline pharmacy and an online platform, with the same drug costing 88 yuan and 41 yuan respectively, a huge price difference.

Many have complained about encountering “price gouging” at pharmacies. A Chongqing netizen said, “I bought a box of ibuprofen at a pharmacy for 45 yuan, but online delivery only costs 25 yuan for a box.”

The phenomenon of “one store, two prices” for the same medication hits many consumers’ pain points.

Recently, a reporter from 21st Century Business Herald visited several pharmacies in Hangzhou and found that prices for common cold medicines, gastrointestinal drugs, and medications for chronic disease patients—such as antihypertensives and hypoglycemics—more or less vary between online and offline channels.

For example, at a well-known chain pharmacy, a hyaluronic acid eye drop included in the medical insurance reimbursement list costs 45.70 yuan through insurance, but the same product on a certain delivery platform costs only 29.79 yuan.

At another designated medical insurance pharmacy, a commonly used gastrointestinal medicine covered by insurance has an insurance payment price of 43.60 yuan, but on that pharmacy’s online platform, after discounts, it sells for 36.1 yuan.

Why is there such a large price gap between online and offline for the same medication? What pricing logic underlies this “one store, two prices”?

To explore this, the reporter visited multiple pharmacies to investigate the online-offline price differences.

At a well-known chain pharmacy, the reporter saw that a hyaluronic acid eye drop covered by insurance costs 45.70 yuan through insurance, but the same product on an online platform costs only 29.79 yuan, nearly half the price.

“You can also buy it on the delivery platform, whichever is cheaper,” a staff member at the chain pharmacy told the reporter.

Additionally, the reporter inquired at another designated insurance pharmacy about a gastrointestinal medicine covered by insurance, which has an insurance payment price of 43.60 yuan, but on an online platform, after discounts, it’s priced at 36.1 yuan.

“The platform offers subsidies, but the medicines are the same,” the staff emphasized. “You can choose freely.”

The reporter found that the prices of the same medicines sold offline are generally higher than those on the pharmacy’s online platform, covering a range from common cold medicines and gastrointestinal drugs to chronic disease medications like antihypertensives and hypoglycemics, with some price differences reaching two or three times.

For example, the ibuprofen sustained-release capsules “Fenbid” are sold at 38.1 yuan in a physical pharmacy, but on an online platform, they are priced between 18.8 and 19.3 yuan.

Similarly, another product, Manli Shunqing Fufang Qinggan Olives Throat Lozenge, costs 47.68 yuan for two boxes after discount offline, but only 20 yuan for two boxes on an e-commerce platform.

“Online drug prices are usually set by the pharmacy itself, but many platforms offer subsidies. Many low-priced medicines are often used to attract traffic to the store,” said an industry insider.

Of course, there are exceptions.

The reporter visited a small pharmacy and found that the prices of several common cold and gastrointestinal medicines sold offline matched those on the pharmacy’s online delivery platform.

The staff explained, “We previously rectified ‘yin-yang’ pricing, so at least our store’s prices are generally consistent online and offline.”

The “one store, two prices” phenomenon reflects multiple challenges, including lack of transparency in drug pricing information across channels and an incomplete pricing system.

During this process, some elderly and emergency patients often end up paying higher prices.

For elderly patients unfamiliar with smartphones, they lack systematic knowledge of drug prices, often do not compare prices online, and may not even know that the same medication could be cheaper elsewhere. They usually buy nearby at offline pharmacies. Emergency patients with sudden discomfort also lack the time and energy to compare prices and tend to buy locally.

During a visit to a designated insurance pharmacy, a woman patient hurriedly asked if they had a certain painkiller, without inquiring about the price.

The cost difference between online and offline channels is undoubtedly a key factor behind the price gap.

From the offline pharmacy perspective, fixed costs such as rent, labor, utilities, and water account for a large portion of overall expenses in large chain pharmacies. To cover these costs and achieve profit goals, offline pharmacies must raise drug prices.

According to a media report from October 2025, a franchisee of a chain pharmacy in Hunan revealed that a 100-square-meter community pharmacy pays about 8,000 yuan in monthly rent, employs three staff earning around 15,000 yuan, and faces additional costs from drug loss and equipment maintenance, totaling fixed costs exceeding 25,000 yuan.

Meanwhile, with online platforms like Meituan, Taobao Flash Sale, and JD.com expanding their “instant retail” services—delivering medicines within about 30 minutes—these are seen as key traffic channels.

In this context, some pharmacies not only use online platform subsidies to lower certain drug prices but also adopt promotional strategies to boost online activity and capture more market share.

However, drug prices are vital to people’s livelihoods, and pricing is not without boundaries.

Currently, governance over drug price disparities is entering deeper waters.

In late January this year, the Jilin Provincial Public Resources Trading Center issued a notice on conducting inspections of “price differences for high-volume retail drugs in pharmacies and other retail channels.”

It specifies that for the top-selling drugs in retail sales in the first three quarters of 2025, if the online listed price on provincial procurement platforms exceeds the retail “most common price” by 1.3 times, a price review will be initiated for 48 drug products.

Earlier, in February 2025, Zhejiang Province published a public notice on the “public listing procurement of products with significant price advantages,” noting that a certain product was disqualified from provincial listing because its price was 1.3 times higher than the online instant delivery platform.

Although current online drug prices serve as a reference point with some flexibility, it is foreseeable that in the future, prices across provincial procurement platforms, designated retail pharmacies, and online e-commerce platforms will tend to converge—a likely major trend.