Comparing Aleve vs Excedrin

View side-by-side comparisons of medication uses, ratings, cost, side effects and interactions.
Aleve (naproxen)	Excedrin (acetaminophen / aspirin / caffeine)	Enter another drug to compare

View side-by-side comparisons of medication uses, ratings, cost, side effects and interactions.
Aleve (naproxen)	Excedrin (acetaminophen / aspirin / caffeine)	Enter another drug to compare
Prescription and OTC Prescribed for Back Pain, Ankylosing Spondylitis, Bursitis, Aseptic Necrosis, Muscle Pain, Chronic Myofascial Pain, Costochondritis, Diffuse Idiopathic Skeletal Hyperostosis, Dysautonomia, Fever... View more	Over-the-counter Prescribed for Migraine, Osteoarthritis, Pain/Fever. Excedrin may also be used for purposes not listed in this medication guide.	Related suggestions Osteoarthritis Meloxicam Celebrex Diclofenac Mobic Celecoxib Hyaluronan Popular comparisons Aleve vs ibuprofen Aleve vs naproxen Aleve vs Tylenol Aleve vs Advil
More about Aleve (naproxen)	More about Excedrin (acetaminophen / aspirin / caffeine)
Ratings & Reviews
Aleve has an average rating of 7.0 out of 10 from a total of 154 ratings on Drugs.com. 62% of reviewers reported a positive effect, while 24% reported a negative effect.	Excedrin has an average rating of 6.8 out of 10 from a total of 39 ratings on Drugs.com. 62% of reviewers reported a positive effect, while 33% reported a negative effect.
View all 154 reviews	View all 39 reviews
Side Effects Experienced by Users Side effects are reported in Drugs.com user reviews and not clinically verified.
Pain (4.5%) Upset stomach (4.5%) Headaches (2.6%) Swelling (2.6%) Itching (1.9%) Nausea (1.9%) Stomach pain (1.9%) View all Aleve side effects	View all Excedrin side effects
Drug Class
Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs	Analgesic combinations
Generic Availability
Lower cost generic approved	N/A
Pricing and Coupons * Prices are without insurance
We could not find an exact match for this medicine. Try searching the Price Guide directly.	We could not find an exact match for this medicine. Try searching the Price Guide directly.
Get free Discount Card	Get free Discount Card

Dosage Forms
Oral capsule Oral tablet	Oral tablet
Brand Names
Other naproxen brands include: Aflaxen, Aleve Back and Muscle Pain, All Day Pain Relief, All Day Relief, Anaprox-DS, Comfort Pac with Naproxen, EC-Naprosyn, Flanax Pain Reliever, Midol Extended Relief, Naprelan, Naprosyn, Naproxen Sodium DS, Pamprin All Day Relief View more	Other acetaminophen / aspirin / caffeine brands include: Anacin Advanced Headache Formula, Arthriten, Arthriten Inflammatory Pain Formula, Backaid Inflammatory Pain Formula, Bayer Migraine Formula, ConRx Pain Reliever, CVS Extra Strength Headache Relief, Excedrin Extra Strength, Excedrin Migraine, Extra Pain Relief, Genace, Goody's Extra Strength, Goody's Extra-Strength Headache Powders, Goody's Headache Powders, Medique Pain-Off, Migraine Formula, Migraine Relief, PainAid Extra-Strength Formula, Pamprin Max Menstrual Pain Relief, Vanquish View more
Half Life Drug half-life is the time required for plasma concentration to reduce to half its original value.
18 hours	10 hours
CSA Schedule ¹ View glossary of CSA terms
N Not a controlled drug Is not subject to the Controlled Substances Act.	N Not a controlled drug Is not subject to the Controlled Substances Act.
Pregnancy Category
C Category C Risk cannot be ruled out See the full pregnancy warnings document.	N Category N Not classified See the full pregnancy warnings document.
Drug Interactions
A total of 451 drugs are known to interact with Aleve: 99 major drug interactions (434 brand and generic names) 335 moderate drug interactions (1334 brand and generic names) 17 minor drug interactions (126 brand and generic names)	A total of 576 drugs are known to interact with Excedrin: 72 major drug interactions (231 brand and generic names) 428 moderate drug interactions (2018 brand and generic names) 76 minor drug interactions (353 brand and generic names)
Alcohol/Food/Lifestyle Interactions
Ask your doctor before using naproxen together with alcohol. Do not drink alcohol while taking... View more	Ask your doctor before using acetaminophen together with alcohol. This can cause serious side... View more
Disease Interactions
Asthma Fluid retention GI toxicity Rash Renal toxicities Thrombosis Sodium Anemia Hepatotoxicity Hyperkalemia Platelet aggregation inhibition	Alcoholism Liver disease Coagulation Cardiac disease Hypertension Psychiatric disorders PUD Asthma GI toxicity Renal dysfunction Reye's syndrome PKU Cardiotoxicity Liver disease Renal dysfunction Seizure disorders GERD Anemia Dialysis G-6-PD deficiency Hepatotoxicity
First Approval Date
January 11, 1994	N/A
WADA Class View classifications
N/A	N/A
More Information
Side effects Drug interactions Dosage Pregnancy warnings Breastfeeding warnings Drug images Support group	Side effects Drug interactions Dosage Pregnancy warnings Support group
Patient Resources
Aleve uses Advanced reading	Excedrin uses
Professional Resources
Prescribing information	N/A
Related Treatment Guide
Back Pain Ankylosing Spondylitis Bursitis Aseptic Necrosis Muscle Pain Chronic Myofascial Pain Costochondritis Diffuse Idiopathic Skeletal Hyperostosis Dysautonomia Fever Frozen Shoulder Gout - Acute Headache Neck Pain Osteoarthritis Pain Period Pain Rheumatoid Arthritis Sciatica Spondylolisthesis Tendonitis show all	Migraine Osteoarthritis Pain/Fever

¹ The Controlled Substances Act (CSA) schedule information displayed applies to substances regulated under federal law. There may be variations in CSA schedules between individual states.

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Comparing Aleve vs Excedrin

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