Everyone seems to have heard of GoodRx these days due to their successful marketing campaign but have you ever heard of SingleCare? Maybe you have recently seen the commercial with Martin and Charlie Sheen and were curious. I’ve already written a review of GoodRx and one for SingleCare as well, but how do the prescription discount cards compare to each other?
This post will be a head-to-head comparison of the two pharmacy savings cards to help you determine which one will help you keep more of your hard earned money in your pocket.
Aren’t all prescription discount cards the same?
That’s the question I get asked alot and the answer is an emphatic NO! Pharmacy savings cards can vary from completely fraudulent, misleading rip-offs to bona fide money saving gems. There are some that are so scammy that you may actually be charged more than the pharmacy’s cash price!
Sadly, your insurance probably does this too, in addition to even worse practices beyond the scope of this article. This practice is called a claw-back in the world of pharmacy and it’s absolutely appalling that it’s not illegal. You can learn more about how widespread this appalling practice is by reading this study by researchers at USC.
How can prescription discount cards differ?
- Pricing model
- Network size
- Physical card vs website vs mobile app
- Special offers
- Amount of savings
- Formulary
- Additional services
- Customer service
I’ll break down in detail how GoodRx and SingleCare compare in each of these aspects below but here is a quick summary.
Pricing model
As I described above some prescription discount cards can rip you off and charge a higher price than the pharmacy would charge without using a savings card.
How does this happen? If you are looking for details on how prescription discount cards work check out the post I wrote full of the details and insider knowledge.
To put it simply, they negotiate a reduced price with the pharmacy then tack on a fee that the pharmacy then collects and sends to the discount card company. Sometimes that fee plus the discounted price amounts to more than what the pharmacy would charge you without the discount card. Atrocious, right?!
Legitimate prescription discount card companies use a protective pricing method called “lower-of” pricing. This method compares the pharmacy’s cash price with the total discount card price and charges the lower of the two, always guaranteeing you the lowest price possible. This is one of the fundamental factors to look for when choosing the best prescription discount card.
How do GoodRx and SingleCare compare in pricing model?
GoodRx doesn’t negotiate their own prices, It relies on its partner PBMs to do the dirty work and resultantly, it has varying pricing models. Some of the partner PBMs use “lower-of” pricing and others don’t, so there is a chance you could be getting ripped off using GoodRx. I haven’t seen this happen frequently but I have seen it happen.
SingleCare on the other hand, DOES negotiate and contract directly with pharmacies so they DO control the pricing and DO use the “lower-of” pricing model so you are guaranteed the lowest price every time.
Winner: SingleCare- Guaranteed to NEVER get ripped off
Pharmacy Network Size
The number of pharmacies that accept the prescription discount card and offer the discounted prices is called the pharmacy network. These pharmacies can include the major chains, grocery store pharmacies, and independents or any combination of the above. Many pharmacies are FORCED into accepting prescription discount cards from GoodRx whereas they CHOOSE to accept SingleCare cards.
The PBM game again…
How are pharmacies forced to accept discount cards? Essentially, the PBMs hold so much power that their contracts with pharmacies are basically take-it-or-leave-it and have clauses that require pharmacies to accept the discount programs in addition to the typical insurance plans.
In order for a pharmacy to accept the insurance that most of its population have they are contractually obligated to accept the discount card programs whether they like it or not. That’s why many independent pharmacies just flat out refuse to take them.
How do SingleCare and GoodRx compare?
GoodRx reports that it is accepted at over 70,000 pharmacies across the country. That figure can be very misleading since they partner with so many different PBMs it only takes 1 to be contracted with a pharmacy to make this claim. In addition, this number includes mail order pharmacies and independents that won’t actually accept GoodRx coupons so it’s an entirely irrelevant marketing number.
The SingleCare pharmacy card is accepted at 35,000 partner pharmacies nationwide, including CVS, Walmart, Walgreens, Albertsons, and Kroger. SingleCare though having the smaller network by number still services the largest majority of population.
CVS, Walgreens, and Walmart fill over 80% of all prescriptions in a given year. Independents don’t honor discount cards typically and generally have more realistic cash prices or their own discount programs anyway.
Winner: Tie-the numbers don’t tell the whole story and both cards are accepted at every major pharmacy that matters.
How to get your discount
Today’s technology enables prescription discount card companies to put their product in your hands in a number of ways including a physical card that you might find in a display in your physician’s office, a website pricing tool, and a mobile app.
Both companies have serviceable websites with all of the basic features. The only remarkable feature that would distinguish between the two websites is that SingleCare has the Drug Basket feature that allows you to price all of your medications at once and find the cheapest place to get the whole bunch.
This feature is important since filling prescriptions at multiple pharmacies can be extremely dangerous due to the likelihood that a major drug interaction would be identified by pharmacists since they wouldn’t know about the other medications unless to told them and asked them to specifically check.
GoodRx started with just a website and mobile app since their whole model is to be a price comparison tool but they also now ship displays with light weight paper physical cards to urgent cares, hospitals, and doctor offices across the country. The bad news as I stated in my GoodRx review is that the physical card is almost never the best price, and since they are made of paper they quickly become torn up beyond legibility in a purse or wallet.
SingleCare also has physical cards that are distributed to medical offices by sales reps that are paid on commission. The cards are much higher quality and made of durable plastic so they can survive unphased in a purse or wallet without issue. The concern with the physical SingleCare cards is that there are 3 different cards available.
To get the best deal you need the specific card for the pharmacy you fill at. A CVS card for CVS, Walmart card for filling at Walmart pharmacy, and the regular card for Walgreens or anywhere else. The regular card works everywhere but the best prices are with the specific cards if you fill at CVS or Walmart.
Since SingleCare has these special pricing arrangements with CVS and Walmart AND they process the prescriptions themselves, they really should live up to their name and have ONE SINGLE CARD that offers the best discounts everywhere. Even if they have to do the coding on the backend to identify which pharmacy is processing the prescription and adjudicate the claim with the best possible price for that pharmacy, this would actually set them apart even more and make it more convenient for all of us.
My preference is the mobile app since everyone carries their phone everywhere these days. You will have a price comparison tool at your fingertips, on demand, and you need it since drug prices can change on a daily basis.
GoodRx vs SingleCare: Showdown of the Apps
The GoodRx app is very well designed and easy to use. Overall I’d say it’s more comprehensive and has some better features than the SingleCare app but many of the features the average person likely won’t use. The user interface isn’t as simple and user friendly as the SingleCare app.
GoodRx app features include:
- My Rx where you can save you medication list for easy price comparison and even find the cheapest place to get them all together.
- My Coupons where you save the coupons you need to get the best prices (beware you probably shouldn’t do this if you want the best price EVERY time)
- Passcode protection for your HIPAA protect info
- Notifications for refill reminders, price alerts, medication news, and more (these get real annoying real fast but thankfully you can shut them off)
- Quick links to call your pharmacy or load a map to get there with the mapping app on your phone
- Comprehensive, up-to-date drug database
- Has drug ID database build in
- Can search medications by health condition
What I don’t like:
- The user interface is more difficult to get the simple task done efficiently
- Inability to price out custom quantities of medications
- Inaccurate business hours for some pharmacies
- Large size may be a concern for phones without much memory
The SingleCare app is not nearly as feature rich as the GoodRx app but the simplification of the app is refreshing, user friendly, and doesn’t hog your phones resources with infrequently used features. My contacts at SingleCare assure me they have some new features in the works that will roll out soon though.
One of the up and coming features is the Drug Basket feature that, like GoodRx’s “My Rx” feature, can help you find the single best place to get the cheapest prices on all of your meds combined instead the inconvenient and unsafe practice of hopping from pharmacy to pharmacy.
SingleCare app features:
- User friendly and efficient
- Can easily save meds to a list by tapping the heart in the upper right corner
- All 3 cards, the regular one, CVS, and Walmart specific cards are all in one place in the cards menu.
- You can save your SingleCare card to Google Pay
- Doesn’t annoy you with unwanted notifications
What sucks about the SingleCare app:
- Drug database is incomplete, missing certain generic equivalents and new drugs….the most common and basic drugs are there so this shouldn’t be a deterrent. SingleCare still provides a discounted price on these unlisted drugs but you just won’t know what to pay until the pharmacy runs the claim.
- Currently missing the Drug Basket feature
- No option for securing your private information
- No option to easily call the pharmacy from within the app
- Does not display the pharmacy’s business hours
With all that said, I think you should download both apps to ensure you get the best price on your medication no matter what. If I had to recommend only one app however I would say you need to get the SingleCare app since it is so simple to use and the pricing is better a majority of the time.
Winner: SingleCare- SingleCare app since it is so simple to use and the pricing is better a majority of the time at major pharmacies
Special offers
SingleCare has the ability to negotiate special offers with pharmacies since it does the contracting directly with them. The current offers are below:
- $5 off your medication price the very first time you use your CVS specific SingleCare card.
- Exclusive everyday prices at Walmart with the Walmart specific card.
The good news is you don’t have to do anything extra to get these offers. You just download the SingleCare app or visit the pricing tool and if CVS or Walmart are the lowest price show the codes to the pharmacist and the offers will automatically apply.
GoodRx does not have any special offers with any major retail pharmacies at this time, nor would I ever expect them to offer any since they don’t actually do any of the contracting.
Winner: SingleCare-Can’t beat keeping an extra $5 in your pocket
How big of a discount can you actually get?
SingleCare and GoodRx both advertise up to 80% off of the cost of your medication. Don’t get caught up in the up to X% off gimmick however. Discount card companies will advertise their maximum discount which may only be on one obscure drug nobody gets prescribed.
The real number to look at is the average discount. In my experience the average discount for GoodRx users is around 50% which is respectable. The Average discount for SingleCare is over 60% though and even higher on the more frequently prescribed drugs. SingleCare has the ability to monitor what drugs its cards are being used to purchase and can negotiate even better prices on those drugs. Check out the comparison chart below.
I chose to select medications for comparison that were commonly prescribed, frequently not covered by insurance, and where the discounted price is usually cheaper than most insurance copays. As you can see prices can vary significantly between pharmacies. SingleCare has the best pricing a majority of the time but you definitely need to use both services to compare each medication you are taking to get the absolute lowest price.
Winner: SingleCare-The proof is in the pudding
Are all drugs eligible for a discount?
Both GoodRx and SingleCare offer discounts on all FDA approved medications including some OTC items, but you need a prescription to receive those discounts.
Winner: Tie-Both GoodRx and SingleCare do it all
Additional services
If you give your email or phone number to either company by creating an account or subscribing to their email list they will send you refill reminders, educational offerings, price alerts, savings tips and more.
GoodRx does offer a membership service named GoodRx Gold that gives even steeper discounts for a monthly fee. For most people the extra service fee is not worth it but you can see how it compares to Blink Health, which doesn’t charge a fee but offers equally as steep of discounts.
GoodRx also recently acquired a telehealth company so now you can have virtual medical visits for a limited number of disease states from the comfort of your own home for a low cost. SingleCare used to have this option but discontinued it in order to focus their efforts exclusively on providing the best prices for prescription drugs.
Winner: GoodRx-You can shop multiple telehealth companies to find the best deal for a virtual visit with a provider that meets your needs
Customer service and respect for privacy above all else
Any legitimate prescription discount card company will have a 24/7 customer service line for both you and the pharmacy to call if there are any troubles. GoodRx and SingleCare both have this option where the representatives will help you if you end up having a problem where the pharmacy won’t accept the card (which they are contractually obligated to do) or the pricing doesn’t match (I’ve only ever experienced this with GoodRx).
The difference between the two companies lies in the problem resolution and continued development of the platform with customer service as the primary focus.
SingleCare has full control over its pharmacy network and pricing. It actively monitors the medications the SingleCare card is being used on and negotiate lower and lower prices for the most popular medications.
If you ever have a problem with SingleCare they will make it right, whether you reach out to their support line directly or post your experience on a website like Trustpilot.com or BBB.com they make every attempt to address your concern. This is how they maintain an A+ rating with the Better Business Bureau and have a 4-Star rating on Trustpilot.
On the other hand GoodRx only has a 2.8-Star rating on Trustpilot with most of the comments referring to inaccurate pricing. On BBB.com they maintain an A+ rating indicating they are a legitimate business but the customer ratings are not very good.
Recent discoveries by Consumer Reports revealed that GoodRx shares your personal medication search history among other information with companies like Facebook. This unacceptable invasion of privacy is not the case with SingleCare. SingleCare’s privacy policy explicitly states:
We do not sell, share, rent or trade the information we have collected about you, including Personally Identifiable Information, other than as disclosed within this Privacy Policy or at the time you provide your information. We do not use your Personally Identifiable Information for direct marketing purposes or share your Personally Identifiable Information with third parties for those third parties’ direct marketing purposes unless you consent to such use or sharing. We may share Non-Personally Identifiable Information, such as aggregated user statistics and log data, with third parties for industry analysis, demographic profiling, to deliver targeted advertising about other products or SingleCare Services, or for other business purpose
Winner: SingleCare-Because care is in their name and they respect your privacy.
The bottom line winner: SingleCare
It seems clear to me the SingleCare is the the better of the two prescription discount cards based on the use of “lower-of” pricing model to protect you from getting ripped off, the direct control of their pricing, the discounts as proven above, the special offers they have negotiated, and the top-notch customer service they provide.
Visit SingleCare.com or download the SingleCare app now and see just how much you can save on your prescription drugs.