England: prescription items dispensed 2025| ��ƽ��

Number of prescription items dispensed in pharmacies in England from 2006/07 to 2024/25 (in millions)

Characteristic	Number of prescription items in millions
2024-25	1,156.32
2023-24	1,112.7
2022-23	1,078.98
2021-22	1,043.1
2020-21	1,016.8
2019-20	1,035.8
2018-19	1,015.1
2017-18	1,013.3
2016-17	1,015.6
2015-16	995.3
2014-15	978.3
2013-14	948.2
2012-13	914.3
2011-12	885
2010-11	850.7
2009-10	813.3
2008-09	771.5
2007-08	725.8
2006-07	688.4

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Release date

October 2025

More information

Region

United Kingdom (England)

Survey time period

financial years 2006/07 to 2024/25

Special properties

community pharmacies

Citation formats

Since 2016/17, over one billion prescription items have been dispensed from community pharmacies in England. The year with the highest number of items dispensed was 2024/25, when 1.16 billion items were dispensed, a significant increase from the 850 million dispensed 13 years previously.

Dispensing pharmacy numbers

The average amount of items dispensed at each pharmacy in 2023/24 works out at around seven thousand per month per pharmacy. Although over 3,000 pharmacies dispensed an average of over ten thousand items a month. Unsurprisingly, the average number of prescriptions dispensed at each pharmacy has also increased since 2006.  

What is being dispensed?

The therapeutic class with the highest total of prescription items dispensed was for the cardiovascular system, at some 355 million drugs, followed by drugs for the central nervous system, which had approximately 231 million items dispensed. The single leading drug dispensed was atorvastatin, which reduces the risk of heart attacks and strokes in those with high cholesterol.