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If you need urgent assistance, do not use this service. Call 111, or in an emergency call 999.
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Sumatriptan is the most widely used triptan in the UK. It stops a migraine attack once the headache has started, easing the pain, sickness and sensitivity to light and sound. For adults aged 18 to 65 with diagnosed migraine, after an online consultation with a GPhC-registered pharmacist independent prescriber.
For adults aged 18 to 65 whose migraine has been diagnosed by a doctor. We supply the strength you already use, or a first triptan if painkillers haven’t been enough. If you have heart disease, uncontrolled high blood pressure or a new or different headache, please see your GP.
Order before 3pm — same-day dispatch (MON - FRI)
~5 min consultation
Secure & confidential · Reviewed by a UK prescriber
Suitable age
18 to 65 years
Max per order
2 packs
Consultation
Yes, online consultation
Sumatriptan is a triptan, a medicine that treats migraine attacks. It works on serotonin (5-HT1B and 5-HT1D) receptors to calm the nerve pathways involved in a migraine and narrow the blood vessels around the brain. It doesn’t prevent migraines; it stops an attack that has started. It works best taken early, as soon as the headache begins. Our sumatriptan guide explains how to get the best from it.
Sumatriptan is usually the first triptan tried, and many people combine it with an anti-inflammatory such as naproxen for stronger attacks. If you vomit early in an attack, the Imigran nasal spray is another form of sumatriptan; your GP can advise if you need a different form. Our triptans guide compares the options, and you can see all our migraine treatments.
| Medicine type | Triptan (5-HT1B/1D agonist) |
| Active ingredient | Sumatriptan 50mg or 100mg per tablet |
| Used for | Treating migraine attacks, with or without aura |
| Dose | 50mg (some people need 100mg) as the headache starts; a second dose after at least 2 hours if it returns; no more than 300mg in 24 hours |
| Prescription status | Prescription-only medicine (POM). Sumatriptan 50mg is also sold in pharmacy packs of 2 without a prescription |
| Suitable for | Adults 18 to 65 with diagnosed migraine |
| Price | 50mg: 6 tablets £11.99 · 12 tablets £19.99 · 18 tablets £24.99. 100mg: 6 tablets £14.99 · 12 tablets £27.99 · 18 tablets £39.99 |
| UK guidance | NICE CG150; sumatriptan SmPC |
Who we can supply: adults aged 18 to 65 whose migraine has been diagnosed by a doctor, for the same triptan, strength and form you already use. If your migraine is diagnosed and you’ve so far used painkillers, a prescriber can consider a first triptan. We share the consultation with your GP. We can’t switch you to a different triptan or form online; your GP can.
How many: up to 2 packs per order. If you use triptans on 10 or more days a month, we’ll ask you to see your GP, because that can cause medication overuse headache and you may need preventive treatment.
This service isn’t suitable if you:
haven’t been diagnosed with migraine, or your headaches are new, different or getting worse
have had a heart attack, angina, a stroke or mini-stroke (TIA), or have circulation problems in your legs
have high blood pressure that isn’t controlled
get weakness on one side of the body with your migraines (hemiplegic migraine)
have severe liver disease
are under 18 or over 65
are pregnant, trying for a baby or breastfeeding (please speak to your GP or midwife first)
Tell the prescriber if you:
have heart disease risk factors, such as diabetes, high cholesterol, smoking, a family history of early heart disease, or you’re a man over 40 or a woman past the menopause
take an antidepressant (SSRIs such as sertraline or citalopram, SNRIs such as venlafaxine, or an MAOI), lithium or St John’s wort, which raise the risk of serotonin syndrome
take another triptan or an ergotamine medicine
use the combined contraceptive pill and get migraine with aura (see our migraine and the pill guide)
Sumatriptan is a triptan medicine that treats migraine attacks once they’ve started, with or without aura. It eases the headache and the sickness and sensitivity to light and sound that come with it. It doesn’t prevent migraines. Our sumatriptan guide has more detail.
As soon as the headache starts. Triptans work best early in an attack. If you get aura, wait until the headache begins, because sumatriptan taken during aura may not work.
Take the strength you’re prescribed: usually 50mg, though some people need 100mg. If the first dose works but the migraine comes back, you can take another after at least 2 hours. Don’t take more than 300mg in 24 hours, and don’t take a second dose if the first didn’t help.
Most people notice it working within 30 minutes to an hour. It works best taken early in the attack.
Tingling, warmth, flushing, dizziness, drowsiness, and a feeling of heaviness, pressure or tightness in the chest, throat or limbs. These usually pass quickly. Severe or lasting chest pain needs urgent help (call 999).
Yes, in a limited form. Sumatriptan 50mg is sold in pharmacies without a prescription in packs of 2 tablets, for adults aged 18 to 65 whose migraine has already been diagnosed, after a pharmacist’s check. The 100mg strength and larger packs need a prescription. We supply both strengths in packs of 6, 12 or 18 after an online consultation with a pharmacist independent prescriber, and we let your GP know.
No. We supply the same triptan, strength and form you already use. If sumatriptan isn’t working well, or you’d like to try a different form such as a wafer or nasal spray, please speak to your GP, who can review your treatment with your full history. Our triptans guide explains how the triptans differ.
Use triptans on fewer than 10 days a month. Taking them more often than that, for 3 months or more, can make headaches more frequent; this is called medication overuse headache. If you need sumatriptan that often, see your GP about preventive treatment rather than ordering more. See our chronic migraine guide.
Yes. NICE recommends a triptan combined with an anti-inflammatory painkiller such as naproxen or ibuprofen, or with paracetamol, and the combination often works better than a triptan alone. Don’t take two anti-inflammatories together, and take them with food.
Triptans aren’t ruled out, but we don’t supply them online in pregnancy or while breastfeeding, so please speak to your GP or midwife. NICE advises paracetamol first in pregnancy, with a triptan considered after discussing the risks; sumatriptan has the most safety information. Sumatriptan passes into breast milk, and the product information advises not breastfeeding for 12 hours after a dose.
See your GP if your headaches change, become more frequent, or you need treatment on 10 or more days a month. Get urgent help (call 999) if you have a sudden, severe “thunderclap” headache, a headache with weakness, numbness, a drooping face or slurred speech, a headache with fever, a stiff neck or a rash, or a headache after a head injury. These aren’t migraine and need assessment straight away.
Helpful articles and clinical guides related to this treatment category.
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