Hippo Prescription Discount Card: Prices and Alternatives

• The Hippo prescription discount card is free, needs no account, and Hippo says over 70,000 US pharmacies accept it. Text HELLO to 44776 to get one.
• The card replaces insurance, Medicare or Medicaid on a fill and can’t be combined with them. Card spending doesn’t count toward Medicare Part D cost sharing.
• On October 18, 2026, Hippo was cheaper than Optum Perks at Walgreens for three generic antidepressants. Optum Perks was cheaper at Walmart for escitalopram ($9.00 vs $13.50) and fluoxetine ($4.00 vs $9.00).

A Hippo card is a digital discount card that arrives on your phone by text. The pharmacist enters its member ID and Hippo’s BIN number, and you pay Hippo’s negotiated cash price for the drug. Hippo Technologies LLC, based in New York City, launched the service in 2019. Optum Perks, ChoosingTherapy.com’s partner, is the closest free alternative. Use it if your pharmacy won’t process the card or you want an app with home delivery. Cost Plus Drugs suits people who want generics by mail. Hippo was cheaper at some chains we checked, and Optum Perks at others.

Compare your medication’s price on Optum Perks

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How the Hippo card works

Hippo costs nothing and doesn’t ask for a credit card or an account. Texting HELLO to 44776 is one way to get the card. You can also enter your phone number or email on hellohippo.com. Hippo’s drug pages also show a free coupon button beside a pharmacy’s price. The card shows a member ID and Hippo’s BIN, 019876. Hippo says the pharmacist needs no PCN or group number to run it.

You show the card and your ID at pickup and pay the pharmacy, since Hippo never handles payment. Hippo’s help center and terms also say:

• You need a valid prescription, and over-the-counter products aren’t covered.
• One card works for every prescription and refill, and family members can share it.
• Users must be 18 or older and live in the United States or its territories.

Some people first get a Hippo card by text after their prescriber sends a prescription to the pharmacy. Hippo’s privacy policy says a provider can send the card with your permission, which shares your prescription details with Hippo.

Is Hippo legit?

Hippo is a legitimate discount program run by Hippo Technologies LLC. The company is headquartered in New York City, with its customer team in Great Falls, Montana. TechCrunch reported that former Blink Health employees founded it. The same report said a 2018 lawsuit from Blink Health was settled about three months before Hippo launched in February 2019.¹ We found no FTC or state attorney general action against Hippo. The program’s fine print names Savehealth Administrators LLC of Palm Beach, Florida, as the discount plan organization.²

Hippo’s terms were updated in September 2026. The iPhone app’s latest version dates from 2020 and the Android app’s from 2023. Hippo’s iPhone app rates 4.4 out of 5 from 46 ratings, and its Android app rates 4.0 from 53 reviews. Most of the written reviews date from 2018 and 2019. We found no Trustpilot profile. Reviewers praise the savings, and the main complaints are about hard-to-reach customer service and pharmacies that couldn’t process the card.

Pharmacies that accept Hippo

Hippo says over 70,000 US pharmacies accept the card, including CVS, Walmart and Walgreens. Its help center also names Kroger, Costco, Safeway, Hy-Vee and Meijer. If a pharmacy doesn’t recognize the card, Hippo asks you or the pharmacist to call its Pharmacy Help Center at 1-855-707-8380.

Can you use Hippo with insurance or Medicare?

You can use Hippo if you have insurance or Medicare, but only in place of your coverage on that fill. Hippo’s terms say the card can’t be combined with Medicare, Medicaid or health insurance, and that it isn’t insurance.² Hippo suggests checking your copay and using the card when its price is lower. Hippo also says many Medicare patients use it for drugs Medicare doesn’t cover.³

Money you spend with the Hippo card may not count toward your deductible or out-of-pocket maximum. It doesn’t count toward Part D cost sharing.² Some insurers accept a receipt for reimbursement, so ask yours.

A 2023 Commonwealth Fund survey found about one in five Medicare beneficiaries had used an online drug discount site in the past year. The survey found most of them did so because the price beat their plan’s. It warned that these purchases don’t count toward Part D’s annual out-of-pocket limit. So, someone with high drug costs could spend more over a year.⁴

Hippo prices at Walmart, Walgreens and CVS

Hippo’s homepage advertises savings of up to 97%. Its disclaimer says up to 90% off the pharmacy’s retail cash price, with nearly 1 in 5 patients saving more than 90%.⁵ The disclaimer also calls the site’s prices estimates that can change at any time.

We priced the same generic, strength and quantity on Hippo and Optum Perks on October 18, 2026. No ZIP code was set on either site and prices vary by location.

Hippo was cheaper at Walgreens on all three drugs by $2.81 to $13.46. Optum Perks was cheaper at Walmart for escitalopram and fluoxetine and slightly cheaper at CVS. Hippo’s $6.00 sertraline at Walmart was the lowest sertraline price on either site that day.

Brand names cost far more. Hippo listed brand Zoloft 100 mg at $491.07 at Walmart, compared to $9.00 for generic sertraline 100 mg. Hippo says a counter price above the card price can mean the pharmacy quoted the brand or stocks a different manufacturer’s version.

This article is for information only and is not medical advice. Talk to a doctor or licensed clinician before starting, stopping, or changing any treatment.

See Optum Perks prices at your pharmacy

How Hippo makes money and uses your data

Hippo’s terms say it may receive a transaction fee when you buy a drug with the card. The terms also say drug manufacturers may pay it for marketing and adherence services.² TechCrunch described the model at launch: pharmacies get a guaranteed rate in exchange for lower prices.¹

Hippo’s privacy policy says it doesn’t sell personal information for money. The policy also says it may give identifiers such as your email to marketing partners for targeted ads. Some privacy laws may count that as a sale.⁶ You can opt out. Hippo may receive purchase details from the pharmacy or its pharmacy benefit manager (PBM) when you fill a prescription with the card. Those details can include insurance or pricing data.

Hippo alternatives compared

Four free discount cards work like Hippo, and three sellers offer generics at set prices.

• Optum Perks: free coupons plus an app, home delivery and $39 telehealth prescription requests.
• GoodRx: a paid membership that makes some medications free.
• SingleCare: signature cards for Walgreens, Walmart and CVS.
• BuzzRx: one card for a whole family, pets included.
• Cost Plus Drugs: generics by mail at cost plus a 15% markup.
• Walmart’s $4 list or Amazon RxPass: common generics at a fixed price.

Company figures checked September 28 to October 18, 2026.

Optum Perks

Optum Perks is a free card from Optum Perks, LLC, part of RVO Health. RVO Health is a 2022 joint venture of UnitedHealth Group’s Optum and Red Ventures. Optum Rx, a PBM in the same corporate family, negotiates its prices. Like Hippo, it needs no account or fee. Its coupons don’t expire, though Optum Perks suggests a fresh coupon before each refill.

Optum Perks adds features Hippo doesn’t have:

• A higher-rated app: 4.8 from 3,800 App Store ratings, against about 100 ratings for Hippo’s two apps combined.
• Home delivery: prices shown up front, shipping from $5, no insurance accepted.
• Online Care: a $39 telehealth visit for prescription requests that accepts select insurance and Medicare.
• Independent pharmacies: a coupon for local stores that doesn’t appear in its search.

Optum Perks claims over 64,000 pharmacies, fewer than Hippo’s figure. Its insurance rules resemble Hippo’s: not combinable with insurance, Medicare or Medicaid, and card spending doesn’t count toward your deductible. HSA funds can pay the card price.⁷

Optum Perks shares data for targeted ads, as Hippo does. Its privacy notice also says it may sell sensitive personal information, including health details your searches reveal.⁸ Is Optum Perks legit covers its ownership, and Optum Perks vs GoodRx compares those two cards.

Other free cards and low-cost generics

GoodRx, SingleCare and BuzzRx are free coupons you use in place of insurance. Cost Plus Drugs, Walmart and Amazon sell the medication themselves.

GoodRx

GoodRx advertises up to 80% off with free coupons at over 70,000 pharmacies and says its contracts require pharmacies to honor them. Its Companion membership, $14.99 a month since May 2026, makes over 200 medications free. In 2023 it agreed to a $1.5 million civil penalty after the FTC said it shared users’ health data with Facebook and Google.⁹

SingleCare

SingleCare, owned by RxSense, claims over 35,000 pharmacies. Its card works without an account, and a free membership gives $3 off the first eligible prescription. Trustpilot gives it 4.3 from 169 reviews, and the top complaint is paying more at the counter than the site quoted.

BuzzRx

Water Tree Ventures LLC in Florida runs BuzzRx. Its cards need no account or fee and never expire. It rates 4.6 on Trustpilot from 58 reviews.

Cost Plus Drugs, Walmart and Amazon RxPass

Mark Cuban Cost Plus Drug Company is an online pharmacy that ships prescriptions at its cost plus a 15% markup and a labor fee. Sertraline 50 mg was $5.69 for 30 tablets in September 2026, and bupropion XL 150 mg was $6.00, plus $5.25 shipping. Walmart sells select generics from $4 for 30 days. Amazon RxPass covers over 50 medications, including sertraline and escitalopram, for $5 a month with Prime.

When to use Hippo

Hippo was cheaper than Optum Perks at Walgreens on all three antidepressants in our check. Its $6.00 Walmart sertraline was also the lowest sertraline price on either site. People filling those drugs at Walgreens, or sertraline at Walmart, can keep using it. Hippo suits anyone who wants no app, since the card arrives by text. One card covers a family.

Get a free Optum Perks coupon to compare