In a healthy business: Russians have become more likely to save on medicines
In 2025, Russians have revised their purchasing strategies in relation to pharmacy spending, analysts said. They began to purchase drugs more often through promotions and tried to maneuver between different pharmacy chains, choosing more favorable offers for the same drug. The main reasons for the change in consumer behavior are the acceleration of drug prices, falling household incomes and the expansion of the range of available analogues, experts noted. At the same time, the desire to save on drugs has not affected the pharmaceutical market: it has grown by 13% compared to 2024. For more information on how and why the demand for medicines has changed, see the Izvestia article.
How Russians bought medicines
In 2025, Russians were less and less willing to pay for a brand in pharmacies and were increasingly looking for the optimal price-performance ratio. According to a study by Points Health, shoppers were more likely to choose cost-effective strategies.
— They follow the promotions, switch to discounters and choose the optimal price-performance ratio. It is important for them not to overpay," said Daria Solovyova, CEO of the company.
According to her, the trend was formed against the background of accelerating the growth of prices for pharmacology, falling real incomes of the population, and expanding the range of available analogues.
— The transparency of the market is also increasing, when a person can compare prices between several networks or online storefronts in a matter of seconds, - said Daria Solovyova.
According to the study, turnover in the upper price segment in 2025 was lower than in the lower price segments. Moreover, the authors calculated the average price for 70 popular pharmacy products and compared it with the average actual selling price. They differed by 80-115 rubles, and this suggests that they bought the cheapest options for the same item: they chose cheaper analogues or switched to other pharmacy chains and channels with more favorable conditions.
But demand remained for more than 40 drugs, even if the supply price was higher than the market average. Here, researchers believe that trust in individual brands, pharmacological forms, or sustainable medical prescriptions played a role.
"However, such price insensitivity is typical only for a limited range of positions and ceases to be a widespread phenomenon," the study notes.
Artur Mirzoyan, head of pharmaceutical data at Points Health, also noted that "a clear logic of rationality appears in the behavior of the Russian buyer" — comparison, calculation, and selection of the optimal price.
The press service of the Uteca pharmacy marketplace confirmed that consumer behavior has become more rational in 2025. But they noted that it was not reduced to simple savings.
— Almost half of the customers in 2025 made purchases in three or more different pharmacy chains in order to find the best conditions. The share of users who use the "cheap first" sorting when searching for medicines has also increased. At the same time, the share of purchases of budget analogues within one group of medicines has decreased," they noted.
This trend suggests that people are not looking for the minimum price, but the optimal ratio — they are willing to pay a little more for a proven brand, but only by finding the best price on the market for this option.
Switching to large packages
In 2025, people refocused on buying larger and, consequently, more expensive packages of medicines, which also indicates the desire of Russians to save on medicines, the consulting company OKS Labs by Okkam told Izvestia.
Thus, the share of drugs in large packages approached 34%: the cost above 500 rubles — to 68.1%, and from 1 thousand rubles and above — to 38%.
A similar trend was confirmed by DSM Group analysts. According to their data, the share of drugs from 1 thousand rubles and above increased in the market from 6.9 to 8.5% in packages, and decreased to 100 rubles from 28.1% in 2024 to 23.5% this year.
The shift towards rational consumption has also affected producers. This phenomenon has forced companies to expand the range of available dosage forms, strengthen export-import planning and optimize drug production, said Nikolay Bespalov, Director of Development at RNC Pharma, an analytical company.
At the same time, according to the DSM Group, despite the change in the purchasing strategy of Russians, the pharmacy market grew by 13% in the first 11 months of 2025. And according to OKS Labs by Okkam, the increase in the first half of this year was 15% compared to last year.
In 2025, Russians were most active in buying drugs for the treatment of diseases of the cardiovascular system and digestive tract, according to data from the DSM Group. The same data was provided to Yuteka. In addition, according to the marketplace, flu and cold medications were in high demand this year.
Also, according to another analytical company RNC Pharma, Russians actively bought drugs to combat obesity, antidepressants, muscle relaxants (reduce increased muscle tone and relieve cramps) and medications for migraines.
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