How We Choose Pharmacies

The checks every pharmacy must pass before it appears on eDrugSearch.

Last updated November 11, 2026 · By the eDrugSearch team

We list a pharmacy only if it passes every check below. Pharmacies don’t pay to be listed, and nothing a pharmacy does can buy a better position or rating.

1. It’s CIPA-Certified or Independently Verified

It meets one of these:

  • It’s certified by the Canadian International Pharmacy Association (CIPA).
  • It’s independently verified as a legitimate online pharmacy.

Each profile shows the certification or verification, with the date we checked, and whether we could check the license of the pharmacy that actually fills your order.

2. It’s Not Linked to an FDA Import Alert

We check the website, the company behind it and its sister sites against the FDA’s Import Alert 66-57. If the same company runs a site on the alert, we don’t list that company’s sites. If a partner pharmacy is on it, we don’t show that partner’s packs, and the profile says so.

3. It Follows Safe Practices

  • It requires a valid prescription.
  • It doesn’t sell controlled substances such as opioids, stimulants or sleeping pills.
  • It doesn’t have a BBB F grade with BBB alerts it hasn’t answered.
  • It ships prescription orders to the U.S.

U.S. pharmacies may fill controlled medicines under U.S. law; eDrugSearch never lists controlled substances.

4. It Says Where Each Pack Comes From

Every price shows where the pack was made and where it ships from, and names the maker when the pharmacy does. Packs without that country information don’t count toward a listing.

5. It Adds Value

It offers a lower price, shipping included, or a medication that the pharmacies we already list don’t carry.

Sister Sites

Many pharmacy websites share an owner. We judge each website by the same checks, and its profile names any sister site.

Pharmacies We Don’t List

Some well-known pharmacy websites don’t pass these checks. We keep a page for each one that explains why, with the source and the date we checked, so you can make an informed choice. Not being listed doesn’t mean a pharmacy is unsafe; it means we can’t recommend it today.

We Keep Checking

Every price shows the date we checked it. We recheck each pharmacy’s status, including licenses, FDA alerts and U.S. shipping, when we update its profile. If a pharmacy stops meeting our standards, we remove it. See the Canadian pharmacy directory and how we check prices.

We also list U.S. mail-order pharmacies, which we check against U.S. standards such as NABP accreditation instead. See U.S. online pharmacies.