Descovy Dosages: Your GoodRx Guide

Descovy (emtricitabine / tenofovir alafenamide) is an antiretroviral (ARV) medication. It’s used to manage HIV in adults and kids. You can take it by itself for HIV prevention or in combination with other ARV medications for HIV treatment.

Descovy is also very comparable to another HIV medication you might have heard of: Truvada (emtricitabine / tenofovir disoproxil fumarate). But Descovy and Truvada still have their differences, including their recommended dosages.

Here's a guide to help you understand your recommended Descovy dosage based on your age, body weight, and kidney health.

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What’s the typical Descovy dosage for adults?

Descovy is a combination tablet that’s taken once a day, with or without food. When prescribed for adults, each tablet contains 200 mg of emtricitabine and 25 mg of tenofovir alafenamide (TAF).

Keep in mind: Before you start taking Descovy, your healthcare provider will run tests to make sure you don’t have hepatitis B and that your kidneys are healthy enough for the medication. If you’re taking it for PrEP, or pre-exposure prophylaxis, you’ll also need a negative HIV test.

HIV PrEP

For HIV prevention — often referred to as PrEP — the typical Descovy dose is one 200 mg/25 mg tablet once a day.

Taking Descovy every day can effectively reduce the risk of HIV. But it’s not a good option for all adults. At this time, Descovy isn’t FDA approved for PrEP for people who are at risk for getting HIV through receptive vaginal sex or from injecting drugs. Truvada is a better PrEP option for these groups.

HIV treatment

For HIV treatment, the typical Descovy dose is also one 200 mg/25 mg tablet once a day. However, unlike with PrEP, you should take it alongside another HIV medication.

This is because for HIV treatment, a “complete” medication regimen contains ARVs from at least two different medication classes. When you use medications that attack the HIV virus from different angles, it reduces the risk of medication resistance. Descovy contains two medications from the same class, so it needs to be prescribed with another HIV ARV medication to create a full HIV treatment regimen.

Your healthcare provider will be in charge of deciding which medication you should combine Descovy with for HIV treatment.

What’s the typical Descovy dosage for children?

Children can take Descovy too. Like adults, they can take their doses once a day, with or without food.

The amount of medication they’ll take with every dose isn’t quite as straightforward, though. One of two different Descovy dosages may be prescribed depending on your child’s body weight. Many kids will take the standard adult dose, but others will take a less potent tablet containing 120 mg of emtricitabine and 15 mg of TAF.

HIV PrEP

For kids who weigh at least 35 kg (77 lbs), the recommended Descovy PrEP dosage is one 200 mg/25 mg tablet once daily. Kids who weigh less than 35 kg shouldn’t take Descovy for PrEP at all.

Like with adults, Descovy for PrEP isn’t approved for kids and adolescents who are at risk for HIV through vaginal sex or injecting drugs.

HIV treatment

For children who weigh at least 35 kg, the recommended Descovy dose for HIV treatment is one 200 mg/25 mg tablet once a day. This is the same as the adult dosage.

Similarly, the recommended Descovy dosage for children who weigh between 25 kg and 35 kg (55 lbs and 77 lbs) is one 200 mg/25 mg tablet once daily. But children who weigh at least 14 kg (31 lb) — but less than 25 kg — should take one 120 mg/15 mg tablet once a day.

Good to know: Children who weigh less than 35 kg may only take Descovy for HIV treatment if they aren’t prescribed an HIV protease inhibitor that’s accompanied by Norvir (ritonavir) or Tybost (cobicistat). These medications boost the amount of Descovy in the body, raising the risk for unwanted side effects.

Are there any dosage adjustments for medical conditions?

Descovy can be risky for certain groups of people. Some people may need a lower dose, and others may need to avoid it altogether. While rare, some people have experienced kidney problems while taking Descovy.

Dosage for people with kidney problems

After you take Descovy, your kidneys remove the medication from your body. If you have kidney problems, your body can’t clear the medication as quickly. Over time, medication levels can become too high and cause unwanted side effects. Descovy isn’t recommended for most people with severe kidney problems as a result.

There are some exceptions, though.

If you have severe kidney problems but you’re receiving dialysis, Descovy is generally OK to take. On your dialysis days, you can just take a dose after you’re done with your dialysis session. Your kidney care team can give you more information about how to time your Descovy doses.

If you have milder kidney problems, you likely won’t need a dose adjustment at all. Your healthcare provider will likely just monitor your lab work with a close eye. They’ll calculate something called a creatinine clearance, which tells them how quickly your kidneys are clearing medications like Descovy. The standard dose of Descovy is fine as long as your creatinine clearance is above 30 mL/min.

What happens if you miss a dose of Descovy?

You can take Descovy at any time, but it’s best to take Descovy at the same time every day. If you forget to take your normal dose of Descovy, take it as soon as you remember — as long as it’s the same day.

You should only take one tablet daily, so don’t take two doses to make up for the one you missed. In this case, just skip the missed dose. 

A single missed PrEP dose shouldn’t have major implications for HIV prevention. But if you find yourself missing doses frequently, it’s important to reach out to your healthcare provider without delay to discuss next steps. Consistent daily dosages are important for a successful treatment.

What should you do if you take too much Descovy?

You should only take one dose of Descovy per day. Researchers can’t always predict what will happen if you take more than the recommended amount, but they know there isn’t an upside.

If you accidentally take one or two extra doses in a day, you may experience side effects such as headache, diarrhea, or upset stomach. These symptoms likely won’t lead to long-term harm, but it’s still a good idea to check in with your healthcare provider to make sure everything is OK.

On the other hand, taking very high doses of Descovy could hypothetically raise the risk of more serious side effects. If you or someone that you know takes a lot more than the recommended dose, contact your healthcare provider right away. You can also contact Poison Control online or at 1-800-222-1222.

If you or someone you know is having a side effect that feels severe or life-threatening, such as trouble breathing, call 911 or go to the nearest ER.

How to save on Descovy

There are ways to save on Descovy, which is only available as a brand-name medication. GoodRx can help you navigate between copay savings cards and patient assistance programs to save money on your prescription.

• Save with a copay savings card. If you have commercial insurance, you may be eligible to pay as little as $0 for Descovy using a savings card from the manufacturer.

• Save with patient assistance programs. If you’re uninsured or underinsured, you may be eligible for Descovy’s patient assistance program, which offers the medication free of cost.

Why trust our experts?

Written by:

Hope Chang, PharmD, AAHIVP

Hope Chang is a freelance writer and content reviewer for GoodRx. She attended Howard University College of Pharmacy in Washington, D.C. and completed post-graduate residency training at the University of California, Davis Medical Center.

Edited by:

Joshua Murdock, PharmD, BCBBS

Joshua Murdock, PharmD, BCBBS, is a licensed pharmacist in Arizona, Colorado, and Rhode Island. He has worked in the pharmacy industry for more than 10 years and currently serves as a pharmacy editor for GoodRx.

Reviewed by:

Stacia Woodcock, PharmD

Stacia Woodcock, PharmD, is a pharmacy editor for GoodRx. She earned her Doctor of Pharmacy degree from the University of Kentucky and is licensed in New York and Massachusetts.

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