Prescription🐾 All pets

Written prescription fee

Name: Written prescription fee
Brand: VetPricelist

Typical UK price: £15–£21(CMA cap of £21 (first item) / £12.50 (subsequent) — phasing in during 2027)

Prices from local practices

Cheapest found

£13

Average

£24

Most expensive

£48

Based on 938 prices submitted to VetPricelist. Prices may not include all additional fees — confirm with your vet.

Written prescription fee cost by city

Aberdeen£18 Abingdon£27 Accrington£30 Airdrie£21 Alfreton£39 Amersham£20 Arbroath£29 Ashford£23 Aylesbury£26 Ballymoney£39 Banbury£34 Bangor£22 Barnsley£23 Barnstaple£18 Barry£21 Bath£31 Bedford£25 Belfast£29 Berkhamsted£17 Beverley£21 Biggleswade£21 Birkenhead£25 Birmingham£29 Bishop Auckland£25 Blackburn£24 Blackpool£27 Bolton£23 Boston£31 Bournemouth£22 Bradford£30 Braintree£24 Brecon£21 Bridgend£23 Bridgwater£32 Brighton£23 Bristol£30 Bromyard£27 Burton upon Trent£37 Bury St. Edmunds£24 Calne£21 Cambridge£23 Canterbury£24 Cardiff£23 Cardigan£30 Carlisle£21 Cheltenham£22 Chester£23 Chippenham£21 Chorley£16 Christchurch£19 Clacton On Sea£21 Clitheroe£28 Coatbridge£14 Cobham£21 Colchester£20 Coleraine£40 Congleton£25 Cookstown£32 Corby£30 Coventry£17 Cramlington£21 Cranleigh£18 Crewe£26 Croydon£22 Cupar£15 Cwmbran£19 Darlington£23 Derby£27 Derry£26 Devizes£22 Didcot£34 Doncaster£23 Dorchester£27 Dorking£18 Driffield£22 Droitwich£22 Dudley£23 Dumfries£21 Dunfermline£28 Eastleigh£23 Edenbridge£21 Edinburgh£23 Ellesmere Port£33 Ely£21 Enniskillen£26 Epsom£18 Evesham£21 Exeter£21 Exmouth£18 Fakenham£36 Falkirk£24 Fareham£23 Farnham£21 Faversham£21 Fort William£33 Gainsborough£19 Glasgow£26 Glenrothes£22 Gloucester£25 Godalming£30 Grantham£20 Gravesend£25 Grimsby£20 Guildford£22 Halifax£20 Hamilton£21 Harlow£21 Harrogate£21 Hemel Hempstead£19 Herne Bay£22 Hexham£25 Hull£33 Huntingdon£21 Ilford£23 Ipswich£30 Ivybridge£16 Jedburgh£21 Keighley£30 Kelso£30 Kendal£24 Kenilworth£21 Kettering£27 Kidderminster£20 King's Lynn£35 Kingston upon Hull£23 Leamington Spa£22 Leatherhead£20 Leeds£21 Leicester£20 Leighton Buzzard£21 Leominster£44 Lichfield£32 Lincoln£31 Lisburn£29 Liverpool£23 Livingston£14 Llandrindod Wells£22 Llandudno£24 London£22 Loughborough£21 Macclesfield£21 Manchester£22 March£25 Market Harborough£21 Market Rasen£31 Marlow£25 Medway£28 Melksham£24 Melton Mowbray£23 Merthyr Tydfil£20 Middlesbrough£23 Milford Haven£16 Milton Keynes£26 Musselburgh£31 Nantwich£30 Neath£21 Newark£34 Newcastle Under Lyme£30 Newcastle upon Tyne£23 Newmarket£21 Newport£30 Newquay£19 Newry£23 Newton Abbot£25 Newtownabbey£29 North Shields£25 Northallerton£21 Northampton£32 Northwich£26 Norwich£23 Nottingham£26 Nuneaton£29 Oban£31 Orpington£19 Oxford£25 Paisley£23 Peebles£21 Peterborough£24 Petersfield£20 Plymouth£26 Pontypridd£21 Port Talbot£24 Portsmouth£16 Preston£22 Ramsgate£19 Reading£20 Redditch£21 Redhill£25 Redruth£21 Richmond£22 Rochdale£23 Romford£26 Ross-on-Wye£28 Rotherham£21 Royston£26 Rugby£20 Runcorn£21 Salford£20 Salisbury£27 Scarborough£21 Scunthorpe£18 Selby£23 Sevenoaks£24 Sheffield£24 Sidcup£19 Sittingbourne£24 Skegness£27 Solihull£22 South Shields£20 Southampton£25 Southend-on-Sea£23 Southport£22 Spalding£29 St Albans£22 St Austell£20 Stafford£26 Stamford£21 Stevenage£27 Stirling£29 Stockport£31 Stockton-on-Tees£23 Stoke-on-Trent£27 Stranraer£21 Stratford-Upon-Avon£24 Stroud£34 Sunderland£32 Sutton-in-Ashfield£24 Swadlincote£31 Swansea£26 Swindon£20 Tamworth£21 Taunton£28 Telford£20 Thetford£22 Thirsk£19 Tonbridge£19 Torquay£36 Truro£22 Tunbridge Wells£23 Wallingford£42 Walsall£22 Walton-On-Thames£21 Wantage£26 Warminster£21 Warrington£24 Waterlooville£18 Wellingborough£40 Weston-super-Mare£26 Whitchurch£30 Whitstable£24 Wickford£21 Widnes£20 Wigan£26 Wilmslow£30 Winchester£20 Wisbech£23 Witney£28 Woking£21 Wolverhampton£20 Woodbridge£24 Worcester£22 Wrexham£22 Yeovil£25 York£26

What is written prescription fee?

A written prescription from your vet allows you to purchase prescription-only medicines (POM-V) from a pharmacy of your choice, including online pharmacies, rather than buying directly from the vet. This can offer significant savings on medications. As part of the CMA's Veterinary Market Investigation, prescription fees are being capped at £21 for the first item and £12.50 for each subsequent item on the same prescription — phased in during 2027 (from March 2027 for the larger vet groups, and by September 2027 for smaller practices).

Why do prices vary between vets?

Number of medicines prescribed — each additional item on the same prescription will be capped at £12.50 under the CMA's cap (phasing in during 2027)
Prescription validity period — prescriptions valid for longer periods may be priced differently
Whether a consultation was required to issue the prescription — a new condition requires a consultation, whereas repeat prescriptions for stable conditions may be issued without one
Practice policy — some practices bundle prescription fees into consultations; the CMA's reforms will require this to be shown transparently

Frequently asked questions

Am I entitled to a written prescription from my vet?

The CMA's Veterinary Market Investigation has confirmed that vets must provide a written prescription on request, with this requirement being phased in from 2026 into 2027. A vet can only decline in limited clinical circumstances (e.g. if the medicine is not available from external pharmacies), not simply because they prefer you to buy from them. In practice, many vets will already issue one on request as good practice.

How much can my vet charge for a written prescription?

The CMA is capping prescription fees at £21 for the first item and £12.50 for each subsequent item on the same prescription (the caps include VAT and rise with inflation each year). This cap is being phased in during 2027 — from March 2027 for the larger vet groups, and by September 2027 for smaller practices — so until your practice comes into scope, its current fee may still apply.

Can I use a written prescription at any pharmacy?

Yes — you can use a vet prescription at any registered veterinary pharmacy, including reputable online pharmacies such as VetUK, PetDrugs Online, and Animed Direct. Always check the pharmacy is registered with the RCVS or the VMD before purchasing.

CMA Veterinary Market Investigation Order

Under the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) reforms — with the Order due by September 2026 and price lists phased in through 2027 — UK vet practices will publish prices for this procedure. VetPricelist aggregates these published prices so you can compare them in one place.