Metformin prescribing across the NHS.
Metformin remains where type 2 diabetes starts: 27.4m items a year, first-line in every guideline for two decades and still the most prescribed antidiabetic in England by a distance. Around it, the gliptins, gliflozins and GLP-1s fight over what comes second; metformin itself barely moves.
The NHS in England dispensed 27,384,346 prescription items of Metformin in the 12 months to May 2026, across primary care and hospitals.
Spending on Metformin over those 12 months was £58.6m at net ingredient cost, the list price of what was dispensed before any discounts.
Items were up 2.8% on the previous 12 months.
99% of Metformin volume moved through primary care and 1% through hospital pharmacies.
Among Integrated Care Boards, NHS West and North London ICB dispensed the highest volume of Metformin.
Source: NHS Business Services Authority open data (English Prescribing Data and SCMD), OGL v3.0. Items count prescriptions dispensed, not patients treated.
| Month | Items | Spend (NIC) |
|---|---|---|
| May 2026 | 2,245,418 | £4.3m |
| April 2026 | 2,295,878 | £4.4m |
| March 2026 | 2,330,172 | £4.5m |
| February 2026 | 2,131,614 | £4.1m |
| January 2026 | 2,305,556 | £4.4m |
| December 2025 | 2,407,386 | £5.1m |
| November 2025 | 2,185,211 | £4.6m |
| October 2025 | 2,367,058 | £5.0m |
| September 2025 | 2,309,730 | £5.5m |
| August 2025 | 2,193,245 | £5.2m |
| July 2025 | 2,384,620 | £5.7m |
| June 2025 | 2,228,458 | £5.9m |
The same series as the chart, most recent month first. The full monthly history, as CSV, sits behind Apply.
Average items by calendar month across the full history, indexed to the annual mean.
Metformin across all 36 ICBs.
Every Integrated Care Board in England, shaded by how much metformin its GPs dispense per head of population. Hover an ICB to name it. The ranked figures for all 36 ICBs, and the drill-down to practice level, are in the full report.
Darker shading marks where Metformin is dispensed most per head of population. Exact figures for every ICB, and the drill-down to practice level, are in the full report.
Zoomed out to the 7 NHS regions.
The same 12 months rolled up to NHS England's seven regions, ranked by intensity.
The teaser view.
Three rows each. The full 36-ICB view, every prescribing organisation, every strength and the hospital picture sit below the fold, behind Apply.
- 1 NHS West and North London ICB 2.0m
- 2 NHS North East and North Cumbria ICB 1.9m
- 3 NHS Greater Manchester ICB 1.5m
- – + 33 more. Unlock the full 36-ICB table. Unlock →
- 1 NHS West and North London ICB +5.9%
- 2 NHS North East London ICB +4.4%
- 3 NHS South East London ICB +4.0%
- – + 33 more. Unlock every ICB, ranked. Unlock →
- 1 Metformin 500mg tablets 53%
- 2 Metformin 500mg modified-release tablets 25%
- 3 Metformin 1g modified-release tablets 13%
- – + 3 more. Unlock every strength and pack. Unlock →
Split of items across NHSBSA primary care and SCMD hospital dispensing.
Prescribing by deprivation.
Items per 1,000 registered patients by deprivation decile (1 = most deprived), practice deprivation weighted by where each practice's patients live. Read the shape rather than the absolute level: the most and least deprived deciles cover far fewer practices, and age structure drives much of the gradient.
The devolved nations.
| Nation | Items · 12 months | Data to |
|---|---|---|
| England | 27.4m | May 2026 |
| Northern Ireland | 627k | May 2026 |
| Scotland | 1.6m | April 2026 |
| Wales | 1.6m | April 2026 |
Each nation publishes its own community prescribing data, with different coding and list rules, so read these per-nation rather than as an exact UK total. Sources: NHSBSA (England), Public Health Scotland.
What open data won't tell you about metformin.
Fixed-dose combinations of metformin with newer agents are separate chemical lines, so this page understates how many patients take metformin in some form.
Asked and answered.
Is metformin prescribing rising or falling in the NHS?
Rising. England dispensed 27,384,346 items of Metformin in the 12 months to May 2026, up 2.8% on the previous 12 months. Items count prescriptions dispensed, not patients treated, so the change can reflect dose and duration shifts as well as patient numbers.
How much does the NHS spend on metformin?
£58.6m at net ingredient cost in the 12 months to May 2026. Net ingredient cost is the list price of the medicine before discounts and rebates; the NHS's final bill, especially for hospital medicines, is usually lower.
Where in England is metformin prescribed most?
By raw volume, NHS West and North London ICB dispensed the most metformin in the last 12 months. Raw volume favours the biggest populations; the map on this page shades every ICB by items per head to correct for that.
How up to date is this data?
This page runs to May 2026, the most recent NHSBSA release. Prescribing data publishes roughly six to eight weeks in arrears, and DoseTrend refreshes within 48 hours of each monthly release.
The full breakdown.
Every ICB, every prescribing organisation, every strength, the hospital view, and the monthly briefing PDF. Sample rows shown below with the numbers obscured.
Related pages.
See the full molecule directory, or read about the data and pricing.
Track metformin like this, every month.
£1,500 a month per molecule. Apply and we'll pre-fill Metformin for you.