How do I check whether an online pharmacy is legitimate?

Steps from FDA and NABP

• Find the pharmacy's name and address, then look it up in the state board of pharmacy's license database. FDA's page says not to use a pharmacy that is not listed.
• Check that it requires a valid prescription, gives a U.S. address and phone number, and has a licensed pharmacist you can reach. FDA's page lists these checks.
• NABP's consumer page lists the same kinds of checks, plus its Safe Site search tool and a domain ending in .pharmacy as signs of a legitimate site.

Red flags NABP lists

• No state license.
• Unrealistic discounts.
• Cryptocurrency-only payment.
• Damaged packaging.

What a license check cannot tell you

• It shows license status at the time you check. Licenses can lapse or be disciplined, so check the state board's current record.
• It does not show that a particular product is FDA-approved. FDA says compounded drugs are not.
• It does not tell you whether a pharmacy may compound a given peptide. That depends on FDA's bulk-substance rules.

Why this matters for peptide sellers

A seller that is not a pharmacy has no state pharmacy license to look up, and a site that sells without a prescription fails one of FDA's checks. Research-use-only sellers are covered in our explainer on labels.