If you’re struggling with erectile dysfunction, you’re probably searching for the best ED pills that can reinvigorate your sex life and make you feel more confident in the bedroom once again. But with so many erectile dysfunction pills on the market, how can you know which one is right for you?
Here we take a look at the key differences between Viagra, Cialis, Levitra, and sildenafil, including their effects, price, duration, and target market. First we’ll define each one, then we’ll compare them with one another.
Viagra
Viagra is probably the best known and most recognizable name on this list. It’s so popular that many people don’t realize that “Viagra” is a brand name and not an ingredient.
So, what is Viagra? Well its active ingredient is sildenafil, a drug which relaxes the walls of blood vessels in the penis, allowing blood to flow into the corpus cavernosa. In other words, it helps to fill the length of your penis with blood and hence cause an erection.
You should take Viagra 30-60 minutes before you plan to have sex, and its effects will usually last 2-3 hours but they can last up to 5 hours depending on various factors like your age and metabolism. The older you get, the longer the effects tend to last. Men over 65 can expect long periods with boners!
The price of Viagra varies depending on your pharmacy and whether you have insurance, but the standard price is usually between $60-$75 per pill.
Cialis
Cialis is a brand name drug which is based on tadalafil. It is used to treat both erectile dysfunction and BPH (benign prostatic hyperplasia), which basically means a non-cancerous enlarged prostate. However, the Cialis brand is more closely associated with sexual performance.
So what does Cialis do? Well, Cialis is a phosphodiesterase type 5 inhibitor, which is lovingly shortened to “PDE5 inhibitor” to save us all a few much-needed breaths. It helps to relax the muscles in your prostate and bladder as well as increase blood flow to the penis.
You are supposed to take Cialis at least 2 hours before having sex, and its effects can last for up to 36 hours after use. This doesn’t mean that you’ll have an erection all day every day; it just means that it will be easier to get erections if you become sexually aroused while Cialis is in your system. For this reason, some people with ED take it regularly.
As always, prices can differ depending on various factors, but a typical pill of Cialis costs between $9-$12.
Levitra
Levitra is a name brand ED medication whose active ingredient is vardenafil. Notice how all these ingredients have “afil” on the end? It’s because they’re all different versions of the PDE5 inhibitors that we mentioned earlier.
You take Levitra 60 minutes before having sex, and its effects are said to last between 4-5 hours in total.
Levitra relaxes muscles in the walls of your blood vessels, increasing blood flow in the body and helping to direct blood flow to your penis. It works as a vasodilator, helping to widen your blood vessels.
Levitra is used to treat impotence and erectile dysfunction, and you can usually find it for about $55 per pill.
Common Levitra side effects include headaches, flushing, heartburn, dizziness, back pain, stomach problems, and nausea.
Sildenafil
Sildenafil is the active ingredient in Viagra which causes erections in men with ED problems. It is one of many generic ED drugs which have become available since the patents have begun expiring on brand name ED medications.
This means that the instructions for sildenafil are usually the same for taking Viagra – consume it 30-60 minutes before having sex, be aware that it can last anywhere from 2-5 hours, and the effects tend to last longer if you’re older (especially 65 or older).
Again, it works by relaxing the walls of blood vessels in your penis, allowing blood into the corpus cavernosa and causing an impressive erection for a few hours.
Pfizer, the company which produced Viagra, sold their little blue pill at a very high price because they knew that their patent would run out one day. However, as the patent has begun expiring and competitors have started making sildenafil alternatives, the price has significantly dropped – you’re looking at about $4-$5 per pill.
This means that you could buy around 15 generic sildenafil pills for the same price as 1 Viagra pill, and the effects are exactly the same. What a time to be alive!
Viagra vs Cialis
Viagra and Cialis work in different ways. Viagra is designed to be taken shortly before you desire an erection, producing temporary effects.
For instance, if you’ve got a steamy night of romance planned for one evening, taking a Viagra around 30-60 minutes before you have sex should produce a definite erection which lasts around 2-5 hours.
On the other hand, Cialis is often taken regularly in small doses on a long-term basis, or taken in higher doses during periods when you’re likely to have sex but you don’t know when.
This is because Cialis stays in your system for up to 36 hours. Rather than giving you a throbbing 36-hour erection, it just makes it easier to get hard in this period if you do become sexually aroused.
So, Viagra or Cialis? If you need to get hard quickly for a specific timeframe, Viagra is ideal. If you want to make it easier to get hard during a prolonged stretch of time, Cialis is best.
Viagra vs Levitra
Viagra and Levitra work in very similar ways, although Levitra is slightly cheaper, clocking in at around $55 per pill compared to $67.50 per pill for Viagra.
Both ED medications should be taken around 60 minutes before sex and both can last for up to 5 hours. Viagra can start working within 30 minutes of consumption, so it may be slightly faster-working than Levitra.
Levitra comes with fewer side effects than Viagra for most people. For instance, rashes, muscle aches, and vision distortions are common side effects of Viagra, but rarely occur with Levitra.
If you want to get hard as quickly as possible, then Viagra is best. If you want to minimize your chances of experiencing side effects, Levitra is best.
Cialis vs Levitra
Cialis can be taken 30 minutes before sex, while Levitra needs to be taken at least 60 minutes before sex. Cialis makes it easier to obtain an erection when you’re aroused, while Levitra is designed to produce a definite erection that lasts for up to 4-5 hours after consumption.
Cialis stays in your system for 36 hours, so it is possible to continue getting strong erections during that timeframe if you feel “turned on” enough. On the other hand, Levitra’s effects wear off after the initial few hours.
If you’re looking for a very hard erection that will last for a few hours, go with Levitra. If you want to make erections easier to get during a 36-hour period, go with Cialis.
Viagra vs Sildenafil
Sildenafil is the active ingredient in Viagra. Let me say that again – Sildenafil is the thing in Viagra which causes the erections. Asides from the name, the branding, and the astronomical price, there is no difference between Viagra and sildenafil.
Pfizer, the company that makes Viagra, is in the process of losing its medical patent on Viagra completely by 2020, so competitors are now making Viagra generic name alternatives with sildenafil as the active ingredient.
Pfizer has recently started buying other pharmaceutical companies, presumably knowing that the end is nigh for Viagra in its current form.
If you’re looking to spend $75 on an ED pill, buy Viagra. If you’re looking to spend $5 on a pill which is exactly the same, buy Sildenafil. Personally, I think it’s an easy choice.
So which one is best?
Sildenafil is the cheapest drug on this list by far, so if you live in the USA and you’re not the heir to a grand fortune, you’re probably going to want to use a generic Sildenafil product to treat your erectile dysfunction.
Personally, I would recommend Bluechew. Bluechew is a company selling chewable forms of sildenafil and tadalafil, basically creating cheap chewable “Viagra” and “Cialis”.
You get a monthly plan delivered via a mail subscription service, similar to Dollar Shave Club or Hello Fresh. There are different amounts available depending on how active your sex life is. If you opt for 34 chews per month, their biggest plan, then each sildenafil Bluechew works out at around $2.65 each, which is insanely cheap.
The fact that Bluechew sildenafil tablets are chewable also means that they’re easier to consume for some seniors and they get to work more quickly. These chewable sildenafils can be absorbed by your body in as little as 15 minutes for some people, and by the 30-minute mark you’re pretty much guaranteed to have a raging hard-on. Nice!