Health & fitness · Medication math
Medication taper schedule calculator.
Enter the steps your prescriber wrote down: mg per day and number of days. See tablets per day, date ranges and how many tablets the whole plan needs.
Not medical advice
This tool only does arithmetic on numbers you type in from your own prescription or package label. It does not recommend any drug, dose or schedule. Follow your prescriber, pharmacist and the label, and ask them before changing how you take any medicine.
Inputs
Plan totals
Enter the numbers above.
What this does and does not do
A taper is a planned step-down in dose written by a prescriber. This page does not decide the steps, the speed or the end point. You type the steps; it works out tablets per day (mg per day divided by tablet strength), how long each step runs by date, and the total tablets for the whole plan.
Worked example (arithmetic only, not a dose suggestion). 5 mg tablets and a written plan of 20 mg a day for 5 days, 15 mg for 5 days, 10 mg for 5 days and 5 mg for 5 days. That is 4, 3, 2 and 1 tablets a day, 20 + 15 + 10 + 5 = 50 tablets over 20 days. Starting Thu 8 Oct 2026, the last day is Tue 27 Oct 2026.
If a step needs a part tablet the tool flags it, since splitting depends on the tablet. Ask your pharmacist whether yours can be split, or whether another strength would suit your plan better; the pill splitting calculator shows the tablet counts. Never change a taper on your own, and do not stop a medicine suddenly because a calculator says a step is over.
Frequently asked questions
How do I calculate a taper schedule?
Take the mg per day for each step, divide by the tablet strength to get tablets per day, then multiply by the number of days in that step. Add the steps for the total tablets.
Can this tell me how fast to taper?
No. It only does arithmetic on a step list your prescriber has given you. The size and speed of each step are a medical decision.
What if a step needs half a tablet?
The tool flags any step that is not a whole number of tablets and shows the count. Whether that tablet can be split is for your pharmacist to confirm.
Why does the whole-tablet total round up?
You cannot buy part of a tablet. If the plan needs 50.5 tablets in all, the whole-tablet total is 51.
Sources
Checked
Arithmetic only; all steps come from your prescriber. Runs entirely in your browser. Nothing you type is sent or stored.
Scope
No taper or dose is suggested. Do not change or stop a medicine without your prescriber. This is a calculation aid, not medical or pharmacy advice, and it does not know your medicine, your health or your prescription. Your label, prescriber and pharmacist decide.