The Fast Facts
- Hims can provide safe, confidential access to licensed healthcare professionals for guidance and prescriptions for hair growth, erectile dysfunction, skin care, and more.
- Healthcare professionals are available online and can review your symptoms through a questionnaire and determine which medication(s) would work best for you.
- Two of our testers walk us through their onboarding experience at Hims.
Erectile dysfunction
Hair regrowth
Weight loss
Hims is one of the many platforms that offer telehealth online from licensed providers, with services ranging from skin care and hair loss to anxiety and erectile dysfunction (ED).
You must purchase prescription drugs with a Hims subscription that delivers a month’s worth of medications 12 times per year. You can purchase nonprescription products without a subscription. Hims does not accept insurance.
If you’re considering medication to treat ED symptoms, Viagra might be one of the first options that comes to mind. Since it received approval from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in 1998, Viagra has been consistently shown to be an effective treatment option for ED.
However, along with its popularity have come several counterfeit pills over the years. Buying through a disreputable source likely meant that those pills were not approved by the FDA and could contain unlisted ingredients or not contain the advertised drug at all.
However, many reputable online ED medication services, such as Hims, offer genuine brand-name prescription medications.
Hims offers legitimate, brand-name Viagra by prescription in doses of 25 mg, 50 mg, and 100 mg. If you’re prescribed Viagra, Hims will mail it directly to you in individual single-use pill packets.
Viagra is intended to be taken as needed before sexual activity and can reduce ED symptoms for 4 to 6 hours. You should take it 30 to 60 minutes before sex to allow time for the medication to take effect, and you need to avoid taking it more than once per day.
Hims Viagra starts at $139 per dose.
What we love about Hims
- straightforward, modern website that’s easy to navigate
- wide range of products and treatments
- proven ingredients and formulations
- clear photos and step-by-step usage guidance
- quick and easy questionnaire
- real-time customer service chat
What we didn’t like
- difficult to find pricing information for each product
- mobile version of Hims is hard to read
- all information about the types of treatments Hims offers is in the middle or bottom of the page
- links at the top of the page take you directly to survey
Hims Telehealth
Each company we recommend — including Hims — undergoes a thorough vetting process. During this process, a team of experts carefully evaluates each company based on the quality, accessibility, cost, and availability of its products or services. This allows us to give you strong recommendations for products and services that offer good value for your money.
If you’d like to learn more about our selection process and scoring system for telehealth platforms, check out Healthline Scores: How We Evaluate Men’s Telehealth Platforms.
Our Medical Standards and Insights team has carefully researched and vetted over 11,000 products and services. We evaluate services for consistency with standards of care and best practices, and we look into each brand’s reputation before sharing products and services on Healthline.
To choose the services on this page, we considered all the ED treatment services that passed our vetting process. Then, we scored each service to narrow down our list even further.
Hims reviews: Is Hims worth trying?
We tested Hims from the initial sign-up stage through prescription delivery
To better understand what people can expect when ordering through Hims, we had two testers go through the onboarding process to get a sense of the quality, effectiveness, safety, and more.
One of Healthline’s project managers asked their partner to sign up for Hims hair loss treatments and test the service for over a month. We’ll call him Aaron*.
Aaron tested this platform to explore ED medications more for the audience he typically writes for. Parisa Syed tested this platform to showcase the process as easily as she could, since “the function of the drugs are the same; it’s the services that are different.”
*The name has been changed to protect our tester’s anonymity.
The website itself
Both Aaron and Parisa liked the website and found it intuitive, straightforward, and easy to navigate.
“[It’s] very modern, lots of pictures, really nice and calm color scheme,” Parisa said. “Almost understated. What I appreciate about their website is that the text surrounding the prescription medications is smaller, and the image of the Hims pill packet is extremely large. So if users do catch sight of it, it’s more of a coincidental marketing opportunity.”
Though Parisa liked the website, the one irritating thing she found was that “you have to scroll down to the middle of the page for information about the available meds. Otherwise, if you click on the meds linked above, you get taken to the questionnaire immediately. Could be helpful for some, but if you want to do more research, it could be irritating.”
Aaron also used the mobile version of Hims but found that the text “could be difficult to read in its entirety when long paragraphs were cut off, or content couldn’t all fit together on a single page.” It became a bigger problem when he was making selections for the assessment.
Another problem Aaron had with the mobile version was that he felt somewhat uncomfortable that someone might see what he was browsing from a distance, so he kept his back to a wall.
- Questionnaire: To get started, you fill out an intensive consultation form that asks questions about your age, sex, medical history, and more. Both of our testers found the Hims questionnaire pretty long, lasting 5 to 8 minutes.
- Identity check: Before you get to the confirmation page, Hims asks you to verify your identity with either a Social Security number or ID.
- Confirmation page: This page comes after you add your shipping address and confirms your “plan” based on your recommended product. They give you shipping frequencies, and the price per month is different for each:
- monthly supply
- 3-month supply
- 5-month supply
- Professional meet and payment: Next, Hims will ask you to fill out your payment information, but they note that you won’t be charged unless you’re prescribed the medication by the healthcare professional you meet with. You’ll be able to schedule a time and date with someone in your state after you submit your payment.
- If you have follow-up questions or feel like the medication or dose isn’t working for you, you can follow up with your prescriber about adjusting the dosage or trying a different medication.
- Receive the medication: After consulting with your healthcare professional and finding the best medication for you, you’ll receive your medication. Hims works with partner pharmacies to refill your prescription, and they’ll send it to your address within 2 to 5 business days. Shipping is free.
Hims aims to provide a convenient shopping experience. The company collects personal health information and info to verify your identity. How Hims uses or distributes the information to its partners, such as doctors or pharmacies, depends on your state’s health privacy laws.
Hims isn’t intended for use by minors, except those ages 13 to 18 years who are seeking treatment for skin issues such as acne. The site features an extensive explanation of its practices, protected health information, and use of information on its website.
Hims cannot receive returns for prescription medications. Damaged or defective products can be replaced or a refund issued, depending on the customer support team. Though you cannot return a delivered prescription, you are able to cancel the subscription at any time in account settings.
Hims packages its ED products in envelopes. The shipping label will display the Hims company name and sometimes an “H” logo on its packaging. However, if you order products not for ED treatment, they will arrive in a brown, corrugated box with “hims” printed on the side.
• PE
• hair loss
• anxiety
• depression
• skin care
• sleep concerns
• weight management
• sildenafil (generic Viagra)
• Cialis
• tadalafil (generic Cialis)
• Hard Mints (compound med)
• minoxidil (foam or solution)
• finasteride and minoxidil spray
• thickening shampoo
• thickening conditioner
• biotin gummies
• PE
• hair loss
• hormone imbalances
• skin care
• STIs
• weight management
• sildenafil (generic Viagra)
• Cialis
• tadalafil (generic Cialis)
• daily generic tadalafil
• minoxidil
• finasteride and minoxidil
• PE
• hair loss
• hormone imbalances
• sleep concerns
• weight management
• sildenafil (generic Viagra)
• Cialis
• tadalafil (generic Cialis)
• daily generic tadalafil
Finasteride and minoxidil are considered cosmetic and are not covered by most insurance plans. Hims doesn’t accept insurance for medical consultations or products.
However, prices are typically less than half of what you might pay at your local pharmacy.
Viagra, Cialis, and Stendra are approved by the FDA. The generic versions of those drugs have medical uses beyond those of the original patented drugs, even though the active ingredients are the same.
However, not all Hims products are FDA-approved since the company’s offerings also include many herbal remedies and other products. It’s important to verify which product you’re buying and check the FDA status.
The effectiveness of ED medication can depend on several key factors, including your lifestyle, overall health, and sexual habits.
Cialis and tadalafil can be taken as needed and are longer-acting medications, allowing for more spontaneous sexual activity. These medications can be effective in as little as 30 minutes but can take up to 2 hours to start working in some cases. Cialis and tadalafil can also be taken daily at a lower dose so you can always be ready for sex.
On the other hand, Viagra, sildenafil, and Stendra are generally effective for about 4 to 6 hours. You should take at least 30 to 60 minutes before sexual activity.
Hims products are designed to prevent, slow, or even reverse hair loss. The products differ from those offered by Keeps. With Hims, you can purchase accompanying shampoo, conditioner, and gummies to supplement your hair treatment.
With consistent use, the company says you may see a difference in 3 to 6 months. According to the website, the site has a 4.5-star rating for product effectiveness, delivery, and professional medical guidance.
Hims is a telemedicine company specializing in hair-loss and sexual-dysfunction medications and other wellness products. It can save you the hassle of an in-person doctor’s appointment and a trip to the pharmacy. The online process is straightforward, and products ship directly to you.
Hims also offers hair loss products with Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval and competitively priced erectile dysfunction (ED) products.
It offers one-stop shopping, allowing you to consult with a licensed doctor, receive a prescription for medication, and subscribe to have it delivered monthly to your home.