The best online pharmacies have good product information, U.S. Food and Drug Administration-approved drugs, safe and secure product storage and delivery, and easy ordering for customers. Ordering should be confidential and packaging should not telegraph contents to casual onlookers. Low pricing, international availability and good customer service are needed as well. The top websites are user friendly. The top 10 pharmacy sites are well designed, easy and quick to use, even if the user doesn't have a broadband Internet service. E-commerce options, interactivity with users and positive customer feedback are also factors in ranking the best sites for drugs, health and beauty products.
AmericaRX
AmericaRX offers multiple shopping venues from brand and alphabetical choices to search and browse options. There are multiple affiliations: a NexTag "trusted seller," one the Top 500 E-Retailers, a LinkShare "premium merchant," "SortPrice" certified merchant, a member of PharmacyChecker.com and a VeriSign secured 128-bit SSL system for payment.
The site has availability of delivery tracking, free shipping on items more than $69, customer service and help with ordering which are all displayed prominently. Health, beauty, toy and candy products are all available with special storage for individual wish list and account information. Top 10 Links lists AmericaRX as tops all around.
drugstore.com
Drugstore.com online pharmacy has many of the good points of AmericaRX, but there is more advertising on the home page.
Affiliations include VIPPS National Association Boards of Pharmacy, being a TRUSTe certified pharmacy and options for PayPal, Google Checkout and BillMeLater accounts. Tabs at the top of the home page give "green and natural," pets, food and gourmet, sexual well-being and GNC shopping options as well. Their "Going Green" logo shows a commitment to environmental issues. The editors at Top 10 Links listed it second overall of all online pharmacies reviewed.
Rite Aid
Rite Aid has incorporated Eckerd into its online as well as physical locations. The site is a bit less user friendly and also has a bit colder "look and feel" than the first two sites but has the familiarity of well-known brand name products to put it in third place overall.
Rite Aid does have good search and store finder features and touts sale items, automated refills, GNC, gift cards, photo services center, video values to watch online, a weekly circular and a section on caring for elderly parents.
CVS
CVS is in fourth place among the top 10 online pharmacies with a familiar brand name and an easily used site, but there is only the VIPPS National Association Boards of Pharmacy validating affiliation listed.
The moving, digital advertising banner may slow down your computer, but the "Popular Shopping Aisles" for gifts, baby and child, fertility, weight loss and other topical items is a handy optional search area. Special services on the site include product recall alerts, Medicare information and a Spanish language option.
Walgreens
Walgreens well-known pharmacy name looks good but loads slowly with flashing advertising to put the site in fifth place.
It does have a section of durable medical goods like lift chairs and scooters and free shipping with orders more than $50. The "Learn and Shop" section has information on allergies, diabetes, flu and heart health items. They are also a VIPPS certified pharmacy site and have convenient search and store locator features.
Sav-On Drugs
Sav-On Drugs pharmacy group represents a dozen different online pharmacy sites like ACME, Biggs, Cub, Shaw's Osco, Shop 'n' Save, Albertsons and Farm Fresh for each of the individual pharmacies represented to put this portal site in sixth place.
One has to go through this portal to get to the individual sites. Once a shopper chooses an individual site, she finds a similar template for each individual location with all having partnerships with the National Headache Foundation, American Heart Association and Medicine Safety. Individual sites also have their own special items, such as groceries at the Farm Fresh site.
FamilyMeds
FamilyMeds may not be as well known as some of the other sites, but it has a good look and feel as well as lots of quality affiliations listed to put it in seventh place.
There are links to Twitter and Facebook and both live chat and feedback options are available. Affiliations include GoDaddy.com secured ordering, Better Business Bureau, VIPPS and Pharmacy Checker. They also offer free shipping on orders of more than $45.
Snyder Drugs
Snyder Drugs is also a lesser known brand but has a simple, straightforward site for user friendliness to put it in eighth place. It offers online specials, a 99 cent per week generic prescription club and store locator.
Winn-Dixie
Winn-Dixie's overly simple online pharmacy devotes most of its site to advertising to put it in ninth place. It does have gas saving coupons for having shopped with the site, groceries available, online grocery coupons and special information on the site for hurricane preparedness. A free photo book and recall information are also available.
Medicap Pharmacy
Medicap Pharmacy online has a very simple look at tenth place on the list. No non-drug items are advertised but a store locator and search engine are available. There is also an easy refill tab for reorders.
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