Atorvastatin
Also called Cardyl, Hipolixan, Prevencor and Sortis.
The cholesterol-lowering statin sold as Lipitor, which became the best-selling medicine of all time. It blocks the body's own cholesterol assembly line.
Sources and notes
- The introductionfrom sourceMoleculeFinder curated
- Other namesfrom sourcePubChem / Wikidata
- Formula and weightcomputedPubChem
- 2D drawingcomputedPubChem structure, drawn by RDKit
- 3D modelfrom sourcePubChem 3D conformerLoaded after the page has painted, and on a phone only when you ask for it; the 2D drawing shows until it arrives.
Where you encounter it
Dispensed on prescription, not sold on a shelf. Atorvastatin on the product labels we hold.
Medicines
Every product and list we hold
Sources and notes
- The product labels and their strengthsfrom sourceDailyMed (FDA label)Each label lists the molecule as an ingredient, and an active ingredient at the strength shown.
- How it gets therefrom sourceMoleculeFinder curatedEach mark is set by hand on our lists, never inferred; a label's ingredient is added by the maker. A row with no mark data says Not marked.
- The line abovefrom sourceMoleculeFinder curatedFrom the group the molecule belongs to.
Explore its structure
Choose a part to light it up.
A carbon carrying both a C=O and an O-H, written COOH. In water it gives up that hydrogen, which is what makes the molecule an acid.
From: standard chemistry.
A C=O bonded to a nitrogen, the same link that joins amino acids in a protein. It is sturdy, and its nitrogen is not a base the way an amine's is.
From: standard chemistry.
An O-H on a carbon that is not part of an aromatic ring, the group that makes a molecule an alcohol. It both gives and accepts hydrogen bonds, which helps the molecule mix with water.
From: standard chemistry.
Sources and notes
- The drawingcomputedPubChem structure, drawn by RDKitThe page's one shipped drawing, with the chosen part lit in amber under it.
- The partscomputedFound by ruleEach part is found by a chemical pattern, never picked by hand atom by atom; its words say where they come from.
Compare a related molecule
Atorvastatin
Rosuvastatin
Both are statins, but rosuvastatin is more potent per unit weight and is largely not cleared by CYP3A4, so it has fewer interactions than atorvastatin.
Atorvastatin vs Rosuvastatin, side by sideAlso compared
Sources and notes
- The sentencefrom sourceMoleculeFinder comparison notesThe pair's answer line.
- The two drawingscomputedPubChem structures, drawn by RDKitThe two drawings side by side.
Properties and sources
Calculated by PubChem
- Molecular formula
- C33H35FN2O5
- Molecular weight
- 558.6 g/mol
- XLogP3octanol/water, log units
- 5
- Polar surface areatopological
- 112 Ų
- H-bond donors
- 4
- H-bond acceptors
- 6
- Rotatable bonds
- 12
- Complexity
- 822
Reported Hazard label (GHS), ECHA via PubChem
Warning Irritant pictogram (GHS07) and Health hazard pictogram (GHS08); hazard statements H315, H319, H335, H361, H362
Reported Licence
The US Food and Drug Administration licenses Atorvastatin for human use (NDA 020702, authorized December 17, 1996), as Lipitor. Drugs@FDA
Groups it belongs to
- Category
- Prescription medicine
- Family
- Cholesterol medicines
- Chemical groups
- Alcohols, Carboxylic Acids, Aromatics, Amides, Halogenated
- Hazard classes
- Irritant, Health hazard, GHS Warning
CC(C)C1=C(C(=C(N1CC[C@H](C[C@H](CC(=O)O)O)O)C2=C…88 charactersPubChem CID 60823 · Wikidata Q668093 · InChIKey XUKUURHRXDUEBC-KAYWLYCHSA-N · Data refreshed
Questions
- What is Atorvastatin?
- The cholesterol-lowering statin sold as Lipitor, which became the best-selling medicine of all time. It blocks the body's own cholesterol assembly line.
- How toxic is Atorvastatin?
- Its GHS hazard label carries the signal word Warning and the hazard pictograms Irritant and Health hazard. from source
- What kind of molecule is Atorvastatin?
- Atorvastatin has the formula C33H35FN2O5 and a molecular weight of 558.6 g/mol. MoleculeFinder files it under cholesterol medicines, in the prescription medicine group. from sourcefrom sourcefrom sourcefrom source
- Who licenses Atorvastatin as a medicine?
- The US Food and Drug Administration licenses Atorvastatin for human use (NDA 020702, authorized December 17, 1996), as Lipitor. from source
Sources and notes
- Calculated valuescomputedPubChemComputed from the structure, so no laboratory conditions apply; complexity is PubChem's own structural score.
- Hazard labelfrom sourceECHA via PubChemThe label combines these classifications.
- ECHAfrom sourceAttributionSource: European Chemicals Agency, echa.europa.eu.
- Licencefrom sourceDrugs@FDARead 2026-10-21.
- Data refreshedfrom sourceMoleculeFinder2026-11-09
Keep exploring
Sources and notes
- Compared side by sidefrom sourceMoleculeFinder comparison notesA molecule we compare it with on its own page.
- The drawingscomputedPubChem structures, drawn by RDKit