moleculefinder

Escitalopram

C20H21FN2O324.4 g/mol Calculated

Also called Cipralex, Esertia, Esitol and Seroplex.

The SSRI antidepressant sold as Lexapro, used for depression and generalised anxiety. It is the single active mirror-image half of citalopram.

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. Escitalopram on the product labels we hold.

Medicines

LexaproAdded by the makerActive ingredient

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 nitrogen bonded to three carbons, with no hydrogen of its own. Its spare pair of electrons can still pick up a hydrogen ion, so a tertiary amine is a base.

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

Escitalopram

Citalopram

The same atoms; escitalopram is one mirror-image form, citalopram a mix of both.

Citalopram is a mix of two mirror-image forms and escitalopram is the active one isolated, so half the amount does roughly the same work.

Escitalopram vs Citalopram, side by side

Also compared

Sources and notes
  • The sentencefrom sourceMoleculeFinder comparison notesThe pair's answer line.
  • The two drawingscomputedPubChem structures, drawn by RDKitDrawn the same way round; the amber marks where the two differ.
  • The captionfrom sourceMoleculeFinder curated

Properties and sources

Calculated by PubChem

Molecular formula
C20H21FN2O
Molecular weight
324.4 g/mol
XLogP3octanol/water, log units
3.2
Polar surface areatopological
36.3 Ų
H-bond donors
0
H-bond acceptors
4
Rotatable bonds
5
Complexity
466

Reported Hazard label (GHS), ECHA via PubChem

Warning Irritant pictogram (GHS07); hazard statements H302, H317, H410

Reported Licence

The US Food and Drug Administration licenses Escitalopram for human use (NDA 021323, authorized August 14, 2002), as Lexapro. Drugs@FDA

Groups it belongs to

Category
Prescription medicine
Family
SSRIs
Chemical groups
Aromatics, Ethers, Halogenated
Elements
Fluorine, Nitrogen
Hazard classes
Irritant, GHS Warning
SMILESCN(C)CCC[C@@]1(C2=C(CO1)C=C(C=C2)C#N)C3=CC=C(C=C3)F

PubChem CID 146570 · Wikidata Q423757 · InChIKey WSEQXVZVJXJVFP-FQEVSTJZSA-N · Data refreshed

How MoleculeFinder sources and labels its data

Questions
What is Escitalopram?
The SSRI antidepressant sold as Lexapro, used for depression and generalised anxiety. It is the single active mirror-image half of citalopram.
How toxic is Escitalopram?
Its GHS hazard label carries the signal word Warning and the hazard pictogram Irritant. from source
What kind of molecule is Escitalopram?
Escitalopram has the formula C20H21FN2O and a molecular weight of 324.4 g/mol. MoleculeFinder files it under SSRIs, in the prescription medicine group. from sourcefrom sourcefrom sourcefrom source
Who licenses Escitalopram as a medicine?
The US Food and Drug Administration licenses Escitalopram for human use (NDA 021323, authorized August 14, 2002), as Lexapro. 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

The same atoms; escitalopram is one mirror-image form, citalopram a mix of both.CitalopramC20H21FN2OCompared side by side with escitalopramSertralineC17H17Cl2N
Sources and notes
  • A group apartfrom sourceMoleculeFinder comparison captions
  • Compared side by sidefrom sourceMoleculeFinder comparison notesA molecule we compare it with on its own page.
  • The drawingscomputedPubChem structures, drawn by RDKit