Yaz vs Yasmin: What’s the difference?

Medically reviewed by Sophia Yen, MD, MPH – Written by Aariyana Britton. Updated March 9, 2021

TLDR: Yasmin and Yaz have the same active ingredients: Ethinyl estradiol and drospirenone. Yaz just has lower dose of estrogen. Yaz has 20 mcg of estrogen which is NOT good for women under the age of 30’s bone health. Yaz has 24 active pills and 4 placebos. Yasmin has 21 active pills and 7 placeboes.

What is Yaz?

Yaz is a prescription medicine used as a contraceptive or birth control to prevent pregnancy and treat symptoms of acne, premenstrual dysphoric disorder, and other gynecological health problems such as PCOS, endometriosis. It may be used alone or with other medications. Although it can be used for many different things, most women take it for birth control or PCOS starting at age 14 who have no known allergic indications of oral contraceptive therapy that have also had one period. 

Yaz has 20 mcg of estrogen which is NOT good for women under the age of 30’s bone health. Yaz has 24 active pills and 4 placebos. 

What is Yasmin?

Yasmin is a combination of two female hormones that is prescribed as a 28-day oral contraceptive pill that is used to prevent pregnancy of women in the childbearing stage of development. It works by inhibiting the release of eggs during the normal menstrual cycle. It also prevents ovulation before menstruation begins.

Yasmin has 30mcg of Ethinyl estradiol (estrogen) in each pill and 21 active pills and 7 placeboes.

What’s the difference between Yaz and Yasmin?

Yaz

• FDA Approved to treat Premenstrual Syndrome.
• Prevents pregnancy. Can treat acne and PCOS.
• Contains 0.2 mg of Ethinyl estradiol/3 mg of drospirenone.
• Take one pink tablet with hormones every day for 24 days, then take one white tablet without hormones for 4 days.
• Can be used by women at least 14 years old and up for acne treatment women of the reproductive age for contraceptive use.
• Without insurance, Costs $15/pack (3 pack minimum) or $20 for 1 pack. With insurance, should be “free” = no copay, no deductible.

Yasmin

• Not FDA approved for acne treatment or premenstrual disorders but doctors can prescribe it for those purposes and more.
• Prevents pregnancy. Can treat acne and PCOS.
• Contains 0.03 mg of Ethinyl estradiol and 3 mg of drospirenone.
• Take one yellow tablet with hormones every day for 21 days, then take one white tablet without hormones every day for 7 days.
• Only for women of reproductive age.
• Without insurance, Costs $15/pack (3 pack minimum) or $20 for 1 pack. With insurance, should be “free” = no copay, no deductible. 

Yaz and Yasmin have the Same active ingredients

Yaz and Yasmin are very similar. They both contain the estrogen Ethinyl estradiol and they both contain the progestin/progesterone drospirenone. 

Yaz and Yasmin differ in the dosage amounts, the number of active pills, and other usages as far as premenstrual disorders and acne for puberty-aged women.  

Yaz and Yasmin have Different dosages of estrogen and # of active pills

Yaz (shorter, smaller name) has less estrogen/Ethinyl estradiol. Yaz only has 20 mcg of Ethinyl estradiol versus Yasmin which has 30 mcg.

Yaz has 24 active pills and 4 placebo/sugar/bleeding time pills. Yasmin has 7 placebo/sugar/bleeding time pills.

Don’t use Yaz if you are under the age of 30

For women under the age of 30, Dr. Yen, our CEO/Co-Founder and young adult medicine specialist does NOT recommend Yaz because it has too low of estrogen dose and thus is bad for your bone density. Doctors at Stanford Medical School (an endocrinologist, gynecologist, and the Division of Adolescent Medicine) agree with Dr. Yen. If you are under 30 years old, you should get at least 30mcg of estrogen (Ethinyl estradiol) to protect your bones. Dr. Yen suggests women under 30 years old consider Yasmin (and its generics) because they have 30mcg of estrogen instead of Yaz which only has 20mcg of estrogen.

Helping with PCOS and other health issues

Yaz and Yasmin are combination oral contraceptive pills (OCP, birth control pills). They prevent pregnancy by preventing the release of an egg (ovulation), and thickening the cervical mucus, blocking sperm from getting into the uterus and getting to the egg.

Yaz can be used to treat acne, reduce the risk of ovarian cysts (as in polycystic ovarian syndrome [PCOS]), and treat painful or heavy periods. 

Drosperinone is good for acne

The progestin/progesterone in Yaz and Yasmin (Drosperinone) is one of the best for acne. Drospirenone is also good for preventing breakthrough bleeding (BTB) when you use birth control pills to make #PeriodsOptional or to #SkipPeriods

Make sure you drink water

However, make sure you are able to drink 8 glasses of water a day when you take Yaz or Yasmin because drospirenone might have a diuretic effect. Diuretic effect means it makes you pee. If you don’t drink enough water, you may end up with a headache.

Generic Yaz and Yasmin are fine

Generics have the SAME active ingredients and the SAME dosage as a brand.

There are several generic equivalents for Yasmin: Syeda, Zumandimine, Ocella, Drospirenone/Ethinyl estradiol (30mcg) and for Yaz: Gianvi, Nikki, Lo-Zumandimine, Loryna, Vestura, Jasmiel, and Drospirenone/Ethinyl Estradiol (20mcg).

They cost as low as $0 with insurance or as little as $15/pack (3 pack minimum) without insurance if you use Pandia Health’s FREE delivery service.

Side Effects of Yaz and Yasmin

Each person responds differently to medications. But for the same active ingredients, the side effects should be the same. The two drugs, Yaz and Yasmin have the same dosage of progestin/progesterone and Yasmin has higher estrogen.

Common side effects for birth control pills in general are:

• Nausea (if you don’t take it on a FULL stomach or right before you go to bed)
• Irregular bleeding (if you don’t take it at the same time every day +/- 5 hrs)
• Headache (if you don’t drink 8 glasses of water a day, the progestin/progesterone in Yaz and Yasmin causes some people to pee more)
• Weight gain (research has shown this doesn’t happen if you compare groups of women taking the medication. but again, each person is different and you might experience this but it is NOT common)
• Breast tenderness. (each person is different. Most people don’t have this issue).

Serious side effects of Yaz and Yasmin

Serious side effects to WATCH out for.

• Blood clots (can show up as SEVERE headache, chest pain, 1 leg swelling, abdominal pain, blurry vision)
• High blood pressure
• Gall-bladder problems
• Increased potassium level (very unlikely, but if you have kidney problems definitely TELL your doctor BEFORE starting this medication)
• Excruciating breast pain
• Nausea 
• Menstrual irregularities
• Stomach pain
• Constipation