• Reducing outbreak severity – making sores smaller, less painful, and faster to heal.
• Shortening outbreak duration – helping you recover more quickly.
• Preventing outbreaks – when taken daily (known as suppressive therapy), antivirals can lower how often outbreaks happen.
• Reducing transmission risk – daily antivirals also reduce the chances of passing herpes to a partner, though they don’t eliminate the risk completely.

How Antivirals for Herpes Work

1. Herpes stays dormant most of the time.
2. After the initial infection, the virus hides inside your nerve cells. While it’s dormant, antivirals can’t reach it. That’s why herpes is considered a lifelong infection.
3. When the virus “wakes up,” antivirals step in.
4. During an outbreak (or when the virus is starting to reactivate), herpes begins making copies of itself. Antivirals are designed to sneak into this process.
5. They act like a “decoy.”
6. Herpes needs building blocks to make new viral DNA. Antivirals mimic those building blocks. Once the virus tries to use them, the replication process gets stuck—almost like putting the wrong puzzle piece into a slot.
7. The result?
   • The virus can’t multiply as fast.
   • Outbreaks are shorter and less severe.
   • When taken daily (suppressive therapy), antivirals lower the chances of outbreaks showing up at all.
   • They also reduce the risk of passing herpes to a partner.

The Most Common Antivirals for Herpes

1. Acyclovir

• Brand name: Zovirax
• How it works: The original herpes antiviral, widely available and usually the least expensive.
• Dosing: Taken several times a day (usually 2–5 times, depending on whether it’s for an outbreak or daily suppression).
• Pros: Affordable, well-studied, highly effective.
• Cons: Requires frequent dosing, which can be inconvenient.

2. Valacyclovir

• Brand name: Valtrex
• How it works: A “prodrug” of acyclovir, meaning your body converts it into acyclovir once you take it.
• Dosing: Usually once or twice daily, making it easier to stick to.
• Pros: More convenient dosing, equally effective.
• Cons: Often more expensive than acyclovir.

3. Famciclovir

• Brand name: Famvir
• How it works: Similar to acyclovir and valacyclovir but processed differently by the body.
• Dosing: Usually once or twice a day.
• Pros: Works well for both HSV-1 and HSV-2; may be useful for people who don’t respond as well to the other two.
• Cons: Less commonly prescribed, sometimes more expensive.

Why Different Antivirals Exist

• Acyclovir was the original and still works great, but it needs to be taken more often.
• Valacyclovir is basically a “pro-drug” of acyclovir—it turns into acyclovir in your body but is absorbed much better, so you need fewer pills.
• Famciclovir works a little differently in the body but achieves the same end result. It’s often used if people don’t respond well to the other two.

How to Choose the Right One

• If cost is your biggest concern → Acyclovir may be your best option.
• If you want convenience and fewer daily pills → Valacyclovir is often preferred.
• If you’ve tried the others and need an alternative → Famciclovir could be worth discussing.

Daily Therapy vs. On-Demand

• Daily suppressive therapy: Taking antivirals every day can reduce outbreaks by up to 70–80% and lower the chance of passing herpes to a partner.
• Episodic therapy: Some people only take antivirals at the first sign of an outbreak (tingling, itching, burning). This can shorten outbreaks but doesn’t reduce transmission risk between outbreaks.
  
  

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Where to get antivirals

NOTE!

Comparison of Common Herpes Antivirals

Learn more about antivirals on HerpAlert. 

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