between 68°F and 77°F (20°C and 25°C) *Finasteride can also be used to treat male pattern hair loss. **Treatment usually continues for the rest of your life. Finasteride is the active ingredient in Propecia as well as Proscar, Fincar and all other generic Propecia-esque Finasteride-drugs. This essentially means that the effect of all these drugs is the same (with the same dosage), as the active ingredient is the same. Hello guys I am new to this hair loss journey and here to the forums as well. I am 19 suffering from the early stages of hair loss. I am curious is there any difference between propecia, Proscar and Finpecia? Propecia and Proscar are essentially the same drug ie Finasteride. Finasteride reduces the production of Dihydrotestosterone (DHT). Excess DHT causes miniaturization of the hair follicle, resulting in hair becoming very short and fine over time before falling out. The only difference between these two meds is that Propecia is 1mg tablets and Proscar is 5mg. You are correct in that finasteride is the active ingredient in Propecia. It is also the active ingredient in Proscar, which is 5 mg instead of 1 mg. Hair loss sufferers typically buy Proscar and divide the pill into quarters or even fifths to save some cash each month. Some initial shedding is possible with either Proscar or Propecia. They are the same ingredient and should lead to the same results. As long as the quarters of the proscar are around 1.25 mg you should be alright. Let me say that it's been almost 8 years or even more that I'm taking finasteride. The first 2 year I was on propecia which I've gain a lot and then I wanna to save some money and went with proscar by cuttin the pill in 4. Compare Finasteride vs Propecia head-to-head for uses, ratings, cost, side effects, interactions and more. Finasteride rated 5.0/10 vs Propecia rated 4.6/10 in overall patient satisfaction. Finasteride rated 5.0/10 vs Propecia rated 4.6/10 in overall patient satisfaction. Proscar is likely to carry the same risk, although it is not clear whether the increased dose of Finasteride has any influence on the extent of this risk. For more information about the potential side effects, see the following video and the links at the bottom of this page. The first and most important point to make is that both Proscar and Propecia are manufactured by the same company (Merck), and both contain the same active ingredient, Finasteride.