AndroFeme vs Testogel for Women: What's the Difference?

If testosterone has been suggested to you, it will almost certainly be one of two things: a cream called AndroFeme, or a men’s gel such as Testogel or Tostran used at a much smaller dose. Neither is licensed for women in the UK, so both are prescribed off-label. The practical differences come down to how the dose is measured, what it costs, and how easy it is to get.

The short version

• •AndroFeme is a cream made for women, so the dose is measured at the strength women actually need.
• •Testogel and Tostran are made for men, so a female dose is a fraction of a sachet or a few pumps.
• •Neither is licensed for women in the UK. Both are off-label either way.
• •Both need blood tests before starting and while you continue.

AndroFeme

AndroFeme 1% is a testosterone cream developed in Australia specifically for women. It comes with a measuring applicator marked in the doses women use, so a daily dose is something you can actually see and repeat. It is not licensed in the UK, so it has to be imported, which is why not every pharmacy can supply it and why it usually costs more.

Testogel and Tostran

These are licensed in the UK, but for men, at doses several times higher than a woman needs. To use them for a woman, the prescriber works out a much smaller amount: a portion of a sachet, or a set number of pumps. They are easier to obtain and generally cheaper, because they are stocked as ordinary UK products rather than imported.

The trade-off is measuring. Dividing a product designed for someone else’s dose is more approximate than using an applicator marked for yours, and a sachet opened and part-used raises the obvious practical questions about the rest of it.

What is the same for both

Testosterone for women is used at low doses and alongside HRT rather than instead of it. The British Menopause Society supports its use for menopausal women with low sexual desire where HRT alone has not been enough, and that is the situation it is normally prescribed in. Both options need blood tests before you start and while you continue, to keep levels in the range intended for women. Neither should be bought from an unregulated seller, whichever name is on the box.

So which one

That is a decision for the prescriber who knows your history, not a decision to make from an article. What is reasonable to do is arrive at the conversation knowing that both exist, that both are off-label, and that if one is not available to you the other usually is. Being offered a men’s gel is not a sign of being fobbed off.

How Solene fits

Solene is a nurse-led menopause service that treats the whole picture, not just hot flushes. A nurse prescriber working through a CQC-registered practice can assess whether testosterone is right for you, and which form makes sense, alongside the rest of your care, with no GP referral and no waiting list. Solene is the platform, not the clinical provider.

This article is general information, not medical advice. Which product suits you, and whether testosterone is appropriate at all, is a decision to make with a qualified prescriber.