How Truemeds is Helping Millions of Chronic Patients Save on Medicines in India

India's online pharmacy market was valued at $3.71 billion in 2025 and is projected to reach $14.08 billion by 2034, growing at a CAGR of 15.98% from 2026 to 2034.

Truemeds is an Indian e‑pharmacy and telehealth platform focused on making essential medicines affordable and accessible, especially for patients with chronic conditions. The platform lists a wide range of 2.5 lakh+ products, including prescription (Rx) and over-the-counter (OTC) medicines. It provides clinically approved, high-quality branded substitute medicines at lower costs, empowering users to opt for same-salt or equivalent substitutes prescribed by their doctors.

Doctors and pharmacists on Truemeds ensure patients clearly understand the concept of medicine substitution. They educate users about generic alternatives, explaining how these substitutes have the same active ingredient, safety, and effectiveness as the original medicine, but at a lower cost. Through transparent communication, the platform builds trust and empowers users to choose the same salt or an equivalent substitute prescribed by their doctor, if they prefer.

Truemeds has helped millions of patients across urban and rural India save on their monthly medicine expenses.

In this article, explore more about Truemeds’ founders, business and revenue model, funding, challenges, growth, and more.

Truemeds - About

Truemeds is an Indian e-pharmacy and telehealth platform focused on making essential medicines affordable and accessible for patients. Truemeds leverages technology, medical expertise, and a proprietary recommendation engine to help patients switch to high-quality, affordable branded substitute medicines without compromising on efficacy or safety.

Truemeds - Industry

Truemeds operates within the digital healthcare ecosystem, spanning e-pharmacy, telehealth, and the broader HealthTech sector.

The platform primarily serves chronic patients in India, including those managing diabetes, hypertension, asthma, cardiovascular diseases, and thyroid disorders. Its focus is particularly on middle- and lower-income households that are most vulnerable to rising healthcare costs.

Approximately 21% of India’s elderly population suffers from at least one chronic disease. Post-COVID, medical inflation has been estimated at 10-14% annually, placing sustained pressure on household finances. Around 65 million Indians fall below the poverty line each year due to medical expenses. At the same time, nearly 95% of prescribed drugs in India are off-patent, with an average of 4.7 alternative brands available per molecule, highlighting significant scope for cost optimisation.

Over the next five years, Truemeds aims to establish itself as India’s most trusted platform for affordable chronic care medicines. The company plans to deepen its presence across Tier 2, Tier 3, and rural markets while continuing to strengthen and expand its telehealth ecosystem. By offering substitute medicines at up to 51% lower costs, Truemeds provides huge relief for chronic patients, reducing the financial burden of long-term treatment and easing stress on their pockets.

Truemeds - Founders

Truemeds was founded in 2019 by Akshat Nayyar and Dr. Kunal Wani.

Akshat Nayyar, Co-founder and CEO, holds an MBA in Marketing and Strategy from the Indian School of Business, a Master of Science in Construction Management from Virginia Tech, and a B.Tech in Civil Engineering from VNIT. Before co-founding Truemeds in 2019, he worked with Abbott as Head of the Project Management Office, led corporate strategy at Morgan Corp., and held project management and consulting roles at Faithful+Gould.

Dr. Kunal Wani, Co-founder and COO, holds an MBA in Global Management and Marketing from Thunderbird School of Global Management and has completed a digital and social media marketing programme at the Indian School of Business. Before Truemeds, he held leadership roles at Abbott across digital innovation and knowledge initiatives, and earlier worked at Panacea Biotec, UCB, and Boehringer Ingelheim in medical and brand-focused roles.

Truemeds operates with a patient-first, compliance-driven culture focused on trust, transparency, and long-term healthcare impact. The company employs over 3,000 professionals across India, spanning technology, medical operations, procurement, logistics, customer support, and marketing.

Truemeds - Startup Story

The founders identified a critical gap in India’s healthcare system, where patients were paying vastly different prices for medicines with the exact same composition due to limited awareness, lack of trust, and restricted access to reliable alternatives.

Market research indicated that although affordable substitute medicines were widely available, patients were often hesitant to switch because of concerns around quality, effectiveness, and the absence of proper medical guidance. These insights validated the need for a technology-enabled, doctor-backed solution that could instil confidence in the switching process.

The concept evolved from offering lower-cost medicines to building a full-stack healthcare platform that integrates technology, medical expertise, and logistics. This includes a proprietary algorithm to identify suitable alternatives, consultations with doctors and pharmacists to establish medical trust, and a pan-India delivery network to ensure accessibility.

Truemeds is able to provide affordable medicines because it primarily involves manufacturing costs and avoids additional expenses such as marketing, promotions, and retail markups. This lean approach ensures that savings are directly passed on to the patients.

Initial feedback from both patients and doctors reinforced the importance of education and trust-building, which played a key role in shaping the final product.

Truemeds - Name and Logo

The name combines “True” and “Meds,” reflecting the brand’s commitment to trust, transparency, and honest healthcare, reinforcing its promise of reliable and accessible medicines for patients.

Truemeds - Mission and Vision

Vision: Truemeds aims to be a central pillar of India’s affordable healthcare ecosystem by ensuring that no individual is denied essential medicines due to high cost.

Mission: Truemeds seeks to reduce the financial burden of chronic disease management by enabling informed access to affordable, high-quality medicines across India.

Truemeds - Products/Services

Truemeds is India’s leading online pharmacy, helping chronic patients save up to 51% on their monthly medicine bills through clinically approved branded substitute medicines. The platform enables patients to access affordable, high-quality alternatives sourced exclusively from the top 1% of pharmaceutical manufacturers in India.

By offering clear and transparent information on medicine salts, brands, and off-patent substitute options, Truemeds empowers customers to make informed healthcare decisions, making essential medicines more affordable, accessible, and patient-centric across the country.

How It Works

Patients begin by uploading a prescription or searching for their prescribed medicines on the platform. Truemeds’ proprietary algorithm analyses a database of approximately 2.5 lakh+ pharmaceutical products to identify the best-value substitutes. Recommendations are matched on exact salt composition, dosage, strength, quantity, and maximum possible savings. Before any order is confirmed, a mandatory consultation call with a doctor, pharmacist, or health advisor is conducted to ensure clinical appropriateness and build patient confidence. Once approved, medicines are delivered directly to the patient’s doorstep.

Truemeds addresses the high recurring cost of medicines faced by chronic patients, the widespread lack of awareness about substitute options, and the trust deficit associated with generic medicines. It also improves access to affordable healthcare for patients in remote and underserved areas.

USP

The company’s key differentiators include a proprietary medicine substitution algorithm, mandatory medical consultation with every order, sourcing exclusively from India’s top 1% pharmaceutical manufacturers, and the inclusion of a physical savings letter with every delivery to highlight cost benefits transparently.

Truemeds operates on a proprietary recommendation algorithm supported by a mobile app and web platform. Its ecosystem includes integrated teleconsultation systems and automated refill reminders to support long-term chronic care adherence.

Truemeds - Business Model & Revenue Model

Truemeds drives revenue through the sale of medicines, operating on a volume-led model that balances growth with sustainable margins. Cost efficiencies are achieved via optimised procurement strategies and reduced marketing overheads compared with traditional branded medicines, enabling the platform to offer affordable prices without compromising quality.

Truemeds - Customer Growth and Retention Strategies

Truemeds drives user acquisition and long-term retention through an integrated approach combining performance marketing, organic growth, education, and engagement:

• Performance Marketing: Targeted campaigns on Google and Meta to attract new users.
• Organic Marketing: SEO and ASO optimisation to improve visibility and draw organic traffic.
• Educational Content: Informative material on medicines and health to build trust and patient awareness.
• Mandatory Consultations: Doctor and pharmacist calls with every order to ensure adherence and reinforce credibility.
• Transparent Savings Communication: Clear breakdowns of cost benefits for every order.
• Refill Reminders & Chronic Care Support: Automated reminders for recurring medicine needs.
• Gamification & Engagement Campaigns: Incentivised activities on the app and web platform to encourage continued use.
• Multi-channel Retention Marketing: Regular engagement via WhatsApp, SMS, push notifications, email, and social media.
• Referral Programs: Strong referral loops encouraging users to recommend Truemeds to friends and family.
• High Repeat Purchase Potential: Leveraging the recurring nature of chronic medicine use to drive sustained orders.

This comprehensive strategy enabled Truemeds to scale from its initial 100 users to over 10,000 while maintaining trust, education, and loyalty among chronic patients.

Truemeds - Funding

Truemeds - Challenges Faced

Truemeds faced significant hurdles in driving adoption, including low awareness of the efficacy of generic medicines, trust issues around lower-priced alternatives, and limited availability in remote locations.

These challenges were addressed through offering free doctor and pharmacist consultations to build patient confidence. And through strict sourcing from India’s top 1% pharmaceutical manufacturers to ensure quality, and an extensive delivery network covering over 19,000+ pincodes to reach patients across the country.

Truemeds - Marketing and Public Outreach Strategy

To strengthen trust and improve awareness around affordable medicines, Truemeds has recently onboarded actor Paresh Rawal as its brand face. Paresh Rawal is widely recognised across India for portraying relatable, trustworthy characters, making him a familiar and credible figure among middle-aged and elderly audiences.

The association aligns well with Truemeds’ focus on chronic patients, who often rely on long-term medicines and value trust, clarity, and medical guidance while making healthcare decisions. Through this partnership, Truemeds aims to communicate the safety, quality, and value of clinically approved substitute medicines more clearly to Indian households.

The move is part of the company’s broader brand-building efforts to reach a wider audience and encourage informed choices in chronic care medicine usage.

Truemeds - Growth

Truemeds has grown rapidly and made a strong impact in India’s healthcare sector:

• 1 crore+ app installs showing widespread use
• INR 300+ crores saved by Truemeds users so far
• Supported by 600+ doctors and 100+ pharmacists
• Medicines delivered to 19,000+ pincodes across India
• 4.5+ star rating with over 2 lakh reviews on Google Play

These numbers highlight Truemeds’ reach, trust, and success in making medicines more affordable and accessible for patients.

Truemeds - Tools Used

Truemeds leverages a range of tools to run its platform efficiently:

• Mobile & Web Technology Stack powering the app and website
• CRM & Order Management Systems to manage customer relationships and orders
• Teleconsultation Platforms for doctor and pharmacist consultations
• Data & Analytics Tools to track performance, improve recommendations, and enhance user experience

Truemeds - Recognition and Achievements

• INR 300+ crores saved for Indian patients
• Recognised as a key contributor to India’s affordable medicine movement
• Works in alignment with government initiatives like Jan Aushadhi, playing a complementary role in improving access to essential medicines

Truemeds - Competitors

Some of the most prominent competitors of Truemeds include:

• 1mg
• PharmEasy
• Netmeds
• Apollo Pharmacy

Truemeds - Future Plans

Truemeds’ plans for the next 1-2 years include:

• Expanding its warehouse and delivery network for faster and wider reach
• Achieving deeper penetration into Tier 2 and Tier 3 cities
• Enhancing AI-driven medicine substitution and refill recommendation systems
• Strengthening chronic care programs and telehealth services to better support patients’ long-term needs

FAQs

What is Truemeds and how does it make medicines more affordable in India?

Truemeds is India’s leading online pharmacy that helps chronic patients save up to 51% on monthly medicine bills by offering clinically approved branded substitute medicines sourced from the top 1% of pharmaceutical manufacturers, making healthcare more accessible and affordable nationwide.

Who are the founders of Truemeds?

Truemeds was co‑founded by Akshat Nayyar and Dr Kunal Wani in 2019.

Which chronic conditions does Truemeds cater to?

Truemeds primarily serves patients managing chronic diseases such as diabetes, hypertension, asthma, cardiovascular disorders, and thyroid conditions, with a focus on reducing recurring medicine costs for middle‑ and lower‑income households.

How does Truemeds deliver medicines across India?

Truemeds has an extensive delivery network covering over 19,000 pincodes nationwide. Patients can upload their prescriptions or search for medicines via the app or website, receive consultations with doctors or pharmacists, and have medicines delivered directly to their doorstep.