A yellow oval tablet stamped PERCOCET 10 is oxycodone 10 mg with acetaminophen. Which acetaminophen amount depends on which of two tablets you are holding, and both carry the same marking.
Brand Percocet was color-coded by strength, so color tells you something here that it does not tell you on most generics. It stops being reliable at the top of the range, where two products share a color, a shape and a number.
What a Percocet 10 Pill Is
Percocet is a combination of oxycodone and acetaminophen. Oxycodone is an opioid and changes how the nervous system registers pain. Acetaminophen works through a different route and also lowers fever. Together they relieve pain better than either does alone at the same dose, which is the reason the two are packaged in one tablet.
"Percocet 10" refers to the oxycodone amount, 10 mg, which is the highest strength the brand was made in. The acetaminophen amount is the part the name leaves out, and it is not the same across every tablet stamped that way.
Because it contains oxycodone, Percocet is a Schedule II controlled substance under federal law, the same category as morphine and hydrocodone combination products.
Two Yellow Ovals Both Stamped Percocet 10
This is the part worth reading twice.
PERCOCET 10/325 is a yellow oval tablet containing 325 mg of acetaminophen with 10 mg of oxycodone. PERCOCET 10 is a yellow oval tablet containing 650 mg of acetaminophen with 10 mg of oxycodone.
The opioid is identical. The acetaminophen doubles. Both tablets are yellow, both are oval, and both have the number 10 on them. What separates them is whether the imprint also reads 325.
Someone taking the higher-acetaminophen version at six tablets a day would be at 3,900 mg of acetaminophen, close to the 4 gram daily ceiling, before adding any cold medicine or over-the-counter pain reliever on top. The same six tablets of the 325 version come to 1,950 mg.
How Brand Percocet Was Color-Coded
The brand assigned a different color to each strength, which is unusual and useful.
PERCOCET 2.5 is 325 mg with 2.5 mg of oxycodone, pink and oval. PERCOCET 5 is 325 mg with 5 mg, blue and round. PERCOCET DuPont is also 325 mg with 5 mg, but white and round, an older tablet from the original manufacturer. PERCOCET 7.5/325 is orange and oblong. PERCOCET 7.5 is 500 mg with 7.5 mg, orange and oval. Then the two yellow ovals at 10 mg.
So color separates the strengths cleanly right up to the top, where it stops working. The two orange tablets have the same problem in a milder form, differing in acetaminophen at 325 mg versus 500 mg.
What Generic Percocet 10 Tablets Look Like
Almost every prescription filled now is generic, and generics do not follow the brand's color scheme. A generic oxycodone and acetaminophen 10/325 tablet is usually white.
M523 10/325 is white and capsule-shaped. T 194 is white and capsule-shaped. IP 204 is white and oval. RP 10 325 is white and round.
A patient switched from brand to generic, or between two generic manufacturers, gets a tablet that looks nothing like the last bottle at the identical dose. That is normal and not a dispensing error, but it is worth confirming with the pharmacy rather than assuming.
The T 192, T 193 and T 194 Series
One generic manufacturer numbers its oxycodone and acetaminophen tablets in sequence, and the numbers run one apart.
T 192 is 325 mg with 5 mg of oxycodone, white and round. T 193 is 325 mg with 7.5 mg, white and oblong. T 194 is 325 mg with 10 mg, white and oblong.
T 193 and T 194 are both white and both oblong. The final digit is the only thing carrying the difference between 7.5 mg and 10 mg of oxycodone, and printed digits wear down with handling in a pocket or a pill organizer.
The same pattern shows up on the hydrocodone side with M365, M366 and M367. Sequential imprints on look-alike tablets are common enough that reading the last character carefully is a habit worth having.
RP 10 325 and R P H10/325 Are Different Drugs
These two imprints are close enough to be worth separating.
RP 10 325 is oxycodone 10 mg with acetaminophen 325 mg, white and round. R P H10/325 is hydrocodone 10 mg with acetaminophen 325 mg, white and oblong.
Same manufacturer marking, same numbers, two different opioids. The letter H is what distinguishes them, and the shape differs, but the numbers on the tablet are identical.
Percocet 10 Dosage and Daily Limits
The usual adult dose for the 10 mg and 325 mg strength is one tablet by mouth every 6 hours as needed for pain. The maximum is 6 tablets in 24 hours.
Total daily acetaminophen from all sources should not exceed 4 grams. That includes cold and flu products, sleep aids and over-the-counter pain relievers, many of which contain acetaminophen without saying so on the front of the box.
Why the Tablet Cap Drops from 12 to 6
At the 5 mg and 325 mg strength, the maximum is 12 tablets a day. At 10 mg and 325 mg it is 6.
The acetaminophen is the same 325 mg in both, so it is not the acetaminophen setting the limit. Twelve of the 5 mg tablets deliver 60 mg of oxycodone. Six of the 10 mg tablets deliver the same 60 mg. The ceiling is on the opioid, and the tablet count moves to hold that number constant.
This matters practically, because someone moved up to the 10 mg strength who keeps the old dosing rhythm doubles their opioid intake without changing how many pills a day they take.
Counterfeit Tablets Sold as Percocet
Counterfeit pills pressed to look like prescription opioids are widespread, and oxycodone imprints are among the most commonly copied.
A counterfeit copies the imprint, the color and the shape. What it contains is unrelated to what it says, and fentanyl is frequently what is inside. The amount varies between tablets pressed in the same batch, so one pill from a bag being survivable says nothing about the next one.
No visual check separates a counterfeit from a real tablet. The only reliable signal is provenance. A tablet that came from a pharmacy against your own prescription is what it says it is. A tablet that came from anywhere else is unidentified regardless of how convincing the stamp looks.
When Percocet Use Has Moved Past the Prescription
Physical dependence on an opioid taken as directed is expected and is not the same thing as addiction. Tolerance builds, and stopping suddenly after regular use brings withdrawal. That happens to people using the medication exactly as prescribed.
The signs that something has shifted are behavioral. Running out early. Taking a dose for something other than pain. Seeing more than one prescriber. Thinking about the next dose during the parts of the day when pain is not the problem. Continuing after the injury or surgery that started it has healed.
Anyone who has been on an opioid regularly should come off it under a prescriber rather than stopping on their own, because the taper is what keeps withdrawal manageable.
Related Topics
Percocet 10 Questions People Ask Most
What is a Percocet 10 pill?
It is oxycodone 10 mg combined with acetaminophen. Two brand tablets carry that marking, PERCOCET 10/325 with 325 mg of acetaminophen and PERCOCET 10 with 650 mg. Both are yellow ovals.
What does a Percocet 10 look like?
Brand Percocet at 10 mg is a yellow oval tablet. Generic versions at the same strength are usually white and carry manufacturer imprints instead, including M523 10/325 (oblong), T 194 (oblong), IP 204 (oval) and RP 10 325 (round).
What is the difference between Percocet 10/325 and Percocet 10?
The acetaminophen. Both contain 10 mg of oxycodone. The 10/325 tablet has 325 mg of acetaminophen; the one imprinted PERCOCET 10 without the 325 has 650 mg. Color and shape are identical, so the imprint is the only way to tell.
How many Percocet 10 can you take in a day?
The usual dose for the 10/325 strength is one tablet every 6 hours as needed, with a maximum of 6 tablets in 24 hours. Most prescriptions are written for less. Follow the label rather than the ceiling.
Why can you take 12 Percocet 5 but only 6 Percocet 10?
Because the limit is on the oxycodone. Twelve tablets at 5 mg and six tablets at 10 mg both come to 60 mg of oxycodone. The acetaminophen is 325 mg in both strengths, so it is not what changes the count.
Is Percocet the same as oxycodone?
Not quite. Percocet contains oxycodone plus acetaminophen. Plain oxycodone is sold on its own without the acetaminophen, in strengths including 5, 10, 15, 20 and 30 mg.
Is Percocet 10 a controlled substance?
Yes. Oxycodone combination products are Schedule II, the same federal category as morphine and hydrocodone combination products.
Can Percocet 10 damage your liver?
The acetaminophen in it can, if total daily acetaminophen from every source goes past 4 grams. Six 10/325 tablets contribute 1,950 mg, so the risk usually comes from adding other acetaminophen products on top. The 650 mg version reaches 3,900 mg at six tablets, which leaves almost no room.
How do you know if a Percocet is counterfeit?
You cannot tell by looking. Counterfeits reproduce the imprint, color and shape, and many contain fentanyl in amounts that vary from tablet to tablet. A pill that did not come from a pharmacy against your own prescription should be treated as unidentified.
References
Drugs.com. Pill Identifier Results for Imprint PERCOCET. drugs.com/imprints.php?imprint=PERCOCET
Drugs.com. Percocet Dosage Guide. drugs.com/dosage/percocet.html
MedlinePlus. Oxycodone. U.S. National Library of Medicine. medlineplus.gov/druginfo/meds/a682132.html
MedlinePlus. Acetaminophen Overdose. U.S. National Library of Medicine. medlineplus.gov/ency/article/002598.htm
U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration. Counterfeit Pills Fact Sheet. dea.gov/onepill
