💊 MME Calculator (Morphine Milligram Equivalents)

Morphine milligram equivalents put every opioid on one scale: the daily dose that would equal that many milligrams of morphine. The CDC publishes conversion factors (hydrocodone 1, oxycodone 1.5, hydromorphone 4, and so on) so prescribers can total mixed regimens and judge overdose risk. Risk climbs with dose: the CDC advises increased caution at 50 MME/day and avoiding escalation past 90 without careful justification.

Pick the opioid, enter the dose per tablet and tablets per day (or patch strength in mcg/hr). The calculator totals daily MME and flags the 50 and 90 thresholds. It is a risk-stratification and education tool, not a guide for changing doses.

How to Use This Calculator

Select the opioid and enter the milligrams per tablet and how many are taken per day, counting all opioids in the regimen separately and adding the MMEs. For fentanyl patches, enter the mcg/hr strength with 1 unit. Read the total against the CDC thresholds. Never adjust opioid doses from a calculator: tapering and switching need a prescriber.

CDC Conversion Factors

The factors equate analgesic potency to morphine from clinical pharmacology data: codeine 0.15, tramadol 0.1, hydrocodone 1, morphine 1, oxycodone 1.5, oxymorphone 3, hydromorphone 4, methadone 3 to 12 depending on dose (higher doses convert more potently, which is why methadone switching is specialist territory), and fentanyl transdermal 7.2 per mcg/hr. The 50 and 90 MME thresholds come from CDC overdose-risk analyses showing risk rising steadily with dose. MME measures analgesic equivalence, not identical risk: methadone's long half-life and QT effects add dangers the number hides.

Worked Example

Oxycodone 10 mg, four tablets daily: 60 MME/day (10 x 4 x 1.5), crossing into the At/above 50 MME: increased caution advised range. The same tablets three times daily would be 45 MME, just under the caution line. A 50 mcg/hr fentanyl patch alone is 360 MME/day, showing why patches dominate the math.

Reading the Thresholds

Under 50 MME/day is the lower-risk range where most chronic therapy sits. Fifty to 89 warrants the CDC's "carefully reassess" conversation: naloxone co-prescription, avoiding benzodiazepine combinations, and checking function, not just pain scores. Ninety and above is where guidelines advise avoiding dose escalation and strongly considering taper or rotation. Thresholds guide caution, not automatic cutoffs: stable patients doing well are not forcibly tapered by the number alone in current guidance.

Opioid Changes Need Medical Supervision

Never stop opioids abruptly: withdrawal is miserable and, with dose drops, overdose risk paradoxically rises if use resumes at old tolerance. Tapering, rotating, and naloxone prescribing are prescriber decisions. Keep naloxone accessible if anyone in the household uses opioids. If you or someone you love is struggling with opioid use, call or text 988 in the US. This tool is for informational purposes only, not medical advice. Consult a healthcare professional.

Related tools: lidocaine max dose calculator and local anesthetic max doses.

For informational purposes only, not medical advice. Dosing decisions must be confirmed with your doctor or pharmacist. Consult a healthcare professional.