Common names of over-the-counter drugs

"Tylenol" is such a big brand, it's basically a proprietary eponym(a brand name that becomes the word for the thing in general) in the US. it's not unusual to have generic acetaminophen in your cabinet, but to refer to it as Tylenol. same with band-aid and kleenex - you may not actually be using these brands, but they are what we call bandages and tissues.

In Australia, people usually refer to paracetamol as Panadol, and ibuprofen as Nurofen. These are the most common brand names here.

In the US- acetaminophen/paracetamol is commonly called Tylenol Ibuprofen is commonly called Motrin or Advil Naproxen is commonly called Aleve Diphenhydramine is commonly called Benadryl Polyethylene glycol is Mira-lax Cetirizine is Zyrtec Loratadine is Claritin Calcium carbonate is Tums Guaifenisen is mucinex Bismuth subsalicylate is pepto-bismol Aspirin is just aspirin There are multiple cough/cold medications that come in combination- robitussin and NyQuil/dayquil are the most common It’s terrible because many of those brands make pills with different medications, so it can be dangerous not knowing what you’re actually taking. But most Americans only know the brand names of many medications.

In the US, we pronounce ibuprofen "I byou PRO fin. I have an English friend who pronounces it "I BYOU profin"

I know most people will use the brand names more readily than the generic, but it’s surprising to me that people don’t know what acetaminophen is. (Though in the US, I do think most would be confused by calling it paracetamol.)

I’m going to be blunt. Most people—at least in the U.S.—do not know the full name of these drugs—and worse still don’t care to learn. You are gonna sound like a complete nerd or perhaps an alien life-form trying to blend in with the humans. Not that I mind if you are a nerd or an alien life-form, for my soul is a vast ocean and I love all life-forms (some of which are very tasty).

Shit, half my family refers to any OTC pain pill as Tylenol to the point that I will ask for an ibuprofen and be given a Tylenol and told "they're the same thing!" They are very different.

I've heard paracetmol but many other drug names I just know whatever the name of the product is. I think this is common partly because many of the drug names are too long and confusing to read and pronounce. I'm even struggling right now just to say "acetaminophen".

In the US it would be pretty unusual to call them by these names, even if those are technically the correct names for the drugs.    For some reason, here it's a lot more common to use a brand name of the drug; Advil, Tylenol, Aleeve, etc.    Paracetamol is almost unheard of in the US as a reference to that specific drug. 

Tylenol

Not just OTC meds, but other common products have become known by brand names. For example: Facial tissue is Kleenex Elastic bandage is Ace Wrap Cloth or latex bandages are a Band-Aid. Mentholated petroleum jelly is either Vick's or VapoRub. Regular petroleum jelly is Vaseline Lip balm is Chap-Stick

In Britain “acetaminophen” is almost always called “paracetamol”. Brand names aren’t so often used for this (partially because there’s no point paying literally 10x as much when the same drug can be bought with a supermarket brand for almost nothing). Same with “ibuprofen”.

Acetaminophen is the chemical name for paracetamol. Although paracetamol is not a brand name in itself. Nurofen/Panodol are brand names.

People where I am would know acetaminophen but probably not paracetamol.

Paracetamol is the UK name for it. Acetaminophen is used primarily in the US. Tylenol is the most common brand name.

Data set of one (native speaker, U.S.), but I'm surprised more people don't know what acetaminophen is. It's clearly printed on every retail Tylenol package and ad I've seen. On the other hand, I have heard British speakers say paracetamol many times and did not realize until today it was the same thing. I thought it was some super-special pain reliever we can't get over the counter here.

Acetaminophen is understood in America by educated people. Most people don't understand it.  Paracetamol is not understand by most Americans, just by exceptionally knowledgeable ones that read a lot of stuff. 

In the specific case of acetaminophen and paracetamol, the former name is used in North America and the latter is used elsewhere (it's the same drug, just different generic names). In the USA, the dominant brand of acetaminophen is Tylenol, any most people probably know it by that name unless they've been prescribed for some reason or received it from a doctor's office / nurse where they use the generic name. This is true even though if you go to the OTC drug section of the drug aisle there will very clearly be Tylenol and a generic product labeled acetominophen right next to it (with a nearly identical label). Incidentally, I've just experienced naproxen for the first time after a knee issue. It's delightful.

In the US, even though they are widely available as cheap generics, they are still best known by their original brand names: Tylenol (for acetaminophen/paracetemol), Advil or Motrin (for for Ibuprofen), Aleve (for Naproxen), Sudafed (for Pseudoephedrine), Benadryl (for whatever that is), etc.

Calling acetaminophen by the brand name Tylenol doesn't make sense anymore. Some of Tylenol's products contain a lot of other stuff besides acetaminophen, and some of them don't even contain any acetaminophen.

acetaminophen is Tylenol to me I had to google paracetamol, I guess it's the same thing?

Most people, at least in the US, probably only know drugs by their brand names, unless it's something extremely common (like aspirin) or something that has been available as a generic for a long time (like hydrocodone). If you're looking for something OTC like acetaminophen, the box will oftentimes say something like, "Compare to Tylenol." So in the context you're describing, many people might not know what you're talking about, but when it comes to a pharmacy purchase, similar medications will often be placed on the same shelf and have a label that indicates what a comparable name brand drug might be.

We have brand names for most of those medications. Speaking for the US: Acetaminophen = Tylenol Ibuprofen = Advil, Motrin, Midol

In America, the general population usually calls OTC drugs by their brand name instead of the generic name. Tylenol instead of acetaminophen, Advil instead of ibuprofen, etc.

Paracetamol is very commonly understood in the UK. There are a few brands, but people will widely understand paracetamol. The same drug is called acetaminophen in the US, but tends to be known mostly by brand names like Tylenol.

Where are you from and where are you asking for those drugs? I live in SEAsia and ppl would just say Paracetamol and understand but for other countries, that may not be the case (as I saw another commenter commented 😔)

This will vary a great deal by country and possibly by generation. For example, Advil is currently the most popular U.S. brand for ibuprofen, but my parents always knew the same drug as Motrin. Acetaminophen (US, Canada, Japan) / paracetamol (Europe and elsewhere) is best known as Tylenol in the U.S. and Panadol in the U.K.; I know "ibuprofen" and "acetaminophen," but not being someone who takes any regular medications for anything (knock on wood), for just about any other drug I'll only know the brand name. I know Claritin, not loratidine; Retin-A, not tretinoin; Lipitor, not atorvastatin; Pepto-Bismol, not pink bismuth; Viagra, not sildenafil.