How Long Does Methadone Stay in Your System

What is Methadone

Methadone is a synthetic opioid pain medication, often used to treat addictions to other ‘harder’ drugs like heroin, mainly as a replacement therapy. For the latter purpose, it is usually preferred over drugs like buprenorphine, as methadone is considered to be marginally less addictive.

How long does Methadone stay in your system after your last dose

It has a half-life of 8 to 59 hours. This means after you take the last dose of methadone, the drug will be cleared from your system within a rather large window of around 1 day 20 hours and 13.5 days.

Does methadone show up on a drug test

Methadone will not show up on tests done for detecting opiates like morphine and heroin. There is a specific test that must be conducted to trace methadone, and even if it does test positive, this result cannot be used against you by way of denying or terminating employment, incarceration, or otherwise. Unless you are abusing the drug, you should be okay.

How long does Methadone stay in your urine, blood, saliva and hair
Urine	Detectable from an hour after ingestion till up to 2 weeks.
Blood	Up to 24 hours
Saliva	30 minutes to 10 days
Hair Follicle	Up to 90 days

Individual factors deciding how long the drug will take to leave the system

The amount and frequency of the dosage as well as whether any other drugs are being co-ingested that may help or hinder in the expulsion of methadone are both deciding factors.

Additionally, other important factors include the age, body mass, metabolic rate in relation to body mass, genetic setup, urinary pH, liver functioning, and food intake of the user.

When using for recreational purposes, the dosage needed to get high may vary between individuals. While one may get high on a 40mg dose, another may need to get 100mg worth of methadone to achieve that euphoric state. However, methadone is a highly potent medication and the slightest overdose may be enough to cause life-threatening circumstances.