Summary: The review discusses selected aspects from the new ESC/ESH 2018 guidelines on the management of hypertension. The guidelines indicate the validity of using fixed-dose combination drugs from the outset and further on through the next steps in the treatment of hypertension. Properly combined two and three antihypertensive drugs, especially based on a fixed-dose combination, can lead to normalization of blood pressure levels in the majority of patients. A simple algorithm based on two- and three-drug fixed-dose combinations enables optimal treatment of hypertension by means of a ‘single pill’.