Wegovy (semaglutide) is a prescription medicine approved for long-term weight management in adults with obesity or who are overweight and have weight-related medical problems. It's administered as a once-weekly injection under the skin. Wegovy contains semaglutide, the same active ingredient found in Ozempic and Rybelsus.
How Wegovy Works
Wegovy is a man-made version of glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1), a naturally occurring hormone in the body that regulates food intake. When Wegovy activates GLP-1 receptors in the brain, it lowers appetite and slows gastric emptying, leading to a feeling of fullness for longer and reduced food consumption, resulting in weight loss.
Wegovy vs. Ozempic: Key Differences
Both Wegovy and Ozempic contain semaglutide. However, Wegovy is specifically prescribed for chronic weight management and certain forms of liver disease, while Ozempic is used to lower blood sugar levels in people with type 2 diabetes and help protect the kidneys.
Dosage and Administration
Wegovy is injected once a week, on the same day each week, under the skin of your stomach (abdomen), thigh, or upper arm. Change your injection site with each injection, using a different spot each time, avoiding areas where the skin is tender, bruised, red, or hard. The starting dose is 0.25 mg once a week for four weeks, which is gradually increased every four weeks until a maintenance dose of 1.7 mg or 2.4 mg weekly is reached. If patients cannot tolerate the 2.4 mg maintenance dosage, it can be decreased to 1.7 mg once weekly.
To administer the injection, you will hear two clicks. Do not remove the pen from your skin before the yellow bar in the pen window has stopped moving. The needle cover will lock when the pen is removed from your skin. Dispose of the used Wegovy pen in an FDA-cleared sharps disposal container immediately after use. If you miss a dose, use the medicine as soon as possible and then return to your regular schedule. Call your doctor if you miss more than two doses in a row.
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Cost and Availability
The list price of Wegovy is $1,349.02 per package. The actual cost to patients can vary widely depending on insurance coverage, pharmacy, and any discounts or patient assistance programs used. With insurance, a one-month supply may cost $0, while cash-paying patients without insurance may pay around $499 per month. The WeGo Together savings card program by Novo Nordisk may offer a 28-day supply for up to 13 fills at a reduced cost.
To determine insurance coverage for Wegovy, contact your benefit provider to inquire if it is covered under your plan and what your cost (or copay) will be.
Potential Side Effects
Wegovy can be associated with common stomach-related side effects like nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea. These side effects occurred in 5% or more of obese or overweight adult patients using Wegovy 2.4mg in clinical trials. These side effects are usually mild and temporary and most likely will not interfere with long-term treatment. They typically subside within a few weeks of starting treatment or after a dose increase. If you do not tolerate the 2.4 mg once weekly maintenance dosage, your healthcare provider may reduce your maintenance dose to 1.7 mg once weekly.
Other potential side effects may occur. Call your doctor for medical advice about side effects.
Risk of Thyroid C-cell Tumors
In studies with rodents, Wegovy and similar medications caused thyroid tumors, including thyroid cancer. It is unknown whether these effects would occur in people. Call your doctor at once if you have signs of a thyroid tumor, such as swelling or a lump in your neck, trouble swallowing, a hoarse voice, or shortness of breath.
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Pregnancy and Breastfeeding
Stop using Wegovy at least two months before you plan to get pregnant, as this medicine may harm your baby. Ask your doctor for a safer medicine to use during this time. Controlling diabetes is very important during pregnancy, as is gaining the right amount of weight. There is a pregnancy exposure registry for women who use Wegovy during pregnancy to collect information about the health of you and your baby. It is unknown if this medicine passes into your breast milk. Tell your healthcare professional if you are breastfeeding or planning to breastfeed.
Drug Interactions
Other drugs may affect Wegovy, including prescription and over-the-counter medicines, vitamins, and herbal products.
Storage
Protect Wegovy from light and keep it in the original carton until the time of administration.
Wegovy as an Oral Pill: A New Frontier
Federal regulators have accepted Novo Nordisk’s application to produce a pill version of its injectable weight loss medication Wegovy. By early next year, people using a popular GLP-1 weight loss drug may be able to pop a pill instead of injecting themselves with a needle. The new version would be a 25 milligram (mg) pill taken daily. Novo Nordisk officials said they expect FDA approval late this year.
Potential Advantages of an Oral Wegovy Pill
- Ease of Use: Experts say an oral medication might be easier for people to use, improving their chances of adhering to a weight loss plan.
- Cost-Effectiveness: It might also be less expensive, allowing more people to use these game-changing medications. Manufacturing a pill is less expensive than injectables, so cost should be much less.
- Patient Preference: The advantages of pills are that it is easier for the patient to take a pill as opposed to an injection.
- Storage and Transport: The pill form would likely not need to be refrigerated, so storage and transport are easier.
- No Injection Site Effects: There is, of course, no injection site effects and for individuals that are afraid of needles this may be a good alternative that is easier and perhaps results in higher compliance.
Potential Disadvantages of an Oral Wegovy Pill
- Effectiveness: Initial research he has reviewed indicates that the oral form of GLP-1 drugs isn’t as effective for weight loss as the injectable form of the medications, although more studies are needed.
- Gastrointestinal Side Effects: Weight-loss pills tend to have more gastrointestinal side effects.
- Administration Requirements: The Wegovy pill is vulnerable to enzymatic breakdown in the stomach, which means that patients will need to take the medication on an empty stomach, at least 30 minutes before a meal, and with only water.
Comparison to Other Oral GLP-1 Medications
Novo Nordisk also manufactures an oral version of its GLP-1 drug Rybelsus. However, that medication is only approved to treat type 2 diabetes. Competitor Eli Lilly is also in the process of developing a pill version of one of its weight loss medications.
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A 2021 research review indicated that once-a-day oral pills with the active ingredient semaglutide are as effective or more effective than an injectable drug for weight loss and for reducing A1C levels in people with diabetes. The review authors stated that oral tablets were a treatment option with “similar or better efficacy and similar tolerability” compared with most injectable GLP-1 receptor agonists.
A March 2025 study reported that an oral version of semaglutide drugs was associated with a lower risk of heart attack and stroke when compared to a placebo. The researchers said the pills appear to be “directly in line with what we’ve seen in the other injectable GLP-1 receptor agonists.”
The Future of Weight Loss Medications
Eli Lilly and Novo Nordisk both have several weight-loss medications currently on the market. They work in similar fashion but have different active ingredients.
One class of these GLP-1 medications uses the active ingredient semaglutide. They are sold under different brand names. Ozempic and Rybelsus have been approved to treat type 2 diabetes. Wegovy is approved for use in weight management.
Another group uses the active ingredient tirzepatide. Mounjaro is approved to treat type 2 diabetes. Zepbound is approved for use in weight management. These medications are available only as injections.
Both classes of drugs have been shown to be effective in helping people lose weight, although the medications with tirzepatide have tended to be more successful in clinical trials.
Wegovy and Hair Loss
There’s no evidence that hair loss is a direct side effect of Ozempic, Wegovy, Mounjaro or Zepbound.