A month’s supply of brand-name semaglutide injection costs between $349 and $499 without insurance, depending on the dose. With commercial insurance and a manufacturer savings card, you could pay as little as $25 per month. Compounded versions sold through telehealth providers range from $99 to $299 per month, though these are not FDA-approved products.
Brand-Name Costs Without Insurance
Semaglutide is sold under two main brand names: Ozempic (approved for type 2 diabetes) and Wegovy (approved for weight loss). The manufacturer, Novo Nordisk, sets the self-pay pricing for Ozempic at $349 per month for doses up to 1 mg and $499 per month for the 2 mg dose. New patients who haven’t used an Ozempic savings offer in the past year can get the first two monthly fills at $199 each for the lower-dose pen, an introductory offer currently available through June 30, 2026.
Wegovy carries similar pricing at retail pharmacies. Without insurance, its list price runs in the same range as Ozempic, though manufacturer programs can bring it down significantly for eligible patients.
What You’ll Pay With Insurance
If you have commercial health insurance that covers semaglutide, manufacturer savings cards can reduce your copay to as little as $25 per month for either Ozempic or Wegovy. The Wegovy savings program offers up to $1,000 off each fill. These cards work alongside your insurance, not as a replacement for it.
One important detail: if you use Novo Nordisk’s self-pay pricing instead of running the prescription through your insurance, that spending won’t count toward your deductible or out-of-pocket maximum. So if you’re close to meeting your deductible for the year, processing through insurance (even at a higher initial copay) could save you money in the long run.
Getting coverage approved often requires prior authorization. For Ozempic, insurers typically require a diagnosis of type 2 diabetes plus evidence that you’ve tried or can’t tolerate metformin, that your blood sugar levels remain above target on current treatment, or that you have established cardiovascular disease. Weight loss alone usually isn’t enough for Ozempic coverage since it’s only FDA-approved for diabetes.
Medicare Coverage Starting Mid-2026
Medicare has historically not covered weight-loss medications under Part D. That changes with the Medicare GLP-1 Bridge program, a temporary demonstration running from July 1, 2026, through December 31, 2027, that will cover Wegovy and other eligible drugs specifically for weight reduction.
To qualify, your prescriber must submit a prior authorization confirming you meet specific criteria. The thresholds vary based on your health conditions:
- BMI of 35 or higher: qualifies on its own
- BMI of 30 or higher: qualifies with a diagnosis of heart failure with preserved ejection fraction, uncontrolled hypertension, or chronic kidney disease stage 3a or above
- BMI of 27 or higher: qualifies with pre-diabetes, a previous heart attack, previous stroke, or symptomatic peripheral artery disease
This program operates outside the standard Part D benefit structure, so it won’t affect your existing Part D coverage. If you’re already prescribed semaglutide for a condition that Part D does cover (like cardiovascular risk reduction with Wegovy), you’d continue through your regular Part D plan instead.
Compounded Semaglutide Through Telehealth
Compounded semaglutide, made by specialty pharmacies rather than Novo Nordisk, is considerably cheaper. Telehealth providers sell it at a range of price points. Mochi Health offers compounded semaglutide at $99 per month plus a $79 monthly membership fee. Henry Meds starts at $199 per month with provider visits and supplies included. Remedy Meds charges $299 per month with no membership fee.
These compounded versions are not FDA-approved, which means they haven’t gone through the same testing for safety, potency, and sterility as brand-name products. The FDA has raised concerns about variability in compounded formulations. That said, many patients use them as a more affordable alternative, particularly those who don’t have insurance coverage for brand-name options.
How Dosing Affects Your Total Cost
Semaglutide treatment doesn’t start at the full dose. You begin at 0.25 mg once weekly for the first four weeks, then step up gradually: 0.5 mg for weeks five through eight, 1 mg for weeks nine through twelve, and 1.7 mg for weeks thirteen through sixteen. The maintenance dose (from week seventeen onward) is typically 1.7 mg or 2.4 mg for adults using Wegovy.
This gradual increase matters for cost because you’re paying full price for each pen or vial regardless of how much medication it contains. During the early weeks when you’re on a lower dose, some pens contain more medication than you’ll use in a single month. Depending on your pharmacy and provider, you may be able to stretch lower-dose pens across more fills, though this isn’t always straightforward with pre-filled injection devices.
If side effects (mostly nausea and digestive discomfort) become an issue during dose increases, your provider may hold you at a lower dose for an extra four weeks before stepping up. This extends the time before you reach the higher-cost maintenance dose but also means an additional month of medication costs overall.
How U.S. Prices Compare Internationally
Semaglutide costs dramatically more in the United States than in other countries. A one-month supply of Ozempic 1 mg costs roughly $147 in Canada, compared to $349 or more in the U.S. The oral version, Rybelsus, runs about $158 per month in Canada. According to a Peterson-KFF Health System Tracker analysis, this pattern holds across peer nations, where semaglutide prices are a fraction of what American patients pay at retail.