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Key takeaways
Ozempic and Wegovy have the same active ingredient, semaglutide. However, these drugs differ in approved use, dosage, and age restrictions.
Ozempic, which is approved for Type 2 diabetes and heart disease risk reduction, costs about $1,384 per month without insurance or discounts.
Wegovy, a weight loss medication also approved for heart disease risk reduction, costs about $1,820 per month without insurance or discounts.
Your actual out-of-pocket cost for Ozempic versus Wegovy depends on whether you’re using insurance or coupons, your location, and your pharmacy.
Interest in semaglutide injections has skyrocketed over the last few years, fueled mainly by celebrity weight loss stories. Sold under the brand names Ozempic and Wegovy, these once-weekly shots effectively lower blood sugar and suppress appetite. People interested in these prescription drugs may wonder which one is cheaper. However, the out-of-pocket cost for Wegovy vs. Ozempic varies depending on several factors, including your insurance plan, pharmacy, and location.
What’s the difference between Ozempic and Wegovy?
Ozempic and Wegovy are different brand-name forms of the same drug, semaglutide. They are both available as once-weekly subcutaneous injections, and they have the same lists of common side effects. However, Ozempic and Wegovy prescriptions are not interchangeable. These medications differ in their approved uses, dosages, and age restrictions.
Approved uses
Ozempic is approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to improve blood sugar (glucose) levels in people with Type 2 diabetes. This medication is intended to be used in combination with lifestyle changes such as a reduced-calorie diet and exercise. Ozempic is also approved to reduce the risk of adverse cardiovascular events, such as heart attack or stroke, in people with Type 2 diabetes and heart disease. It can also reduce the risk of worsening kidney disease and cardiovascular death in adults with Type 2 diabetes and chronic kidney disease. Although some healthcare providers prescribe Ozempic off-label for weight loss, it is not an FDA-approved weight loss drug.
Wegovy, on the other hand, is FDA approved for weight loss along with diet and exercise. In 2024, the FDA also approved it for reducing cardiovascular risk in adults with obesity or who are overweight.
Age restrictions
Ozempic is approved for adults 18 years and older only. It is not approved for adolescents for any of its FDA-approved indications.
Wegovy, however, is approved for weight loss along with diet and exercise in adolescents ages 12 and older with obesity (a BMI of 30 or higher). Adults 18 years and older can take Wegovy for weight loss if they either have obesity or have a BMI of 27 or higher with a weight-related health condition. Its approval for cardiovascular risk reduction is only for adults with established cardiovascular disease and either obesity or who are overweight.
Dosages
“Wegovy requires higher dosages to reach effective levels for weight loss,” says Troy Alexander-EL, MD, a board-certified internal medicine physician and founder of Higher Level Healthcare.
Both Ozempic and Wegovy dosages start at 0.25 mg once weekly. However, Ozempic dosage increases to 0.5 or 1 mg once weekly, and Wegovy increases to 1.7 mg or 2.4 mg, once weekly. Healthcare providers will monitor side effects to determine whether and when to increase their dosage until they reach their maintenance dose.
How much does Ozempic cost without insurance?
Without insurance or coupons, a one-month supply of Ozempic costs approximately $1,384. However, drug prices fluctuate and vary by pharmacy, and the actual out-of-pocket cost varies by pharmacy, location, and insurance coverage.
“Because of broader insurance coverage, Ozempic tends to be more affordable than Wegovy, even though they both contain the same active ingredient,” says Vandana Sheth, CDCES, FAND, RDN, a certified diabetes educator and registered dietitian nutritionist. Insurance companies are more likely to cover GLP-1s for Type 2 diabetes and indications other than weight loss, although more insurance plans are starting to cover these drugs.
RELATED: Cheapest semaglutide injection
How much does Wegovy cost without insurance?
Without insurance or financial assistance, the current list price for a one-month supply of Wegovy is about $1,849. Again, the retail price often differs from the amount people pay out of pocket, and the cost varies by pharmacy, location, and insurance coverage.
Ozempic vs. Wegovy insurance and cost comparison |
||
|---|---|---|
| Ozempic | Wegovy | |
| Typically covered by insurance? | Varies by plan | Varies by plan |
| Typically covered by Medicare Part D? | Varies by plan, but possibly for Type 2 diabetes | Not for weight loss, but possibly for cardiovascular risk reduction |
| Quantity | 4 prefilled injection pens | 4 prefilled injection pens |
| Typical Medicare copay | Varies | Varies |
| Cost without insurance* | $1,384 | $1,849 |
| SingleCare cost* | $825 | $1,225 |
| Savings | Get coupon | Get coupon |
*Cost at time of publication. Drug prices fluctuate and vary by pharmacy and location.
Does insurance cover Ozempic?
Typically, a prescription drug must be taken for its FDA-approved purpose for an insurance company to consider covering it. That means Ozempic is much more likely to be covered for blood sugar management than for weight loss. Insurance company formularies also favor diabetes-specific medications over weight-loss medications, according to Sheth.
Even when prescribed for its FDA-approved purpose, Ozempic may or may not be covered by private insurance. Coverage for Ozempic varies by health insurance policy because even plans offered by the same insurance company can have different drug formularies, or lists of covered drugs.
Medicare and Medicaid coverage also varies by plan, but these federal health insurance programs are also more likely to cover Ozempic for Type 2 diabetes management than for weight loss.
You can check your insurance coverage for Ozempic with this online tool from Novo Nordisk, the manufacturer of Ozempic.
Does insurance cover Wegovy?
Remember, insurance coverage varies from plan to plan, even within the same health insurance company. For instance, some United Healthcare (UHC) and Blue Cross Blue Shield (BCBS) insurance plans might cover Wegovy for patients with a body mass index of 30 or more, but that’s not universally true of all UHC and BCBS plans.
RELATED: Does Kaiser cover Wegovy?
In most cases, Medicare plans do not cover Wegovy for weight loss. However, some may cover Wegovy when it is prescribed for heart disease. Medicaid coverage for Wegovy also varies from state to state.
You can check your potential cost and insurance coverage for a Wegovy prescription with this online tool from Novo Nordisk, the manufacturer of Wegovy.
RELATED: How to get Wegovy covered by insurance
It can be tempting to ask for a drug prescription based on what you have heard or read about its cost, however, what you pay out of pocket for a medication depends on what your healthcare provider prescribed it for, whether it is covered by insurance, whether you’re using insurance, and your choice of pharmacy. If your prescription is not covered by insurance or your copay is too high, remember that a SingleCare discount card can help save you hundreds per month on an Ozempic or Wegovy prescription. SingleCare also makes it easy to compare prices by pharmacy, so you can ask your healthcare provider to send your prescription to the pharmacy offering the lowest price near you.
Remember that only a healthcare provider familiar with your medical history, health condition(s), and other medications you’re taking can recommend the best drug for you.
- Ozempic prescribing information, Food and Drug Administration (2025)
- Wegovy prescribing information, Food and Drug Administration (2024)
- Check your cost and coverage, Novo Nordisk