Brand-name GLP-1s: the shortlist

Every provider here prescribes at least one FDA-approved GLP-1 made by its maker: Wegovy, Ozempic, Zepbound, Mounjaro or Foundayo. Compounded versions don't count, even when the same program sells them.

That changes what the card shows. Most of these programs sell compounded plans too, but the price on each card here is for the brand product, or blank when the program doesn't print one.

The brand you're prescribed decides what the drug is approved for. Two molecules sit behind most of them, and the label is what differs.

Wegovy is semaglutide for long-term weight reduction in adults and teens 12 and up. It's also approved to lower heart-attack and stroke risk in adults with heart disease and obesity or overweight, and for a liver disease called MASH. Wegovy tablets carry the weight and heart-risk uses as a daily pill.

Zepbound is tirzepatide for long-term weight reduction, and for moderate to severe obstructive sleep apnea in adults with obesity. Foundayo is orforglipron, a daily pill approved for weight reduction and not for type 2 diabetes.

Ozempic and Mounjaro are the type 2 diabetes brands of semaglutide and tirzepatide. Weight loss isn't an approved use of either. Fridays and Luvo Health list brand Ozempic, so if you don't have diabetes, ask your prescriber why that pen and not Wegovy.

Every one of these labels carries the same boxed warning about thyroid C-cell tumors in rodents. The semaglutide and tirzepatide explainers cover the side effects each label lists.

Both makers now sell direct to self-pay patients, which gives you a yardstick for every price on this page. You still need a prescription.

Novo Nordisk's self-pay pharmacy lists Wegovy pens at $349 a month and Wegovy HD at $399. New patients pay $199 for each of the first two fills of the two starting doses. Wegovy tablets run $149 to $299 a month, rising with the dose.

Lilly lists Zepbound vials and KwikPens at $299 for the starting dose, $399 for the next and $449 for the higher doses when you refill within 45 days. Miss that window and the higher doses cost $499 to $699. Needles or pen needles are bought separately. Foundayo runs $149 to $299 a month.

A fee, with the maker billing the drug. PauseRx, Science Co and KIN Meds charge a consult or care fee, and the maker's own pharmacy bills the medicine. Their cards read price on request, so add the maker's price to the program's fee.

A membership on top. Some programs separate membership from medication. A public membership figure is only one part of the cost. Check whether the selected plan also uses insurance, an outside pharmacy or a manufacturer offer, and whether medication denial changes the fee.

The program’s own price for the pen. A provider may advertise a combined package or list a brand without a complete public quote. Establish the exact drug and included care before comparing that total with a manufacturer’s medication-only offer. Unresolved brand totals do not become comparable merely because a price appears elsewhere in the catalog.

Some care fees recur, while others are paid for a single assessment or a longer period. Ask which fee repeats, what happens if medication is not prescribed and whether the drug is included. A consultation price should not be silently treated as a medication-inclusive monthly subscription.

The brand is the drug the trials tested. Semaglutide took off 14.9% of body weight in 68 weeks in STEP 1, and tirzepatide up to 20.9% in 72 weeks in SURMOUNT-1. None of those trials used a compounded version.

Brand drugs are FDA-approved, with a label, a reviewed manufacturing process and a maker you can report problems to. Compounded copies aren't FDA-approved, and pharmacies have faced tighter limits on making them since the shortages ended in 2024 and 2025.

Insurance is the other difference. Commercial plans may cover Wegovy or Zepbound for weight, or Ozempic or Mounjaro for diabetes, and both makers run copay offers for covered patients. Compounded drugs are almost always cash. Check your coverage before you pay a self-pay price.

Start with your insurance. If your plan covers a brand, your copay may come in under a self-pay price, and the program's own fee may be the main cash cost.

A label can also make the case. Wegovy carries a heart-risk indication for adults with heart disease, Zepbound is approved for obstructive sleep apnea with obesity, and Ozempic and Mounjaro are approved for type 2 diabetes. If one of those fits you, say so in the intake.

And if you'd rather take the exact drug the trials tested, the brand is the way to get it.

Who bills the drug? The program, the maker's pharmacy, or a retail pharmacy through your insurance.

What's the fee on top, and does it repeat? Ask for the total for month one and month three.

Which brand, and why? If you're offered Ozempic or Mounjaro without diabetes, ask why not Wegovy or Zepbound.

Will the price climb with the dose? Zepbound's self-pay price does. Wegovy pens hold one price across the standard doses.

Can I switch to compounded later, or back? Ask whether that means a new plan. To compare everything this goal covers, see the full metabolic list.