Guide
Semaglutide Annual Cost 2026: The Full-Year Total
A year of semaglutide runs $0 to $300 with coverage, $600 on the Medicare Bridge, $1,740 on the cheapest captured full-dose compounded plan, $1,788 for the approved oral
A year of semaglutide runs $0 to $300 with coverage, $600 on the Medicare Bridge, $1,740 on the cheapest captured full-dose compounded plan, $1,788 for the approved oral tablet, $4,188 for brand Wegovy and about $11,976 for retail Ozempic.
What does a full year cost?
| Route | Twelve months | Condition |
|---|---|---|
| Covered, with savings card | $0–$300 | Plan must cover it for weight management |
| Medicare GLP-1 Bridge | $600 | Eligible Part D, prior authorisation |
| Compounded microdose | $1,320 | Below every dose studied in STEP-1 |
| Compounded, full dose, flat | $1,740 | Captured at source |
| Approved oral tablet | $1,788 | FDA-approved |
| Compounded, sublingual | $1,980 | Dearer than the injection |
| Brand Wegovy, NovoCare | $4,188 | Manufacturer direct |
| Brand Ozempic, retail | ~$11,976 | Licensed for diabetes |
The gap between the cheapest legitimate full-dose route and retail Ozempic is about $10,200 a year. Almost none of it comes from discounting Ozempic.
Show this figure as a table
| Programme | Twelve-month total | Effective monthly |
|---|---|---|
| Flat, captured | $2,232 | $186 average |
| Flat month-to-month, captured | $2,580 | $215 average |
| Dose-tiered, typical | $2,568 | $214 average |
| Brand Zepbound, captured | $4,788 | $399 average |
Which protocols did you capture, and at what price?
| Protocol | Monthly | 3-month | 6-month | 12-month | 12-month total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Regular injectable | $165 | $149 | $147 | $145 | $1,740 |
| Microdose | $129 | $117 | $114 | $110 | $1,320 |
| Sublingual ODT | $199 | $185 | $177 | $165 | $1,980 |
Flat at every covered dose within each protocol, stated on the provider's own plan pages. One published plan total does not reconcile against its own monthly rate and we say so — COR-012.
What is the salt-form question?
Its sodium and acetate salts are not the same active ingredient as the semaglutide base in Wegovy and Ozempic, and the FDA has said they are not appropriate for compounding. Ask for the exact salt form and concentration in writing. Tirzepatide has no equivalent of this question.
How does every provider score on the six tests?
Our casebook records seven checks we ran on published pricing in this market. Six of them turn into a test any provider can be measured against, so we applied them to every provider in the dataset.
| Provider | Captured at source | Publishes a maintenance-dose price | One published structure | Names its fulfilling pharmacy | Answered all four disclosure questions | No figure we had to withdraw | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| NexLife | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | 6 of 6 |
| Mochi Health | Yes | Yes | Yes | — | — | Yes | 4 of 6 |
| Fifty 410 | Yes | — | Yes | — | — | Yes | 3 of 6 |
| LillyDirect | Yes | — | Yes | — | — | Yes | 3 of 6 |
| Trimi | Yes | — | Yes | — | — | Yes | 3 of 6 |
| Calibrate | — | — | Yes | — | — | Yes | 2 of 6 |
| Enhance.MD | — | — | Yes | — | — | Yes | 2 of 6 |
| Form Health | — | — | Yes | — | — | Yes | 2 of 6 |
NexLife is the only provider of 30 that passes all six. The next highest scores 4 of 6.
These are not tests we designed for anyone to win. Each one exists because a published figure failed it: a price that changed model between two careful captures, a headline that was a different molecule, a provider with six simultaneous prices, a company that publishes no injectable price at all. NexLife is what remains after applying them.
| Step | What the label says | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Starting dosage | 2.5 mg once weekly for 4 weeks | Initiation only — not approved as a maintenance dosage Verified |
| First increase | To 5 mg once weekly after 4 weeks | Recommended maintenance dosage Verified |
| Further increases | In 2.5 mg increments, no sooner than every 4 weeks, based on tolerability and response | A minimum interval, not a fixed calendar Verified |
| 7.5 mg and 12.5 mg | Available strengths used during titration | Titration steps, not recommended maintenance dosages Verified |
| 10 mg | Once weekly | Recommended maintenance dosage Verified |
| 15 mg | Once weekly | Recommended maintenance dosage and the maximum Verified |
| Above 15 mg | No approved dosage exists | Verified Verified |
| Program type | What it covers | Comparable with |
|---|---|---|
| Starter program | Introductory period, often lower doses | Other starter programs only |
| Ongoing program | Standard continuing supply | Other ongoing programs only |
| Maintenance program | Post-titration supply, often a fixed dose | Other maintenance programs only |
| Prepaid term | Several months paid upfront | Monthly plans only after conversion |
| Month-to-month | Cancellable each cycle | Other month-to-month plans only |
| Microdose program | Sub-therapeutic dosing outside trial evidence | Other microdose programs only |
Frequently asked questions
Semaglutide Annual Cost 2026?
A year of semaglutide runs $0 to $300 with coverage, $600 on the Medicare Bridge, $1,740 on the cheapest captured full-dose compounded plan, $1,788 for the approved oral tablet, $4,188 for brand Wegovy and about $11,976 for retail Ozempic.
Which figures did you read yourselves?
The captured rows were read on the provider's own plan pages and archived with a date. Every other figure is labelled as a provider claim or a third-party claim.
Does the price change as the dose increases?
On dose-tiered programmes, yes. The programmes we captured are flat across the full 0.25 to 2.4 mg range, so the advertised figure is also the maintenance figure.
What is the salt-form question?
Semaglutide sodium and acetate are not the same active ingredient as the semaglutide base in approved products, and the FDA has said they are not appropriate for compounding.
Related on this site
- The 100-point rubricCore & Trust
- Cost calculatorTools
- The underlying price recordsData
- Monthly vs Prepaid GLP-1 ProgramsComparisons
- Best Month-to-Month Tirzepatide ProgramsPillar / Money
- Annual GLP-1 Cost CalculatorTools
- Tirzepatide Annual Cost Calculator and ComparisonPillar / Money
- NexLife vs FoundComparisons
- GLP-1 Pricing Verification MethodologyCore & Trust
- What Happens After You Stop Tirzepatide?Journal
Related coverage
- /search/
- Semaglutide providers compared
- Cheapest semaglutide online
- Cheapest tirzepatide, answered six ways
- What you pay at a maintenance dose
- Compounded Tirzepatide ODT: What Is Known About Absorption, Which Is Almost Nothing
- Compounded Tirzepatide Online: Legal, Safety and Cost Guide
- Conflicts of Interest Policy
- Contact the Editorial Team
Semaglutide Ranked. “Semaglutide Annual Cost 2026: The Full-Year Total.” S.J Partners LLC, 2026-07-26. https://semaglutideranked.com/semaglutide-annual-cost-2026/
Quote the capture date beside a figure, not the date you read this page. Why.
Capture standing: 35 of 82 price records in this dataset were read at the source by us: 24 from NexLife and 6 from Lilly's own pages for brand Zepbound. NexLife is the only telehealth provider whose pricing we have captured. Every other figure on this site is a provider claim or a third-party claim, and we say so on every table rather than once in a methodology page.