Wegovy launched in 2021 with a list price above $1,300 a month

Wegovy (semaglutide) reached the U.S. market in June 2021 with a list price above $1,300 for a package, a figure that made the newly approved obesity medicine expensive for anyone paying cash ^[2].

The FDA approved Wegovy for adults with obesity on June 4, 2021 ^[2]. Novo Nordisk launched the drug that month as a once-weekly injection, and the list price sat above $1,300 a month for years afterward ^[2]. List price is the sticker price a manufacturer sets before rebates, discounts or insurance payments. It is not the amount every patient pays.

Prices have come down since. On March 5, 2025, Novo Nordisk introduced NovoCare Pharmacy, which the company said lowered the cost of all doses of Wegovy to $499 a month ^[2]. On Feb. 24, 2026, the company announced a significant reduction in the U.S. list price of Wegovy, Ozempic and Rybelsus, its three semaglutide medicines ^[2]. The exact size of that reduction was not disclosed in the announcement ^[2].

Wegovy is now sold as a once-daily pill and a once-weekly pen ^[1][2]. Self-pay prices listed by NovoCare Pharmacy are $149 a month for the 1.5 mg pill, $199 a month for the 4 mg pill, and $299 a month for the 9 mg and 25 mg pills ^[1]. For the pen, patients new to the Wegovy savings offer or NovoCare Pharmacy pay $199 a month for the 0.25 mg and 0.5 mg doses for two monthly fills, then $349 a month for the 0.25 mg, 0.5 mg, 1 mg, 1.7 mg or 2.4 mg doses, and $399 a month for Wegovy HD 7.2 mg ^[1].

With commercial insurance, the company says eligible patients pay as little as $25 a month, subject to a maximum savings of $100 a month ^[1]. Government beneficiaries are excluded from that savings card ^[1]. Novo Nordisk also launched a multi-month subscription program on March 31, 2026 that it said offers savings of up to $1,200 a year on Wegovy ^[2].

Why it matters for patients

The price a patient sees depends on which version of the drug, which dose and which payment path is used. The same medicine can carry a self-pay price of $149 a month or $399 a month depending on dose and formulation ^[1]. Insurance changes the math again: the savings card can bring a covered prescription to $25 a month, but total savings are capped at $100 a month and people covered by government programs do not qualify ^[1].

Program terms are temporary and can be changed. Novo Nordisk says it reserves the right to modify or cancel its savings programs at any time, and that eligibility and restrictions apply ^[1]. The lower $199 starter price for the 0.25 mg and 0.5 mg pen doses is limited to two monthly fills through Dec. 31, 2026, after which those doses are listed at $349 a month ^[1].

That leaves two separate questions for patients: what the drug costs at the cash price, and what it costs under their specific insurance plan, which Novo Nordisk's patient site offers a tool to check ^[1].

What happens next

The February 2026 list-price reduction for Wegovy, Ozempic and Rybelsus has been announced, but the new list price figure itself has not been reported ^[2]. The $199 starter pricing for the two lowest pen doses runs through Dec. 31, 2026 ^[1]. Whether the savings programs and subscription offer continue past their current terms has not been disclosed beyond the company's statement that it can change them at any time ^[1][2].