Lilly's retatrutide tops Ozempic 2 mg on A1C and weight loss in Phase 3 trial

On Oct. 28, 2026, Eli Lilly said its investigational drug retatrutide lowered blood sugar and body weight by more than Ozempic 2 mg in a Phase 3 head-to-head trial of adults with type 2 diabetes ^[1][2].

The trial compared two doses of retatrutide, 9 mg and 12 mg, with Ozempic 2 mg, which Lilly said is the highest approved dose of the semaglutide diabetes drug ^[2]. On A1C, the measure of average blood sugar over time, both retatrutide doses produced a 2.2 percentage-point drop after 80 weeks, compared with 1.8 points for Ozempic ^[2]. STAT reported the same 2.2-versus-1.8 comparison for the highest retatrutide dose ^[1].

Weight results were reported two ways. Lilly said people taking retatrutide lost an average of 44.3 pounds on the 9 mg dose and 47.4 pounds on the 12 mg dose, compared with 20.9 pounds on Ozempic ^[2]. STAT reported that people on the highest retatrutide dose lost 20.9% of their body weight, versus 9.4% on Ozempic ^[1]. Those figures come from analyses of participants who stayed on treatment, not from all participants enrolled ^[1].

Lilly said retatrutide also produced greater improvements than Ozempic on certain cardiovascular risk factors; the specific factors and the size of the differences were not disclosed ^[2]. Retatrutide is a once-weekly drug that activates three hormone receptors — GLP-1, GIP and glucagon — which is why it is sometimes called a "triple-G" medicine ^[2]. Drugs in that class are expected to produce more weight loss than earlier generations by combining appetite suppression, blood sugar control and increased calorie burning ^[2].

"Based on these results and those from across our Phase 3 program, we believe retatrutide, if approved, could shift the treatment paradigm for people living with type 2 diabetes, obesity and related cardiometabolic conditions," said Kenneth Custer, president of Lilly Cardiometabolic Health ^[2].

Retatrutide is described as investigational and experimental, and is not approved for use ^[1][2]. Several basic details have not been reported: how many people were enrolled, how many stopped treatment, how the two drugs compared on side effects, and whether the differences between them were statistically significant. The full trial results have not been published.

Why it matters for patients

Retatrutide cannot be prescribed today, so these results do not change anything about the medicines currently on pharmacy shelves. The comparison was against Ozempic, a brand of semaglutide; other semaglutide products include Wegovy and Rybelsus, and the trial did not test those. Tirzepatide, sold as Mounjaro and Zepbound, was also not part of this comparison.

The weight numbers need context. They come from on-treatment analyses, which count only the people who kept taking their assigned drug ^[1]. That approach can make a treatment look stronger than an analysis that counts everyone who enrolled, including people who stopped. Lilly did not release the across-the-board figures in its announcement ^[2].

The trial enrolled adults with type 2 diabetes, a group that generally loses less weight on these drugs than people without diabetes ^[1]. Results from this population may therefore not carry over directly to people who take GLP-1 medications only for obesity.

What happens next

No dated milestones have been disclosed. Lilly did not give a timeline for submitting retatrutide to the Food and Drug Administration, and the company framed its plans as conditional, saying it believes the drug "if approved" could change treatment ^[2]. It also did not say when full trial results would be presented at a medical meeting or published in a journal.