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What is Wegovy?

What is Wegovy, and how does it work?

Wegovy (semaglutide injection) is a injection made by Novo Nordisk, whose active ingredient is semaglutide. FDA approved for cardiovascular risk reduction, chronic weight management, and MASH with moderate to advanced fibrosis It imitates a gut hormone the body already makes, binding the same receptor in the brain regions that regulate appetite. In its pivotal trial it produced 14.9% mean weight loss. It costs $349 a month once titrated, a figure read from the seller's own page on 2026-08-19 — the maintenance rate rather than the starting dose, because the starting dose is not the dose anyone stays on.

How it works, from the label

It imitates a gut hormone the body already makes, binding the same receptor in the brain regions that regulate appetite.

Semaglutide is a GLP-1 analogue with 94% sequence homology to human GLP-1. Semaglutide acts as a GLP-1 receptor agonist that selectively binds to and activates the GLP-1 receptor, the target for native GLP-1. GLP-1 is a physiological regulator of appetite and caloric intake, and the GLP-1 receptor is present in several areas of the brain involved in appetite regulation.

Quoted from the mechanism of action section of FDA prescribing information for WEGOVY, read 2026-08-29. Not paraphrased: how a drug works is the last thing a price site should put in its own words.

What it is approved for

  • Cardiovascular risk reduction

    To reduce the risk of major adverse cardiovascular events — cardiovascular death, non-fatal myocardial infarction, or non-fatal stroke — in adults with established cardiovascular disease and either obesity or overweight.

  • Chronic weight management

    To reduce excess body weight and maintain weight reduction long term in adults and pediatric patients aged 12 years and older with obesity, and in adults with overweight in the presence of at least one weight-related comorbid condition.

  • MASH with moderate to advanced fibrosis

    For the treatment of noncirrhotic metabolic dysfunction-associated steatohepatitis (MASH), formerly known as NASH, with moderate to advanced liver fibrosis (stages F2 to F3) in adults. Approved under accelerated approval: continued approval for this indication may be contingent upon verification of clinical benefit in a confirmatory trial.

Which approval a plan cannot exclude — a weight-loss exclusion is written against the use, not the molecule.

What the trial found

14.9% of body weight. STEP 1: about 14.9% mean weight loss at 2.4 mg over 68 weeks

One trial, one protocol, one population. Comparing it with another drug's figure compares two separate experiments rather than two drugs — the comparison, and what a point of body weight costs.

It carries a boxed warning — the strongest the FDA issues

In rodents this molecule caused thyroid C-cell tumours at human-relevant doses. Whether it does so in people is unknown, and the label carries that as a boxed warning. It is contraindicated outright with a personal or family history of medullary thyroid carcinoma or MEN 2.

Everything the label lists, including who cannot take it →

What it costs

$349 a month once titrated, read from the seller's own page on 2026-08-19. Definitional pages in this category stop before this line; it is the reason this one exists.

Wegovy price and terms →The cheapest way to get it →

Wegovy, answered

How does Wegovy work?
It imitates a gut hormone the body already makes, binding the same receptor in the brain regions that regulate appetite. The label's own words, from its mechanism of action section: "Semaglutide is a GLP-1 analogue with 94% sequence homology to human GLP-1. Semaglutide acts as a GLP-1 receptor agonist that selectively binds to and activates the GLP-1 receptor, the target for native GLP-1. GLP-1 is a physiological regulator of appetite and caloric intake, and the GLP-1 receptor is present in several areas of the brain involved in appetite regulation."
What is Wegovy approved for?
cardiovascular risk reduction; chronic weight management; mash with moderate to advanced fibrosis. Approvals are quoted from the label rather than summarised, because the wording is what a prior authorisation is judged against — the full text of each is on the indications page.
How much weight did Wegovy lose in its trial?
14.9% of body weight. STEP 1: about 14.9% mean weight loss at 2.4 mg over 68 weeks That is what one trial reported under its own protocol, not a prediction for any person, and it cannot be compared directly with another drug's figure because no trial ran them against each other.
How much does Wegovy cost?
$349 a month once titrated, read from the seller's own page on 2026-08-19. The starting dose is usually cheaper and nobody stays on it, which is why the maintenance figure is the one this site records.

Everything on Wegovy

Last updated 2026-08-29 — the FDA label this page quotes