Guide
An earlier version of this page compared the cheapest compounded semaglutide with an approved oral tablet at a flat $149. That is the price at 1.5 and 4 mg only. The 9 and 25 mg maintenance doses are $299, and the $149 rate on 4 mg ends on 31 August 2026.
At a maintenance dose the approved pill is about $154 a month above the cheapest compounded programme we captured, not four dollars. We publish this as COR-013 because it is the starter-price error this site documents in others.
The $149 rate on this page is not open-ended. The $149 rate covers 1.5 mg and 4 mg. The 4 mg price rises to $199 after this date. It stops applying on 2026-08-31, in 28 days.
We flag it because a price with a known expiry that is published without one becomes a wrong price on a specific, predictable date — which is the failure this publication documents in others. Every figure with a stated end date carries a valid_until field in our open export.
Rybelsus vs Wegovy vs the Wegovy Pill: Three Semaglutide Products, Untangled
Three products, one molecule. Rybelsus is oral semaglutide approved for type 2 diabetes at 3 to 14 mg. The Wegovy pill is oral semaglutide approved for weight management
Three products, one molecule. Rybelsus is oral semaglutide approved for type 2 diabetes at 3 to 14 mg. The Wegovy pill is oral semaglutide approved for weight management at higher doses, $149 at 1.5 and 4 mg rising to $299 at 9 and 25 mg. Wegovy pen is the weekly injection at $349.
What is the difference between the three?
| Field | Rybelsus | Wegovy pill | Wegovy pen |
|---|---|---|---|
| Route | Daily tablet | Daily tablet | Weekly injection |
| Approved for | Type 2 diabetes | Weight management | Weight management |
| Dose range | 3–14 mg | 1.5–25 mg | 0.25–2.4 mg |
| Food restriction | Empty stomach, wait before eating | Same | No restriction |
| Self-pay | Varies | $149 at 1.5/4 mg; $299 at 9/25 mg | $349 |
| Higher-dose option | — | 25 mg | Wegovy HD 7.2 mg at $399 |
Self-pay figures read on the manufacturer's own price guide, 4 August 2026.
Semaglutide is a peptide, and peptides are digested. The oral products get around that with SNAC, an absorption enhancer — which is why they require an empty stomach and a wait before eating or drinking. Miss that and absorption falls.
The injection has no such requirement because it bypasses the gut entirely. That is the real trade: a daily routine you must follow precisely, against a weekly injection you must perform.
Which one is for weight loss?
The Wegovy products. Rybelsus is approved for type 2 diabetes, and at 3 to 14 mg it does not reach the doses the weight-management approvals use. Prescribing it for weight alone is off-label and usually will not be covered.
What about the compounded “oral semaglutide” sold online?
Sublingual and orally disintegrating compounded preparations are not any of the three products above. They have no absorption enhancer, no bioavailability data of their own, and no trial. On the ladder we captured, the sublingual protocol is also the most expensive, not the cheapest.
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 |
| Route | Monthly | Twelve months | Evidence |
|---|---|---|---|
| Commercial cover plus savings offer | $25 | $300 | Capped at $100/month in savings |
| Medicare GLP-1 Bridge | $50 | $600 | Reported |
| Approved oral tablet, 1.5 or 4 mg | $149 | — | Captured at source — 4 mg rises to $199 after 31 Aug 2026 |
| Approved oral tablet, 9 or 25 mg maintenance | $299 | $3,588 | Captured at source |
| Compounded, 12-month, flat at every dose | $145 | $1,740 | Captured at source |
| Compounded, month-to-month, flat | $165 | $1,980 | Captured at source |
| Brand Wegovy pen, new-patient intro | $199 | — | First two fills only, to 31 Dec 2026 |
| Brand Wegovy pen, 0.25–2.4 mg | $349 | $4,188 | Captured at source |
| Brand Wegovy HD 7.2 mg | $399 | $4,788 | Captured at source |
| Brand Wegovy, retail list | ~$1,349 | ~$16,188 | Third-party claim |
| Compounded tirzepatide, for comparison | $186 | $2,232 | Captured at source |
Read the dose column. The approved oral tablet is a ladder, not a flat rate: $149 at 1.5 and 4 mg, $299 at 9 and 25 mg. We published it as a flat $149 and corrected that on 4 August 2026 — COR-013. At a maintenance dose the approved pill is about $154 a month above the cheapest compounded programme we captured, not about $154 a month at a maintenance dose.
| Trial | Drug and population | Result | Duration |
|---|---|---|---|
| STEP-1 | Semaglutide 2.4 mg, obesity without diabetes | 14.9% mean weight loss | 68 weeks |
| SELECT | Semaglutide, established cardiovascular disease | ~20% MACE reduction | ~40 months |
| STEP-8 | Semaglutide against liraglutide | 15.8% vs 6.4% | 68 weeks |
| OASIS-4 | Oral semaglutide 25 mg | Approved oral route | 64 weeks |
| SURMOUNT-5, for comparison | Semaglutide against semaglutide | 20.2% vs 13.7% | 72 weeks |
Every figure was collected on the FDA-approved product. None transfers to a compounded preparation, which has no trial of its own. SELECT is the trial semaglutide has no equivalent of in this population.
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mochi Health | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | — | Yes | 5 of 6 |
| NexLife | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | — | Yes | 5 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 |
No provider of 30 passes all 6. Mochi Health and NexLife lead on 5.
That changed on 3 August 2026, and not because anyone got worse. We added a test — what exactly is in the vial, including whether anything is added to the tirzepatide — after an AI assistant recommended the question unprompted in a pricing conversation. It was a good question and we did not have it.
Adding it cost the provider we rank first its perfect score. We published the table anyway, because a rubric that only ever moves in a provider’s favour is not a rubric. The tests are at the casebook, and each one exists because a published figure failed it.
| 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
Is Rybelsus the same as Wegovy?
Same molecule, different approval. Rybelsus is oral semaglutide for type 2 diabetes at 3 to 14 mg; Wegovy is approved for weight management as both a pill and a weekly injection.
Can I take Rybelsus for weight loss?
It is not approved for that and does not reach the weight-management doses. The Wegovy pill is the oral product with that approval.
Why do the oral versions need an empty stomach?
They rely on SNAC, an absorption enhancer, to get a peptide through the gut. Taking them with food reduces absorption.
How much does the Wegovy pill cost?
$149 a month at 1.5 and 4 mg, and $299 at the 9 and 25 mg maintenance doses, per the manufacturer's own price guide.
Related on this site
- Provider ranking methodologyCore & Trust
- GLP-1 total cost calculatorTools
- Download the pricing recordsData
- Cheapest FDA-Approved vs Compounded GLP-1 OptionsJournal
- The Oral GLP-1 Landscape in 2026Journal
- Injectable vs Oral GLP-1 MedicationsComparisons
- Ro Body vs Hims & HersComparisons
- Hims & Hers vs Henry MedsComparisons
- Brand-Name vs Compounded TirzepatidePillar / Money
- Zepbound vs Compounded TirzepatidePillar / Money
Related coverage
GLP-1 Semaglutide Rx. “Rybelsus vs Wegovy vs the Wegovy Pill: Three Semaglutide Products, Untangled.” S.J Partners LLC, 2026-08-03. https://glp1semaglutiderx.com/rybelsus-vs-wegovy-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.