Need help or have questions about your order? Call 510-991-8265Questions about your order? Call 510-991-8265

Sign InShop GLPs
Shop GLPs

Cost of Semaglutide: Brand, Compounded, and Cash Pricing

By
Published Updated Last reviewed
10 linked public sourcesEditorial, sourcing, and corrections policy

At a glance

  • Approved injections / Ozempic (2017) and Wegovy (2021) [3][1]
  • Approved tablets / Rybelsus (2019) and Wegovy tablets (2025) [2][4]
  • Compounded status / Not FDA-approved; not reviewed for safety, effectiveness or quality [5]
  • Compounded adverse event reports / 990 as of 2026-05-31, likely an undercount [5]
  • Bulk-substance list / FDA proposed excluding semaglutide from the outsourcing list on 2026-04-30 [6]

The tiers

Branded injections. Ozempic (approved 2017-12-05) and Wegovy injection (2021-06-04) are FDA-approved [3][1]. Ozempic is approved for type 2 diabetes (glycemic control, cardiovascular risk reduction in adults with type 2 diabetes and established cardiovascular disease, and kidney outcomes in adults with type 2 diabetes and chronic kidney disease) and has no weight-loss indication [8]. Wegovy injection covers weight management in eligible adults and children 12 and older, plus cardiovascular risk reduction and MASH in eligible adults; Wegovy tablets have adult weight-management and cardiovascular indications but no pediatric or MASH indication [9].

Branded tablets. Rybelsus (2019-09-20) and Wegovy tablets (2025-12-22) are FDA-approved [2][4]. Tablet and injection doses are not interchangeable [9].

Compounded. A pharmacy prepares semaglutide for an individual patient on a prescription. FDA says compounded drugs are not FDA approved and are not reviewed for safety, effectiveness or quality before marketing [5]. HealthRX.com offers compounded semaglutide by prescription.

What the compounding rules allow

A pharmacy may compound semaglutide for an individual patient on a prescription, but a product that is essentially a copy of an approved drug is allowed only if made rarely (FDA says it does not intend to act against four or fewer such prescriptions per calendar month) or if the prescriber documents a significant difference for that patient [7]. FDA says semaglutide does not appear on the list of bulk substances outsourcing facilities may compound with [7]; on 2026-04-30 FDA proposed excluding semaglutide, tirzepatide and liraglutide from that list, with comments due 2026-06-29 and no final decision made [6].

What FDA reports about compounded semaglutide

FDA had received 990 adverse event reports for compounded semaglutide as of 2026-05-31 and says this likely undercounts [5]. FDA reports dosing errors with compounded injectable semaglutide (patients measuring wrong doses, clinicians miscalculating, doses above the label) and says semaglutide sodium and semaglutide acetate salts are different active ingredients from the approved drug, with no lawful basis for use in compounding that it is aware of [5].

Boxed warning on the approved products

Ozempic injection, Wegovy injection and tablets, Rybelsus, and Ozempic tablets carry a boxed warning about thyroid C-cell tumors observed in rodents; whether semaglutide causes these tumors in humans is unknown, and the products are contraindicated with a personal or family history of medullary thyroid carcinoma or MEN 2 [10][8][9].

Frequently asked questions

Which semaglutide product is approved for weight management?
Wegovy, as injection or tablets; Ozempic and Rybelsus are approved for type 2 diabetes, and Ozempic has no weight-loss indication [8][9].
Which semaglutide products are FDA-approved?
Ozempic injection (2017-12-05), Rybelsus tablets (2019-09-20), Wegovy injection (2021-06-04) and Wegovy tablets (2025-12-22) [1][2][3][4].
Can a pharmacy still compound semaglutide?
A pharmacy may compound it for an individual patient on a prescription. A product that is essentially a copy of an approved drug is allowed only if made rarely (FDA says it does not intend to act against four or fewer such prescriptions per calendar month) or if the prescriber documents a significant difference for that patient [7]. FDA says semaglutide does not appear on the list of bulk substances outsourcing facilities may compound with [7].
Is compounded semaglutide FDA approved?
No. FDA says compounded drugs are not FDA approved and are not reviewed for safety, effectiveness or quality before marketing. It also says semaglutide sodium and semaglutide acetate salts are different active ingredients from the approved drug, with no lawful basis for use in compounding that it is aware of [5].

References

  1. Drugs@FDA: FDA-Approved Drugs. Drugs@FDA: FDA-Approved Drugs
  2. Drugs@FDA: FDA-Approved Drugs. Drugs@FDA: FDA-Approved Drugs
  3. Drugs@FDA: FDA-Approved Drugs. Drugs@FDA: FDA-Approved Drugs
  4. Drugs@FDA: FDA-Approved Drugs. Drugs@FDA: FDA-Approved Drugs
  5. FDA’s Concerns with Unapproved GLP-1 Drugs Used for Weight Loss | FDA. FDA’s Concerns with Unapproved GLP-1 Drugs Used for Weight Loss | FDA
  6. FDA Proposes to Exclude Semaglutide, Tirzepatide, and Liraglutide on Bulks List | FDA. FDA Proposes to Exclude Semaglutide, Tirzepatide, and Liraglutide on Bulks List | FDA
  7. FDA clarifies policies for compounders as national GLP-1 supply begins to stabilize | FDA. FDA clarifies policies for compounders as national GLP-1 supply begins to stabilize | FDA
  8. U.S. National Library of Medicine, DailyMed. Ozempic injection (Novo Nordisk) prescribing information. Ozempic injection (Novo Nordisk) label
  9. U.S. National Library of Medicine, DailyMed. Wegovy injection and Wegovy tablets (Novo Nordisk) prescribing information. Wegovy injection and Wegovy tablets (Novo Nordisk) label
  10. U.S. National Library of Medicine, DailyMed. Rybelsus and Ozempic tablets (Novo Nordisk) (oral semaglutide) prescribing information. Rybelsus and Ozempic tablets (Novo Nordisk) (oral semaglutide) label
Evidence overview for Cost of Semaglutide: Brand, Compounded, and Cash Pricing