Wegovy vs Ozempic: the same semaglutide, two different licences

Wegovy vs Ozempic: the short answer

Wegovy and Ozempic side by side

The two brands exist because the licences differ. Novo Nordisk ran the STEP trial programme in people with overweight and obesity, then licensed the higher doses as Wegovy. Ozempic keeps the diabetes licence built on the SUSTAIN programme.

Dose: where Wegovy and Ozempic part ways

Both start at 0.25mg for four weeks and step up every four weeks. Ozempic's diabetes plan tops out at 2mg. Wegovy carries on to a 2.4mg maintenance dose, and the MHRA licensed 7.2mg in January 2026 for people who need more after four weeks on 2.4mg.

Weight loss on semaglutide rises with dose, which is why the weight management licence sits with the higher Wegovy doses. The full Wegovy plan, step by step, is on Wegovy dose steps. To see what each dose means in clicks on your own Wegovy pen, use the Wegovy click calculator.

STEP 2: Wegovy dose against Ozempic dose

STEP 2 is the closest the evidence gets to a Wegovy vs Ozempic trial. Davies and colleagues randomised 1,210 adults with type 2 diabetes and a BMI of 27 or more to semaglutide 2.4mg, semaglutide 1mg or placebo for 68 weeks. The results appeared in The Lancet in 2021.

People without diabetes lose more. In STEP 1, adults with overweight or obesity and no diabetes lost 14.9% on semaglutide 2.4mg over 68 weeks, against 2.4% on placebo. STEP 2 predates Ozempic 2mg, so the trial does not show how Ozempic's top dose compares.

Heart evidence and the Wegovy licence

Both brands have heart data, in different groups of people. SUSTAIN-6 found semaglutide cut major heart events by 26% in people with type 2 diabetes at high cardiovascular risk, which supports Ozempic in diabetes care. SELECT followed more than 17,000 adults with heart disease and overweight but no diabetes, and found semaglutide 2.4mg cut heart attack, stroke and cardiovascular death by 20%. On the back of SELECT, the MHRA added heart risk reduction to the Wegovy licence. More on Wegovy and heart disease.

Wegovy vs Ozempic side effects

Same molecule, same pattern. Nausea, diarrhoea, vomiting, constipation and stomach pain lead the leaflets for both, mostly in the early weeks and after each step up. Higher doses bring more stomach side effects, so Wegovy users tend to notice them more at 2.4mg and 7.2mg than Ozempic users do at 0.5mg or 1mg.

• Both leaflets warn about pancreatitis, gallbladder problems and dehydration from persistent vomiting or diarrhoea.
• Ozempic users with diabetic retinopathy need eye checks, because the SmPC warns fast falls in blood sugar can worsen eye disease.
• Low blood sugar becomes more likely when either brand is combined with insulin or a sulfonylurea.

Every Wegovy side effect from the leaflet, mapped to the body, is on the Wegovy side effects body map.

Ozempic pens used for weight loss

Use a pharmacy you can find on the GPhC register. How to spot a fake online pharmacy sets out the checks.

Wegovy vs Ozempic cost in the UK

Cheapest Wegovy pen today, delivered

Each tile loads from iGovy's price database when the page opens and shows the lowest delivered price for one pen, with any published discount applied. Last checked 13 Nov 2026

Every pharmacy, ranked by delivered price, is on the Wegovy price comparison UK. What a pen, a month and a year cost is worked through on the Wegovy cost guide.

Ozempic cost

iGovy lists no Ozempic prices. People with type 2 diabetes normally get Ozempic on an NHS prescription, which costs £9.90 per item in England in 2026/27 and nothing in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.

Which one fits your situation

Weighing semaglutide against tirzepatide instead? Read Wegovy vs Mounjaro.

Wegovy vs Ozempic questions

Sources for this comparison

1. Davies M et al. Semaglutide 2.4mg once a week in adults with overweight or obesity, and type 2 diabetes (STEP 2). The Lancet, 2021.
2. Wilding JPH et al. Once-Weekly Semaglutide in Adults with Overweight or Obesity (STEP 1). New England Journal of Medicine, 2021.
3. Lincoff AM et al. Semaglutide and Cardiovascular Outcomes in Obesity without Diabetes (SELECT). New England Journal of Medicine, 2023.
4. Marso SP et al. Semaglutide and Cardiovascular Outcomes in Patients with Type 2 Diabetes (SUSTAIN-6). New England Journal of Medicine, 2016.
5. Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency. Drug Safety Update, November 2023: falsified semaglutide and liraglutide pens.
6. Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency. Semaglutide approved to reduce the risk of serious heart problems.
7. National Institute for Health and Care Excellence. TA875: Semaglutide for managing overweight and obesity.
8. Electronic medicines compendium. Wegovy Summary of Product Characteristics and Ozempic Summary of Product Characteristics.