Wegovy dosages: what you need to know to achieve effective weight loss

Wegovy is a weight loss injection containing the active ingredient semaglutide. This is a glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) agonist, meaning it imitates the hormone GLP-1 in your body. This causes your appetite and hunger levels to decrease.

The Wegovy dosage regime:

Scroll to see the Wegovy dosage regime.

There are 6 Wegovy dosages for weight loss:

• Wegovy 0.25mg
• Wegovy 0.5mg
• Wegovy 1mg
• Wegovy 1.7mg
• Wegovy 2.4mg
• Wegovy 7.2mg

The active ingredient in Wegovy is semaglutide, so this means Wegovy 0.25mg will contain 0.25mg of semaglutide per dose, and so on for each Wegovy dose.

Initially, the Wegovy dosage schedule involves increasing your dose each month (always after 4 weeks), starting at the lowest dose of 0.25mg and working your way up to the maintenance dose of 7.2mg.

Wegovy dosage chart

To help you keep an overview of your Wegovy doses, we’ve made a handy Wegovy dosage chart. This includes when to order a new pen and when each pen will finish.

You’ll usually increase your dosage for 20 weeks, but this may be longer if you get side effects and decide to stay on lower doses for longer. Increasing your Wegovy dose in 4-week intervals lowers the risk of common side effects like nausea (feeling sick) and vomiting (being sick), and allows your body to slowly get used to the treatment.

The Wegovy dosing schedule is as follows:

• Weeks 1 to 4 - 0.25 mg
• Weeks 5 to 8 - 0.5 mg
• Weeks 9 to 12 - 1 mg
• Weeks 13 to 16 - 1.7 mg
• Weeks 17 to 20 - 2.4 mg
• Week 21 onward - 7.2mg

The Wegovy starting dose is 0.25mg. You’ll take this once a week for a month before increasing your dose.

Wegovy maximum dosage

The maximum dosage of Wegovy pens is 7.2mg. You should never take more than 7.2mg once a week.

Lowest dosage of Wegovy pens

The lowest dosage of Wegovy pens is 0.25mg. This is the dose you’re starting with at the beginning of your treatment.

Wegovy maintenance dosage

The Wegovy maintenance dosage is 7.2mg, injected once per week. This is the dose you’ll stay on for most of your treatment, and is one of the main doses used for maintenance. The maintenance stage happens when you’ve reached your weight loss goal, or you’re just about to, and you now want to maintain your weight until you’re ready to try on your own. Your doctor can change this if you’re struggling with side effects or if you’re losing weight during the maintenance phase.

Each Wegovy pen contains 4 doses. Wegovy is a once-weekly medication, which means each Wegovy pen will last 4 weeks. Every dosage of Wegovy comes in a different coloured pen, to make it easier to tell them apart.

The colours and doses are:

• green (Wegovy 0.25mg)
• pink (Wegovy 0.5mg)
• brown (Wegovy 1mg)
• blue (Wegovy 1.7mg)
• black (Wegovy 2.4mg)
• purple (Wegovy 7.2mg)

Wegovy 0.25mg

Wegovy 0.25mg comes with 4 doses of semaglutide 0.25mg. It’s the lowest dose and is always the starting dose when taking Wegovy.

Wegovy 0.5mg

Wegovy 0.5mg is the second dose of Wegovy on the dosing schedule. It contains 4 semaglutide doses of 0.5mg.

Wegovy 1mg

This is the third dose of Wegovy on the dosing schedule. Each dose contains 1mg of semaglutide.

Wegovy 1.7mg

This is the fourth dose, containing 1.7mg of Wegovy

Wegovy 2.4mg

This is the fifth dose, containing 2.4mg of Wegovy. It is also a maintenance dose.

Wegovy 7.2mg

This is the sixth and highest dose. It is achieved by injecting the black 2.4mg pen 3 times in a row once a week. It’s the most Wegovy you can take per week and the highest maintenance dose.

Can you start out on 1mg of Wegovy?

“If you are just starting your weight loss journey with GLP-1 injections, you'll usually start on the lowest dose of Wegovy, which is 0.25 mg. Everyone must follow the Wegovy dosing schedule, as it can reduce the risk of side effects. It also gets your body adjusted to the treatment before increasing your dose. If you’ve taken a weight loss injection before, or are switching from Mounjaro to Wegovy, you usually do not start out on 1mg of Wegovy, either. The exception might be if you've recently been on a qualifying dose of Ozempic – your doctor will discuss this with you.” – Dr Crystal Wyllie, Online Doctor.

Wegovy should only be injected once a week. You should also stick to the same time and day each week for the best effect.

> Read more about how to take Wegovy.

If you miss a dose of Wegovy, what you do next will depend on how long it’s been since your missed dose.

• If it’s been 5 days or less, take your Wegovy pen as soon as you remember. Inject the next dose on your usual day and time, then carry on treatment as normal, making sure there’s at least 3 days between any 2 doses.
• If it’s been more than 5 days, skip the missed dose and wait till your next dose is due. Never take a double dose to make up for a missed one, as this can increase the risk of side effects.

The Wegovy dosing schedule is different to other weight loss medications, as it contains semaglutide. You can switch from other weight loss medications to Wegovy, but only under the supervision of a doctor.

Wegovy vs Ozempic dosage

Wegovy is a weight loss medication containing semaglutide. Ozempic is a treatment for type 2 diabetes which also contains semaglutide.

Wegovy is available at a higher dose as this is better for weight loss. Ozempic is used for regulating blood sugar levels. Asda Online Doctor doesn’t prescribe Ozempic as an off-label weight loss treatment.

Saxenda is a weight loss injection containing liraglutide, which suppresses your appetite and hunger levels similarly to Wegovy. Saxenda is no longer available due to stock shortages, now generic liraglutide (Nevolat) is available, which works in the exact same way it just has a different name, price and packaging.

You can switch from the Saxenda or generic liraglutide (Nevolat) to the Wegovy dosage schedule, but speak with a doctor about how to do this safely. You can’t take liraglutide and Wegovy at the same time, as they both contain a GLP-1 agonist.

View our guide on Switching from Mounjaro to Wegovy as well as Switching from Wegovy to Mounjaro for more information.

“No, it’s important that you follow your Wegovy dosing schedule and allow Wegovy to build up to the maintenance dose. Skipping doses will decrease how well it works. If you want to skip your dose because you’re getting side effects, speak to your doctor. They may recommend taking a lower dose for longer until you feel better.” – Dr Crystal Wyllie, Online Doctor.

You won’t necessarily get side effects from Wegovy on the first day of taking it, but Wegovy can cause side effects in some people during treatment. These often go away as your body adjusts.

The most common side effects of Wegovy include:

• feeling sick (nausea)
• being sick (vomiting)
• stomach pain
• diarrhoea
• constipation
• headache
• tiredness (fatigue)
• dizziness
• heartburn
• feeling bloated
• gas or burping
• stomach flu
• sore throat
• runny nose