Peptide LibraryOzempic vs Wegovy
Ozempic and Wegovy both contain semaglutide and are both made by Novo Nordisk, but they are separate FDA-approved products. Ozempic is approved for type 2 diabetes (blood sugar, and heart and kidney risk reduction in type 2 diabetes) with a maximum of 2 mg weekly. Wegovy is approved for weight management in adults and children 12 and older, cardiovascular risk reduction in people with obesity or overweight, and MASH, with maintenance doses of 1.7 to 2.4 mg weekly (up to 7.2 mg) and a daily tablet. They are not substitutes for each other by dose.
Checked against the FDA label and cited trials on
Peptide Library is an independent educational resource. It is not affiliated with, sponsored or endorsed by Novo Nordisk or Eli Lilly; Ozempic, Wegovy, Mounjaro and Zepbound are trademarks of their owners and are named only to identify the products. This page summarizes FDA-approved prescribing information and published trials. It is not individual medical advice: dosing and any change to it are decided with a prescriber.
The products
Ozempic (semaglutide)
- Manufacturer
- Novo Nordisk
- Form
- Once-weekly injection in prefilled pens (2 mg/3 mL, 4 mg/3 mL, 8 mg/3 mL) or single-dose syringes
- FDA-approved uses
- Glycemic control in adults with type 2 diabetes, with diet and exercise
- Reducing the risk of major cardiovascular events in adults with type 2 diabetes and established cardiovascular disease
- Reducing the risk of kidney decline, kidney failure and cardiovascular death in adults with type 2 diabetes and chronic kidney disease
- Boxed warning
- Risk of thyroid C-cell tumors: semaglutide caused thyroid C-cell tumors in rodents; whether it does in humans is unknown. Contraindicated with a personal or family history of medullary thyroid carcinoma or MEN 2.
Wegovy (semaglutide)
- Manufacturer
- Novo Nordisk
- Form
- Once-weekly injection (single-dose pens and syringes, FlexTouch pen; 7.2 mg as Wegovy HD) or once-daily tablets
- FDA-approved uses
- Reducing excess body weight and keeping it off long term in adults with obesity, or overweight with a weight-related condition, and in children 12 and older with obesity (injection)
- Reducing the risk of major cardiovascular events in adults with established cardiovascular disease and obesity or overweight
- Noncirrhotic MASH with moderate to advanced liver fibrosis in adults (injection; accelerated approval)
- Boxed warning
- Risk of thyroid C-cell tumors: semaglutide caused thyroid C-cell tumors in rodents; whether it does in humans is unknown. Contraindicated with a personal or family history of medullary thyroid carcinoma or MEN 2.
Side by side, from the labels
| Ozempic | Wegovy | |
|---|---|---|
| Active ingredient | Semaglutide | Semaglutide |
| Approved for weight management | No | Yes (adults; children 12+ with obesity, injection) |
| Type 2 diabetes glycemic control | Yes | No |
| Cardiovascular risk reduction | In adults with type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease | In adults with cardiovascular disease and obesity or overweight |
| Other indications | Kidney risk reduction in type 2 diabetes with chronic kidney disease | MASH with moderate to advanced fibrosis (accelerated approval) |
| Labelled start | 0.25 mg weekly for 4 weeks | 0.25 mg weekly for 4 weeks, then 4-week steps to 0.5, 1 and 1.7 mg |
| Maintenance | 0.5, 1 or 2 mg weekly | 1.7 or 2.4 mg weekly; up to 7.2 mg (Wegovy HD) for weight reduction |
| Maximum | 2 mg weekly | 7.2 mg weekly |
| Forms | Multi-dose pens, single-dose syringes | Single-dose pens and syringes, FlexTouch pen, daily tablets |
| Key trials | SUSTAIN program, SUSTAIN 6, FLOW | STEP program, STEP UP, OASIS 4, SELECT, ESSENCE |
| Boxed warning | Thyroid C-cell tumors | Thyroid C-cell tumors |
Sources: the current prescribing information for each product, linked above.
Why one ingredient has two products
A drug is approved for specific uses at specific doses, based on the trials submitted for those uses. Ozempic was studied and approved for type 2 diabetes; Wegovy was studied at higher doses in people with obesity or overweight (the STEP trials) and approved for that, later adding cardiovascular risk reduction from SELECT and MASH from ESSENCE. Drugs@FDA lists them as separate applications (NDA 209637 and NDA 215256) with no therapeutic-equivalence code between them.
What the labels say about using them together or switching
The Wegovy label says using it with other semaglutide-containing products or any other GLP-1 receptor agonist is not recommended. Neither label sets out a conversion from one product’s doses to the other’s; Wegovy defines switching only between its own 25 mg tablet and 2.4 mg injection. Any change between products is a prescriber’s decision.
FDA has also warned that some unapproved products sold as semaglutide use salt forms (semaglutide sodium, semaglutide acetate) that are different active ingredients from the approved drugs.
Results are not comparable between the two labels
Ozempic’s trials were in type 2 diabetes and report weight in kilograms as a secondary outcome; Wegovy’s weight trials report percent change as the primary outcome in people with obesity or overweight. The figures come from different populations, doses and endpoints. See the Wegovy weight loss chart for Wegovy’s own trial results.
Questions
Are Ozempic and Wegovy the same drug?
They contain the same active ingredient, semaglutide, but are separate FDA-approved products with different indications, doses and devices.
Can Ozempic be used for weight loss?
Ozempic is not FDA-approved for weight management; Wegovy is. Prescribing outside a label is a clinical decision for a prescriber.
Is Wegovy a higher dose of Ozempic?
Wegovy’s maintenance doses (1.7 to 2.4 mg, up to 7.2 mg) are higher than Ozempic’s (0.5 to 2 mg), and it has its own pens, tablets and schedule. The labels do not treat one as a dose of the other.