Key takeaways
Ozempic costs almost $1,400 for 1, 3 mL prefilled 2 mg/mL multidose pen (a one-month supply) without insurance or discounts. Ozempic is now available in pill form as well.
People without insurance don’t have to pay the full cash price of Ozempic.
Some GLP-1s cost less than Ozempic, but their indications, side effects, and efficacy may differ.
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved Ozempic (semaglutide) for Type 2 diabetes management, cardiovascular risk reduction, and slowing chronic kidney disease progression. However, some people are interested in Ozempic as a low-cost alternative to Wegovy, the brand of semaglutide that’s FDA approved for weight loss. Insurance companies typically don’t cover Ozempic for weight loss, but it can be a cheaper option for self-payers. Fortunately, there are legitimate ways to pay less for this glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) receptor agonist.
How much does Ozempic cost without insurance?
Without insurance, Ozempic costs about $1,396 for 1, 3 mL prefilled 2 mg/mL multidose pen. That’s approximately a one-month supply for a 0.5 mg dose of Ozempic.
The cost per week (and per injection) equals about $349. A year’s worth of Ozempic costs around $18,148 without insurance.
Cash prices vary by pharmacy and prescribed dose.
Save up to 80% on Ozempic with SingleCare
Different pharmacies offer different prices for the same medication. SingleCare helps find the best price for you.
Does insurance cover Ozempic?
Many health insurance plans cover Ozempic when it’s prescribed for an FDA-approved use. Currently, the FDA has approved Ozempic for three indications:
- Controlling blood sugar levels in adults with Type 2 diabetes
- Reducing the risk of cardiovascular death, heart attack, and stroke in adults with Type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease
- Reducing the risk of sustained eGFR decline, end-stage kidney disease, and cardiovascular death in adults with Type 2 diabetes and chronic kidney disease
Note that all three indications are for adults with Type 2 diabetes. If you have cardiovascular or kidney disease without Type 2 diabetes, your insurance company may not cover Ozempic.
Many people wonder if their insurance plan will cover Ozempic for weight loss. Since Ozempic isn’t approved for weight loss, coverage is unlikely. Wegovy is the brand-name formulation of semaglutide that is approved for weight loss and weight management.
To make sure you’re using Ozempic for an FDA-approved indication, most insurance companies require your healthcare provider to answer some questions about your health and diagnosis. This is called prior authorization, and the insurance company may deny coverage for Ozempic if you don’t meet their requirements. Your healthcare provider can appeal this decision.
“Prior authorization forms usually ask for confirmation of Type 2 diabetes, recent A1C, current diabetes medications, prior medication trials, whether the patient has tried or cannot take metformin, and whether the patient has cardiovascular disease, kidney disease, or other complications,” says Fernando Ovalle Jr., MD, a double board-certified obesity medicine specialist based in Orlando, Florida.
“The advice I give patients is that coverage often comes down to documentation. A prescription alone is not enough. The chart needs to clearly show the diagnosis, labs, prior medication history, medical necessity, and why this medication is appropriate for that specific patient.”
How much does Ozempic cost with insurance?
The cost of Ozempic varies significantly with insurance. Every plan has a different cost-sharing structure and drug formulary.
Drug formularies (also called drug lists) organize medications into different tiers (i.e., Tier 1, Tier 2, etc.). Each tier in your health insurance plan is assigned a different copay or coinsurance. Typically, high-tier drugs require you to pay a percentage of the cash price (coinsurance) rather than a fixed-rate fee (copay). The copay or coinsurance increases according to the tier number.
Because there’s so much variability from plan to plan, it’s difficult to say how much Ozempic costs with insurance. Many formularies place it in Tier 2 (which usually requires a copay) or Tier 3 (which usually requires coinsurance).
As an example, your plan might have you pay a $50 copay for a Tier 2 drug, or 25% coinsurance for a Tier 3 drug. For an expensive drug like Ozempic, 25% coinsurance could cost you hundreds of dollars each month.
You also need to meet your plan’s deductible before cost-sharing begins. That means you’ll pay the full retail price of Ozempic until the amount you’ve spent on all covered prescriptions matches your deductible.
Call the number on your insurance card or view your plan’s documents online to find out exactly how much you’ll pay for Ozempic.
The cost of Ozempic with Medicare and Medicaid
The cost of Ozempic with Medicare also varies by plan, but price negotiations could make it more affordable starting Jan. 1, 2027. Novo Nordisk, the manufacturer of Ozempic, agreed to lower its price by 71% for people with Medicare prescription drug coverage.
Let’s say your Medicare plan requires 25% coinsurance for Ozempic. Instead of using the normal list price to calculate your out-of-pocket cost, Medicare will use the negotiated price ($274 for a 30-day supply in 2027) to determine how much you’ll pay. This could save you hundreds of dollars at the pharmacy.
The cost of Ozempic with Medicaid varies by state because Medicaid is managed by state governments.
How to save on Ozempic without insurance
There are two main ways to save on Ozempic without insurance: using a SingleCare prescription discount card or applying to the Novo Nordisk self-pay offer program.
1. SingleCare prescription discount card
A free SingleCare coupon card could lower the cost of Ozempic to $792 per 1, 3 mL prefilled 2 mg/3 mL multidose pen, which equals a month’s supply. That’s a savings of about 43% compared to the typical cash price. The Ozempic pill is more expensive, costing about $927 for 30, 1.5 mg tablets.
SingleCare coupons can be used by anyone with or without insurance, but they can’t be combined with insurance or other savings offers. That means you can’t use a SingleCare savings card to lower the cost of coinsurance, and the SingleCare cost won’t count toward your deductible.
SingleCare prices vary by dose, form, quantity, and pharmacy, but you can easily compare prices on the Ozempic coupon page. Enter your ZIP code and choose your prescribed form, dosage, and quantity from the drop-downs to compare Ozempic prices at pharmacies near you. You can also use the SingleCare app on the go.
2. Novo Nordisk self-pay offer program for Ozempic
Novo Nordisk offers a savings program for people without insurance coverage for Ozempic. The cost varies by dosage and form, and it gradually increases over the first three to four months. See NovoCare for eligibility details.
Read more: 8 ways to save money on Ozempic
Are there cheaper alternatives to Ozempic?
A healthcare provider can recommend the best Ozempic alternative that fits your diagnosis, medical history, and budget. Fortunately, there are a lot of options for treating Type 2 diabetes.
“If the patient needs a GLP-1 but Ozempic is not covered, I usually first see whether another GLP-1 or dual incretin medication is covered, such as Mounjaro (tirzepatide), Trulicity (dulaglutide), Victoza (liraglutide), or Rybelsus (semaglutide),” Dr. Ovalle says. “These are similar and all approved in diabetes for blood sugar control.”
Of those options, generic Victoza is most affordable for people without insurance. With a SingleCare coupon, generic Victoza costs about $134 per 1, 3 mL of 18 mg/3 mL multidose pen.
“If cost is the main barrier, metformin is still the most practical foundation medication for many patients with Type 2 diabetes,” Dr. Ovalle says. With a SingleCare coupon, metformin costs $5.32 per 60, 500 mg tablets.
Frequently asked questions
How much does Ozempic cost per month?
The monthly cost of Ozempic varies considerably based on the dosage, pharmacy, and insurance plan. If you don’t have insurance, you can use a SingleCare discount card to get 1, 3 mL of 2 mg/3 mL multidose pen (a month’s supply for a 0.25 mg or 0.5 mg dose) for about $792.
Is there a generic for Ozempic?
No, there’s no FDA-approved generic for Ozempic. Some pharmacies may sell “compounded semaglutide,” which means they’ve put Ozempic’s active ingredient in a different form or combined it with different ingredients. Compounded semaglutide isn’t regulated or approved by the FDA, and it’s not covered by insurance.
Does Medicare cover Ozempic?
Yes, many Medicare prescription drug plans cover Ozempic for FDA-approved indications.
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The SingleCare prices in this article are the most accurate at the time of publishing in ZIP code 23666 as of Aug. 5, 2026. Prices vary by pharmacy. Visit our coupon page for updated drug prices at pharmacies near you.
- Ozempic label, DailyMed (2026)
- Medicare drug price negotiation program: Negotiated prices for initial price applicability year 2027, Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (2025)
- Ozempic® pill and pen price guide, Novo Nordisk (2026)
- Medically accurate: SingleCare’s Medical Review Board analyzes all of our content to confirm it’s in line with current medical advice.
- Evidence-based: Our content is sourced from reputable U.S.-based healthcare professionals and peer-reviewed research.
- Trustworthy: All of SingleCare’s content goes through a multi-phase review process by our writers, editors, and Medical Board in order to provide clear and credible information.