Does Wegovy expire in the fridge, and what happens if it does?

Step 1: check the expiry date before you even open the box

When your Wegovy arrives, the first thing worth doing is checking the expiry date on each pen and on the outer carton. The date is printed in month/year format, and the pen remains suitable for use through to the last day of that month, provided it has been kept at 2–8°C throughout. A common misconception is that refrigeration somehow resets or extends a medicine's shelf life. It does not. Cold storage preserves stability up to the date the manufacturer has validated; it cannot push that date further out. If a pen arrives with only a few weeks remaining on the label, contact your pharmacy promptly rather than assuming it will be fine.

The full picture on Wegovy expiry covers what the label date means in more detail, including what validation testing underpins it.

Step 2: keep pens refrigerated and understand the room-temperature window

Wegovy pens should sit in the fridge at 2–8°C, away from the freezer compartment and away from the back wall where temperatures can dip below zero. Freezing damages the medicine and a frozen pen must not be used, even after it thaws. Equally, pens stored above 30°C (left in a hot car, a sunny windowsill or a warm bathroom) lose stability faster than room-temperature data accounts for.

Once you take a pen out of the fridge, the clock starts on a limited room-temperature window. The Patient Information Leaflet for your specific pen specifies that window exactly; the NHS semaglutide medicines page also covers storage in accessible terms. The number of days permitted at room temperature varies by product format, and it is worth checking the leaflet rather than relying on a figure recalled from a forum or comparison site, those numbers are not always accurate for the current pen version. If you are unsure whether refrigeration is always necessary for your pen, the page on when Wegovy needs to stay in the fridge addresses that directly.

Step 3: recognise when a pen should not be used

There are four situations where a pen should be set aside rather than injected. First, the expiry date has passed. Second, the pen has been frozen, even briefly. Third, the pen has been outside the fridge beyond the leaflet's stated room-temperature limit. Fourth, the solution looks cloudy, discoloured, or contains particles, semaglutide solution should be clear and colourless to slightly yellow.

Disposing of an unused pen safely matters. Used or unwanted injection pens count as clinical waste and should go into a sharps container for disposal at a pharmacy or household clinical waste point, rather than into a household bin. If you need to replace an expired pen, that requires a fresh prescription through your clinical team, the options for obtaining Wegovy in the UK are worth reviewing if you are weighing up where to continue your supply.

Step 4: plan your supply so expiry is never a problem in the first place

Most expiry issues happen when treatment is interrupted, a missed delivery, a dose-change consultation that takes longer than expected, or a gap between providers. The simplest safeguard is knowing roughly how many weeks of supply you hold and when the earliest expiry falls. One pen per week means a four-pen box lasts exactly four weeks; if your next order arrives late, you will notice a gap. Keeping a note of the earliest expiry date each time a new box arrives takes ten seconds and removes most of the guesswork.

Travel adds another layer of planning. Pens that will be out of refrigeration for more than the leaflet's stated window need a medical cool bag kept within the right temperature range. The page covering how Wegovy should be stored in the fridge includes practical context on maintaining the cold chain at home and away. If you are also curious how semaglutide expiry compares across its different formulations, the general semaglutide expiry guide looks at shelf life across injection and tablet formats.

At nume, a GPhC-registered prescriber personally reviews every consultation, you can confirm storage and expiry queries directly with your clinical team through our contact page, seven days a week. If you are considering starting treatment or moving your prescription, start your free consultation to speak with a prescriber about whether Wegovy is right for you.