How many doses of Wegovy are there, and what does the schedule look like?

You're at 0.25 mg and wondering how far you have to go

The starting dose of 0.25 mg exists purely to let your body adjust to semaglutide, the active medicine in Wegovy. This pen isn't expected to produce noticeable weight loss on its own. Its job is to reduce the chance of nausea and stomach discomfort when you begin. Most people spend four weeks here before moving up. The full Wegovy dose ladder has five standard steps in the injection schedule: 0.25 mg, 0.5 mg, 1.0 mg, 1.7 mg, and 2.4 mg, each separated by roughly four weeks of treatment at the previous level.

After 0.25 mg, the schedule goes: 0.5 mg for four weeks, then 1.0 mg, then 1.7 mg, before reaching the standard maintenance dose of 2.4 mg. At that point, most people stay at 2.4 mg long-term unless their prescriber recommends a different approach. For each pen you receive, it's worth knowing how many doses are in a Wegovy pen so you can plan your supply without gaps. Each pre-filled pen contains four weekly doses, meaning one pen covers one month of treatment at a given strength.

The NHS medicines guidance on semaglutide (Wegovy) explains the titration schedule in plain language and is worth reading alongside your Patient Information Leaflet. It covers the full dose sequence, storage, and what to do if you're unwell.

What changed in 2026: the 7.2 mg dose

Until early 2026, 2.4 mg was the ceiling for Wegovy in the UK. That changed on 14 April 2026, when the MHRA approved a dedicated single-dose 7.2 mg pen, a pre-set weekly injection with an auto-dosing mechanism, a built-in covered needle, and a lock-after-use design. If you're curious about how many strengths of Wegovy there are, the current answer is six, counting across the full range from the starting dose up to 7.2 mg. So if you're searching for how many different doses of Wegovy there are, the current answer is six.

The 7.2 mg pen is licensed specifically for adults with a BMI of 30 or above; it is not approved for the cardiovascular indication or for people whose BMI falls below that threshold. The starting dose remains 0.25 mg regardless, you still move through the same earlier steps before reaching 7.2 mg. Trial data reported around 20.7% average weight loss over 72 weeks at this higher dose, which narrows the gap with tirzepatide results seen in head-to-head evidence. You can read the full background on the Wegovy dose range, including what the evidence says at each level. The specific strengths that are licensed in the UK are also covered in detail if you want a more focused breakdown.

Specific dose and pen format availability is always confirmed at consultation, because supply can vary; never assume a particular strength is in stock at any given pharmacy.

Why the stepped schedule matters, and what happens if you need to pause

The gradual titration isn't bureaucratic caution. GLP-1 medicines like Wegovy slow gastric emptying and act on appetite pathways in the brain; moving too fast through the doses makes GI side effects (nausea, loose stools, indigestion) significantly more likely. The four-week intervals let your system recalibrate before the next increase. The full Wegovy overview covers how semaglutide works in more detail if you want the mechanism explained properly.

If you experience side effects that make a dose increase difficult, a prescriber may recommend staying at your current strength for longer. That's a clinical decision, not a failure. The Patient Information Leaflet and your prescriber are the right sources for any question about pausing, reducing, or re-titrating, guidance specific to your situation can't safely come from a general article. For context on how Wegovy fits alongside other licensed weight-management options, the treatment overview sets out what's currently available through regulated UK services.

Thinking about whether Wegovy could be right for you? A prescriber at nume reviews every consultation the same day, check your eligibility with a free consultation and get a clinical answer, not a guess.