How much weight can you lose at Wegovy's maximum dose?

You've hit the maintenance dose and you're wondering: is this as good as it gets?

It's a fair question, and an honest one. After months of dose increases, nausea, dietary adjustments and weekly injections, reaching 2.4mg can feel like a milestone, and yet the scales might still be moving. That uncertainty is one of the things our prescribers hear about most often.

The short answer is that 2.4mg is not a finishing line. In the STEP 1 trial, participants who stayed on the 2.4mg maintenance dose continued to lose weight throughout the 68-week study period, with losses still accruing in the later weeks. The average reduction of around 15% was measured at the end of the full trial, not after the first few months on maintenance. So if you've just reached 2.4mg and weight loss has slowed, that's often normal. The body takes time to respond to a stable dose.

What the trial also showed is significant spread around that average. Some participants lost well under 10% of their starting weight; others lost over 20%. Biology, metabolic rate, adherence to a reduced-calorie diet, activity levels and individual response to semaglutide all contribute. You can read more about how individual doses tend to perform at different stages in our overview of how Wegovy's dose schedule works.

The 7.2mg dose: what it means for maximum weight loss on Wegovy

Since January 2026, 2.4mg is no longer the highest licensed Wegovy dose available in the UK. The MHRA approved a 7.2mg maintenance dose, and on 14 April 2026 announced a dedicated single-dose 7.2mg pen, a pre-set, once-weekly injection, confirmed by GOV.UK on 14 April 2026. The 7.2mg pen is licensed for adults with a BMI of 30 or above; it is not indicated for lower BMI thresholds or for Wegovy's cardiovascular indication.

Trial data at 7.2mg reported around 20.7% average weight loss over 72 weeks. That begins to close the gap with tirzepatide's 15mg results from the SURMOUNT programme, which averaged around 20–21% in STEP 1's equivalent cohort. The titration pathway remains the same: you still begin at 0.25mg and step up over several months, and our page on what to expect from Wegovy at the 0.5mg stage covers that earlier part of the journey in detail. The difference is that the ceiling is higher.

For context on how results compare across the full dose range (from the earlier steps right up to the maintenance targets) our page on weight loss at the 2.4mg stage covers what the evidence shows mid-journey, and our summary of Wegovy's maximum dose goes into the clinical detail of both the 2.4mg and 7.2mg thresholds.

Whether the 7.2mg dose is appropriate for a specific patient is a clinical decision. Specific dose availability is something a prescriber confirms at consultation.

Why some people lose more than the trial average, and what actually drives that

Trial averages are useful benchmarks, but they can mislead. The ~15% figure from STEP 1 includes participants who lost 5% and participants who lost 25%. A few specific factors consistently appear in the evidence as associated with better outcomes.

Adherence to a reduced-calorie diet alongside treatment matters significantly. Wegovy reduces appetite and slows gastric emptying, which makes eating less easier, but it doesn't override food choices automatically. Participants in the STEP 1 trial received structured lifestyle support alongside the medicine; in real-world settings without that support, results can differ. The NHS medicines page for semaglutide describes the treatment as intended to be used alongside dietary and lifestyle changes, not instead of them.

Protein intake, strength-based activity, and managing the GI side effects that can disrupt eating patterns in the early weeks all play a role too. Muscle mass loss is a known risk during rapid weight reduction on any treatment; maintaining protein adequacy and some resistance exercise helps preserve it.

Starting weight also matters mathematically: a 15% reduction from 130kg is 19.5kg; from 90kg it's 13.5kg. The percentage is consistent; the absolute figure depends on where you start. If you're curious about how earlier doses contribute before maintenance is reached, our page on weight loss at the 1mg stage looks at that phase specifically.

Semaglutide is only part of the picture for long-term results

One thing the clinical evidence is consistent about: when people stop taking GLP-1 medicines, a significant portion of the weight loss reverses. That's not a side effect, it reflects how the medicine works. It reduces appetite and supports a lower intake while it's active. Once it's withdrawn, those effects fade.

This is why clinical guidance frames weight-loss medicines as long-term treatments, not short courses. It also underlines the importance of building sustainable dietary habits during treatment, so those patterns persist beyond it.

For a fuller picture of Wegovy across all its uses and how it compares with other licensed options, our Wegovy overview covers the treatment in detail. If you're weighing up whether Wegovy is the right fit for your situation, the broader weight-loss treatment overview sets out how the licensed options differ. A prescriber can assess your full picture and discuss which approach fits best, that conversation starts with a free consultation at our treatment page.