Saxenda to Wegovy Conversion Chart and What Switching Really Means

The biggest myth: that a dose chart can tell you where to start on Wegovy

The search for a Saxenda-to-Wegovy conversion chart is understandable. If you have spent months titrating up through Saxenda's daily doses, it feels logical that you could slot into Wegovy at an equivalent point. That is not how prescribers approach it.

The two molecules behave differently. Liraglutide (Saxenda) has a short half-life and is dosed every day. Semaglutide (Wegovy) has a much longer half-life, which is why once-weekly dosing works. Because semaglutide builds up in the body differently, a Saxenda dose of 2.4mg daily does not translate cleanly to any specific Wegovy dose, the pharmacokinetics are simply not comparable on a one-to-one basis. The NHS patient information for semaglutide describes Wegovy's own escalation schedule independently, without reference to prior liraglutide doses, because the schedule is determined by tolerability, not by what you were taking before.

In practice, most prescribers restart the titration from Wegovy's lowest dose (0.25mg weekly), though the pace of escalation may be adapted for someone who has already tolerated a GLP-1 medicine well. That clinical judgement belongs to the prescriber, not to a chart. If you are considering a switch, see the comparison of Saxenda and Wegovy for context on how the two medicines differ at the mechanism level.

Why Saxenda is not a stepping stone into a higher Wegovy dose

Some people assume that completing the full Saxenda titration puts them in a strong position to start Wegovy at a mid-point in the schedule. Prescribers do take prior GLP-1 tolerance into account, but they also weigh up how long ago the previous medicine was stopped, whether side effects occurred, and what the current clinical picture shows, weight, blood pressure, any new conditions.

The wash-out period between stopping Saxenda and starting Wegovy also matters. Because Saxenda is daily and clears quickly, the gap can be short, but it is still a clinical decision rather than a patient-led one. Jumping to a higher Wegovy dose without proper assessment risks GI side effects that a more cautious re-titration would have managed. Nausea, vomiting, and diarrhoea are the most commonly reported effects when starting or increasing semaglutide, and they are typically worse when the body has not had time to adjust. If you want to understand how each injection is prepared and administered correctly, the guide to the Wegovy golden shot walks through the technique in detail.

For a detailed look at what Wegovy's full dose schedule involves from first pen to maintenance, the Wegovy dosing chart sets that out clearly. And if you are curious how Wegovy's results compare with what Saxenda produced for you, the Wegovy versus Saxenda comparison covers the trial evidence side by side.

What is actually licensed for weight management in the UK right now

Saxenda remains licensed for weight management in the UK, but it is not a medicine that nume dispenses. The weight-loss medicines prescribed through nume are Wegovy (semaglutide injection), the Wegovy tablet (oral semaglutide, approved by the MHRA on 11 June 2026 as the first oral GLP-1 for weight management in the UK), and Mounjaro (tirzepatide), the dual GIP and GLP-1 receptor agonist made by Eli Lilly.

Wegovy injection is licensed for adults with a BMI of 30 or above, or 27 to 29.9 with at least one weight-related condition. NICE recommends semaglutide for weight management under specific NHS criteria detailed in NICE technology appraisal TA875, though private prescribing follows the licensed indications rather than the NHS commissioning thresholds. Tirzepatide (Mounjaro) carries its own strong trial evidence; the SURMOUNT-1 study reported average body-weight reductions of around 20 to 21% at the highest dose over 72 weeks. Both are prescription-only medicines and require clinical assessment before any prescription is issued.

People switching from Saxenda often ask about cost differences too. The Wegovy pricing page explains how private treatment is structured and what a legitimate prescription service includes. There is no subscription at nume; each repeat order goes through a fresh clinical review.

How to approach a switch in practice

If you are currently on Saxenda and want to move to Wegovy or Mounjaro, the sensible first step is a prescriber consultation rather than a conversion chart. The prescriber will want to know your current Saxenda dose, how long you have been on it, what weight change you have seen, any side effects you experienced, and your current BMI and health conditions. That information shapes the starting point and pace on the new medicine far more reliably than any numerical table.

Practically speaking, the transition also involves a change in routine. If you are used to a daily Saxenda injection (perhaps part of an evening habit or kept in the fridge door alongside other daily items) the shift to a once-weekly Wegovy pen is a meaningful adjustment for some people. Weekly administration is simpler for most, but it does mean the timing of each dose needs a bit of thought to stay consistent. Your prescriber and the patient information leaflet for whichever medicine is chosen will give you the specifics.

Our semaglutide overview covers how the medicine works and what the evidence base looks like for those starting out. If you have already decided semaglutide is the right direction, the free consultation is the right place to check your eligibility with a GPhC-registered prescriber who will review your case the same day.