The semaglutide drugs list: what each medicine is, and what it's licensed for

Which medicines on the semaglutide drugs list are actually available in the UK?

There are four. Ozempic is a once-weekly subcutaneous injection made by Novo Nordisk, licensed in the UK for adults with type 2 diabetes to improve blood-sugar control and, in some patients, reduce the risk of cardiovascular events. Rybelsus is an oral tablet (also from Novo Nordisk) licensed solely for type 2 diabetes in 3mg, 7mg and 14mg strengths. Neither carries a UK weight-management licence, and the MHRA's guidance is clear on this point.

Then there's Wegovy. The injection version (0.25mg up to 2.4mg, titrated by your prescriber over several months) has been licensed for weight management in adults with a BMI of 30 or above, or 27 and above with a weight-related condition, since 2023. A higher 7.2mg maintenance dose was approved in early 2026, with a dedicated single-dose pen confirmed by the MHRA on 14 April 2026 for adults with a BMI of at least 30. And in June 2026, Wegovy tablets joined the list, the 1.5mg, 4mg, 9mg and 25mg oral schedule is covered in more detail on our Wegovy overview page. If you're researching the full semaglutide family, that's the one to read first.

The tablet strengths matter because they're easy to mix up: the Rybelsus diabetes tablet runs at 3mg, 7mg and 14mg, while the Wegovy weight-loss tablet runs at 1.5mg, 4mg, 9mg and 25mg. These are completely separate products with separate licences. A question our prescribers hear regularly is whether someone can use Rybelsus for weight loss, they can't, not under the current UK licensing framework.

What does semaglutide actually do, and why does the licence matter so much?

Semaglutide is a GLP-1 receptor agonist. GLP-1 is a gut hormone released after eating; it signals fullness to the brain, slows how quickly the stomach empties and helps regulate blood sugar. A synthetic version that mimics this hormone (and resists the rapid breakdown the natural version undergoes) is what makes semaglutide effective across both diabetes and obesity contexts.

But the dose, the delivery system and the target outcome differ significantly between the diabetes and weight-management products. Ozempic doses (0.5mg, 1mg, 2mg) are calibrated for glycaemic control. Wegovy's doses are higher, designed to produce the degree of appetite reduction associated with meaningful weight loss over time. The STEP 1 trial, published in the New England Journal of Medicine, reported an average weight reduction of around 15% over 68 weeks at 2.4mg in adults without diabetes. The oral Wegovy trial (OASIS 4) reported approximately 13.6% average weight loss over 64 weeks, rising to around 17% among participants who adhered fully to treatment.

The licence matters because it determines whether a prescriber can legally authorise a medicine for your situation. Prescribing Ozempic for weight loss would be off-label; using Wegovy injection for type 2 diabetes is similarly outside its authorisation. A prescriber who understands your full medical picture will work within those boundaries, and if you want to understand which semaglutide drugs exist and how their authorisations differ, the NHS medicines information sets out those distinctions clearly on the NHS semaglutide page.

Does being on the semaglutide drugs list mean a medicine is suitable for you?

Not automatically. Even within the weight-management products, there are clinical exclusions. Wegovy is not recommended during pregnancy, while breastfeeding, or if you're trying to conceive. It's not licensed for people under 18. A history of pancreatitis or certain thyroid conditions requires careful clinical discussion before a prescriber would consider it. Lower BMI thresholds can apply for some ethnic backgrounds under UK guidance, which affects eligibility in ways worth asking about at consultation.

There's also the question of which semaglutide product is right for you if you do qualify for weight management treatment, injection or tablet, which dose pathway, how it fits around any other medicines you take. If you want a complete picture of what drugs are semaglutide and how they sit within the wider treatment landscape, that's a useful place to start before your consultation. For context on how Wegovy compares with the other licensed weight-loss injection available in the UK, our page on medicines similar to semaglutide covers the clinical landscape without oversimplifying it. Cost is a factor too, and it's reasonable to think about it; if you want a grounded view of what private treatment typically involves, the Wegovy cost page sets out what private pricing actually reflects.

The broader point is that knowing which medicines contain semaglutide is useful context, but suitability is a clinical question, not a product question. That's why the consultation exists.

Can you get semaglutide for weight loss on the NHS, and how does the private route work?

Wegovy injection is available on the NHS, but access is tightly phased and currently routes through specialist weight management services with multidisciplinary support, as set out in NICE's appraisal of semaglutide (TA875). Waiting lists are commonly long, and not everyone meets the criteria. Wegovy tablets are not yet available on the NHS; a NICE appraisal would need to be completed first.

The private route involves a prescription following a full clinical assessment. At nume, a GPhC-registered Independent Prescriber reads every consultation personally, not software. If you're approved, treatment is dispatched the same day for orders placed before midday, tracked and delivered free the next working day. Every repeat goes through the same clinical re-review; there's no auto-renewal. Our clinical team page gives a clearer sense of who reviews your case. If you have questions before starting, our FAQs cover the most common ones, and the team is reachable through our contact page seven days a week.

If you'd like to explore whether a semaglutide weight-management medicine is clinically appropriate for you, you can also browse our full semaglutide list to familiarise yourself with the options before you begin, then speak to our prescribers, the consultation is free, and there's no obligation.