Wegovy Expiration Date: How Long Your Pen Stays Usable

What the expiration date on your Wegovy pen actually means

The date printed on the carton and the pen barrel is the manufacturer's guarantee: up to and including the last day of that month, Novo Nordisk can stand behind the potency and stability of the semaglutide inside. After that point, chemical degradation may have reduced the concentration of active ingredient, and the medicine cannot be relied upon to work as intended.

You'll see the date formatted as MM/YYYY or as "EXP" followed by a month and year. A pen stamped "08/2026" is valid through 31 August 2026. This is worth double-checking when a pen arrives, especially if you've ordered just before a bank holiday or a long weekend, a pen dispatched on a Friday and used the following Tuesday is still fine, but a pen that sat forgotten in a drawer for months needs its date inspected before anything else.

The Wegovy Summary of Product Characteristics on the eMC gives the authoritative detail on storage conditions and shelf life; the Patient Information Leaflet inside every box restates it in plain language. Those documents are the ones your prescriber and pharmacist rely on. If you're unsure about the date format on a pen you've received, your aftercare team can clarify.

Storage and the difference between 'expired' and 'compromised'

Two separate things can render a Wegovy pen unusable before its printed date. The first is straightforward: the expiry date passes. The second is a temperature or handling failure that degrades the semaglutide while the date is still technically valid.

Wegovy pens should be kept refrigerated at 2–8°C until first use. The Patient Information Leaflet sets out how long an in-use pen can be kept at room temperature (below 30°C), always check the leaflet for the exact figure rather than relying on memory, because the permitted window can differ between products and should not be guessed. A pen left in a sun-facing car glovebox, stored next to a radiator, or packed in checked luggage where temperatures can drop well below zero may have suffered degradation even if the barrel looks unchanged.

Signs that something may be wrong include visible particles, discolouration, or cloudiness in what should be a clear, colourless liquid. The NHS guidance on semaglutide advises not using a pen that looks unusual in any of these ways and contacting your pharmacist or prescriber. When in doubt, don't use it, contact the pharmacy that dispensed it.

Does this apply to oral semaglutide (Wegovy tablets) too?

Yes. The Wegovy tablet (the daily oral form approved by the MHRA in June 2026 as the first GLP-1 weight-loss medicine in tablet form) carries its own expiry date on the blister strip and outer packaging, and the same principle applies. Tablets do not require refrigeration, which removes one failure mode; they are stored at room temperature and should be protected from moisture and heat. But the printed date still matters: do not use a tablet beyond the stated month.

People switching from the weekly injection to the daily tablet often ask whether any overlap period creates date-management complexity. It can, particularly if you have unused pens alongside a new tablet supply, and if you want to understand how Olympia semaglutide fits into the wider range of semaglutide options, that page covers the key differences. If you'd like to understand how a switch would work for your situation, our semaglutide overview covers what the transition typically involves, and a prescriber can advise on the specifics during a clinical review.

For a broader look at how Wegovy fits into private weight management, if you're also tracking availability, our page on the Wegovy UK date explains when and how the medicine became available here, and the Wegovy treatment page sets out how the medicine works and what the prescribing process looks like at nume.

What to do with an expired or compromised pen

The straightforward answer: do not inject it. An expired pen should be disposed of as clinical waste, not in the household bin and not down a drain. A sharps container is the correct receptacle for used and unused injection pens alike. Your dispensing pharmacy can advise on local collection points, and the Patient Information Leaflet includes disposal guidance.

If an expired pen means you've missed a dose, the first step is to contact your prescriber rather than injecting anyway. Missed-dose guidance for semaglutide is set out in the Patient Information Leaflet and depends on how close to the next scheduled dose you are; a prescriber can confirm the right course of action for your individual schedule.

Running out of supply because of date concerns is also a reason to plan repeat orders carefully, and if you are still waiting on stock it is worth reading up on the Wegovy release date to understand how the rollout has unfolded and what to expect. At nume, every repeat is clinically reviewed before dispatch, and treatment is sent out the next working day once approved, so if you're thinking about where to get Wegovy, the turnaround time matters as much as the price. Questions about your specific supply situation can go to the aftercare team via the contact page, and for a fuller picture of the service our about page covers how it works. If you're ready to start, check your eligibility with a free consultation.