Wegovy strength: the complete UK dose schedule

What the licensed schedule actually shows

The Wegovy titration schedule runs in roughly four-week intervals: 0.25 mg first, then 0.5 mg, 1.0 mg, 1.7 mg and finally 2.4 mg. This stepped structure comes directly from the clinical programme that led to UK approval, and it exists for a practical reason, semaglutide slows gastric emptying and suppresses appetite through GLP-1 receptor activation, and those effects can cause nausea, vomiting or diarrhoea if introduced too quickly. Starting low and moving gradually gives the gut time to adjust. The NHS semaglutide medicines page sets out this principle clearly for patients.

A common question our prescribers hear is whether the lower doses do anything useful on their own. Clinically, 0.25 mg is a tolerability step, it is not the dose at which meaningful weight loss is expected. The 0.5 mg and 1.0 mg strengths begin to produce appetite suppression but sit below the maintenance target. Most people reach 2.4 mg between four and five months in, though the exact pace depends on individual tolerance and is a clinical decision, not a fixed rule.

If side effects at any point are difficult to manage, a prescriber may extend the time spent at a given strength before moving up. That flexibility is built into the schedule by design. For a detailed look at how the maintenance dose performs in practice, including a 2.4 mg Wegovy click chart that shows exactly how the pen dials up, the strength for weight loss page covers the trial evidence.

The STEP 1 trial figures, and what they mean for different strengths

The pivotal trial behind the 2.4 mg dose was STEP 1, published in the New England Journal of Medicine. Over 68 weeks, adults using semaglutide 2.4 mg alongside lifestyle changes lost an average of around 15% of body weight, compared with roughly 2.4% in the placebo group. That figure applies specifically to the 2.4 mg maintenance dose, sub-maintenance strengths were not the primary comparison point.

The April 2026 approval of a 7.2 mg pen changes the picture at the upper end. In the trials supporting this higher dose, average weight loss reached around 20.7% over 72 weeks, which moves closer to tirzepatide results in earlier analyses. Importantly, the MHRA licensed this higher strength for adults with a BMI of 30 or above only, the cardiovascular indication uses separate criteria. A dedicated page on Wegovy's highest strength covers the 7.2 mg approval in detail.

The broader NICE appraisal of semaglutide (TA875) is the document that governs NHS use of Wegovy, it is specific about which populations the evidence supports and sets the maximum two-year NHS treatment duration. Private prescribing follows the SmPC licensing rather than the TA875 commissioning restrictions.

Which strength applies to which patient, the eligibility picture

The licensed indication for Wegovy covers adults with a BMI of 30 or above, or 27 or above alongside at least one weight-related condition such as high blood pressure, type 2 diabetes, high cholesterol or obstructive sleep apnoea. That licence applies across the full dose range, the indication does not change as you move through the schedule; the strength simply reflects where you are in the titration.

Ethnic-background adjustments of approximately 2.5 kg/m² lower apply under UK guidance, so someone from a South Asian or Black African background may qualify at a lower BMI figure. The prescriber considers the complete clinical picture, not BMI alone. There is more on this on the what strength of Wegovy do I need page, which walks through the factors a prescriber weighs up.

For patients who have been established on the 2.4 mg weekly injection, the newly approved oral semaglutide tablet (Wegovy tablets, licensed in the UK from June 2026) may represent an alternative route, though that is a separate clinical discussion. If you are considering what the cost of private Wegovy looks like across doses, the cost context page explains how private pricing relates to the dose schedule.

Practical points about the pens themselves

Each Wegovy strength comes in its own colour-coded pre-filled pen, one pen per week, with a new needle fitted each time. You inject into the abdomen, thigh or upper arm and rotate sites. The pen arrives refrigerated; there is a limited room-temperature window for travel, but the exact duration is specified in the Patient Information Leaflet rather than here, because it is a detail worth checking from the official source rather than a content page.

When your order is dispatched from our GPhC-registered pharmacy, it arrives the next working day via DPD in plain, unbranded packaging, the tracking notification on your phone is the only visible clue that it is on its way. The pen itself is small and straightforward to use; our prescribers and aftercare team are available seven days a week if a question comes up after your first injection. Information on what to do if you miss a weekly injection is covered on the missed dose guidance page.

If you are ready to talk through your starting dose with a prescriber, check your eligibility through a free consultation, a GPhC-registered Independent Prescriber reviews every submission personally, the same day.