What BMI do you need for Wegovy — and what else decides eligibility?

Step 1: Work out your BMI and see where you stand

Your BMI is your weight in kilograms divided by your height in metres squared. If arithmetic isn't your strong suit at 7am, the NHS BMI calculator gives you the number in under a minute, it's free, asks only four questions and you don't need an account. That's worth doing before anything else, because the number tells you immediately which threshold applies to you.

For private prescribing, the licensed thresholds are straightforward, and if you want a full breakdown you can read about what BMI needs to be for Wegovy before going further: a BMI of 30 or above qualifies on its own. A BMI between 27 and 29.9 qualifies if you have at least one weight-related condition. Conditions that count include type 2 diabetes, pre-diabetes, high blood pressure, raised cholesterol, obstructive sleep apnoea and osteoarthritis, among others. If your BMI sits below 27, Wegovy is not currently licensed for you in the UK, and no responsible prescriber should offer it.

One adjustment worth knowing: UK guidance recommends applying BMI thresholds that are 2.5 kg/m² lower for people from South Asian, Chinese, Middle Eastern, Black African or African-Caribbean backgrounds, reflecting differences in how body fat distributes and how risk accumulates at lower BMIs. So a BMI of 27.5 could meet the unlowered 30 threshold for someone in those groups.

Step 2: Understand the additional NHS layer, NICE TA875

Getting Wegovy through the NHS involves a different set of criteria, set out in NICE's technology appraisal TA875. The NHS route requires a BMI of 35 or above (or 32.5 for the ethnic backgrounds listed above) alongside at least one weight-related comorbidity, and treatment must happen within a specialist weight management service with multidisciplinary support. NICE also states that Wegovy should be used for a maximum of two years on the NHS, and that clinicians should consider stopping it if less than 5% weight loss has been achieved after six months on the maintenance dose.

Waiting lists for specialist services can be long in many areas, and not every GP practice currently offers this pathway. That's the practical gap that leads many people to explore private treatment instead. You can read more about what Wegovy is and how it works on our Wegovy overview page.

The ethnic-background BMI adjustment applies here too, with NHS England citing 32.5 instead of 35, and 27.5 to 32.4 instead of 30 to 34.9, for those groups.

Step 3: Know what the prescriber looks at beyond the number

A BMI that clears the threshold is necessary but not sufficient. A prescriber also checks for conditions that would make Wegovy unsuitable. People with a personal or family history of medullary thyroid carcinoma or MEN2, certain pancreatic conditions, or who are pregnant, breastfeeding or trying to conceive should not take Wegovy. It isn't licensed for anyone under 18 either. Our guide to who cannot take Wegovy covers the contraindications in detail.

At a private clinic or online pharmacy, the prescriber also reviews your current medications for interactions, looks at your broader cardiovascular and metabolic health and confirms there's no reason to delay or decline treatment. This is why a consultation isn't a formality, it's the actual clinical assessment. The prescriber is the person who determines suitability, not a calculator.

If you're already on treatment elsewhere and thinking about switching providers, be aware that a responsible service will ask for evidence of your current dose before continuing, rather than simply starting you from scratch or jumping doses. Our FAQs cover what to expect from that process.

What this means for the private route through nume

Through nume (sorry, through nume) consultations are reviewed personally by a GPhC-registered Independent Prescriber. Every submission gets a real clinician's eyes on it the same day, seven days a week. There's no algorithm making the call. If you meet the licensed BMI threshold and have no contraindications, and you're wondering whether what BMI you need to get Wegovy through a private route differs from the NHS criteria, treatment can be approved and dispatched the same day for next-working-day delivery, tracked via DPD in plain packaging.

The cost question comes up a lot alongside the eligibility one. If you're weighing the full picture of what private treatment involves, the Wegovy treatment page sets out what's included in the price (consultation, prescription, delivery and aftercare) so you can make a fair comparison. Pricing context for the wider market is on our weight loss treatments page.

For most people, the practical first step is exactly what it sounds like: check your BMI, note any conditions you have, and then speak to a prescriber who can look at the whole picture, including practical questions such as whether you can take Wegovy on an empty stomach. That conversation takes minutes. The assessment is the point.