What's the maximum dose of Wegovy, and how do you get there?

Step 1, starting low: the 0.25 mg and 0.5 mg doses

The titration begins at 0.25 mg once weekly, held for four weeks. This dose does not carry meaningful weight-loss effect on its own; its job is to let your digestive system settle before anything therapeutic happens. Nausea, the side effect people hear about most, is far less likely to derail you if your body has had a few weeks to adjust.

After four weeks your prescriber moves the dose to 0.5 mg, again held for a month. The lowest dose of Wegovy is therefore not a treatment plateau but an introduction. Most people tolerate both early levels reasonably well, though some GI sensitivity is normal and usually settles.

This phase matters for a practical reason too. If you order Wegovy through a regulated online pharmacy and your first pen arrives in a plain, tracked box from DPD, what's inside is a 0.25 mg starter pen, not a higher-strength version. The NHS's patient-level guidance on semaglutide covers what to expect at each stage and is worth reading alongside your prescriber's instructions.

Step 2, building through 1.0 mg and 1.7 mg

Weeks nine to sixteen bring the 1.0 mg dose, then 1.7 mg from around week seventeen. This is where most people begin to notice a genuine shift in appetite: food feels less pressing, portion sizes drift down naturally, and the urge to eat between meals fades. Some experience it as a quiet background change rather than any dramatic cut-off.

These middle doses are also where tolerability varies most between people. Some sail through; others find one particular step harder than the last and need a longer hold before increasing. That's a clinical conversation, not a failure. Titration is not a race. Your prescriber's role at each review is to weigh your response against readiness for the next level, which is precisely why the full Wegovy dosage schedule always runs through clinical oversight rather than self-direction.

It's also worth knowing that reaching the maximum dose is not the only marker of success. Some people achieve substantial weight loss at 1.7 mg and stay there. The licensed schedule goes up to the maximum, but that ceiling exists as an option, not an obligation.

Step 3, reaching the standard Wegovy maximum dose of 2.4 mg

From around week twenty-one, if tolerated well, the prescriber moves the dose to 2.4 mg weekly. This is the standard maintenance maximum under the original UK licence. The STEP 1 trial, published in the New England Journal of Medicine, reported an average body-weight reduction of around 15% over 68 weeks at this dose in adults with obesity and no diabetes, a figure drawn from a large, placebo-controlled study rather than a best-case estimate.

Semaglutide at 2.4 mg is a single maximum across the semaglutide weight-loss range until the newer 7.2 mg pen arrived. The NICE appraisal of semaglutide (TA875) underpins NHS recommendations and is the published basis for how the drug is assessed in clinical practice. For a private prescription the same clinical principles apply: your prescriber judges whether 2.4 mg is appropriate and whether you're responding as expected.

One note on timing: if you haven't lost at least 5% of your starting weight after six months on the maintenance dose, guidance suggests reviewing whether treatment is working for you. That conversation belongs with your prescriber.

Step 4 (the higher maximum: Wegovy 7.2 mg

On 14 April 2026 the MHRA approved a dedicated single-dose 7.2 mg Wegovy pen) a single weekly injection, with an auto-dosing mechanism and a built-in covered needle that locks after use. This was a significant development. Trials at this dose reported roughly 20.7% average weight loss over 72 weeks, narrowing the gap considerably with the results seen for tirzepatide at its highest strength. If you want to understand what the highest dose of Wegovy involves and how it compares to earlier strengths, that detail is covered separately alongside the approval context. You can also find the full details of that approval on the GOV.UK announcement from 14 April 2026.

The 7.2 mg pen carries a specific restriction: it is licensed for adults with a BMI of 30 or above only. It is not approved for the cardiovascular indication or for people below that BMI threshold. The titration still begins at 0.25 mg; 7.2 mg is reached through the same four-step escalation, not as a standing starting point. Specific dose and pen availability is confirmed during your clinical consultation, no pharmacy can guarantee a particular format in advance.

If you're weighing up where Wegovy sits relative to other licensed options, the weight-loss treatment overview covers what's currently available privately in the UK and the criteria that apply to each. A consultation with our prescribers is the clearest way to understand which option suits your situation, check your eligibility whenever you're ready at our treatment page.