Semaglutide dosage chart
On this page
Which product is this schedule for?
This is the correction that matters most on this page, and it is the same argument the coverage page makes about drug lists: a plan does not cover “semaglutide,” it covers named products. Dosing works the same way. The table below is what the two labels this page cites actually say about how each product is taken.
| Product | How it is taken | How often |
|---|---|---|
| WEGOVY injection | Subcutaneous injection, in the abdomen, thigh or upper arm | Once weekly |
| WEGOVY tablets | By mouth, on an empty stomach in the morning with water | Once daily |
| OZEMPIC | Subcutaneous injection, in the abdomen, thigh or upper arm | Once weekly |
DailyMed: WEGOVY (label revised 6/2026) and OZEMPIC (label revised 5/2026), both listed in full under Sources below. Abridged to the route and the frequency — read the label itself for the dosing sections in full, and note that a label can be revised at any time.
“Take WEGOVY tablets orally once-daily on an empty stomach in the morning with water (up to 4 ounces).”
That single sentence is why this page no longer says semaglutide is taken once a week. It was written that way here for a while, and it was wrong for anyone on the tablets — which is the reader least likely to notice, because the rest of the internet says it too.
The chart
- Product this ladder belongs to
- WEGOVY injection
- Labeled products it is correct for
- 1 of the 3 named above
- Steps drawn
- 5, from 0.25 mg to 2.4 mg
- Steps carrying a source
- 5 of 5
| Weeks | Weekly dose |
|---|---|
| wk 1–4 | 0.25 mg |
| wk 5–8 | 0.5 mg |
| wk 9–12 | 1.0 mg |
| wk 13–16 | 1.7 mg |
| wk 17+ | 2.4 mg |
Doses as printed on the WEGOVY injection label.
Labeled products this ladder is correct for
1 of 3 — it is the WEGOVY injection ladder
Steps in the chart that carry a source
5 of 5 — every step is cited
The counts summarize the 3 products and 5schedule steps shown above. Product instructions come from the WEGOVY and OZEMPIC prescribing information listed under Sources.
What the chart is, and what it is not
It is a default path, not a prediction about you. The WEGOVY label tells prescribers to consider delaying a step by four weeks when a dose is not tolerated, so a schedule that runs longer than the chart is an ordinary use of it. If your own weeks do not match, the chart is the generic thing here, not you.1
The chart also cannot tell you which dose you should be on. That is a conversation with your prescriber, who can see your weight, your labs and how the last step actually went.
Which prescribing information the chart follows
The chart follows the WEGOVY injection prescribing information. It shows the escalation steps and recommended maintenance dose for that product, rather than a schedule that applies to every semaglutide prescription.1
OZEMPIC and WEGOVY tablets have different instructions. Read the product name and dosage form on your prescription before comparing your plan with a chart. Our injection-versus-tablet guide explains that distinction.1,2
Reading it while you are on it
The useful question is rarely “what does this milligram do?” It is “how far into this step am I?” That is why every page here asks for your week before it answers, and why a side-effect page with no week attached is not much use to anyone.
If you have missed a week, the gap matters more than the dose does — what a missed dose changes covers that separately.
Each step up means a new pen or a new setting, and where to inject semaglutide goes through both pens and the three injection sites. If the weeks are passing and the scale is not moving, what the WEGOVY trials measured week by week is the comparison worth making.
Questions
Is semaglutide taken once a week?
The injections are. WEGOVY tablets are not — the label says to take them orally once daily, on an empty stomach in the morning. Which one you are on is on your prescription and on the box.1
Does OZEMPIC follow the same five steps as the chart above?
My prescriber has kept me on one dose longer than the chart says. Is that wrong?
It is ordinary, and the label allows for it: WEGOVY’s says to consider delaying a step by four weeks when a dose is not tolerated. The chart is the generic thing here, not you. The question to ask is what would need to change before the next step.1
Can I use this chart to work out my own next dose?
No. The chart follows one product’s label and cannot account for your indication, medical history or response to treatment. Use it to understand a prescribed plan, and ask the prescriber before changing a dose.
If the question is who pays for it
Coverage, prior authorization and compounded prescriptions are separate pages
Who pays is a different subject with its own route, and it is a pathway rather than a yes or a no — what decides whether a plan covers semaglutide sets out what a plan is actually deciding and how to find out for your own. Prior authorization covers what happens when the plan asks for something first, and a compounded prescription is a separate question again. What it costs before insurance enters into it at all — by dose, not as one headline number — is on what semaglutide costs by dose.
When to call your prescriber
The Medication Guide names the ones that cannot wait: nausea, vomiting or diarrhea that does not go away, and severe stomach pain that will not go away. Call before changing a dose yourself, too. A chart on a website is a reference; the person who wrote your prescription is the one who can change it.1
Read next
Sources
A reference, not medical advice, and not a substitute for your prescriber or pharmacist. If you think you are having a medical emergency, call your local emergency number.