First GLP-1 anti-obesity capsule from Novo Nordisk launches within the US

The logo of pharmaceutical company Novo Nordisk is seen outside its offices in Bagsvaerd on the outskirts of Copenhagen on November 24, 2025.

Tom Little | Reuters

Novo Nordisk will begin rolling out the first-ever GLP-1 weight loss pill in the United States on Monday, the company announced, marking a new chapter in obesity treatment in the United States

The drug’s cash prices are among the lowest on the market, ranging from $149 to $299 per month, depending on the dose. That raises hopes that pills could help overcome the long-standing affordability hurdles associated with the weekly injections that dominate the weight-loss drug market.

The official launch of the oral drug, the Wegovy pill, comes just two weeks after US regulators approved the treatment.

The starting dose of 1.5 milligrams is available at more than 70,000 U.S. pharmacies, such as: CVS And Costcoas well as select telemedicine providers including Ro, LifeMD, Weight WatchersGoodRx and Novo Nordisk’s NovoCare Pharmacy. The higher, remaining doses of the pill will be available to patients by the end of the week, Novo Nordisk said.

Cash-paying patients can pay $149 per month for the initial dose. The 4-milligram dose of the pill will also be available for $149 per month until April 15, and $199 per month thereafter.

The highest doses of the Wegovy pill – 9 milligrams and 25 milligrams – will be available for $299 per month. Patients with insurance coverage for the drug can pay as little as $25 per month for treatment.

Patients who pay cash can also access initial doses of the pill for $149 a month on President Donald Trump’s direct-to-consumer website, TrumpRx, under an agreement Novo Nordisk struck with its government in November. The website will also launch in January, although it is unclear when.

Novo Nordisk said Monday that the availability of the pill “opens up new possibilities” for the more than 100 million Americans living with obesity.

Injections from Novo Nordisk and its main competitor Eli Lillyhave a list price of about $1,000 per month. However, both companies are offering lower cash prices for their vaccinations, ranging from $299 to $499 per month depending on the dose.

Pills are the next battleground for the two companies that founded the booming GLP-1 sector, which some analysts believe could be worth about $100 billion by the 2030s. Analysts at Goldman Sachs said in August that oral drugs could capture a 24% share – or about $22 billion – of the global weight-loss drug market in 2030.

Novo Nordisk’s daily oral drug launch on Monday gives the company a clear lead. The Food and Drug Administration approved the treatment on Dec. 22 and will decide later this year whether to withdraw a rival pill from Eli Lilly.

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The FDA also approved Novo Nordisk’s pill to reduce the risk of serious cardiovascular events, such as death, heart attack or stroke, in adults with obesity and existing cardiovascular disease.

This is in line with the approval of the company’s blockbuster weight loss drug Wegovy, which contains the same active ingredient semaglutide. Both work by mimicking the gut hormone GLP-1 to suppress appetite.

“This moment is about transforming the possibilities of weight management, and to make this possible we have worked to ensure this.” [the Wegovy pill] is affordable and accessible to those who need it, regardless of how they choose to receive care,” said Ed Cinca, senior vice president of marketing and patient solutions at Novo Nordisk, in a press release.

People taking the Novo Nordisk pill must wait 30 minutes each day before eating or drinking.

In a Phase III trial that followed more than 300 adults with obesity rather than diabetes, Novo Nordisk’s highest dose of oral semaglutide helped patients lose an average of up to 16.6% of their weight after 64 weeks. That weight loss was 13.6% when the company analyzed all patients, regardless of whether they stopped taking the drug.

The pill appears to be slightly more effective than Eli Lilly’s experimental oral drug, which has no dietary restrictions.