Weight loss
What weight loss costs: medicines and surgery
The GLP-1 medicines are paid for by the month, for as long as they are taken, at a price that rises with the dose. Weight-loss surgery is paid for once, as a package. This section gives the published price of each, in the unit it is quoted in, with the source and the conditions beside every figure.
GLP-1 medicines, manufacturers’ self-pay prices
Published prices$149 – $499a month, across 5 brands and their doses
The lowest is a starting dose; the highest, a top dose. Newest price seen October 11, 2026.
Medicines
GLP-1 medicines: the price a month, and the first year
Each manufacturer’s own self-pay price, from the lowest dose it prices to the highest. Different products with different doses: a month of one is not a month of another.
| Medicine | A month, by dose | First year |
|---|---|---|
| Zepboundweekly injectionLabel: reducing excess body weight | $299 – $4492.5 mg to 15 mgFirst year: $5,087 – $5,637 | |
| Wegovyweekly injectionLabel: reducing excess body weight | $349 – $3990.25 mg to 7.2 mgFirst year: $4,237 – $4,637 | |
| Wegovy pilldaily tabletLabel: reducing excess body weight | $149 – $2991.5 mg to 25 mgFirst year: $3,338 | |
| Foundayodaily tabletLabel: reducing excess body weight | $149 – $2990.8 mg to 17.2 mgFirst year: $3,188 | |
| Ozempicweekly injectionLabel: type 2 diabetes | $349 – $4990.25 mg to 2 mg | |
| Mounjaroweekly injectionLabel: type 2 diabetes | No checked self-pay price yet |
Surgery
Weight-loss surgery: the self-pay package
What programs charge people paying for the operation themselves, as one package price. A typical range appears once four local programs have a standing published price; before that, the page shows the published prices themselves.
- Gastric sleeve$11,000 – $16,500typical self-pay package · estimate from 8 programsGastric sleeve cost
- Gastric bypass$17,500 – $22,000typical self-pay package · estimate from 7 programsGastric bypass cost
- Gastric balloon$4,000 – $7,500the span of 7 published prices, not a typical costGastric balloon cost
Side by side
A year of a medicine beside a one-time operation
Two different kinds of bill. A medicine’s cost recurs every year it is taken; an operation’s package is paid once, and what it covers differs by program. These are the figures only — which, if either, is right for a person is a medical decision this page has no part in.
Medicines: the first year
Each manufacturer’s prices added up along its label’s dose schedule.
- Zepbound$5,087 – $5,637 a year
- Wegovy$4,237 – $4,637 a year
- Wegovy pill$3,338 a year
- Foundayo$3,188 a year
Surgery: the package, once
Self-pay package prices as programs publish them.
- Gastric sleeve$11,000 – $16,500 typical
- Gastric bypass$17,500 – $22,000 typical
- Gastric balloon$4,000 – $7,500 published span
Coverage
Insurance, Medicare and taxes
What the official pages say, each linked and dated. Each medicine’s and operation’s page has more.
- The National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases says some, but not all, insurance plans cover medicines for overweight and obesity.Source: NIDDK: prescription medications to treat overweight and obesity (opens in a new tab), last reviewed June 2024. Checked October 11, 2026.
- Medicare.gov says that, starting July 1, 2026, Medicare covers Foundayo, Wegovy and the Zepbound KwikPen — not single-dose Zepbound vials or pens — under a temporary program, the Medicare GLP-1 Bridge, for eligible people with Medicare drug coverage (Part D), for a $50 monthly copayment.Source: Medicare.gov: weight loss drugs (opens in a new tab), no page date. Checked October 11, 2026.
- CMS says Medicare and Medicaid generally do not cover GLP-1 drugs for weight loss, and that Medicaid coverage under its voluntary BALANCE model depends on participation by states and drug manufacturers.Source: CMS: the BALANCE model (opens in a new tab), page last modified 09/29/2026. Checked October 11, 2026.
- Medicare.gov says Medicare Part B covers some bariatric surgical procedures, such as gastric bypass surgery and laparoscopic banding surgery, for people who meet certain conditions related to morbid obesity.Source: Medicare.gov: bariatric surgery (opens in a new tab), no page date. Checked October 11, 2026.
- IRS Publication 502 says weight-loss costs can be included as medical expenses only when the weight loss is a treatment for a disease diagnosed by a physician, such as obesity, and that prescribed medicines can be included.Source: IRS Publication 502, Medical and Dental Expenses (opens in a new tab), Publication 502 (2025), for 2025 returns. Checked October 11, 2026.
Medicines
Guides and tools
Not medical advice. This page is about what things cost. Prices change: the newest here was seen on its source page on October 11, 2026.
What that means, and how we check prices
Not medical advice
This page is about what things cost. It does not say what anyone should take or have done; that is a decision for you and a licensed clinician. Statements from labels and agencies are quoted from the sources linked beside them and have not been clinically reviewed.
Prices change
Every price here is a published price as it was seen on its source page — the newest on October 11, 2026. Sellers change prices and end offers; the seller’s page is the authority.
How we check prices
Each price is read from the seller’s own page and checked against its source before it appears, with the unit it is quoted in and the conditions printed beside it. Published prices are re-checked monthly. How we estimate · How this site works