How to cut your GLP-1 bill

The same compounded medication costs $1,188 a year at one programme and $5,388 at another. Nothing about the drug changes. Everything about the billing does.

These are the checks that move the number most, roughly in order of how much they are worth.

1. Find the month-two price, not the month-one price

Almost every programme here advertises an introductory rate. A $39 first month tells you nothing about the year. Ask what the charge is on the second renewal and budget from that.

2. Ask whether a membership is billed separately

This is the single biggest gap between advertised and actual prices. Eden advertises $99 semaglutide and bills about $198 once its membership renews at $99. Coreage Rx starts at $79 a month equivalent on a twelve-month plan ($948 total), or $139 for one month. Compare the term and complete payment; at the recorded recurring Eden rate, a twelve-month period is $1,428 more.

3. Check whether the price rises with your dose

Many programmes charge more at higher doses, so your bill climbs exactly as your treatment starts working. Flat-rate programmes hold the price across the whole range, which over a year is usually worth more than any advertised discount.

4. Confirm which format you are being quoted

"From $179" at Henry Meds is a sublingual product. "From $79" at Hims & Hers is an oral kit. Neither is the weekly injection. They are legitimate products, but they are not cheaper versions of the same thing.

5. Spend twenty minutes on your insurance

Call the number on your card and ask whether your plan covers Zepbound or Wegovy, and what it requires. If the answer is yes, a programme like Mochi or LifeMD that does the paperwork can beat every cash price on this site. If it is no, stop paying for insurance advocacy you cannot use.

6. Do the annual-plan arithmetic properly

Annual plans carry the lowest rates — but you are lending a company a year of payments. Work out the saving, then read the refund terms. We go through this in annual versus monthly.

7. Compare the yearly number and nothing else

Monthly figures are designed to be hard to compare. Multiply everything by twelve and put it in one column. Our tables already do this for tirzepatide and semaglutide.