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Compounded or brand GLP-1: what you get, what it costs, what the FDA says.

Peptide Chooser editorial team. Checked 2 Nov 2026.

Short answer

Brand semaglutide (Wegovy) and tirzepatide (Zepbound) are FDA approved for weight management; compounded copies are not, and the FDA does not check them before they are sold.345 At the online clinics we track, compounded semaglutide starts at $60/mo and brand semaglutide at $149/mo.12

What is compounding?

Compounding means a pharmacist mixes a medicine for a patient on a prescription. It is meant for people an approved medicine does not suit, for example someone allergic to a dye in the tablet, or a child who needs a liquid.5

Compounded medicines are not FDA approved. The FDA does not check their safety, how well they work or their quality before they are sold.5 Regular pharmacies (called 503A pharmacies, after the part of the law they work under) are mainly overseen by state boards; larger outsourcing facilities (503B) follow federal manufacturing rules and the FDA inspects them.5

When may a pharmacy copy Wegovy or Zepbound?

A pharmacy may make copies of a medicine that is on the FDA's drug shortages list, if it meets the conditions in federal law.5 That is how compounded semaglutide and tirzepatide came to be sold while both were in short supply.

The FDA said the tirzepatide shortage was resolved in October 2024 and the semaglutide shortage in February 2025. It gave regular pharmacies until 22 April 2025 and outsourcing facilities until 22 May 2025 to stop making copies of semaglutide, and its page says neither medicine is on the shortage list.9

Online clinics still sell compounded versions; our clinic table lists them next to the brand plans. The FDA also warns that some sellers use salt forms (semaglutide sodium or acetate), which are different ingredients from the one in the approved medicine, and that it knows of no lawful basis for using them.10

What do they cost at online clinics?

The cheapest monthly plan of each kind at the online clinics we track, with the care fee some clinics add each month:

  • Compounded semaglutide: from $60/mo (Mochi Health, Compounded Semaglutide; care fee not known)1
  • Brand semaglutide (Wegovy): from $149/mo (Alloy, Wegovy Pill; + $99/mo care)2
  • Compounded tirzepatide: from $90/mo (Mochi Health, Compounded Tirzepatide; care fee not known)6
  • Brand tirzepatide (Zepbound): from $299/mo (Alloy, Zepbound KwikPen; + $99/mo care)7

Prices are the clinics' own published prices on the date in the source. Our weight loss page lists every plan we track, cheapest first, with each clinic's FDA letters.

What does the FDA say about compounded GLP-1s?

The FDA has counted 990 reports of side effects linked to compounded semaglutide and more than 730 linked to compounded tirzepatide, as of 31 May 2026, and says the real numbers are likely higher because most pharmacies do not have to report them.10 It has also had reports of people taken to hospital after dosing mistakes with compounded semaglutide, where the dose was measured or worked out wrongly.10

Compounded versions are often sent in vials that hold several doses, which you draw up yourself.10 We do not give doses; your prescriber does.

What happened in June 2026?

In June 2026 the FDA sent 25 warning letters to online clinics and telehealth companies on our letters page, all of them on 8 Jun 2026.8 Their subject, as the FDA filed it, is "False & Misleading Claims/Misbranded (Telehealth)": the FDA said the clinics' websites made claims about their products that it believes break the law.

Altogether, 109 of the 172 letters on our letters page went to telehealth companies.8 A letter is not a ban: a clinic with one can keep selling while it answers the FDA. We list the clinic and the date of its newest letter next to its prices.

What should you ask a clinic?

  • Is this the brand medicine (Wegovy, Zepbound) or a pharmacy-made copy?
  • Which pharmacy makes it, and is it a 503A pharmacy or a 503B outsourcing facility?
  • Is the price all-in, or is there a monthly care fee on top?
  • Does the price change when the dose goes up?
  • Has the clinic had an FDA warning letter? Our weight loss page shows the date of each clinic's newest one.

None of this is medical advice. Your prescriber can tell you which medicine fits you.

What to do next

Compare clinic pricesSee FDA warning letters

Sources

  1. Mochi Health, Compounded Semaglutide, 2 Nov 2026: https://joinmochi.com/lp/per-dosage-pricing
  2. Alloy, Wegovy Pill, 2 Nov 2026: https://www.myalloy.com/weight
  3. FDA press release, 4 Jun 2021: FDA Approves New Drug Treatment for Chronic Weight Management, First Since 2014 (Wegovy): https://www.fda.gov/news-events/press-announcements/fda-approves-new-drug-treatment-chronic-weight-management-first-2014
  4. FDA press release, 8 Nov 2023: FDA Approves New Medication for Chronic Weight Management (Zepbound): https://www.fda.gov/news-events/press-announcements/fda-approves-new-medication-chronic-weight-management
  5. FDA, Compounding and the FDA: Questions and Answers: https://www.fda.gov/drugs/human-drug-compounding/compounding-and-fda-questions-and-answers
  6. Mochi Health, Compounded Tirzepatide, 2 Nov 2026: https://joinmochi.com/lp/per-dosage-pricing
  7. Alloy, Zepbound KwikPen, 2 Nov 2026: https://www.myalloy.com/weight
  8. Peptide Chooser, FDA warning letters to peptide sellers, compounders and online clinics, checked 2 Nov 2026
  9. FDA, FDA clarifies policies for compounders as national GLP-1 supply begins to stabilize: https://www.fda.gov/drugs/drug-alerts-and-statements/fda-clarifies-policies-compounders-national-glp-1-supply-begins-stabilize
  10. FDA, FDA's Concerns with Unapproved GLP-1 Drugs Used for Weight Loss, current as of 1 Oct 2026: https://www.fda.gov/drugs/postmarket-drug-safety-information-patients-and-providers/fdas-concerns-unapproved-glp-1-drugs-used-weight-loss