Popular weight loss drugs are now available at a discount for Costco shoppers without insurance.
The deal comes from a partnership with Novo Nordisk, the makers of GLP-1 weight loss drug Wegovy and diabetes medication Ozempic.
Ozempic and Wegovy contain the same active ingredient (semaglutide), but they are approved for different uses and are packaged in different doses, as TODAY.com explained previously.
Costco is offering the drugs at a price of $499 for a four-month supply of injectable pens, which is about half the price when paying out-of-pocket.
You do still need a prescription from your doctor to purchase the medications, but the discount is helpful because many insurance plans often do not cover the cost of the medications.
Medicare and Medicaid typically only provide coverage for medications like Ozempic when they are used to treat conditions such as Type 2 diabetes — not for weight management. And a month’s supply of the drugs can cost around $1,000 out of pocket, according to recent estimates.
However, experts say the Costco discounted price is still too high for many people who need access to the drugs.
“This is definitely a step in the right direction, but it’s not necessarily getting the medicine to people who need it the most at a price that is affordable,” Dr. Rekha Kumar, endocrinologist and associate professor of clinical medicine at Weill Cornell, told NBC’s Anne Thompson during an Oct. 3, 2025 segment on the TODAY show.
In the near future, GLP-1 medications may be available in pill form rather than injections. Both Eli Lilly, maker of Zepbound and Mounjaro, and Novo Nordisk have seen success with oral versions of their drugs in recent clinical trials. But it’s not clear how much cheaper the oral versions of these products will ultimately be.
Meanwhile, consumers who want the drugs without the hefty price tags have been turning to unproven supplements and so-called “GLP-1 patches” seen on social media.
And, until the FDA heavily restricted the practice earlier this year, compound pharmacies were offering significantly cheaper versions of the medications.
While the public might see these as simply generic alternatives to brand-name medications, the FDA cautioned that it does not evaluate compounded drugs for safety or effectiveness, so they may pose unknown risks to consumers.
Meanwhile, the new Costco partnership came partly from a desire to offer customers the “real, authentic” medications where patients seek care, said David Moore, president of Novo Nordisk. “And we know that Costco is a trusted brand,” he added.