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GLP‑1 medicines,
explained for the UAE

Start with your health, not a brand name. What your weight numbers mean, the rules in each emirate, the risks, and where medicines like Mounjaro and Wegovy fit.

Do I have obesity?Is it for me?Side effectsOfficial prices
We don't sell medicines Every fact has a source No links to sellers

Where are you starting from?

Pick the one closest to you. We'll take you through just the guides you need, in order, and each one tells you what to read next.

Or read all nine guides

From understanding GLP‑1s to living with one, in four stages. Each guide ends with a link to the next.

Stage 1Understand

Guide 1 · UnderstandWeight and healthDo I have obesity? What BMI and waist numbers mean in the UAE.
Guide 2 · UnderstandWhat GLP‑1s doHow they act on your gut, brain and appetite.

Stage 2Decide

Guide 3 · DecideYour optionsFood, activity, other medicines, GLP‑1s and surgery, side by side.
Guide 4 · DecideShould I consider a GLP‑1?Who they may suit, and when not to.
Guide 5 · DecideSide effects and risksCommon and serious effects, and when to get help.

Stage 3Do it safely

Guide 6 · Do it safelyGetting a prescription in the UAEWho may prescribe in each emirate, insurance, official prices and fakes.
Guide 7 · Do it safelyChoosing a doctor, clinic or programmeApps, clinics and programmes: what they offer, how they charge, what to check.

Stage 4Live with it

Guide 8 · Live with itLife on a GLP‑1Food and protein, injecting, Ramadan and the heat.
Guide 9 · Live with itStopping and the long termWhat happens after, and the cost over the years.

Free tools

Check your numbers, see if a GLP‑1 could be an option, work out the cost and get ready for your doctor. No sign-up, and nothing you type leaves your device.

BMI and waistSee where you sit, including the lower risk lines for people of Asian origin
Could it be an option for me?A 1-minute check against the Dubai and Abu Dhabi rules
Cost calculatorThe 6- and 12-month total for a medicine and dose
Before you see a doctorQuestions to take along to your appointment

Prices in the UAE

All prices

Medicine prices are fixed nationally, so each pack costs the same at every pharmacy. A month at the starting dose and at the full dose. Checked 12 Oct 2026.

Before you go further. These are prescription-only medicines, from a doctor licensed in the UAE.1 In Abu Dhabi, a doctor certified in obesity management decides when to start one for weight.2 They have real risks: read Side effects and risks first.
By medicine
MedicineTypeFormStarting dose / monthFull dose / month
TirzepatideWeekly injection 1
Mounjaro KwikPenEli Lilly · approved for type 2 diabetes and weightBrandPenStarting doseAED 1,7342.5 mg · per pen of 4 doses3Full doseAED 1,73415 mg · the same at every strength3
SemaglutideWeekly injection 2
Wegovy FlexTouchNovo Nordisk · approved for weight managementBrandPenStarting doseAED 743.500.25 mg · per pen of 4 doses3Full doseAED 1,7122.4 mg3
OzempicNovo Nordisk · approved for type 2 diabetesBrandPenStarting doseAED 743.500.25 or 0.5 mg pen3Full doseAED 1,5502 mg pen3
SemaglutideDaily tablet 2
Wegovy pillNovo Nordisk · approved for weight, June 2026BrandTabletStarting doseAED 7791.5 mg · 30 tablets3,4Full doseAED 1,61025 mg · 30 tablets3
RybelsusNovo Nordisk · approved for type 2 diabetesBrandTabletStarting doseAED 6413 mg · 30 tablets3Full doseAED 64114 mg · the same at every strength3
OrforglipronDaily tablet 1
FoundayoEli Lilly · approved for weight, April 2026BrandTabletStarting doseAED 7730.8 mg · 30 tablets3Full doseAED 1,59917.2 mg · 30 tablets3
Liraglutide and dulaglutideDaily or weekly injection 3
SaxendaNovo Nordisk · liraglutide, approved for weight managementBrandPenStarting doseAED 1,198.50pack of 5 daily pens, any dose3Full doseAED 1,198.503 mg a day · 5 pens last 30 days3
VictozaNovo Nordisk · liraglutide, approved for type 2 diabetesBrandPenStarting doseAED 493.50pack of 2 daily pens, any dose3Full doseAED 493.501.8 mg a day · 2 pens last 20 days3
TrulicityEli Lilly · dulaglutide, approved for type 2 diabetesBrandPenStarting doseAED 8610.75 mg · 4 weekly pens3Full doseAED 9574.5 mg · 4 weekly pens3
Official prices to the public on Abu Dhabi's drug list, in force from 2 October 2026.3 Prices are set when a medicine is registered, with fixed margins for pharmacies.5 A weekly pen holds 4 doses (about a month); a tablet pack is 30 days. Saxenda and Victoza are daily pens, so how long a pack lasts depends on the dose (our arithmetic). Full dose = the highest dose sold in the UAE for that use. Grouped by medicine. Not sorted by price, and not a recommendation. We don't list sellers or clinic fees. Your doctor sets the medicine and the dose.

Latest updates

What's changed in the UAE, newest first.

All updatesComing soon

Common questions

Short answers, each with its source.

How much is Mounjaro in the UAE?
AED 1,734 for a KwikPen of 4 weekly doses, at every strength from 2.5 mg to 15 mg. That's the official price on Abu Dhabi's drug list from 2 October 2026, and prices are fixed when a medicine is registered, so it costs the same at every pharmacy.3,5,11 All official prices
Can I buy Ozempic without a prescription?
No. GLP-1 medicines are prescription-only in the UAE, and Abu Dhabi's Department of Health warns against buying them without a prescription or online through adverts and social media.1,12
Does insurance cover weight-loss injections?
Usually not for weight loss. Dubai's basic plan excludes weight-loss medicines, and in Abu Dhabi they are covered for obesity only through the Thiqa programme for UAE nationals, with strict conditions.13,14,15 Diabetes cover is separate.
Is a GLP‑1 right for me?
Only a doctor who knows your health history can say. Dubai's guideline considers medicine at a BMI over 30, or 27 with a weight-related condition, after a lifestyle programme; Abu Dhabi's needs 30 with a condition, or over 40.16,2 Read Should I consider a GLP‑1? first.
Can I take Mounjaro or Ozempic during Ramadan?
Many people do, with a plan made with their doctor before Ramadan starts. UAE doctors advise pausing dose increases and drinking 2–3 litres of water between Iftar and Suhoor.17 More on fasting
What's the difference between Mounjaro and Ozempic?
Mounjaro is tirzepatide, which acts on two gut hormones (GLP‑1 and GIP). Ozempic is semaglutide, which acts on one. In a head-to-head trial in adults with obesity, paid for by the maker of tirzepatide, average weight loss was larger on tirzepatide. Results varied a lot between people.18
What are the side effects?
The most common are feeling sick, diarrhoea, vomiting and constipation, mostly when starting or raising the dose. Less common but serious: pancreatitis, gallbladder problems, and kidney injury from dehydration, which is a bigger risk in the heat.19 More in Side effects and risks.
What happens when you stop taking it?
Weight usually comes back. A year after stopping semaglutide, trial participants had regained about two-thirds of the weight they had lost.20

All questions

Explainers and quick answers

Longer articles on costs, rules, side effects and daily life, plus short answers to single questions.

Blog20 in-depth articlesQuestions20 short answers

The monthly UAE update

New approvals, price changes and safety alerts. Once a month, nothing else.

An independent guide: no drug-company money, no clinic commissions.

Sources (20)
  1. Department of Health – Abu Dhabi. Circular 48/2026, 16 March 2026, relaying an alert on fake GLP-1 products ("GLP-1 receptor agonists … are prescription-only medicines and should only be used under medical supervision"; unregistered products sold online and on social media; report to [email protected]). Summarised, not reproduced. doh.gov.ae
  2. Department of Health – Abu Dhabi. Standard for Non-Surgical Management of Obesity, DOH/ST/HPS/Non-Surgical-MO/V1/2025, February 2025 (GLP-1 starting criteria: BMI 30 or more with a weight-related comorbidity, or over 40; "The obesity certified physician determines the initiation time of pharmacological treatment"; continue beyond 6 months only with at least 5% weight loss; Asian origin and BMI over 23). Checked 12 October 2026. doh.gov.ae
  3. Department of Health – Abu Dhabi. Shafafiya drug price list (Drugs.xlsx), released 26 September 2026, effective 2 October 2026: official "Package Price to Public" for each pack named here, each listed as a prescription-only medicine ("POM"). Downloaded and checked 12 October 2026. shafafiyaportal.doh.gov.ae (XLSX)
  4. Khaleej Times. Wegovy weight-loss pill: cost in UAE pharmacies ("Starting price: Dh779"; a home-care provider said it was "dispensing a prescription approximately every 17 minutes"). 10 June 2026. khaleejtimes.com
  5. Mondaq (law firm analysis). Pricing of pharmaceutical products in the United Arab Emirates (prices fixed at registration by a Ministry committee, with "fixed margins for the distributors and pharmacies"). 29 September 2016; older than the 2025 medicines law. mondaq.com
  6. Gulf News. UAE weight-loss drug crackdown: 71 sources, 14 influencers face action (Emirates Drug Establishment action against sellers of unapproved peptides, 14 of them registered facilities; 14 influencers referred to the National Media Office; retatrutide "remains under clinical investigation"). 25 July 2026. gulfnews.com
  7. Gulf News. Dh10,000 fine for selling Mounjaro injections without a licence in Sharjah (Sharjah Misdemeanours Court; selling medicines without a licence and practising pharmacy without authorisation). 31 July 2026. gulfnews.com
  8. Khaleej Times. UAE approves Wegovy for weight loss and cardiovascular risk reduction (the Wegovy pill, approved by the Emirates Drug Establishment for "long-term weight management in adults with obesity or overweight linked to weight-related medical conditions", and to reduce the risk of major heart events in adults with established heart disease). 1 June 2026. khaleejtimes.com
  9. Novo Nordisk press release via BioSpace. Wegovy pill launches in the UAE ("first country outside the United States to make the Wegovy pill available"). 3 June 2026. biospace.com
  10. The National. UAE approves weight-loss pill Foundayo (orforglipron), the second country after the US, with availability expected the following month. 5 April 2026. thenationalnews.com
  11. Gulf News. Anti-obesity drugs Ozempic, Wegovy, Mounjaro: are they getting cheaper? (Ozempic lower-dose pens "around Dh740"; Mounjaro pens "often above Dh1,700"; GLP-1s "remain largely out-of-pocket expenses, with limited insurance coverage typically restricted to diabetes or specific metabolic conditions"). 7 February 2026. gulfnews.com
  12. Department of Health – Abu Dhabi. Circular 10/2025, 4 February 2025, "Alert Against the Use of Counterfeit Version of Ozempic and Mounjaro" sold through social media; the public should not buy them without a prescription, online or through adverts. Summarised, not reproduced. doh.gov.ae
  13. Cigna. Essential Benefits Plan (Dubai Health Authority basic plan), table of benefits: medicines "As per DHA formulary", maximum AED 2,500 a year with 30% co-insurance; exclusions 8 ("Surgical and non-surgical treatment for obesity (including morbid obesity), and any other weight control programs, services, or supplies") and 9 ("pharmacological weight reduction regimens"). Checked 12 October 2026. PDF
  14. Daman (National Health Insurance Company). Adjudication guideline: Glucagon-like Peptide-1 (GLP-1) Receptor agonist, version 5, effective 15 January 2023, revised 19 April 2026 (table of GLP-1 brands and approved uses; diabetes cover needs HbA1c 6.5% or more, cardiovascular disease or risk factors, and at least 6 months on metformin or other agents; prior approval; first supply one month; prescribers in internal medicine, endocrinology, family medicine or cardiology; obesity medicines covered only within the Thiqa obesity programme). Checked 12 October 2026. PDF
  15. Department of Health – Abu Dhabi. Thiqa reimbursement policy for obesity medications, DoH/Policy/TRP-OMM/HPS/V1/2025, effective 11 June 2025 (adults 18+; BMI bands and listed complications; certified prescribers; more than 5% weight loss plus "75 min vigorous exercise per week", "150 min moderate exercise per week" or "10,000 steps per day on average", tracked through the Sahatna app; 1-month trial, up to 3 months' supply at a time, review at 4 months). Checked 12 October 2026. doh.gov.ae
  16. Dubai Health Authority. Clinical Guidelines for Virtual Management of Obesity, DHA/HRS/HPSD/CG-53, issue 2, effective 21 April 2024 (applies to DHA-licensed physicians and facilities providing telehealth; excludes emergencies and controlled medicines; drug therapy at BMI over 30, or 27 to 29.9 with comorbidities, after a comprehensive lifestyle intervention without at least 5% loss at 3 to 6 months; bariatric surgery at BMI 40 or more, or 35 to 39.9 with a serious comorbidity; Asian waist cut-offs). PDF
  17. Gulf News. Can you take Ozempic while fasting during Ramadan? UAE experts weigh in (plan dosing with a doctor before Ramadan; pause dose increases; drink 2–3 litres between Iftar and Suhoor; seek review for persistent vomiting, severe abdominal pain or dehydration). 16 February 2026. gulfnews.com
  18. Aronne LJ et al. Tirzepatide as compared with semaglutide for the treatment of obesity (SURMOUNT-5). NEJM, 2025;393:26–36. Paid for by Eli Lilly, the maker of tirzepatide. doi:10.1056/NEJMoa2416394
  19. Novo Nordisk. Wegovy (semaglutide) prescribing information, US label (FDA), revised June 2026. Not the UAE label. DailyMed
  20. Wilding JPH et al. Weight regain and cardiometabolic effects after withdrawal of semaglutide: the STEP 1 trial extension. Diabetes, Obesity and Metabolism, 2022;24:1553–64. doi:10.1111/dom.14725