Brand Wegovy and Zepbound self-pay programs, scored

Maximus sits first with a Care & cost score of 89 out of 100. Price carries 35 points, care 25, the pharmacy check 25 and clarity 15, and how we score lists every sub-check. Brand pens and vials cost far more than compounded vials, so this lineup has its own price band: $190 a month or less earns all 35 price points, $1,830 or more earns none, and a plan near $1,010 earns about half.

Many programs here charge a care fee and let the pharmacy, or the drugmaker's own self-pay program, bill the drug. When the program prints no drug price, the row shows no price and its price part counts as zero.

Brand programs come in two shapes. Some quote one monthly price that covers the visit and the medication. Others charge only for the care and send your prescription to a pharmacy, or to the drugmaker's self-pay pharmacy, which bills you for the pens or vials on its own.

That second shape is why so many rows here show no price. The program isn't hiding a price it controls; the drug's price belongs to whoever fills it. Your real monthly cost is the program's fee plus that cash price, so ask for both before you join.

Look at the dose next to every price. Brand pens and vials are priced by strength, and the starting dose is usually the least expensive month you'll pay for. A price on this lineup is the starting dose only.

Check whether the plan expects you to use insurance. A few programs can bill your coverage for the drug; everything scored here is the self-pay route, which is the price you'll pay if your plan says no.

Then open two or three reviews. Each one lists the care fee, what it covers and the drug prices the program prints, so you can add the two halves the same way for every provider.

If you already take Wegovy or Zepbound, ask whether the program will keep you on your current dose or start over at a lower one. Restarting can change both the price and how you feel in the first weeks, and a new program should explain its reasoning before it writes the prescription. Bring your last prescription and dose history to the first visit.

• Price (35). The starting-dose month a new patient pays: the program's own fee plus any drug price it prints. A first-month offer doesn't count, and a row with no printed drug price scores zero here.
• Care (25). Who prescribes, a clinician's review of your intake, labs and who pays for them, a stated follow-up rhythm, and dose changes without a new consult fee, 5 points each. Moving up a brand dose usually means a new prescription, so the last check matters.
• Pharmacy (25). Naming the pharmacy that fills your prescription is worth 10, its state or license 5. Because every product here is a brand drug, the brand label and approval checks are earned once the drug is named.
• Clarity (15). Whether a price shows before the intake questions, the cancellation and refund terms are published, and the states served are listed. Each is worth 5.

Printed prices on this lineup run $364 to $449 a month. Over twelve months that gap is about $1,020 by our math, before any dose increase. At the middle price, $448, a year comes to about $5,376. These are annualized comparisons at unchanged starting prices, not the actual payments due in the first 365 days; dose changes, introductory offers and separate tests can change the budget.

Across the site, brand Zepbound through telehealth programs lists at $364–$550 a month and brand Wegovy at $414–$498, each at the dose the program prices first.

This band is wide because the programs are so different, so ten dollars off the monthly price is worth only about 0.2 price points. On this lineup the care, pharmacy and clarity checks decide more of the order.

A care-fee program is easy to underprice in your head. Write the fee and the pharmacy's cash price side by side for the dose you expect in month three, then multiply by twelve. Do the same for the program that bundles everything, and the comparison is fair: one total against another, at the same dose and for the same months.

A confirmed four-week billing rate is annualized across 365 days for the monthly comparison. That is different from the actual cash payments due after an enrollment charge; ask for the renewal dates and total payment schedule.

1. Does your price include the medication, or will a pharmacy bill me for it separately?
2. Which pharmacy fills the prescription, and what is its cash price at my starting dose?
3. What does the drug cost at the next two doses?
4. Is there a new fee when my dose changes?
5. Can I use my insurance for the drug, and does the fee change if I do?
6. How do I cancel, and is a month already billed refunded?