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The Real Cost of Zepbound, by Seller and by Dose

Zepbound is the approved tirzepatide, and what it costs depends less on the drug than on who you buy it through and what dose you end up on. This board prices every route we have read ourselves: Eli Lilly's own self-pay channel at four different doses, two telehealth companies that bill medication separately from a membership, and one that stacks a care fee on top of Lilly's price. The spread between the cheapest and dearest row is more than a factor of two for the same medicine.

Nothing on this board is pinned, sponsored, or lifted into position — every row is sorted by what a year actually costs, cheapest first: the walk-away price of one cycle, multiplied by the number of times a year it is really billed.

By Marla Whitfield, Pricing Editor

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What gets on this board

Every priced row on a published review here that names Zepbound. That includes all four of the manufacturer's published dose tiers, listed separately because Lilly prices by dose rather than flat, and it includes a route that stacks a telehealth care fee on the manufacturer's own price, with the arrangement stated in the row. It excludes a program fee quoted against an insurance copay, which is not a price for this drug, and that row is named below with the reason.

What decides the order

Nothing on this board is pinned, sponsored, or lifted into position — every row is sorted by what a year actually costs, cheapest first: the walk-away price of one cycle, multiplied by the number of times a year it is really billed.

Where two rows carry the same walk-away price, the cheaper year goes first and then the two are ordered alphabetically — so every position on this page is decided by the numbers, and never by which review happened to be written first.

What the spread looks like

$299/cycle

Cheapest walk-away

LillyDirect — tirzepatide, 2.5 mg

$1,999/mo

Dearest walk-away

Belle Health — tirzepatide, brand

$1,700

Between the two

Across 18 priced routes from 14 companies

A year at the walk-away price runs $3,887 to $23,988 across 14 companies; the median is $6,232. That is one cycle at the standing rate, multiplied by the number of times a year each seller actually bills — so a company charging every three or four weeks carries a bigger year than its price per cycle suggests.

Zepbound, cheapest first

Sorted by what a year actually costs — the walk-away price of one cycle, multiplied by the number of times a year that cycle is really billed, not the multi-month prepay number a provider leads with. A company billing every 21 or 28 days charges more times a year than one billing monthly, so a lower price per cycle is not a cheaper year, and this board ranks on the year. Every figure, date and source on a row is the company's own, carried unmodified from its review — click the company name to read the working behind its price.

ProviderAdvertisedWalk-awayYear at this price
LillyDirect — tirzepatide, 2.5 mg

Self-pay, KwikPen or four single-dose vials. No conditional discount at this dose, so the two columns match.

Visit LillyDirect
$299.00/cycle$299.00/cycle$3,887.00

$299.00 × 13 four-week cycles

Alloy
Alloy — ® KwikPen®, tirzepatide autoinjector

$299 for the pen, so $398 a month with the fee — the same total as the vial, in an autoinjector.

Visit Alloy
$299.00/mo$398.00/mo$4,776.00

$398.00 × 12 months

Alloy
Alloy — ®, tirzepatide injection

$299 for the injection, so $398 with the fee.

Visit Alloy
$299.00/mo$398.00/mo$4,776.00

$398.00 × 12 months

Noom Med
Noom Med — vial via LillyDirect, care fee plus medication

Two charges. Noom's care fee is "$39 to get started, then $99/month for ongoing care" and the drug is separate: "Access authentic Zepbound vials as low as $299/mo, fulfilled through LillyDirect." So $338 the first month and $398 after. Noom prices unassisted Zepbound pens at $1,000–$1,100/mo on the same page. Curiously, the page ships a second copy of the care-fee line reading "$69 to get started" for tablet-width screens.

Visit Noom Med
$338.00/mo$398.00/mo$4,776.00

$398.00 × 12 months

LillyDirect — tirzepatide, 5 mg

Self-pay, KwikPen or four single-dose vials. Unconditional — the 45-day refill clock starts at 7.5 mg, not here. Pen needles (KwikPen) or needles and syringes (vials) are bought separately.

Visit LillyDirect
$399.00/cycle$399.00/cycle$5,187.00

$399.00 × 13 four-week cycles

Hers
Hers — tirzepatide, Vial

Two charges: $39 membership + $299 medication = $338 the first month, then $149 + $299 = $448. The Zepbound KwikPen is the same $299. A third card on the same page lists "Zepbound®" at $1,899/mo with no dagger and no product page.

Visit Hers
$338.00/mo$448.00/mo$5,376.00

$448.00 × 12 months

Hims — tirzepatide, vial, brand

Advertised “From $299/mo†”, membership required, so $448 a month and $5,376 a year. The Zepbound KwikPen® is advertised at the same medication figure.

Visit Hims
$299.00/mo$448.00/mo$5,376.00

$448.00 × 12 months

PlushCare
PlushCare — tirzepatide, vials, brand

Same construction. Advertised: $0 membership (first month free) + $129 initial visit + $299 medication (the 2.5 mg starting vial through LillyDirect) = $428. Walk-away: $19.99 membership + $449 medication = $468.99. PlushCare publishes the whole ladder rather than a teaser, which is rare: "$299 (2.5 mg), $399 (5 mg), $449 (7.5 mg–15 mg) per month", self-pay only, with refills that "must be purchased within 45 days of the prior delivery/receipt date". The walk-away uses $449 because that’s where anyone who titrates ends up. Choosing the pen instead costs far more — PlushCare quotes Zepbound KwikPens at a "Flat $650 monthly self-pay price", $201 a month above the top vial. No follow-up visit fee is included because none is published, so this is a floor.

Visit PlushCare
$428.00/mo$468.99/mo$5,627.88

$468.99 × 12 months

LifeMD
LifeMD — tirzepatide, vial, brand

Advertised: $39 program + $349 medication ("Zepbound® Vial Starting At $349/mo") = $388. Walk-away: $149 program + $349 = $498.

Visit LifeMD
$388.00/mo$498.00/mo$5,976.00

$498.00 × 12 months

LillyDirect — tirzepatide, 7.5 mg

$449 holds only "when you refill within 45 days" under the Zepbound Journey Program. Lilly's footnote gives the alternative: "Regular prices will apply if prescription is not refilled within 45 days ($499 for 7.5mg…)." The walk-away column is that $499.

Visit LillyDirect
$449.00/cycle$499.00/cycle$6,487.00

$499.00 × 13 four-week cycles

Nurx — tirzepatide, single-dose vials, brand

$349 is Nurx's own "the starting 2.5mg dose is $349/month". Walk-away adds the two things that follow you: $499 for the 5 mg vial (and for 7.5 mg and 10 mg, but only "if you refill your prescription within 45 days of your previous delivery") plus Nurx's $79/month provider support fee = $578. Miss the 45-day window and Nurx's own standard pricing is $599 for 7.5 mg and $699 for 10 mg, taking the all-in to $678 or $778; 12.5 mg and 15 mg aren’t priced at all. Delivery is by Gifthealth, Inc., "who will also charge for necessary supplies (e.g., syringes, alcohol pads, etc.)" — an unquantified extra. A one-time $79 consultation fee applies before any of this and isn’t annualised into these figures.

Visit Nurx
$349.00/mo$578.00/mo$6,936.00

$578.00 × 12 months

Sesame Care — tirzepatide, brand

Same construction. Advertised: $59 program + $299 medication (Zepbound vials at the 2.5 mg starting dose through LillyDirect) = $358. Walk-away: $99 program + $449 medication (vials at 7.5 mg and above, which is where anyone who titrates ends up) = $548. Sesame publishes the full ladder: vials at $299 / $399 / $449, and Kwikpens at $299 / $399 / $499 / $699 — choosing the pen instead of the vial adds $250 a month at the top dose. Nothing on this page discloses that the $59 requires a twelve-month commitment.

Visit Sesame Care
$358.00/cycle$548.00/cycle$7,124.00

$548.00 × 13 four-week cycles

Ro
Ro — tirzepatide

Two charges: $39 membership + $299 medication = $338 the first month, then $149 + $449 = $598. Medication is dose-priced — $299 at 2.5 mg, $399 at 5 mg, $449 at 7.5–15 mg — and the $449 holds only if each refill check-in lands within 45 days of the last delivery.

Visit Ro
$338.00/mo$598.00/mo$7,176.00

$598.00 × 12 months

LillyDirect — tirzepatide, 10 mg and above

10 mg, 12.5 mg and 15 mg all price at $449 with an on-time refill and $699 without it — a $250 penalty for missing a 45-day window, on the identical medicine. Applies to KwikPen and vial alike.

Visit LillyDirect
$449.00/cycle$699.00/cycle$9,087.00

$699.00 × 13 four-week cycles

Vytora Health — tirzepatide, Mounjaro® or Zepbound®, brand

Both brand rows are listed at $1,399 a month with no prepay tier, so the columns match. This is the manufacturer's product rather than a compounded preparation, and the price reflects that.

Visit Vytora Health
$1,399.00/mo$1,399.00/mo$16,788.00

$1,399.00 × 12 months

OrderlyMeds — tirzepatide, pen, brand

Branded Zepbound at $1,498 a month, flat. $17,976 a year. Both brand rows are close to list and are priced without a promotion attached.

Visit OrderlyMeds
$1,498.00/mo$1,498.00/mo$17,976.00

$1,498.00 × 12 months

WellMedr
WellMedr — tirzepatide, ® (brand, cash-pay)

"Zepbound starting at $1,599 · Contains Tirzepatide · Month-to-month plan." Both branded rows name the molecule, which the compounded line doesn’t.

Visit WellMedr
$1,599.00/mo$1,599.00/mo$19,188.00

$1,599.00 × 12 months

Belle Health — tirzepatide, brand

Branded Zepbound at $1,999/mo — $23,988 a year, and roughly ten times the compounded tirzepatide price at the same company.

Visit Belle Health
$1,999.00/mo$1,999.00/mo$23,988.00

$1,999.00 × 12 months

18 published zepbound prices, from $299 to $1,999

One mark per row above, at the walk-away price for a single cycle — the standing rate with no commitment. Marks that would overlap stack upward; none is moved sideways. The dashed line is the middle row, $498, a real published price rather than an average of two.

Cheapest

$299

Middle row

$498

Dearest

$1,999

  1. LillyDirect — tirzepatide, 2.5 mg: $299 per cycle
  2. Alloy — ® KwikPen®, tirzepatide autoinjector: $398 per cycle
  3. Alloy — ®, tirzepatide injection: $398 per cycle
  4. Noom Med — vial via LillyDirect, care fee plus medication: $398 per cycle
  5. LillyDirect — tirzepatide, 5 mg: $399 per cycle
  6. Hers — tirzepatide, Vial: $448 per cycle
  7. Hims — tirzepatide, vial, brand: $448 per cycle
  8. PlushCare — tirzepatide, vials, brand: $468.99 per cycle
  9. LifeMD — tirzepatide, vial, brand: $498 per cycle
  10. LillyDirect — tirzepatide, 7.5 mg: $499 per cycle
  11. Sesame Care — tirzepatide, brand: $548 per cycle
  12. Nurx — tirzepatide, single-dose vials, brand: $578 per cycle
  13. Ro — tirzepatide: $598 per cycle
  14. LillyDirect — tirzepatide, 10 mg and above: $699 per cycle
  15. Vytora Health — tirzepatide, Mounjaro® or Zepbound®, brand: $1,399 per cycle
  16. OrderlyMeds — tirzepatide, pen, brand: $1,498 per cycle
  17. WellMedr — tirzepatide, ® (brand, cash-pay): $1,599 per cycle
  18. Belle Health — tirzepatide, brand: $1,999 per cycle

Year at this price assumes 13 payments a year for providers billing every 4 weeks, and 12 for providers billing monthly — see the arithmetic under each row.

What is not on this board, and why

A board that only shows what it includes is a board you have to trust. These are the priced rows we hold that look like they belong here and do not, each with the reason and a link to the review that prices it. The list is checked against the reviews on every build: a row that is neither on the board above nor named here fails the build rather than disappearing quietly.

Show all 3 excluded rows
  • HimsTirzepatide — Mounjaro, brand

    Mounjaro, not Zepbound — the same molecule under the other brand and a different approved indication, caught by this board's deliberately wide candidate net. Hims's Zepbound vial IS on this board. Both are $149 a month dearer than the card says, because a Hims Weight Loss Membership is required alongside every medication.

  • Synergy RxTirzepatide — Mounjaro®, brand

    Branded MOUNJARO, not Zepbound. Same molecule, different approval — Mounjaro is the type 2 diabetes product and Zepbound the weight-management one — so it is caught by a net looking for branded tirzepatide, and it is not the drug this board prices.

  • CalibrateBranded GLP-1 via insurance — program fee plus copay

    Calibrate sells the program rather than the drug, and prescribes branded GLP-1s against your insurance. Its own pricing page says "prescription medications are not included in the membership cost", so the $224 figure is what the program costs and not what Zepbound costs — ranking it against the rows above would put a fee and a medicine in the same column. It is caught here because the row announces itself as branded, which is exactly what this board's net is meant to catch.

Key terms

Walk-away price
What one cycle costs at the no-commitment, ongoing rate — what you actually pay if you stop after month one.
Year at this price
The walk-away price multiplied by however many times a year it's actually billed — 12 for a calendar-month cycle, 13 for a four-week cycle.
Plan price
One price covering either of two molecules, quoted by the plan rather than the drug. Rows like that say so in the label, because the company publishes no figure for this compound on its own.

Frequently asked questions

Why is the manufacturer's own price not the cheapest row on this board?

It is the cheapest for the medicine alone, and at the lowest dose. What complicates it is that Lilly prices by dose while everybody else charges one figure whatever you titrate to — so LillyDirect starts below the telehealth rows at 2.5 mg and finishes above all of them at 10 mg and up. The board carries all four tiers rather than the flattering one. The other thing to hold in mind is that LillyDirect does not include a prescriber: you bring a prescription from your own doctor or from an independent telehealth service, and that service may charge you.

Why does the true-year column multiply by thirteen on the manufacturer's rows?

Because Lilly's own price-list terms define a month as 28 days and cap the self-pay program at 13 fills in a calendar year. A four-week cycle is thirteen charges, not twelve, and that thirteenth charge is invisible in any per-month figure — on the 5 mg tier it is an extra $399 a year that no "$399/month" headline will show you. Every row's multiplier is printed under its annual figure and is copied from that company's review rather than assumed.

Is Zepbound the same as a compounded tirzepatide?

No. Zepbound is an FDA-approved tirzepatide product from Eli Lilly. A compounded tirzepatide is prepared by a state-licensed compounding pharmacy and is not FDA-approved or evaluated for safety, effectiveness or quality — several of the companies selling one lead with that disclaimer themselves. The two are on separate boards for that reason: the compounded rows are roughly half these prices, and putting them in one column would make that difference look like a bargain rather than a difference in what you are buying. The compounded prices are on our compounded tirzepatide board.

Why is one row a care fee plus the manufacturer's price?

Because that is a real thing a reader can buy and its cost is the sum of two figures. Noom sells clinician access and routes the prescription to LillyDirect's self-pay channel, so what leaves your account is the care fee and the drug. Neither number on its own answers the question, and the row carries the arrangement rather than leaving it to a footnote.

How current are these prices?

Every figure was read off the company's own page on the date printed beside it, and each row links to the page it came from. Manufacturer self-pay pricing in this category has moved repeatedly, and the telehealth rows move more often than that. Read the number on your own checkout screen rather than the one on the page that sent you there; if a source disagrees with this page, the source is right and we want to know.

Cite this board

These 18 prices are published under CC BY 4.0. Quote any figure here with attribution; each one carries the seller’s own page and the date it was read.

Doseworth, "The Real Cost of Zepbound, by Seller and by Dose", https://doseworth.com/cheapest/zepbound (18 rows, verified 2026-08-07 to 2026-08-14).

Medical disclaimer: This content is for general educational purposes only and is not medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always consult a licensed healthcare professional before starting, stopping, or changing any treatment.