What it costs
What Mounjaro Costs Without Insurance: $6,487 to $24,576 a Year
Without insurance, Mounjaro costs $499 a fill at every dose when you buy it direct from Eli Lilly, and a fill is four weekly pens, so a year is 13 fills and $6,487. Through the three other companies we price, a year runs $11,364 to $24,576. Lilly's savings card for insured patients is a separate program with its own rules, covered below.
What it costs across the market
Every Mounjaro price we have read from a company's own page or checkout, at the no-commitment rate, including the manufacturer's own self-pay price. Savings-card prices for insured patients are not counted; they have their own section below.
$6,487–$24,576
A year, cheapest to dearest
$14,076
The middle of the range
4
Companies we priced ourselves
What actually moves the number
- Who you buy it from. The manufacturer sells direct at one self-pay price, and a reseller adds its own margin, visit fee or membership to whatever it pays for the drug.
- The billing unit. A Mounjaro fill is four weekly pens, 28 days, so a year is thirteen fills, not twelve.
- A membership or visit fee. Some resellers charge one on top of the medication, and the headline figure leaves it out.
- Your insurance. The savings card depends on whether you have commercial coverage and whether your plan covers Mounjaro, and it excludes government beneficiaries.
The manufacturer's self-pay price
Eli Lilly sells Mounjaro direct through its LillyDirect pharmacy. Under every strength from 2.5 mg to 15 mg, its page prints the same line: "Starting at $499/month". It publishes no higher self-pay figure, so the dose you end up on does not change the bill. The price needs a prescription, and Lilly adds that "additional taxes and fees may apply."
The month is the part to read closely. Lilly's self-pay terms say "one fill is equal to a month's supply of Mounjaro which is defined as four pens per month." Mounjaro is one pen a week, so a fill lasts 28 days and a year holds 13 of them. At $499 a fill that is $6,487 a year, not the $5,988 that twelve months at the headline price would suggest.
Where the price comes from
We price Mounjaro at four companies, four prices in all. The spread is less about the drug than about who sells it to you.
| Channel | Prices | What a year comes to |
|---|---|---|
| The manufacturer's own self-pay pharmacy | 1 | $6,487 |
| A telehealth company or pharmacy reselling it | 3 | $11,364 to $24,576 |
| Every price we have read | 4 prices from 4 companies | $6,487 to $24,576 |
A year is each company's own price times the number of times it actually bills: 13 for a 28-day fill, 12 for a calendar month.
Why a reseller charges more
A company reselling Mounjaro has to cover what it pays for the drug, and it adds its own margin, a visit fee or a membership on top. Across the resellers we price, a year costs 1.8 to 3.8 times the manufacturer's own self-pay year. One of them requires a membership on top of the medication, which is inside our figure and not inside the headline.
What a reseller can offer is the prescription itself. LillyDirect fills a prescription and does not write one, so if you have no prescriber you will pay someone for the visit either way. Add that fee to the manufacturer's price before you compare.
The savings card is a different price
Lilly also runs a Mounjaro savings card, and one of its tiers quotes the same number as the self-pay price, which is why the two get confused. The card is for people who have commercial drug insurance. If your plan does not cover Mounjaro, Lilly's terms say you may "pay as low as $499 for a 1-month prescription fill of Mounjaro single-dose pen." That tier carries "a maximum monthly savings of up to $647 and a separate maximum annual savings of up to $8,411 per calendar year," it may be used for "a maximum of up to 13 prescription fills per calendar year," and the card "expires and savings end on 12/31/2026."
If your plan does cover Mounjaro, a different tier applies: you may pay as little as $25 for a one-, two- or three-month fill, subject to monthly and annual savings caps. Both tiers exclude anyone on Medicaid, Medicare, Medicare Part D, Medicare Advantage, Medigap, DoD, VA or TRICARE, or a state prescription drug assistance program.
So "as low as" on the card is a floor for insured patients, not a price anyone can walk in and pay. The self-pay price above needs no insurance at all.
Mounjaro or Zepbound
Mounjaro and Zepbound are the same molecule, tirzepatide, made by the same company under two approvals: Mounjaro for type 2 diabetes, Zepbound for weight management. Which one is right is your prescriber's call, not a pricing question.
The self-pay prices are not the same, though. Lilly prices Zepbound by dose, from $299 at the starting dose to $449 at maintenance doses with an on-time refill, and up to $699 if a refill runs late. Mounjaro is one $499 price at every dose. The full Zepbound picture is on our Zepbound cost page.
Insurance, HSA and your deductible
Paying self-pay means stepping outside your insurance. Lilly's purchase terms ask you to agree that you "will not seek payment or accept reimbursement, either directly or indirectly, from any insurance plan or other third-party payer", and not to count what you pay toward your deductible or out-of-pocket limit.
Lilly's self-pay page does mark Mounjaro "FSA/HSA eligible", adding that "eligibility may vary by plan." Check with your plan administrator before you count on it.
Who sells it for less
This page is about what it costs and why. Which company charges least over a year is a different question, and it has its own ranked board: approved GLP-1s by seller, ranked by what a year costs. Every company we price also has its own review.
How these figures were established
Every number on this page is read from the price rows on our own provider reviews, each of which was verified against that company’s own page or checkout on the date the review records. Nothing here is retyped, so this page cannot disagree with the reviews underneath it. The annual figures multiply each company’s per-cycle charge by the number of times it actually bills in a year — thirteen on a four-week cycle, not twelve. Read the methodology for what we deliberately do not compute.
Frequently asked questions
How much is Mounjaro without insurance?
Direct from Eli Lilly, $499 a fill at any dose, and a fill is four weekly pens. That is $6,487 over a year of 13 fills. Through the three other companies we price, a year runs $11,364 to $24,576.
Is the Mounjaro price the same at every dose?
At the manufacturer's self-pay pharmacy, yes. Lilly prints the same $499 starting price under all six strengths, 2.5 mg to 15 mg, and publishes no higher self-pay figure. That is different from Zepbound, which Lilly prices by dose.
Is the $499 savings card the same as the self-pay price?
No. The card is for people with commercial drug insurance. The $499 tier applies when your plan does not cover Mounjaro, is capped at $647 of savings a month and $8,411 a year, allows up to 13 fills a year and ends on 12/31/2026. Government beneficiaries are excluded. The self-pay price needs no insurance at all.
Does Mounjaro self-pay count toward my deductible?
No. Lilly's self-pay terms ask you to agree not to count what you pay toward your deductible or out-of-pocket spending, and not to seek reimbursement from any insurer. Lilly does mark it FSA/HSA eligible, with eligibility varying by plan.
Why does a year cost more than twelve times the monthly price?
Because Lilly's "month" is four pens, one a week, which lasts 28 days. A calendar year holds thirteen of those, and Lilly's own savings terms allow up to 13 fills a year. Multiply by 13, not 12.
Prices checked September 2026.
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.