No. Wegovy is the same molecule, licensed for weight management, and it is available privately in New Zealand.
No. Ozempic is not currently marketed in New Zealand, so pharmacies here have no stock to dispense and no retail price to quote. Searching for it on a New Zealand pharmacy site will usually redirect you to Wegovy.
Both are semaglutide, made by Novo Nordisk. Ozempic is the brand licensed for type 2 diabetes and Wegovy the brand licensed for weight management, at a higher maximum dose of 2.4mg against Ozempic's 1.0mg. In New Zealand, Wegovy is the semaglutide product available for weight management.
Figures in the NZ$130 to $350 range circulating in articles are almost always Australian, where Ozempic is sold and partly subsidised. They don't apply in New Zealand.
Pharmac funds dulaglutide (Trulicity) and liraglutide (Victoza) under Special Authority criteria, dispensed at the standard prescription charge rather than a private price. Access was widened from 1 September 2026. Your GP applies; there is nothing to buy privately.
Three medicines are Medsafe-approved for weight management and available on private prescription, none of them funded: Wegovy (semaglutide), Mounjaro (tirzepatide) and Saxenda (liraglutide), which is a daily injection rather than weekly. Current prices for all three.
| Brand | Molecule | Licensed for | In NZ |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ozempic | Semaglutide | Type 2 diabetes | Not marketed |
| Wegovy | Semaglutide | Weight management | Private, unfunded |
| Rybelsus | Semaglutide, oral | Type 2 diabetes | Not marketed |
| Mounjaro | Tirzepatide | Weight management, diabetes | Private, unfunded |
| Trulicity | Dulaglutide | Type 2 diabetes | Funded, Special Authority |
| Victoza | Liraglutide | Type 2 diabetes | Funded, Special Authority |
| Saxenda | Liraglutide | Weight management | Private, unfunded |