What’s the Difference Between Mounjaro Vs. Ozempic? Experts Explain
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The public has become fascinated with medications that can help you lose weight, with type 2 diabetes drugs like Ozempic and Mounjaro running rampant across social media for their ability to aid in weight loss. But with all that curiosity comes plenty of questions, including the difference between Mounjaro vs. Ozempic, along with the side effects of each.
It’s important to state upfront that neither medication is currently approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for use as a weight loss drug. Rather, they are drugs for blood sugar management in those with type 2 diabetes. However, there is some pretty robust data that has found both Mounjaro and Ozempic cause weight loss in patients—and it’s expected that they will eventually be FDA-approved as weight loss medications as a result. Because of this, some physicians are already prescribing them off-label for weight loss in patients who have obesity.
But what are Mounjaro and Ozempic, exactly, and how can you know if one is right for you? Doctors break it down.
Meet the experts: Jena Shaw Tronieri, Ph.D., assistant professor of psychology in psychiatry at the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania and a researcher who focuses on improving weight loss treatment outcomes for patients with obesity; Kunal Shah, M.D., assistant professor in the division of endocrinology at the Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical Center; Mir Ali, M.D., a bariatric surgeon and medical director of MemorialCare Surgical Weight Loss Center at Orange Coast Medical Center in Fountain Valley, CA.
What is Ozempic?
Ozempic (with a main active ingredient of semaglutide) is in a class of type 2 diabetes drugs known as glucagon-like peptide 1 (GLP-1) agonists. These medications aim to help improve blood sugar and may also lead to weight loss, the Mayo Clinic explains.
Ozempic is an injectable medication that mimics a protein in your own body called GLP-1, explains Kunal Shah, M.D., an assistant professor in the division of endocrinology at the Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical Center. The medication activates GLP-1 receptors in your body, increasing the production of insulin, a hormone that helps blood sugar enter your cells where it can be used for energy. Through these mechanisms, Ozempic can help lower A1C levels, which is a measurement of average blood sugar levels over the past three months. In adults with type 2 diabetes, the majority who took Ozempic reached an A1C level of under 7%, a goal for most adults with diabetes, according to the American Diabetes Association (ADA).
But Ozempic also stimulates a pathway in your brain that signals for you to eat less and store less in your body, Dr. Shah says. It slows the movement of food through your stomach, too, making you feel fuller, longer.
Ozempic was approved in 2017 by the FDA for use in adults with type 2 diabetes. While Ozempic’s website notes that it’s not a weight loss drug, it does point out that users lost up to 14 lbs in one clinical trial on the medication. It’s worth pointing out that fellow semaglutide medication Wegovy is FDA-approved for weight loss.
What is Mounjaro?
Mounjaro (with a main active ingredient of tirzepatide) is a medication designed to help with blood sugar management in people with type 2 diabetes. It’s a type of drug called a dual glucose-dependent insulinotropic polypeptide (GIP) and glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) receptor agonist and is the first medication in the GIP/GLP-1 receptor agonist drug class, per the FDA.
The injectable medication was approved by the FDA in May 2022 to improve blood sugar management in people with type 2 diabetes. It works similarly to Ozempic, but also targets GIP receptors, in addition to GLP-1 receptors, Dr. Shah explains. Mounjaro notes on its website that up to 90% of patients taking the drug saw A1C levels of under 7%, a goal for most adults with diabetes, according to the ADA.
But a common “side effect” of sorts with this medication is weight loss. In fact, the FDA specifically notes that average weight loss in a clinical trial was 15 lbs more than a placebo when neither group used insulin and 23 lbs more than a placebo when both groups used insulin.
Mounjaro vs. Ozempic
Dr. Shah calls Mounjaro a “cousin” of Ozempic. “Mounjaro is actually significantly more effective in both lowering your A1C if you have diabetes but also, in trials, with weight loss,” Dr. Shah says. “Mounjaro is basically Ozempic, plus the GIP molecule, which increases effectiveness.” Both are involved in the regulation of insulin and have an impact on hunger levels and how full you feel, says Mir Ali, M.D., a bariatric surgeon and medical director of MemorialCare Surgical Weight Loss Center at Orange Coast Medical Center in Fountain Valley, CA. “But Mounjaro may be a little more effective for weight loss because it targets two different receptors in the body,” he says.
The FDA points out that the average weight loss with the maximum recommended dose of Mounjaro was 12 lbs more than with semaglutide (as in Ozempic). Mounjaro explicitly states on its website that it’s “not a weight loss drug” but also mentions that people on the medication lost up to 25 lbs in one clinical trial.
Also, while Ozempic has been linked to a lower risk of cardiovascular events, it’s still being studied in Mounjaro.
“There are no head-to-head trials yet,” says Jena Shaw Tronieri, Ph.D., an assistant professor of psychology in psychiatry at the University of Pennsylvania and a researcher who focuses on improving weight loss treatment outcomes for patients with obesity. That, she says, will be important for helping patients and doctors to decide which medication is right for someone in the future.
Mounjaro vs. Ozempic side effects
Potential side effects of Mounjaro
Mounjaro warns on its website that users may experience following side effects:
Nausea
Diarrhea
Decreased appetite
Vomiting
Constipation
Indigestion
Stomach pain
Potential side effects of Ozempic
Ozempic states online that users of the medication may have the following common side effects:
Nausea
Diarrhea
Stomach pain
Vomiting
Should I use Mounjaro vs. Ozempic?
It depends on the reason for your prescription. Ultimately, patients have had similar results on Mounjaro and Ozempic, according to the brands. However, Dr. Shah says that someone may have better results on Mounjaro if Ozempic didn’t help them reach their goals because it targets an additional receptor.
Again, neither medication is currently FDA-approved for weight loss—but some doctors are prescribing both for that purpose. “It’s definitely being used off-label for weight loss,” Dr. Ali says. However, both are FDA-approved for blood sugar management for people who have type 2 diabetes.
Insurance coverage and availability may also dictate whether you try one medication over another, Tronieri says. Both medications should be covered by health insurance (if you have it) for management of type 2 diabetes. However, if you’re paying out of pocket, Mounjaro is slightly more expensive—starting at $997—compared to Ozempic, which starts at $772.
If you have type 2 diabetes and are concerned about your blood sugar management or if you have obesity and aren’t getting the weight loss results you’re after, talk to your doctor about the next steps. They should be able to provide personalized guidance from there.
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