Comparisons

Semaglutide vs tirzepatide

Lead with the actual result: in SURMOUNT-5, the only randomised trial that has ever compared the two drugs directly, tirzepatide produced 20.2% mean weight loss at 72 weeks against semaglutide’s 13.7%, a 6.5-percentage-point gap (Aronne LJ, Horn DB, le Roux CW, Ho W, et al., NEJM, 3 July 2025). The caveat belongs in the same sentence as the number: the trial was open-label, so participants and investigators knew which drug each person was taking, and it was funded by Eli Lilly, which manufactures tirzepatide. Neither fact makes the result false, both are reasons to weigh it carefully. Read the full semaglutide vs tirzepatide comparison.

Retatrutide vs tirzepatide

Retatrutide’s own separate phase 2 trial reported a bigger number, 24.2% mean weight loss at 12 mg over 48 weeks, but bigger does not mean available: retatrutide is investigational and cannot legally be prescribed, while tirzepatide is FDA-approved and a licensed clinician can prescribe it this week. No published trial has ever put the two drugs head to head, so the two figures come from different trials, different durations and different patient populations, not a direct comparison. The comparison walks through why “wait for retatrutide” is not free advice either: it is currently in phase 3 trials with no published approval date, so the wait has no known length. Read the full retatrutide vs tirzepatide comparison.

Online vs in-clinic treatment

Online treatment is usually cheaper and faster to start; in-clinic treatment offers hands-on monitoring and a clinician who already knows you if something goes wrong. That trade-off is not hypothetical: AltRx carries an F rating from the Better Business Bureau for failing to respond to 37 complaints, and TrimRx, this site’s top-scoring provider, still carries a corroborated pattern of billing and cancellation friction. The comparison also names three honest reasons to choose in-clinic care instead, a complex medical history, another condition being managed alongside weight loss, and a genuine need for hands-on monitoring. Read the full online vs in-clinic comparison.

How the five providers compare

Once the drug and the treatment model are decided, the remaining choice is which provider to use. The table below scores TrimRx, Joi & Blokes, ReadyRx, AltRx and Zevay against the same five-criterion rubric, in rubric order, with current semaglutide and tirzepatide pricing beside each score. A criterion we could not independently verify scores zero rather than taking a provider’s word for it, which is why a low score here means “unconfirmed,” not automatically “confirmed bad,” and why the “worth knowing” column matters as much as the number beside it.

Scores are computed from our published rubric, shown in full on each review. Prices verified 16 July 2026: confirm your current price with the provider before you pay.

What you can be prescribed today

Semaglutide and tirzepatide are both FDA-approved and available today from a licensed prescriber after a medical evaluation. The providers below evaluate eligibility and prescribe compounded semaglutide or compounded tirzepatide.