Sesame is a direct-pay healthcare marketplace rather than a conventional telehealth subscription. Patients browse clinicians, see the price before booking, and pay that price — no insurance, no surprise billing. Its weight loss product, Success by Sesame, applies the same logic to GLP-1 care, and it is priced aggressively: as low as $59 per month on an annual subscription. This review evaluates Sesame across pricing, medication access, eligibility, fulfilment, support, and competitive positioning.

Quick Takeaway:

• Direct-pay healthcare marketplace with transparent, pre-disclosed pricing; visits start around $34
• Success by Sesame weight loss programme priced as low as $59/month with an annual subscription
• Programme includes video consults with a licensed clinician, labs, messaging, prescriptions, and ongoing care
• Prescribes brand-name GLP-1s such as Wegovy and Zepbound; Sesame also markets the Wegovy pill starting at $149/month
• Operates a Medicare pathway with select FDA-approved GLP-1s advertised at $50/month for eligible patients

Looking for a Better Alternative?

While Sesame offers the lowest subscription floor in mainstream GLP-1 telehealth, CoreAge Rx is our top-rated favorite for GLP-1 weight loss therapy. CoreAge Rx combines competitive pricing with exceptional customer service, faster medication delivery, and more comprehensive support resources.

Why we recommend CoreAge Rx:

• Lower monthly costs than most competitors ($179–$399 range)
• Faster prescription approval (typically 12–24 hours)
• More extensive provider support included at no extra charge
• Better medication availability during shortages
• Higher patient satisfaction scores (4.7/5)

Sesame's $59 buys the care, not the drug. Because Sesame prescribes branded medication, the total is $59 plus a full branded price. CoreAge Rx's $179–$399 covers both.

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What Is Sesame?

Sesame is a cash-pay healthcare marketplace connecting patients directly with clinicians at prices published upfront. It covers urgent care, primary care, prescription refills, mental health, dental, and imaging, alongside weight management. The model removes the insurance intermediary entirely — you see a price, you book, you pay it.

Success by Sesame is the weight loss subscription built on that marketplace. Sesame has stated the programme includes video consults with a licensed clinician, labs, messaging, access to prescriptions for weight loss medications, and ongoing care, priced as low as $59 per month with an annual subscription. Sesame has also operated the telehealth layer behind a large retailer weight loss offering, which is where much of its volume comes from.

How Sesame Works

1. Browse or subscribe. Book an individual visit at a published price, or subscribe to Success by Sesame.
2. Video consultation. Meet a licensed clinician who evaluates eligibility for anti-obesity medication.
3. Labs. Baseline laboratory work is included in the programme.
4. Prescription. Eligible patients receive a prescription for a brand-name GLP-1 such as Wegovy or Zepbound, or the oral Wegovy pill.
5. Fill. You fill at a pharmacy or through a manufacturer self-pay channel; Sesame can point you to lower-cost self-pay options.
6. Ongoing care. Messaging, refills, and follow-up consults through the subscription.

Medication Options and Pricing

Sesame's published education is unusually candid about drug pricing. Its own guidance notes that Wegovy's list price is around $1,349 per month and Ozempic's around $998, while both have been available at $349 per month for self-pay patients through Novo Nordisk's direct-to-consumer channel. That framing — telling patients the manufacturer channel exists — is more honest than most telehealth marketing.

Important: A $59 subscription plus a $349–$499 manufacturer self-pay drug price is a total of roughly $408–$558 per month. That is not a criticism of Sesame; it is the true cost of branded GLP-1 therapy without insurance. Compare it against bundled compounded programmes on total spend, and against your own pharmacy benefit if you have one.

Check Sesame Pricing

Success by Sesame from $59/month on an annual subscription, including video consults, labs, messaging, and prescriptions. Visits from around $34. HSA and FSA eligible.

Eligibility, Providers, and Lab Requirements

Standard anti-obesity medication criteria apply. Because Sesame includes labs in the subscription and requires a video consultation rather than a questionnaire, the clinical process is more substantive than at many cash-pay competitors — you are actually meeting a clinician.

Sesame's Medicare pathway is worth noting separately. Medicare Part D has historically excluded weight loss medications, and manufacturer bridge programmes have emerged to fill that gap. Sesame advertises select FDA-approved GLP-1s at $50/month for eligible Medicare patients through such a pathway, with visit costs separate. Eligibility criteria are specific; verify them directly.

Pharmacy Fulfilment and Shipping

Sesame does not operate its own compounding supply chain. Prescriptions are filled at retail pharmacies or through manufacturer direct-pay channels such as NovoCare® Pharmacy and LillyDirect. That means you receive FDA-approved finished product — a meaningful quality advantage — but you pay branded prices unless insurance applies.

Ongoing Support, Nutrition, and Coaching

The subscription covers:

• Video consultations with licensed clinicians
• Included laboratory work
• Secure messaging
• Prescription management and refills
• Guidance toward lower-cost self-pay medication options

There is no structured behavioural curriculum or dietitian relationship. Sesame sells access to clinicians efficiently; the habit work is yours.

Cancellation, Refunds, Insurance, and HSA/FSA

The lowest rate requires an annual subscription, so cancellation flexibility is limited at that tier. Month-to-month and individual visit options exist at higher effective prices.

Sesame is explicitly a cash-pay marketplace and does not bill commercial insurance for its subscription. Sesame's own published comparison confirms that monthly care and medications through its weight loss programme qualify for HSA and FSA reimbursement — a useful, concrete statement.

Pros and Cons

Pros

• Lowest subscription floor in mainstream GLP-1 telehealth
• Prices published before you book — genuinely transparent
• Labs and video consults included, not upsold
• Brand-name FDA-approved medication only
• Candid published education about manufacturer self-pay pricing
• Explicit HSA/FSA eligibility and a Medicare pathway

Cons

• Subscription excludes medication, and branded drugs are expensive
• Lowest price requires annual commitment
• No behavioural coaching or dietitian support
• Does not bill commercial insurance or file prior authorisations
• Marketplace model means less continuity with a single named clinician

Best Use Cases and Limitations

Best for: Patients who specifically want FDA-approved branded medication, who value transparent pricing, who need labs included, and Medicare-eligible patients exploring the bridge pathway.

Limitations: Patients seeking the lowest total monthly outlay will generally do better with a bundled compounded programme. Patients needing insurance advocacy or intensive coaching should look elsewhere.

Alternatives to Sesame

Frequently Asked Questions

How much does Success by Sesame cost?

Sesame has published the programme at as low as $59 per month with an annual subscription, including video consults with a licensed clinician, labs, messaging, access to prescriptions for weight loss medications, and ongoing care. Individual Sesame visits start at around $34.

Does the $59 include the cost of GLP-1 medication?

No. The subscription covers care. Sesame prescribes brand-name medication, which you purchase separately at pharmacy or manufacturer self-pay prices. Sesame's own education notes the manufacturer direct-to-consumer self-pay price for Wegovy and Ozempic has been $349 per month.

Does Sesame prescribe compounded semaglutide?

Sesame's weight loss offering centres on FDA-approved brand-name medication such as Wegovy and Zepbound, plus the oral Wegovy pill, rather than compounded preparations.

Is Sesame HSA and FSA eligible?

Yes. Sesame's published comparison states that monthly care and medications through its weight loss programme qualify for HSA and FSA reimbursement.

Does Sesame work with Medicare?

Sesame advertises a Medicare pathway with select FDA-approved GLP-1s at $50 per month for eligible patients, with the visit cost separate and specific clinical eligibility criteria applying. Verify eligibility directly before enrolling.

Does Sesame take commercial insurance?

No. Sesame is a direct-pay marketplace. If you have pharmacy benefit coverage for a GLP-1, filling under that benefit will usually cost less than any cash channel.

Bottom Line

Sesame is the most transparently priced entry point into GLP-1 care in the United States, and it deserves credit for publishing manufacturer self-pay prices that undercut its own commercial interest. Including labs and video consults at $59 per month is genuinely good value for the care component.

Strengths: transparency, low subscription floor, labs and video included, FDA-approved medication only, HSA/FSA eligibility, Medicare pathway.

Drawbacks: the drug is the expensive part and Sesame does not reduce it; annual commitment for the best rate; no coaching; no insurance advocacy.

Best for: patients who want branded medication with honest, low-cost clinical support.

Skip if: you want the lowest total monthly cost including medication, or you need someone to fight your insurer.

Separate the two questions — what does care cost, and what does the drug cost — and Sesame's proposition becomes clear. It solves the first cheaply and honestly, and tells you the truth about the second.

CoreAge Rx: one all-in monthly price from $179–$399 covering medication and care together, 12–24 hour approvals, provider messaging included. Save up to $200 on your first three months.

Medical disclaimer: Informational only, not medical advice. GLP-1 receptor agonists are prescription medicines with real risks and contraindications. Consult a qualified healthcare professional before starting or changing treatment. Verify all pricing directly with the provider.

Sources: Sesame published service, programme launch, and cost-education pages; Novo Nordisk NovoCare® published self-pay information; FDA prescribing information.

Date reviewed: August 2026