Dulaglutide
GLP-1 receptor agonist
- Trulicity
- Type 2 diabetes, and cardiovascular risk in heart diseasenot weight loss
Trulicity
Each stripe is one section of the label, each division in a stripe one entry in that section. The red bar marks a boxed warning.
Reference information, not medical advice
This page is a reference, not medical advice. It reports what the FDA-approved label states and links to that label. It does not tell anyone what to take, and it cannot replace a conversation with a doctor or pharmacist who knows the person's history.
Dulaglutide is the GLP-1 receptor agonist sold as Trulicity, injected once a week. Unlike semaglutide and tirzepatide, it has no second brand approved for weight management: there is one label, and weight loss is not among its approved uses.
WARNING: RISK OF THYROID C-CELL TUMORS
In the Trulicity label
- In male and female rats, dulaglutide causes a dose-related and treatment-duration-dependent increase in the incidence of thyroid C-cell tumors (adenomas and carcinomas) after lifetime exposure. It is unknown whether TRULICITY causes thyroid C-cell tumors, including medullary thyroid carcinoma (MTC), in humans as human relevance of dulaglutide-induced rodent thyroid C-cell tumors has not been determined. TRULICITY is contraindicated in patients with a personal or family history of MTC and in patients with Multiple Endocrine Neoplasia syndrome type 2 (MEN 2).
A boxed warning is the most serious warning the FDA requires. This text is reproduced from the label.
Brands and what each one is approved for
One active ingredient can hold several separate FDA approvals. They are different documents with different approved uses, and mixing them up is the most common mistake made about these medications.
| Brand | What its label approves | Supply | Label version |
|---|---|---|---|
| TrulicityEli Lilly and Company | Type 2 diabetes, and cardiovascular risk in heart diseaseNot weight loss | Prescription | 16 June 2026 |
How it works
Its label is a diabetes document from beginning to end, and that is the whole point of this page. The molecule belongs to the class that produced Wegovy and Zepbound, but the FDA never reviewed it for weight management, so nothing in the approved document describes it for that purpose.
Mechanism of action, Trulicity label
TRULICITY contains dulaglutide, which is a human GLP-1 receptor agonist with 90% amino acid sequence homology to endogenous human GLP-1 (7-37). Dulaglutide activates the GLP-1 receptor, a membrane-bound cell-surface receptor coupled to adenylyl cyclase in pancreatic beta cells. Dulaglutide increases intracellular cyclic AMP (cAMP) in beta cells leading to glucose-dependent insulin release.
What the FDA approved it for
The approved uses, as worded in the label.
- To reduce the risk of major adverse cardiovascular events (cardiovascular death, non-fatal myocardial infarction, or non-fatal stroke) in adults with type 2 diabetes mellitus who have established cardiovascular disease or multiple cardiovascular risk factors.
- TRULICITY ® is a glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) receptor agonist indicated: As an adjunct to diet and exercise to improve glycemic control in adults and pediatric patients 10 years of age and older with type 2 diabetes mellitus.
Forms and strengths
The presentations and strengths listed in the label.
Injection: TRULICITY is a clear and colorless solution available as: 0.75 mg/0.5 mL solution in a single-dose pen 1.5 mg/0.5 mL solution in a single-dose pen 3 mg/0.5 mL solution in a single-dose pen...
How the label says it is taken
What the label states about administration. It is not a dosing instruction for any individual.
- Recommended starting dosage is 0.75 mg injected subcutaneously once weekly. After 4 weeks, the dosage may be increased to 1.5 mg once weekly for additional glycemic control. If additional glycemic control is needed, increase dosage in 1.5 mg increments after at least 4 weeks on the current dosage. Maximum recommended dosage is 4.5 mg injected subcutaneously once weekly. Pediatric Dosage
- If a dose is missed, administer the missed dose as soon as possible if there are at least 3 days (72 hours) until the next scheduled dose. Important Administration Instructions
- Administer once weekly at any time of day with or without food. Inject subcutaneously in the abdomen, thigh, or upper arm.
Most common adverse reactions
The adverse reactions the label reports as most common.
Most common adverse reactions (incidence ≥5%) are nausea, diarrhea, vomiting, abdominal pain, and decreased appetite.
Warnings and precautions
The warnings and precautions section of the label.
- Thyroid C-cell Tumors: See Boxed Warning.
- Acute Pancreatitis: Has been observed in patients treated with GLP-1 receptor agonists, including TRULICITY.
- Discontinue if pancreatitis is suspected.
- Hypoglycemia: Concomitant use with an insulin secretagogue or insulin may increase the risk of hypoglycemia, including severe hypoglycemia.
Contraindications
Situations in which the label states the medication must not be used.
- TRULICITY is contraindicated in patients with: Personal or family history of medullary thyroid carcinoma (MTC) or in patients with Multiple Endocrine Neoplasia syndrome type 2 (MEN 2).
- Serious hypersensitivity reaction to dulaglutide or to any of the product components.
- Serious hypersensitivity reactions including anaphylactic reactions and angioedema have been reported with TRULICITY.
Drug interactions
Interactions the label singles out.
Oral Medications: Delays gastric emptying and has the potential to reduce the rate of absorption of concomitantly administered oral medications.
Pregnancy and breastfeeding
The opening of the pregnancy section of the label. The full section is longer and is in the source document.
Limited data with TRULICITY in pregnant women are not sufficient to determine a drug-associated risk for major birth defects and miscarriage. There are clinical considerations regarding the risks of poorly controlled diabetes in pregnancy. Based on animal reproduction studies, there may be risks to the fetus from exposure to dulaglutide during pregnancy.
Generic or brand
There is no approved generic dulaglutide. It is a biologic, approved under a biologics licence application rather than a new drug application, and copies of biologics reach the market as biosimilars rather than as generics.
The FDA label database lists no approved generic application for this ingredient.
What affects the cost
Trulicity is a brand-only biologic, which is the main thing separating its cost position from liraglutide, where generics exist. This site sells nothing and links to no sellers.
What pharmacies pay for it
These are acquisition costs: what pharmacies in the United States pay on average to buy the medication, published weekly by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. They are not retail prices and not what a person pays at the counter, which depends on insurance, pharmacy and discount programmes. They are useful as an objective floor and for seeing how far a brand sits above its generic.
| Measured | Brand |
|---|---|
| per millilitre | $487.63 (range $478.07 to $487.74, 120 listings) |
Median of 120 listings. Effective dates 2025-12-17 to 2026-07-22, file dated 2026-07-29.
Compared with other medications
What the labels do not do is compare one medication against another. These pages put two of them side by side.
Common questions
- Is Trulicity approved for weight loss?
- No. Its label covers glycaemic control in type 2 diabetes in patients aged 10 and older, and reducing the risk of major adverse cardiovascular events. Weight management does not appear among the approved uses, and this page does not describe what such use would involve.
- How is it different from Ozempic?
- Different active ingredients from the same class: dulaglutide and semaglutide. Both are injected once weekly and both are approved for type 2 diabetes. The comparison page sets the two labels side by side.
- Why is a diabetes medication listed under weight loss?
- Because people look for it here, and the honest answer is what the label covers. Two other medications in this class, semaglutide and tirzepatide, hold separate weight management approvals under different brand names. Dulaglutide does not.
Other medications under weight loss
Whether each one carries an FDA approval for this use is marked on its page and in this list.
Sources
Every fact above comes from one of these documents. The date is the effective date of the label version this page was built from.
FDA prescribing information for Trulicity
Eli Lilly and Company. Label version 62, effective 16 June 2026.
Page last updated: 14 August 2026
Compiled by the HealthyStudy editorial team from FDA source documents. No medical reviewer is credited on this page, because none reviewed it.