--- title: Buying guide description: What to check before enrolling in a GLP-1 program: the first charge, the billing interval, the membership structure, the commitment and the refund cutoff. --- # Buying guide Canonical page: https://glp1buyerguide.com/buyerguide What to establish before you enter a card number, in the order it affects your bill. ## 1. The first charge is not the recurring charge A first-month or introductory discount is a one-time figure. What matters for your budget is the regular price it reverts to. This guide keeps the two apart rather than quoting the discounted amount as the ongoing cost. ## 2. The billing interval, not the supply period A supply period is how much medication you receive. A billing period is how often you are charged. They are not the same thing, and one does not tell you the other. A three-month supply billed once is a single large charge, not a three-month payment plan. Check the interval the provider states — a calendar month, a fixed number of days, or nothing clear at all, in which case treat it as unverified rather than assume a month. ## 3. Whether the membership is separate or bundled Some programs charge a membership for access and bill the medication separately. Others bundle everything into one price. A "no membership fee" headline does not make a program cheaper, because the membership may simply sit inside a higher drug price. Compare the total charged each period. ## 4. Whether the price changes with dose Some programs charge one flat price across every dose. Others price by dose, so the charge climbs as the dose climbs. A flat rate keeps the payment predictable, but confirm the flat price covers the full dose range you expect rather than only the starting doses. ## 5. The commitment, even on "month-to-month" Month-to-month usually means you can stop before the next charge, but confirm two things: the cancellation window, and whether you agreed to a minimum term. Monthly installments can still belong to a longer contract. If you must cancel several days before the renewal date, missing the window means you pay for another period. Record the window and set a reminder before each renewal. ## 6. The refund cutoff Establish whether amounts already paid are refundable, whether refunds exclude medication already shipped, and whether a clinical-ineligibility exception applies. A payment for medication already dispensed is often final. ## 7. What is not included Labs are frequently not included. Some programs state that labs are separate, and some do not mention them on the plan page at all. If labs are not included, add their cost to what you plan to spend each billing period. Where the amount is unpublished, this guide leaves the all-in average blank rather than treating the lab fee as zero. ## 8. Insurance, or cash pay Most cash-pay programs do not bill insurance and are paid with a card, sometimes with HSA or FSA funds. Some branded programs help with insurance or prior authorizations. Confirm which applies before enrolling. ## Reading a listing on this site Each entry is recorded as it is actually billed. A recurring plan is shown as the amount that repeats on its stated cadence, and a prepaid purchase is shown as its one-time payment. A value that could not be verified is left blank, never estimated. No recorded program here is a recommendation. A row appearing on this site means the program was recorded and compared, not that it was endorsed. ## Related pages - [Compare GLP-1 programs](https://glp1buyerguide.com/compare) - [Answers](https://glp1buyerguide.com/answers) - [Glossary](https://glp1buyerguide.com/glossary) - [Criteria matrix](https://glp1buyerguide.com/criteria) - [GLP-1 cost calculator](https://glp1buyerguide.com/tools/glp1-cost-calculator) ## Disclosure GLP-1 Buyer Guide is operated by Open Water Rx LLC, which also operates Surfbound Health. That commercial interest is stated wherever a Surfbound option appears. This is editorial content about billing and commitment terms, not medical advice. Whether a product is appropriate for you is a decision for a licensed prescriber.