Circle Medical vs Shed

Compare pricing, features, and medications to find the best GLP-1 provider for your weight loss journey

These two prices are not directly comparable

  • Circle Medical: the $35 figure is a per-visit consultation fee, not a month of treatment - the medication is billed separately.

Circle Medical vs Shed: Overview

Choosing between Circle Medical and Shed for GLP-1 weight loss medication? Both are highly-rated providers, but they differ in pricing, medication options, and service features.

Circle Medical offers both semaglutide and tirzepatide at $35/month with a rating of 8.7/10. Shed also provides both semaglutide and tirzepatide at $159/month with a 8.1/10 rating.

The price difference of $124/month is significant - Circle Medical is the more budget-friendly option, while Shed positions itself as a premium service.

VERIFIED

Our recommended brand

After reviewing all 148 providers on this platform, we've identified CoreAge Rx as offering the most transparent pricing model. At just $99/month — the same price every month, every dose — there are no surprise charges or hidden fees. Combined with exceptional service quality, personalized support, and access to both semaglutide and tirzepatide, it represents the best value without compromising on care.

At a glance

Price Difference
$124/mo
Rating Difference
0.6
Winner
Circle Medical
Best For
Budget

Circle Medical

View full Circle Medical review →
Rating
8.7/10Better
Monthly Price
$35Cheaper
Medications
semaglutidetirzepatideoral semaglutide

Pros

  • It bills your insurance instead of asking you to forget insurance exists. Circle Medical states it is in-network with most commercial plans
  • Publishes a real out-of-pocket figure rather than a marketing one: patients with accepted insurance paid an average of $35 per appointment over the previous six months
  • FDA-approved medication only - Wegovy, Zepbound and non-GLP-1 options such as Contrave when appropriate. No compounded product
  • No membership and no hidden fees, which is rare among insurance-accepting telehealth services
  • This is a full primary-care practice, so weight management sits inside ongoing medical care rather than being a standalone drug subscription
  • Clear, conventional eligibility criteria published up front: BMI 27+ with a weight-related condition such as high blood pressure, diabetes or sleep apnea, or BMI 30+ without one
  • A mobile app with regular provider check-ins
  • Honest about supply and coverage: the site warns these treatments have significant stock issues and are not always covered
  • Insurance verification is built into the booking flow, so you find out where you stand before the appointment

Cons

  • Your cost is whatever your plan says it is. $35 is an average, not a price - deductibles and exclusions can leave you paying far more
  • The medication itself is a separate cost from the visit, and coverage for weight-loss drugs is the single most commonly denied benefit in this category
  • You must live in the state you are treated in and have your primary pharmacy in that same state, which rules out anyone splitting time between states
  • The full list of available states is not published - you have to start booking an appointment to see it
  • You may be booked with any available provider (MD, DO, PA-C or NP) rather than choosing one
  • If your insurance denies weight-loss coverage, there is no cash-pay compounded fallback here
Choose Circle Medical

Shed

View full Shed review →
Rating
8.1/10
Monthly Price
$159
Medications
semaglutidetirzepatide

Pros

  • Compounded semaglutide advertised from $159/mo and compounded tirzepatide from $239/mo, alongside brand-name Wegovy, Zepbound and the new Foundayo pill (checked July 26, 2026)
  • Three delivery formats: weekly injections, daily sublingual liquid drops and daily lozenges, so needle-free options are genuinely available
  • A 120-day weight loss guarantee that is actually written into the terms with defined conditions, rather than an unexplained banner claim
  • The arbitration clause and class action waiver can be opted out of within 30 days of accepting the terms
  • Buy-now-pay-later refunds are handled explicitly: Shed transmits refunds to Affirm, Klarna or Afterpay within three business days, and the terms state each lender's refund window
  • Non-GLP-1 options too - metformin, naltrexone, topiramate, MIC + B12 - so a provider has alternatives if a GLP-1 is not appropriate
  • Health coaching and a member success manager are part of the program, not an upsell
  • Members enrolled under a previous guarantee are grandfathered rather than moved to worse terms

Cons

  • The '120-Day Weight Loss Guarantee' is far more demanding than the asterisk suggests. To qualify you must log at least two weigh-ins a month (eight over the period), complete at least 50% of daily app check-ins - 60 days out of 120 - and submit every provider follow-up form on time. Miss the check-in quota and the guarantee lapses
  • The guarantee only pays out if you fail to lose 5% of your baseline body weight, so modest results still disqualify you from a refund
  • Trustpilot showed 1.8 out of 5, albeit from just 22 reviews - a small but uniformly poor public signal
  • Oral formats are not available in Alaska, Alabama, Arkansas, Connecticut, Indiana, Kentucky, Louisiana, Michigan, Minnesota, North Carolina, New Jersey, South Carolina, Virginia, Vermont, Wisconsin or West Virginia
  • 'As low as $159' is a floor price; the site does not publish the plan ladder or say what commitment that rate requires
  • Shed's own product menu misspells its second GLP-1 as 'Compounded Trizepatide', which is not reassuring on a prescription page
  • The compounded products are not FDA-approved, and the '15%' and '20%' body-weight figures on the landing page come from trials of the branded drugs
  • Disputes go to binding arbitration unless you actively opt out in the first 30 days
Choose Shed

Feature-by-feature comparison

FeatureCircle MedicalShed
Monthly Price$35$159
Rating8.7/108.1/10
Medicationssemaglutide, tirzepatide, oral semaglutidesemaglutide, tirzepatide
Insurance AcceptedYesNo
Support HoursNot publishedNot published
Live ChatNoNo
Free ShippingNoYes
Shipping SpeedPrescriptions go to your own pharmacy rather than shipping from the providerNot published
Mobile AppAvailableAvailable
Dedicated CoachNot includedIncluded
Follow-up FrequencyRegular provider check-ins to monitor progressDaily app check-ins expected under the guarantee, plus provider follow-up forms
Money-back GuaranteeNone published120-day guarantee, but only if you complete 60 daily app check-ins, 8 weigh-ins and every provider form, and still fail to lose 5% of baseline body weight
Cancellation PolicyAppointment-based care - there is no subscription to cancelSubscription based; refunds are governed by the 120-day guarantee conditions, with BNPL refunds transmitted within 3 business days

Which should you choose?

Choose Circle Medical if you:

  • Want to save $124/month with a more affordable option
  • Prefer a higher-rated service (8.7/10 vs 8.1/10)
  • Want more medication options to choose from
  • Need insurance coverage for your treatment
  • Value: it bills your insurance instead of asking you to forget insurance exists. circle medical states it is in-network with most commercial plans

Choose Shed if you:

  • Want personalized coaching support included
  • Value: compounded semaglutide advertised from $159/mo and compounded tirzepatide from $239/mo, alongside brand-name wegovy, zepbound and the new foundayo pill (checked july 26, 2026)

Website previews

Circle Medical

Circle Medical website

Shed

Shed website

Our recommendation

Circle Medical comes out ahead with a higher rating of 8.7/10. It also provides multiple medication options including both semaglutide and tirzepatide.
Get started with Circle Medical

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