Side effects
Does Wegovy increase your heart rate?
Yes, a little. The label reports a rise in resting heart rate of 1 to 4 beats per minute on average with the weekly injection. It asks prescribers to check heart rate and patients to report a racing heartbeat at rest.
The Oolite team, from the FDA labels
Sources checked Oct 27, 2026
Published Oct 31, 2026
Updated Oct 27, 2026 · 3 min read
The short answer
Yes, a little. The label reports a rise in resting heart rate of 1 to 4 beats per minute on average with the weekly injection. It asks prescribers to check heart rate and patients to report a racing heartbeat at rest.
What the label says
The warnings section of the prescribing information (§5.9) was written first about the injection. It opens like this:
From the labelTreatment with WEGOVY® was associated with increases in resting heart rate. Mean increases in resting heart rate of 1 to 4 beats per minute (bpm) were observed in WEGOVY® injection-treated adult patients compared to placebo in clinical trials for weight reduction.
Then the spread, visit by visit:
From the labelMore adult patients treated with WEGOVY® injection compared with placebo had maximum changes from baseline at any visit of 10 to 19 bpm (41% versus 34%, respectively) and 20 bpm or more (26% versus 16%, respectively).
In a trial in people aged 12 and older, the same kind of jump, 20 beats or more, was seen in 54 percent on the injection against 39 percent on placebo. The adverse reactions section (§6.1) repeats the numbers and adds that they come from routine clinical monitoring.
The same paragraph of §5.9 says what to do with it:
From the labelMonitor heart rate at regular intervals consistent with usual clinical practice. Instruct patients to inform their healthcare providers of palpitations or feelings of a racing heartbeat while at rest during WEGOVY® treatment. If patients experience a sustained increase in resting heart rate, discontinue WEGOVY®.
The Medication Guide, the leaflet written for you, says it in plainer words:
From the labelWEGOVY® can increase your heart rate while you are at rest. Your healthcare provider should check your heart rate while you take WEGOVY®. Tell your healthcare provider if you feel your heart racing or pounding in your chest and it lasts for several minutes.
Reading the numbers
Two different measures sit side by side. The 1 to 4 beats is an average over everyone in the trials. The 41 and 26 percent count people whose highest reading at any single visit was 10 or 20 beats above where they started. One high visit is enough to be counted.
The placebo column matters as much as the drug column. A resting pulse moves on its own, with sleep, heat, stress or a cold, so one person in six on placebo also had a rise of 20 beats at some visit. What the label reports is the difference between the two groups.
The passages quoted above do not split the rise by dose step or by day of the week. If you notice your pulse is higher in the days right after your shot, that is an observation for your prescriber, not something the label describes.
When a fast heartbeat means something else
The Medication Guide lists a fast heartbeat in two other places, and both are a different situation from a resting pulse a few beats higher.
A very rapid heartbeat is one of the signs of a serious allergic reaction, together with swelling of the face, lips, tongue or throat, trouble breathing or swallowing, a severe rash, fainting or dizziness. There the leaflet says to stop using Wegovy and get medical help right away.
For people with type 2 diabetes, a fast heartbeat is also listed among the signs of low blood sugar, with shakiness, sweating, dizziness and hunger, especially when Wegovy is used with insulin or a sulfonylurea.
The leaflet also asks you to drink fluids when nausea, vomiting or diarrhea take fluid away. Being short of water is one of the ordinary things that can push a pulse up.
If you take the tablets
The same section ends with one line for the other form: findings were similar in a trial with the tablets. The Wegovy pill page on heart rate reads the paragraph from that side.
Oolite does not read heart rate. It keeps the date of each shot and a line on how the day felt, so a racing evening that repeats is a dated note you can show at the appointment, next to the number from your watch.
Questions people ask
How big is the rise on the shot?
On average, 1 to 4 beats per minute at rest, compared with placebo, in the adult trials of the injection. At any single visit, 41 percent of people on the shot had a rise of 10 to 19 beats against 34 percent on placebo, and 26 percent had 20 or more against 16 percent.
Is it the same for teenagers on Wegovy?
The label reports a trial in people aged 12 and older with a normal heart rate at the start: 54 percent on the injection had a rise of 20 beats or more at some point, against 39 percent on placebo.
My watch shows my resting pulse up a few beats since I started. What do I do?
A few beats is inside what the label describes. Mention it at your next appointment. If your heart races or pounds for several minutes, the Medication Guide says to tell your healthcare provider.
Should I skip a shot if my pulse is higher?
The label does not say to skip a shot. It says that if the increase in resting heart rate is sustained, Wegovy is stopped. That decision belongs to your prescriber, who sees your readings over time.
Sources
- Wegovy prescribing information, Novo Nordisk, §5.9 and §6.1, revised 06/2026 · Mean increases in resting heart rate of 1 to 4 bpm with the injection; maximum changes of 10 to 19 bpm in 41 vs 34 percent and 20 bpm or more in 26 vs 16 percent; pediatric trial 54 vs 39 percent; monitor heart rate; report palpitations or a racing heartbeat at rest; discontinue if the increase is sustained.
- Wegovy Medication Guide, Novo Nordisk, revised 06/2026 · Wegovy can increase heart rate at rest; the provider should check it; tell the provider if the heart races or pounds for several minutes; very rapid heartbeat among the signs of a serious allergic reaction; fast heartbeat among the signs of low blood sugar in type 2 diabetes.
Sources checked Oct 27, 2026. This page is information, not medical advice: read the medical disclaimer, and talk to your prescriber or pharmacist about your own treatment.
Written by
The Oolite team, from the FDA labels
We make Oolite. Every answer starts from the FDA prescribing information, quoted word for word, and is rewritten when a label changes.
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