Dosage guide
Saxenda dose escalation schedule
Week-by-week titration for Saxenda (liraglutide) — starting dose, step-up schedule, maintenance, maximum, and what to do if you miss a dose.
Starting dose
0.6 mg once daily
Maintenance
3.0 mg subcutaneous once daily
Maximum dose
3.0 mg/day
Dose form & administration
- Dose form
- Multi-dose prefilled pen, subcutaneous injection
- Dosing frequency
- Once daily, any time of day, with or without food
Titration timeline
FDA-labeled step-up schedule. Most clinicians follow this exactly, but may pause at a step for an additional 4 weeks if side effects are intolerable.
- 1
Week 1
0.6 mg/day
- 2
Week 2
1.2 mg/day
- 3
Week 3
1.8 mg/day
- 4
Week 4
2.4 mg/day
- 5
Week 5+
3.0 mg/day
Maintenance dose for chronic weight management.
If a step-up is poorly tolerated
If 3.0 mg is not tolerated, the daily dose can be held at 2.4 mg for an additional week before re-attempting escalation. Patients who cannot tolerate at least 2.4 mg should discontinue.
Missed-dose protocol
Max skip window
12 hours past usual time
If a daily dose is missed by more than 12 hours, skip it and resume the regular schedule the next day at the same time. Do NOT take a double dose.
When to contact your prescriber
- Missed 3 or more consecutive days — re-initiate from 0.6 mg.
- Persistent GI side effects preventing weekly titration steps.
- Signs of pancreatitis or gallbladder disease.
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