With that in mind, it’s no surprise that GLP-1s have seen a very steep growth trajectory since they were introduced. In 2025, the global market size for GLP-1s was roughly $70bn, which includes treatment for diabetes and weight loss. Roughly one in five US adults has used a weight-loss drug, and current use is estimated to be around 12%.
In Europe and the UK, we estimate that at least 2% of adults are currently using them, which means about nine to 10 million users. Our estimate considers a variety of sources, including data from public health authorities, consumer surveys and revenue data from Novo Nordisk and Eli Lily. Still, it’s likely to be conservative, as actual usage precedes hard data.
In Europe, weight-loss drugs have been adopted more quickly in wealthier countries like the UK and the Nordics. Central and Eastern European countries show slower uptake even though they’re among the countries with the highest obesity rates. There is a great variety of users. You’ll have people who pay out-of-pocket to use them for weight management and people who get them as a treatment for Type 2 diabetes. In terms of age and gender, older consumers and women are over-represented.
A lot of people don’t stick to the drugs. Studies show that 50% discontinue GLP-1s within one year for various reasons, including costs, side effects or simply because they’ve reached a certain target weight. That is important for food and beverage companies that could see some of their products falling temporarily in and out of favour with consumers as a result.