Retatrutide in South Africa: what it is, where it stands, who sells it
Retatrutide is an investigational compound and is not registered by SAHPRA. We don't sell it and don't recommend using it. Nothing here is medical advice.
Retatrutide is one of the most talked-about weight-loss medicines in development, and it is already being sold online in South Africa. Here is what is known about it, where it stands with the regulator, and how the sellers compare.
What retatrutide is
Retatrutide (development code LY3437943) is an experimental medicine made by Eli Lilly. It is a single molecule that acts on three hormone receptors at once: GIP, GLP-1 and glucagon. That is why it is often called a "triple agonist", and why some sellers market it as "GLP-3", which is not an official name.
It is being studied for obesity and for conditions linked to it, including type 2 diabetes, knee osteoarthritis and sleep apnoea. The first large human results came from a 2023 phase 2 trial published in the New England Journal of Medicine.
How it differs from Ozempic and Mounjaro
Semaglutide (sold as Ozempic and Wegovy) acts on one receptor, GLP-1. Tirzepatide (Mounjaro) acts on two, GIP and GLP-1. Retatrutide adds a third, glucagon. Both semaglutide and tirzepatide are registered by SAHPRA and available on prescription in South Africa. Retatrutide is not.
Its status in South Africa
We searched SAHPRA's register of medicines on 30 September 2026. It returned no entries for retatrutide or LY3437943, so it is not registered for sale here, and no retatrutide trials are listed at South African sites on ClinicalTrials.gov.
SAHPRA has been direct about this. In November 2024 it named several retatrutide products in a statement on unauthorised and falsified GLP-1 products, and pointed out that selling an unregistered medicine is an offence under the Medicines and Related Substances Act. In July 2026 a SAHPRA spokesperson told the Mail & Guardian that retatrutide is still under clinical investigation and not yet available in any market.
Most of what is sold online is labelled "for research use only". That label does not make a product registered, and it tells you nothing about what is in the vial.
Where the research stands
Lilly's phase 3 programme, called TRIUMPH, is made up of more than ten trials in thousands of people. Several have now finished:
- December 2025: first phase 3 results, from TRIUMPH-4 in people with obesity and knee osteoarthritis.
- May 2026: results from TRIUMPH-1, the main obesity trial. Lilly reported an average weight reduction of 28.3% at 80 weeks on the highest dose studied. Skin sensations known as dysaesthesia were more common than on placebo.
- July 2026: results from TRIUMPH-2 and TRIUMPH-3. The TRIUMPH-2 paper was published in The Lancet on 29 September 2026.
These figures come from controlled trials with medical supervision and a known medicine. They don't predict what happens outside a trial, and a product bought online is not the trial medicine.
What comes next
Retatrutide is not approved anywhere yet. BioPharma Dive reported on 23 July 2026 that Lilly now plans to file with the US FDA in the first quarter of 2027. A South African registration would need its own application to SAHPRA, and there is no public timeline for one.
Why we rate sellers
People in South Africa are buying retatrutide online regardless of its status. We can't tell you whether any product is safe or genuine, and we don't test products. What we can do is show which sellers are open about what they sell and who they are: whether they publish lab reports, how their customers rate them, and whether they give a real address, clear delivery terms and a returns policy.
Our pick
LeoLabs came out on top
Based on our research, LeoLabs is the best choice for buying retatrutide in South Africa among the 25 sellers we assessed. It scored 70.7 out of 100, ahead of New You Lab at 50.3. See its product page: Retatrutide South Africa.
- Batch-specific Janoshik lab reports for retatrutide, including a heavy-metals test
- 4.6 out of 5 from 133 reviews on HelloPeter (checked 30 September 2026)
- Replied to 9 of its 10 one- and two-star HelloPeter reviews (checked 30 September 2026)
How 25 sellers compare
We scored every seller we could find on lab reports, independent reviews, business details, delivery and price. Read how we rate.