Found Weight Loss Reviews

Can Found help you lose weight and keep it off in a healthy way? We break down the pros, cons, and all important details.

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Medically reviewed by:
Last updated: Jan 2nd, 2024
Found Weight Loss Review

Several factors influence your body weight, such as age, physical activity level, diet, and genetic makeup. Not all of these factors are within our control, which can make losing weight incredibly difficult for some people. Sometimes, lifestyle changes, like improving eating habits, aren’t always enough to lose weight, so a healthcare professional may prescribe medication as part of a weight loss plan. Research shows that some people who take weight loss medication lose more than 10% of their starting weight.

Found is a weight care program that considers food, movement, stress, and — for qualifying members — prescription-drug intervention to address biological factors affecting weight. The company offers individualized programs with access to a personal health coach, a private community, and a doctor who evaluates and manages medications. Is Found the right weight loss program for you? We’ll help you decide.

Our Findings

Editor's Rating4.00

Pros

  • Access to a doctor and FDA-approved prescription medication if you qualify
  • Telehealth platform can reduce stigma or embarrassment around weight loss
  • Doctors can meet with you via video
  • Well-designed smartphone app
  • Access to a community of people with similar goals

Cons

  • Prescription services are only available in 45 states
  • No trial period or money-back policy
  • Sneaky $99 cancellation fee
  • Criteria for GLP-1 receptor agonist eligibility are unclear (we’ll clarify below)
  • Wellness Path hasn’t been available as a standalone option for nearly two years

Found offers its users access to successful, FDA-approved medications to help with weight loss. The holistic side of its program has been on an extended hiatus, though aspects of it are available for prescription-based users. For now, the company is focused on providing prescription interventions, including glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) receptor agonists like Wegovy and Ozempic. You can get these medications through Found if you meet the diagnostic criteria, which will present a financial or privacy benefit for some patients. Others will find it less expensive and easier to access weight loss medications through their primary care physicians.

Table of Contents

In this Review

Why you should trust us

At Innerbody Research, we extensively test each health service we review, including Found. To provide you with the most comprehensive analysis possible, our team spent dozens of hours reviewing the scientific literature pertaining to Found’s various services, from its prescription medication to its wellness approaches.

Central to Found’s current offering is a collection of GLP-1 receptor agonists (like Ozempic and Wegovy), for which our team dedicated a considerable amount of research time, consuming more than 25 scientific studies related to their efficacy, safety, and mechanisms of action. Additionally, like all health-related content on this website, this review of Found was thoroughly vetted by one or more members of our Medical Review Board for accuracy.

Over the past two decades, Innerbody Research has helped tens of millions of readers make more informed decisions involving staying healthy and living healthier lifestyles.

How we evaluated Found

In evaluating Found’s weight loss programs, we considered a handful of criteria we believe will be most important to prospective members. The most important of these was efficacy, followed closely by safety. We considered cost next, as there are important differences between the Found experience and what you might get going through your primary care doctor for a similar program. Finally, we considered the customer experience, which involved everything from evaluating the ease of the sign-up process to the quality of the company’s smartphone app.

Let’s take a closer look at how Found fared in each category.

Effectiveness

Rating: 9.4 / 10

There is an abundance of research that illustrates the effectiveness of GLP-1 receptor antagonists (which most companies just refer to as GLP-1s, despite how that might be misleading). These medications typically result in a 10-15% body mass reduction throughout treatment. So, if you weigh 250lb today, you could lose up to 38lb taking GLP-1 medications. And anecdotal reports from Found users and other people who used GLP-1 medications relay stories of even more significant weight loss.

However, the success of most GLP-1 experiences hinges on combining the medication with lifestyle adjustments. You can't just take the injections and expect miraculous results. That said, there are potent effects of the drugs that help people eat less. It'll still be up to you to include exercise of some kind (even if that's just more walking) into your regimen.

Found’s efficacy is also bolstered by its community and physicians. You’ll have access to a group of like-minded people looking to improve their lives. You’ll get great tips from this online community on how to maximize the benefits of your treatment while minimizing early side effects like nausea. And access to Found physicians throughout your program can ensure that you progress at a pace that’s both effective and safe.

Found physicians can offer other medications for those who are averse to GLP-1s for any reason, including bupropion (generic for Wellbutrin) and naltrexone (generic for Revia). All told, Found has 13 medications that your physician can prescribe in over 60 possible combinations to find the best fit for your goals.

It’s possible that some telehealth competitors who serve more as connecting services to primary care physicians and specialists can have a wider range of drugs available to you, as doctors in such programs often prescribe independently. But there are enough options through Found that most people should be able to find something suitable.

Safety

Rating: 8.5 / 10

Most Found medications have minimal side effect profiles, especially at the doses and regimens that Found doctors prescribe. Members prescribed GLP-1s will typically up-titrate their doses over the course of several weeks or months. Common side effects include nausea, delayed gastric emptying, diarrhea, and stomach pains. These would be much worse if you started at a high dose, and your titration schedule may differ from the norm if you experience more or fewer side effects than is normal. For most users, these side effects fade within about 4-6 weeks and recur only rarely as titration continues to the highest dose.

Other medications Found offers have mostly safe side effect profiles, but there are some things to watch out for as you assess your possible prescriptions. Bupropion, for example, can increase the risk of seizure. You’ll have the opportunity to discuss potential side effects with your doctor to find the best medication for your needs.

Cost

Rating: 7.2 / 10

Before you pay for any medication, Found’s Rx Pathway has its own cost to consider. That said, many of the generic medications Found offers are included in the cost of membership, which might make this a viable pathway for those without insurance who aren’t interested in GLP-1s like Ozempic.

For those who are determined to get their hands on GLP-1s, the cost picture gets a little murkier. But whatever you’re prescribed, you’ll have access to other aspects of Found’s weight loss program, including holistic approaches to weight and wellness, one-on-one coaching, a smartphone app with several useful features, and community support. Found’s competitors typically lack these things.

Found Cost Breakdown

Photo by Innerbody Research

Take Found's Free Weight Loss Survey

Found’s membership costs don’t cover the cost of GLP-1 prescriptions or lab testing. (Blood work is required for most GLP-1 prescriptions.) The company and its doctors can work with your insurance to provide things like prior authorization (a near-universal requirement among GLP-1 prescriptions), and Found will take care of any paperwork needed to get your prescription at a lower price if your insurance covers it. Without insurance coverage, GLP-1 medications are prohibitively expensive (many cost more than $1,000/dose).

Ultimately, the best cost opportunity will come down to:

  • Which GLP-1 you’re prescribed, if any
  • Whether you’ll combine an oral generic with GLP-1 injections
  • Whether you have insurance
  • Your pharmacy copay and deductible
  • Whether you want additional holistic care and community support (through Found)

Customer experience

Rating: 7.5 / 10

The customer experience with Found will vary a bit based on your health status and goals. Anybody who visits the site will first fill out the company’s weight loss questionnaire, which helps Found choose whether to guide you toward the Wellness Path or the Rx Path. At the time of this writing — and for nearly two years prior — Found’s Wellness Path has been on a “hiatus,” to use the company’s term. It’s unclear if or when this program will return as a standalone offering. It’s worth noting, though, that all of the aspects of the Wellness Path are available to those who qualify for the Rx Path.

If you do qualify for the Rx Path, a Found Doctor will look over your file and make recommendations. You can talk with them to fine-tune those recommendations and get the medication that’s best for you. If that’s one of Found’s generic pills, then the company will ship these to you for free as long as you have an active membership. If GLP-1 meds are involved, your insurance company can get involved to help cover the costs of blood work and the injections.

This sequence of events is similar to what you'd see from competitors. Still, it's worth noting that most other competitors don't include the cost of generics in their memberships, so those services require you to purchase them through insurance or out of pocket.

The worst part of Found’s customer experience is related to cancellation. The company does a poor job spelling out the fact that you’ll face a $99 cancellation fee if you cancel at any time, or for any reason, before your six-month commitment is fulfilled. As far as we’ve been able to tell, this fee structure is unique to Found among similar weight loss programs online.

What is Found, and how does it help with weight loss?

Found is a telehealth service focused exclusively on weight loss. In its original iteration, the company offered its customers a whole-body approach to managing weight that combined nutrition, sleep, movement, and stress management, among other holistic means of self-care. It also offered users the option to include prescription medication as part of their treatment.

In recent years, that catalog has grown to include popular weight loss medications like Wegovy and Ozempic. At the same time, the standalone wellness offering has been put on hiatus, and Found offers its services only to those who qualify for a prescription. Prescription customers still have access to Found's full Wellness Path, which integrates well with the company's smartphone app. That app, which was in development for a while, is simple, attractive, and intuitive. Our testers found it easy to navigate and a helpful way to remain mindful of their weight loss goals throughout treatment.

Who is Found for?

Found has never been a quick weight loss fix. The tenets of its wellness program spoke to this, and in our testers’ experience, this kind of gradual, psychologically informed weight loss is the most long-lasting. But Found can’t fight the future, and GLP-1 receptor agonists have gained immense popularity for aiding in weight loss. The demand for these medications has been incredible, and based on what we’ve seen of Found’s current setup, the site is increasingly catering to customers interested in GLP-1s. You can even specify that you only want to be considered for GLP-1s as part of your intake questionnaire.

At this time, Found is not ideal for those seeking a purely holistic approach to weight management. The company has become too focused on its prescription offering to have the bandwidth to cater to its wellness-only customers. That’s not a judgment so much as a fact. Found has become a reliable source for prescription weight management therapies, but it’s done so, to some extent, at the cost of its cornerstone approach to health.

Found is a month-to-month subscription service, but it's up to you how long you decide to continue. The length of your membership varies, depending on your starting weight, medication, medical history, and goals. Because the company's focus is long-term and healthy habit-building, its weight care plan can extend for several months. Currently, the Rx Path is mapped out for six months as a default, but that's adjustable between you and your physician.

If six months seems like too much of a commitment, Everlywell’s weight program has a three-month commitment option, but it increases the cost per month from $99 to $139. However, Everlywell provides you with regular testing to ensure your progress isn't causing unintended health issues. Other weight management programs like Found will order blood work at the outset of GLP-1 treatment, but you or your insurer will have to pay for it, and it’s the only such blood work you’ll get.

You also may not have access to Found’s services, depending on where you live. Found’s reach has grown in recent years, increasing from 31 states to 45 since we last reviewed it. But residents of five states — New Mexico, West Virginia, Idaho, South Carolina, and Arkansas — still can’t access Found.

Found’s online reputation

Found’s rating with the Better Business Bureau is a B-, but the company only averages about 3-4 complaints each month. There are also only 5 customer reviews on BBB, which isn’t enough to be helpful. Its reputation on Trustpilot is about the same, with 280 reviews and an average rating of 3.8-stars out of five. On both sites, the vast majority of complaints relate to the company’s cancellation policy coming as a surprise to users who wish to cancel.

Those who receive prescriptions for GLP-1 medications have a high likelihood of success, but if you can’t afford them and try one of the generics included with your Found membership, you might not have as much success. If you wanted to cancel a few months into treatment because you aren’t seeing results, you’d owe Found a $99 cancellation fee that is not mentioned in the company’s terms and conditions, not even in the fine print.

How do Ozempic, Wegovy, and other GLP-1s help with weight loss?

GLP-1 receptor agonists are a class of drugs that were originally developed as a treatment for type 2 diabetes, but their weight loss potential soon created a groundswell of demand. But taking a medication that can help you lose weight safely seems a little too good to be true, so how do they work?

The short answer is that they increase the release of insulin to control blood sugar and slow digestion. As a result, your body converts less of the energy you consume from food into body fat, and you feel fuller for longer after eating less.

The long answer is, well, longer. Let’s unpack the name first: GLP stands for glucagon-like peptide. GLP-1 is a specific glucagon-like peptide your body releases when you eat food. Your pancreas has GLP-1 receptors that are G-protein-coupled receptors.

In the presence of GLP-1, these receptors’ proteins signal the creation of adenylyl cyclase, which then converts adenosine triphosphate (ATP) into cyclic adenosine monophosphate (cAMP). That cAMP causes the release of insulin, which causes glucose from food to be stored in the liver as glycogen for later use in maintaining a healthy blood sugar.

Increased levels of GLP-1 are also associated with slower gastric emptying, which means that your stomach fills up faster and stays full longer. This effect is one of the main causes of the nausea and stomach discomfort reported as common but mild side effects in studies.

GLP-1 receptor agonists like Ozempic essentially trick the receptor into thinking it’s interacting with GLP-1, causing the cascading reaction to increase insulin production.

How do you take Ozempic and other GLP-1s?

GLP-1 medications are taken as subcutaneous injections delivered in the upper arm, belly, or upper thigh. They typically come in auto-injector pens that take the guesswork out of dosing, but these pens are different from one brand to the next. For example, Ozempic delivers its medication in a single-use auto-injector. Unless you go looking for it, you may never even see the needle. Saxenda uses a multiple-use auto-injector with individual, disposable needles. Its pens also have a twist mechanism to help you set the dose.

Insider Tip: Disposable needle tips for pens like the ones Saxenda uses require their own separate prescription. If your Found doctor prescribes you such a pen, they will also write a prescription for the needles, which they’ll send to the pharmacy along with your script for the pen itself.

Our testers have preferred single-use pens over multiple-use pens when dealing with auto-injectors, at least from a convenience standpoint. You don’t have to mess with needles, and you don’t have to think about dosing. However, multiple-use auto-injectors are more sustainable choices, as they use less plastic that likely won’t end up being recycled.

GLP-1 receptor agonist shortages

GLP-1 receptor agonists are incredibly popular drugs, both for people with diabetes and those struggling to lose weight. But demand isn’t always coming from those truly in need. Someone with a BMI that’s half a point outside the normal range and into the overweight range, but who is otherwise healthy, might want GLP-1s to help keep themselves trim or reveal a six-pack. But these drugs are not intended for those people at this time. Unfortunately, both patients and doctors are sometimes willing to ignore this, and people who aren’t legitimate candidates for treatment are receiving GLP-1s.

This combination of legitimate and illegitimate demand has created a shortage that’s negatively affecting people who genuinely need these medications for their health. We don’t know how these shortages will affect your experience with Found or another provider. Given their variety, the likeliest negative outcome is that you end up being prescribed a specific GLP-1 medication that’s less ideal for your specific needs. If you aren’t sure whether GLP-1s are right for you, talk to your Found physician about alternatives, including the generic medications available for free with your Found plan. If you find success with these, you might free up a GLP-1 prescription for someone who needs it more.

Found's approaches for weight loss

Found ordinarily has two main weight loss approaches: the Rx Path and the Wellness Path. However, the Wellness Path isn’t available as a standalone option at this time, and it’s unclear when it will return.

Customers on the Rx Path will still have access to the features and benefits of Found’s Wellness Path. Those include exercise and nutrition advice, as well as community support. Most other programs lack these elements, though Sequence was recently acquired by WeightWatchers, and some of its plans involve a free WW membership. That can unlock some similar features.

Rx Path

Available in 45 states, the Found Rx Path provides you access to a medical doctor who may prescribe you medication during your weight loss journey. You can either message a provider in the Found portal or connect with a doctor via video. A doctor will regularly check in about how your medication is working.

Found providers prescribe FDA-approved medications, though some are prescribed off-label for use in weight loss, which is the unapproved use of an FDA-approved drug. This practice is typically only done when side effect risks are small.

Currently, there are 12 prescription medications you can access through Found:

  • Ozempic
  • Wegovy
  • Mounjaro
  • Trulicity
  • Rybelsus
  • Saxenda
  • Victoza
  • Metformin
  • Bupropion
  • Naltrexone
  • Topiramate
  • Zonisamide

If you experience any side effects from the medication, you can contact a medical provider in the Found portal. You can also opt to change your medication or dosage, even if you aren’t experiencing side effects. However, the company recommends waiting until the refill date so your medical provider has time to determine if the drug is working as it should be.

If a doctor determines that it is no longer necessary or safe for you to remain on medication, you can cancel the Rx Path and switch to the Wellness Path (if it has returned by the time this occurs).

In addition to prescription medication and doctor consultations, the Rx Path also includes access to the features of Found’s Wellness Path, which we’ll discuss in more detail here.

Wellness Path

Found’s Wellness path isn’t available right now, as described above, but ordinarily, it’s available to anyone because it does not involve any prescription medication or access to a Found provider. The Wellness Path includes:

  • Personalized nutrition and movement path
  • A personal health coach who helps you achieve goals and develop healthy habits
  • Access to the Found community

In the past, when we reviewed Found, this is what we learned about the Wellness Path:

  • In order to maximize having a personal coach, you’ll need to be proactive and reach out first. The personal coach helps you set and adhere to weekly goals, build healthy habits, and gain health-related information, but they aren’t going to do the work for you. Personal coaches might also send tips, YouTube videos, or guides, depending on how the conversation goes.
  • The private Facebook community assures that you are not alone in your weight loss journey. Others are there to inspire, celebrate your victories, and offer support. Like the personal coach, you’ll only benefit from the community if you regularly engage with it.

Are Found’s approaches to weight loss safe?

Found has increasingly centered its service on GLP-1 receptor agonists, which, at this point in the research, appear to be very safe. We’ve stayed on top of the latest research as it’s come out, and it seems like the scientific community is finding more benefits to the drug than drawbacks. We keep waiting for the other shoe to drop, and there is no long-term data on what decades of use might do, but the side effect profile seems very low for now.

When you start on a GLP-1 receptor agonist, your doctor will establish a titration schedule. That means you’ll start with a low dose and slowly work your way up to the recommended dose or to a dose that’s noticeably effective for you. In the first few weeks of treatment, many GLP-1 users experience digestive discomfort, including nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, and stomach pain. More often than not, these are related to a GLP-1 receptor agonist’s ability to slow gastric emptying.

If your stomach is taking longer to digest food, you might unintentionally eat more than it can hold. And if you’re already prone to indigestion or have a condition like gastroesophageal reflux (GERD), having your food linger longer in the stomach might exacerbate your symptoms.

How much does Found cost?

The most important thing to understand about Found’s cost is that it does not cover the cost of GLP-1 receptor agonists like Ozempic, nor does it cover the blood work needed to attain a prescription for them. What you get when you sign up with Found is access to doctors who can evaluate your weight loss needs and prescribe medication accordingly. You’ll have access to them for follow-up visits and further questions, and you’ll have access to Found’s weight loss community, one-on-one coaching, and other aspects of Found’s wellness program.

Depending on the length of your commitment and ability to pay more up-front, the Rx Path costs vary between $129 and $99 monthly. This is up $10 since we last reviewed the company. Here’s how it works out:

Cost per billing periodCost per monthTotal savings
Monthly payments$129$129$0
Quarterly payments$348$116$78
Yearly payments$594$99$180

Generic medications are included in these monthly costs and are shipped directly to your doorstep (unlike GLP-1 receptor agonists). If a medical provider requests lab work, this is an additional cost — and if you want to get a prescription for a GLP-1 receptor agonist, blood work will be a necessary part of the process.

Calibrate, a close competitor to Found, is slightly more expensive for a similar service, costing its users $146/month. There are some similarly priced alternatives, like the programs from Sequence or Everlywell. We’d recommend you investigate Sequence first if you’re concerned about cost and looking to get strong dietary support along the way. Its partnership with WeightWatchers gives you access to great dietary support, and it costs $99/month with a free first month.

At this point, neither Found nor any of its competitors offer a program in which GLP-1 medications are covered. That’s because they’re typically very expensive, and there aren't generic alternatives on the market.

How expensive are GLP-1 medications?

GLP-1 medications vary widely in price, but they’re universally on the pricey side. Let’s use Ozempic as an example. Without insurance, Ozempic costs about $1,000 per dose. It’s only available in its branded form, and a generic alternative likely won’t be available until the early 2030s. Insurance companies have largely classified Ozempic and other GLP-1 receptor agonists as upper-tier prescriptions, meaning that they typically provide less coverage for them. United Healthcare, for example, lists Ozempic as a tier 3 drug in its current formulary. That can result in higher copayments for the prescription, sometimes at around 50% cost and often only after you reach a yearly pharmacy deductible.

All of this translates to a GLP-1 prescription being prohibitively expensive for many. But how does Found fit into this price landscape? Compared to a company like Sesame Care, which provides access to doctors who can prescribe GLP-1s, Found may be less expensive. You might pay as much as $129/month for Found, when an appointment with a Seseme Care affiliated physician who can prescribe GLP-1s might be around $60.

But that’s not quite the whole picture because every follow-up visit with that provider will cost the same, whereas they’re free with Found. And follow-ups will be necessary as you titrate your dosage up over the course of five weeks to four months. Calibrate offers a service similar to Found, in which a monthly cost also covers doctor appointments (via text instead of video).

Here’s a quick comparison of the services:

FoundSesame CareCalibrate
Monthly cost$99-$129$0$146
Cost per doctor's visitIncluded$62-$172Included
Cost for genericsIncludedRetail or insuranceRetail or insurance
Cost for GLP-1sRetail or insuranceRetail or insuranceRetail or insurance
Cost for blood workRetail or insuranceRetail or insuranceRetail or insurance

Titration for semaglutide (Wegovy, Ozempic) occurs four times, once every four weeks when the medication is well-tolerated. Titration for liraglutide (Saxenda) occurs weekly for five weeks. That means the appointment costs for a Saxenda prescription by week six would be $198-$258 with Found or $372-$1,032 with Sesame Care. But five months’ worth of appointment costs for an Ozempic prescription would cost $495-$645 with Found and $310-$860 with Sesame Care.

Found’s cancellation policy

At this time, Found does not offer a trial period or a money-back guarantee if you’re dissatisfied.

The cancellation process is at the heart of most customer complaints we've encountered, and we can understand why. The process itself is straightforward and involves sending a message through the online portal or emailing customer support. Found advises that you email at least 72 hours before the next charge date to avoid incurring next month's fees. The company acknowledges that it may not respond to your email; however, Found guarantees that it will honor cancellation requests when they are sent.

The problem is that Found charges a $99 cancellation fee for any cancellation that occurs before the end of the initial six-month term. This fee isn’t something we’ve seen from other weight loss companies online, and Found does a poor job conveying its existence to potential customers. Even in detailed exchanges with customer service, we were never able to locate the specifics of this policy on the found website. It was only after a protracted email exchange that we could verify the $99 fee.

The research indicates that you shouldn’t need to cancel for medical reasons, but if you did, there is a partial refund process, however convoluted. Customer reviews indicate that this pathway is not an easy one to navigate, however.

HSA, FSA, and health insurance

Found does not accept any forms of health insurance or HSA/FSA as forms of payment. The company recommends consulting with a qualified accountant or tax professional to determine eligibility for reimbursement through a health savings account, health reimbursement account, or flexible spending account. These accounts may be used toward the purchase of GLP-1 receptor agonists, but you’ll need to talk to your provider in advance.

Found does not provide itemized receipts for reimbursement, but the company can send a detailed email outlining your participation in its program.

Getting started with Found

So long as you qualify for the Rx Path, signing up for Found is pretty straightforward. Let’s take a closer look at the process.

Sign-up process

Signing up and getting started with Found is easy and only takes a few minutes. To begin, you fill out a survey that asks questions about:

  • Your biological sex
  • Previous weight loss programs you’ve tried
  • Your motivation to lose weight
  • Your current weight and height
  • Whether anyone in your family has struggled to lose weight
  • If you have any health conditions, like high cholesterol, cancer, or sleep apnea
  • If you’ve ever been diagnosed or treated with certain medical conditions, such as kidney problems, stroke, or eating disorders (such as anorexia or bulimia)
  • If you take opioids, methadone, antipsychotics, or chemotherapies

Based on your answers, Found either recommends its Rx Path or informs you that the Wellness Path isn’t currently available but will be back soon. In case you understandably find it unsettling that your need for prescription medication is determined separately from a real person, rest assured that Found does follow up with an intake form after you’ve purchased a plan.

Whether or not you qualify for the Rx Path will have to do with your BMI and other health stats. Specifically, you have to have a BMI of 30 or higher to qualify or have a BMI of 27-30 with at least one comorbid condition like diabetes or hypertension. If your BMI is any lower, you'll get Found's hiatus message and have to check back about its Wellness Path at a later date. It would be nice if Found explained why an applicant was denied access to the Rx Path. We only discovered the BMI requirements after researching the diagnostic criteria for GLP-1 prescriptions, but it is public information, so there's no reason to withhold it from consumers.

After purchasing a plan, the company emails you to set up an online patient portal. This is where you will log your weight once a week and reach out to customer support if need be.

Found also sends you its intake form, which asks questions about:

  • Exercise and eating habits
  • What circumstances have led to your eating patterns
  • What foods you typically eat for breakfast, lunch, and dinner
  • The quality of your sleep and your energy levels
  • Alcohol, smoking, and tobacco usage
  • Stress levels
  • Your preferred weight loss strategy (e.g., intermittent fasting, decreased portion sizes)
  • Whether or not you own a scale

A Found medical provider reviews the intake form, and they’ll make a final recommendation as to whether or not you truly require medication for your weight loss journey. If you proceed down the Rx Path, you’ll have your first consultation with a Found provider within 72 hours of filling out the intake form.

If your doctor wants to prescribe you GLP-1s, you’ll need to have some blood work done to verify that you’re healthy enough for the drugs and to identify any potential contraindications that would make you a better candidate for one or another. If you have insurance, Found will submit a prior authorization to your insurance company. Once that’s approved, the prescription will go to a pharmacy of your choice for you to pick up.

After the initial sign-up, you will also receive Found’s nutrition guide in your inbox. The nutrition guide tees you up to focus on what and when you eat during your weight loss journey. It includes healthy eating tips and explains how to build a well-portioned plate with vegetables, high-quality proteins, complex carbs, and high-fat foods. Overall, the guide is helpful and sets you up for success.

Getting started with a personal coach

After the Rx Path’s initial consultation, your journey begins with a personal coach contacting you via text message. They’ll introduce themselves and explain the process.

Your coach is your cheerleader and accountability buddy. Your coach will check in a few times a week about two topics.

  • #WeighinWednesday is the only time each week that you’re encouraged to track your weight in your Found portal.
  • Maintaining healthy habits and setting goals is a large part of the Found program. Each week, your personal coach will reach out about setting up weekly goals, such as practicing stress reduction techniques. Your coach helps you build good habits, track progress, and make adjustments along the way.

A coach may take a few hours to respond to a text message, and in our experience, they do not respond over the weekend. Coaches are positive and empathetic in their communication. They celebrate the non-scale wins and hold you accountable. Additionally, your coach will share meal plans, grocery guides, and other helpful information.

To truly benefit from the personal coach interactions, you must actively participate — communication, even for Found, is a two-way street. If you share your feelings or ask a question, they will follow up with questions or provide helpful resources or suggestions.

Your program only gives you access to free, one-on-one coaching for the first month, after which you’ll have access to Found’s network of coaches, but you won’t have an opportunity to build much of a relationship there. It’s more that any questions you have will be answered by whichever coach sees it first.

Found long-term

Found’s focus is sustainable, long-term, healthy habit-building and weight loss. Your personal coach guides you every step of the way, and those in the Found community also extend support. How long you choose to subscribe to Found is up to you, but the company views it as a 7-month or more commitment.

Month 1

A personal coach helps you learn about nutrition, exercise, sleep hygiene, and stress management. You’ll likely begin some medication. The Found community also allows you to see and potentially benefit from other people’s similar experiences.

Months 2 and 3

If you’re on the Rx Path, a doctor may adjust your medication. Many GLP-1s titrate up to a higher dose on a monthly basis. Ideally, weight loss continues, and you can celebrate both scale and non-scale victories with other Found subscribers in the community.

Months 4, 5, and 6

Ideally, if you’re taking medication, it’s helping you maintain progress. You might be empowered to share ideas and tips in the community.

Months 7 and beyond

You can continue to gain support from the community and welcome newcomers, or you can disengage from the community and focus on your wellness with the lessons you’ve learned.

The Found program is flexible, and the slow and steady approach is intended to help you learn, gradually lose weight, and keep the weight off.

Privacy considerations

Found doesn’t disclose too much regarding privacy protections, but it is HIPAA compliant.

If you participate in the Rx Path, Found is required by law to verify your identity with a photo ID, like a driver’s license. However, the company encourages customers to cover their ID number for privacy protection.

After canceling your subscription, Found keeps protected health information (PHI) in accordance with state laws, which can vary.

Alternatives to Found for weight loss

As the popularity of GLP-1 medications has exploded, so too has the number of providers looking for a piece of the action. In some cases, these providers offer additional value you couldn’t get elsewhere that can improve your weight loss journey. In other cases, they’re just middlemen trying to cash in on a booming industry.

Let’s look at some of the viable alternatives to Found that may be better choices for your specific needs.

Companies like Found

Found has one focus: weight loss. There are a few other companies out there with similar missions, and they all have competing programs that offer access to GLP-1 medications. Here’s a quick look at some of the top players:

Sequence

Sequence recently partnered with WeightWatchers to be the prescription medication arm of that storied fitness brand. The program includes a detailed fitness and nutrition plan, and it only costs $99/month after a $45 sign-up fee. If you go through the WeightWatchers website, you may be able to get additional discounts and have a WeightWatchers membership included in your sequence purchase for free.

Calibrate

At $146/month, Calibrate is definitely pricier than Found. It also appears to offer only GLP-1 receptor agonists at this time, with none of the generic medications Found can combine with GLP-1s to maximize results. On the bright side, Calibrate does offer a welcome gift with a smart scale that connects to the company’s app.

Form

Form is one of the few players in this space that accepts payments through major insurers. If you don’t have insurance, it might be wise to steer clear, however, as pricing is a bit unclear and doctor’s visits are not included as part of the program. It’s also unclear what services Form actually provides besides being a platform for doctors to connect with patients. There is mention of nutrition, exercise, and more, but these may only be associated with appointments you’d set up with a nutritionist.

It seems as though Sequence is the only program that can compete with Found in terms of price, and the added benefits from WeightWatchers may make it a better deal overall.

Larger telehealth companies

There is no shortage of telehealth companies out there, and many of them offer a wide range of services, from weight management and primary care to mental health and sexual wellness. In some cases, these services are platforms for doctors to connect with patients for reasonable prices. Sesame Care is a good example of that, where you can shop around and find a doctor that suits your needs and budget.

Some companies have a slightly tighter focus, lacking primary and mental health care but still offering a diverse collection of products and services alongside a weight loss program. Ro is one such company we’ve spent a lot of time with, extensively reviewing most of its products and services. We recommend Ro for a lot of things, but weight loss isn’t one of them at this time. At $145/month with a $99 sign-up fee, it’s much more expensive than competitors without offering any meaningful advantages.

Primary care or specialists

It’s perfectly reasonable to read this entire article and still wonder whether it wouldn’t just be smarter to connect with your primary care physician or a specialist. Well, there are a few reasons you might want to take the telehealth approach here:

You’ve recently put on weight and haven’t been to the doctor in a while

If your weight gain is relatively recent and it’s been a while since you went to the doctor, you may prefer to use Found or a similar service to prevent obesity from being documented on your medical record. Having that on your record can complicate many things, including health and life insurance prices. Avoiding it may be preferable.

You prefer some sense of anonymity with your treatment

Yes, you have to use your real name and information if you work with Found. But it’s still less personal than talking to your longtime doctor about your weight. If you’d prefer more privacy when discussing your fitness regimen, an online provider might make you more comfortable.

You want to start as quickly as possible

Many doctors are booked out for weeks or months in advance. If your primary doctor wants you to see a specialist to get a GLP-1 prescription, that could take even longer. Working with Found, you can have a prescription set up within a week.

You have mobility issues or access limitations

Perhaps your weight or other health issues limit your mobility. Or perhaps you just live in a remote area and traveling to the doctor is a significant inconvenience. In either case, using a telehealth service like Found can make your experience a lot smoother.

Found FAQ

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Sources

Innerbody uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read our editorial process to learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.

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