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How it Works
Calculate Your Prize
Use our calculator to enter your goal and calculate your winnings.
Make Your Bet
Increase your winnings by adjusting your goal weight, how much you contribute, and the time you expect it to take! Find a prize you like and make your wager!
Lose the Weight
Stay on track throughout the contest with weekly weigh-ins and support from other contestants.
Win Money!
Meet your goal and win your prize! It's that simple!
“This is the first time I have been successful in setting my weight loss goal and achieving it! I'm a very competitive person by nature. So, if there's not a winner and a loser involved in it, I'm less inclined to participate. I knew that that was the only way that I was going to be able to accomplish my goal.”
Winner #7864
In the Press
Good Morning America host Abbie Boudreau explains how HealthyWage works and interviews HealthyWage's co-founder Jimmy Fleming on the effectiveness of financial incentives and social support for weight loss.
"Thank you HealthyWage for saving my life! I am a different man, a more loving, present, and active husband and father, and a happier person as a result of these changes."
Winner #32970
The Power of Financial Incentives
It's really quite simple, money motivates! Leading academic research shows that money enhances weight loss success, making dieters significantly more likely to lose weight. HealthyWage uses cash-based challenges designed to help end procrastination, encourage perseverance, and harness the power of your desire to avoid losing your wager.
We want you to win!
“I look better, I feel better, and nothing has pushed me so far out of my comfort zone and taken away ALL my excuses like HealthyWage has. I know I would have never made it if it wasn’t for HealthyWage holding me accountable.”
Winner #10676
Too Good to Be True?
No, it's not.HealthyWage makes money from corporate and government clients who are interested in creative solutions to weight loss. In addition, although financial incentives are great weight loss tools, people sometimes lose their weight loss bet.
The question is: will HealthyWage make money from you, or will you make money from HealthyWage?
“After having three children (two a year apart from one another), I was the biggest I had ever been and so depressed. Losing this weight has given me my confidence back, and my self- esteem is WAY up.”
Winner #7821
In the Press
Today Show host Savannah Guthrie explains the science and research behind HealthyWage and why financial incentives are an effective weight loss tool, plus interviews with four HealthyWage success stories!
“It all started with just putting my shoes on and going for a walk. I dropped from a size 52 pants to 34 pants and 4xl t-shirts to 1xl t-shirt. HealthyWage puts all the aces in your hand to make money, but you just have to play them right and not fold your hand. If you’re serious about losing weight, you might as well make some money from it.”
Winner #6234
“There is no greater motivation than betting on you and holding yourself accountable. I’m a very competitive person and I don’t like to lose money.” In addition to her individual HealthyWager challenge, Kim joined HealthyWage Jackpot and Fast Track challenges as well “to help keep me on track and ensure that I would not get comfortable in a plateau. The [mini] challenges were key in helping me meet my overall goal because it kept me on a schedule of losing 1-2 pounds every week.”
Winner #4812
People who bet were 5x more likely to hit goal
in a randomized, controlled study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association.1
1 Citation: JAMA. 2008 Dec 10; 300(22): 2631-2637. doi: 10.1001/jama.2008.804
“During my pregnancy, I gained 50 pounds, and after having my baby, I was still up 25 pounds from pre-pregnancy. I thought breastfeeding would help me lose the weight, but it had the opposite effect. I was hungry all the time and couldn’t stop eating! After gaining more weight and getting close to my highest pregnancy weight, I decided I need to make a change. I found HealthyWage and that was the motivation I needed!”
Winner #9005
In the Press
George Loewenstein, a behavioral economist at Carnegie Mellon University who has studied financial incentives and weight loss, says the HealthyWage competition is "using all the conditions that have been found in the research to be successful."
Frequently Asked Questions
How does it work?
Why should I make a HealthyWager?
How do I get my weight verified?
What if the weight I enter in my calculation is different than my actual verified weight when I start?
What if I lose more weight than I wagered?
What if I reach my goal early? Can I weigh-out then?
Can I participate if I am on weight loss medications like Wegovy, Ozempic, Mounjaro, Phentermine, etc?
Can I participate if I am planning to have bariatric surgery?
Can I participate in more than one challenge at the same time?
Is there anything else I have to do to win the money?
How do I know HealthyWager is legitimate?
How do I know my payment information is secure?
Is HealthyWage legal?
Do I have to hit any monthly weight loss milestones?
Can I participate if I am pregnant?
Are my winnings taxed?
HealthyWage does not withhold any of the winnings for taxes. The IRS has set a $600 threshold for reporting of contest prizes/winnings. We will request your tax information only if you win a prize greater than the IRS threshold. If your net proceeds are less than the IRS threshold, we will not collect your tax information. You should, of course, ask your tax advisor for advice as to whether your specific winnings are taxable (we make no representations).
If your winnings, minus your wager, are over $600 and you opt for a check as your payout method, HealthyWage will mail you a 1099 via USPS by January 31 of the following year.
If you choose PayPal as your payout method, PayPal is responsible for sending your 1099. As of January 1, 2022, Federal Law has changed the IRS reporting requirements for transactions via third-party networks [e.g., PayPal]. All transactions exceeding $600 within the third-party network platform will require them to issue a 1099-K.
