Two FDA-authorized over-the-counter CGMs launched in 2024-2025: Abbott Lingo and Dexcom Stelo. Both require no prescription. Here is how they compare for non-diabetic and pre-diabetic users.
Quick Comparison
- Abbott Lingo: Better coaching app, 14-day sensor, targets lifestyle users
- Dexcom Stelo: Simpler data view, 15-day sensor, better raw glucose reporting
- Cost: both approximately $99/month for OTC purchase
Target User
Both are designed for people without insulin-dependent diabetes. Stelo targets Type 2 patients on oral medications. Lingo targets the broader metabolic health market — athletes, people tracking diet, pre-diabetics.
App Experience
Lingo’s app emphasizes food logging, personalized insights, and habit coaching. It tries to explain what your glucose data means and suggest changes. Stelo’s app is more straightforward — glucose graph, patterns, time in range. Data-oriented users prefer Stelo; coaching-oriented users prefer Lingo.
Sensor Duration
Lingo: 14 days. Stelo: 15 days. Marginal difference — Stelo’s sensor lasts one day longer.
Accuracy
Both perform comparably in published data. Neither includes urgent low alarms (appropriate for non-insulin users).
Availability
Both are available OTC in US pharmacies and online without a prescription. Lingo is also expanding in Europe. Stelo is currently US-only as of mid-2026.
Which Should You Buy?
- Choose Lingo: if you want app coaching, habit building, or are outside the US
- Choose Stelo: if you want clean glucose data, slightly longer sensor life, or are already in the Dexcom ecosystem
Both are legitimate products. Neither replaces a prescription CGM for insulin users.