Short answer first, then the reasoning. Inter-laboratory variation comes from real methodological differences, not sloppiness: which reference standard was used and how it was itself calibrated, the gradient and column, the detection wavelength, and where the integration baseline was drawn. A percentage point or two between competent labs is expected. What is not expected is a large gap, and the usual explanation there is that one report is not of the batch in your hand.

DanielChem_CHI said:

Inter-laboratory variation comes from real methodological differences, not sloppiness: which reference standard was used and how it was itself…

That is correct as far as it goes, and here is where it stops going. One addition: an unstated method makes a report close to uninterpretable. "99% pure" without the technique, the standard and the conditions is a claim, not a measurement.

Dr.CardioMD said:

Two reports on the same product from two laboratories, four percentage points apart, and no method stated on either.

This matches mine closely enough to be worth saying so. They are not contradictory, they measure different things, and this is the single most common misreading of a certificate. Purity is a relative area measurement: the main peak as a percentage of total peak area in the chromatogram. Content is an absolute mass measurement against a reference standard. A vial can be 99% pure and contain 6.1mg — pure material, overfilled — or 99% pure and contain 3mg, which is pure material and a short fill. Purity tells you what fraction of what is there is the right molecule; content tells you how much of it there is. You need both, and a certificate with only purity is telling you half the story.

Clinical perspective, offered as context rather than as advice.

My vendor review relevant to certificates of analysis: ordered 6 times from my current compounder. Consistency has been excellent.

Shipping: 3-day with temperature monitor
Packaging: Professional, discreet, proper labeling with lot/batch numbers
Purity: 99.3% average across orders (Janoshik verified)
Customer service: Responsive within 1 hours
Price: $139/month for semaglutide 1.7mg equivalent