Best pet insurance companies of April 2024

Pets Best has the best pet insurance overall. Of the pet insurance plans with unlimited annual coverage we analyzed, the Pets Best Essential plan has the cheapest dog insurance and the second most affordable pet insurance for cats. It also offers a multi-pet discount.

Why we picked it:

Figo pet insurance has a lot of options when it comes to customizing your plan. For example, you can choose a rare 100% reimbursement percentage with $5,000 or $10,000 in annual coverage, or you select unlimited coverage with one of six deductible choices and a reimbursement percentage of 70% or 80%. You can also opt to add one of two available wellness plans and add coverage for vet exam fees.

Why we picked it:

Lemonade pet insurance plans offer some of the fastest claims response and reimbursement in the industry. Thanks to Lemonade’s artificial intelligence chatbots, most pet owners can file a claim in a few minutes, get it approved in seconds and be on their way to getting reimbursed for eligible expenses. Some claims can take longer if a human has to manually process them.

Why we picked it:

Embrace is not the most affordable pet insurance in our rating, but its accident and illness plans include vet exam fees without requiring you to pay extra for this coverage. Embrace pet insurance also provides coverage for complementary treatments such as acupuncture and chiropractic care, behavioral therapy and specialist care.

Why we picked it:

Paw Protect offers good pet health insurance coverage that includes dental injuries and accidents up to $1,000. Plans also cover your service animal, mobility devices for your pet and alternative therapies like acupuncture.

Why we picked it:

Fetch pet insurance doesn’t offer the option for a high or unlimited annual coverage limit like most competitors, but it does have some unique benefits. For instance, your pet is covered for remote telehealth treatment by a vet, which could include phone calls, email, text message or video chat.

Why we picked it:

Healthy Paws has the cheapest cat insurance of the companies in our rating. Only accident and illness plans are available, with no option to add a wellness plan, but with Healthy Paws pet insurance you won’t have any per-incident, annual or lifetime caps on your coverage.

Best pet insurance for dogs in 2024

Pets Best offers the best dog insurance for the price. Of the plans we analyzed, the Pets Best Essential plan has the most affordable pet insurance for dogs, with an average rate of $44 per month for unlimited annual coverage. This is a monthly savings of $22 from the national average.

Best pet insurance for puppies

Pets Best has the best pet insurance for puppies of the companies we analyzed, based on the average cost of pet insurance premiums. The average rate for a Pets Best accident and illness plan with unlimited annual coverage, 90% reimbursement and a $500 deductible for a 3-month-old puppy is $36 per month.

Pumpkin is also a good choice for puppy pet insurance if you’re interested in a wellness plan. Dogs under 6 months can get extensive preventative care through Pumpkin’s add-on Preventative Essentials plan.

Best pet insurance for senior dogs

Pumpkin has some of the best dog insurance for older dogs. It has no special waiting period for problems like knee injuries or hip dysplasia and it provides coverage for virtual vet visits. Pumpkin has no upper age restrictions and no reducing coverage as your pet ages.

Best pet insurance for cats

Healthy Paws has the best cat insurance of the pet insurance companies in our rating, based on cost. A Healthy Paws accident and illness pet plan for cats with unlimited annual coverage has an average pet insurance cost of $23 per month.

Best pet insurance for kittens

Healthy Paws offers the best cat insurance for young pets, based on the average rates we reviewed. To insure a three-month-old kitten with unlimited annual coverage from Healthy Paws will only cost about $18 per month.

Best pet insurance for pre-existing conditions

Pet insurance doesn’t cover pre-existing conditions, including any symptoms your pet experienced or was treated for before pet insurance coverage starts or during a waiting period. If you read pet insurance reviews, you will find many consumers who are unhappy their pet insurance claims were denied because of a “pre-existing condition” like vomiting or diarrhea.

Some pet insurance companies advertise that they cover select “curable” pre-existing conditions, such as a paw fracture or upper respiratory infection, if your pet has been free of symptoms and treatment for a certain amount of time, often 12 or 18 months.

Embrace, Paw Protect and Pets Best are the best pet insurance companies in our ranking that cover certain curable pre-existing conditions. It’s important to understand which conditions each company considers curable, and how long it takes to be considered cured, before buying a plan.

Which pre-existing conditions are covered? Best pet insurance companies for pre-existing conditions

How much is pet insurance?

The average cost of pet insurance for a dog is $796 per year for an accident and illness policy with unlimited annual coverage, a $250 deductible and an 80% reimbursement percentage. The average pet insurance cost per month is $66.

How much you pay for your pet insurance premium will depend on the pet insurance plan options you choose, your pet’s breed, age and gender and other factors such as where you live.

Average pet insurance cost per month for dogs

Pet insurance for dogs costs an average of:

• $47 per month for $5,000 of annual coverage.
• $66 per month for a policy with unlimited annual coverage.

Average pet insurance cost per month for cats

Pet insurance for cats costs an average of:

• $27 per month for $5,000 of annual coverage.
• $38 per month for unlimited coverage.

Factors that affect your pet insurance cost

How much you pay for pet insurance will depend on several factors.

• Animal: Dog insurance is typically more expensive than cat insurance.
• Breed: Some breeds cost more to insure because they are more prone to illnesses and hereditary issues.
• Age: Older pets cost more to insure because they are more likely to have health issues that require veterinary care.
• Gender: Female pets are about 5% cheaper to insure, according to the National Association of Insurance Commissioners.
• Location: If you live in a city where vet expenses are higher, that will be factored into the cost of your pet insurance.
• Coverage: The annual coverage limit, deductible and reimbursement level you choose will impact your pet insurance premium.

How to find the best rate: Compare pet insurance quotes

Pet insurance discounts

Vet care can break your budget if you haven’t planned ahead by saving or buying affordable pet insurance that meets your pet’s needs. Many pet insurance companies also offer discounts that can make insurance more affordable.

• Multi-pet discounts: If you enroll two or more pets, you may qualify for a discount. To find the best pet insurance for multiple pets, get several quotes to compare savings across pet insurance companies.
• Upfront payment discounts: If you pay your pet insurance in one lump sum rather than opting for monthly or quarterly payments, you may qualify for a discount.
• Military discount: If you are a military service member or veteran, you may qualify for a discount.

How to buy pet insurance

The best way to buy pet insurance is to compare pet insurance quotes from several insurers.

• Online. Many pet insurance company websites will give you a quote after you answer a few questions about your pet. You can also use a pet insurance comparison site to compare pet insurance plans and prices from multiple companies.
• Phone, email or in person. You can work with a representative from an insurance company to get a pet insurance quote, or with an independent insurance agent to compare quotes from several pet insurance companies.

What is pet insurance?

Pet insurance, also called pet health insurance, is designed to reimburse you for your pet’s unexpected and unforeseen veterinary expenses.

Pet health plans typically have a deductible, which is the amount you have to pay in vet bills before your pet insurance starts to pay.

After reaching your deductible, your pet insurance company will reimburse you for a percentage of your eligible expenses, up to an annual maximum. Only a few pet insurance companies pay the vet directly, and requesting this service may require additional paperwork with each vet visit.

What does pet insurance cover?

What pet insurance covers depends on the type of plan you buy. There are three main types of pet insurance plans.

• Accident-only: These tend to be the cheapest plans because they only cover the diagnosis and treatment of injuries resulting from accidents, such as lacerations, poisoning, car accidents and foreign body ingestion. Accident-only pet insurance policies do not provide any coverage for illnesses or chronic conditions.
• Accident and illness: The most popular form of pet insurance, accident and illness plans provide coverage for the diagnosis and treatment of injuries and illnesses. These plans include accident benefits plus coverage for illnesses such as cancer, digestive problems and infections.
• Wellness: Wellness plans can often be added to an accident and illness plan, to provide some routine or preventative benefits. If you want the best pet insurance for preventative care, shop for pet insurance plans that offer an optional wellness plan add-on and compare what these plans cover.

What doesn’t pet insurance cover?

While pet insurance covers unexpected injuries or illnesses, it doesn’t cover everything, such as non-curable pre-existing conditions. Here are some common pet insurance exclusions:

• Pre-existing conditions. A pre-existing condition is any issue your pet had symptoms of before the pet insurance policy effective date or during the policy waiting period. If your cat has arthritis when you buy pet insurance, for instance, the insurer will deny any claims related to treatments for that condition. While pet insurance doesn’t cover pre-existing conditions, some companies will cover conditions they deem curable. The best pet insurance for pre-existing conditions is a plan that covers certain curable pre-existing conditions if the condition doesn’t reappear for a certain period of time, like a year.
• Routine care. Pet insurance doesn’t cover preventative or routine care, such as spaying or neutering, vaccinations, wellness exams or parasite prevention. The best pet insurance for routine care is an accident and illness plan that offers a wellness plan add-on that will reimburse you for some of those expenses.
• Dental care. Accident and illness plans typically cover dental accidents and illnesses, but routine dental care is usually not covered unless you have a wellness plan. If you’re looking for the best pet insurance for dental care, you’ll want to shop for coverage with a wellness plan add-on that includes routine dental care.
• Elective or experimental treatments. Pet insurance doesn’t cover elective or cosmetic treatments, such as tail or ear docking or root canals. It also doesn’t cover experimental treatments or clinical trials.
• Exam fees. Some pet insurance plans won’t cover your vet exam fees, even when related to an accident or illness.
• Breeding. Pet insurance doesn’t cover treatments related to injuries or accidents resulting from breeding, whelping (for dogs) or queening (for cats). However, some pet insurance companies, such as Trupanion, offer riders for pets that can be used for breeding.
• Boarding and kennel fees. Most pet insurance plans won’t cover the cost of boarding or kenneling your pet, but some might if you have add-on coverage. For instance, Trupanion offers an optional pet owner assistance package that covers boarding fees if the pet owner is hospitalized.
• Grooming. Fees for grooming, shampooing and nail trims are not covered by pet insurance.
• Pet food. While pet insurance does not cover your pet’s regular food and supplements, some plans cover prescription pet food.

How does pet insurance work?

Pet health insurance works by reimbursing you for a portion of your pet’s medical expenses. When you purchase a policy, you typically choose a deductible, reimbursement level and reimbursement percentage.

Deductible

• This is the dollar amount you are responsible for paying before your pet insurance starts to reimburse you for covered expenses.
• Some insurers have an annual deductible, while others have a per-condition deductible.
• Deductible choices often range from $0 to $1,000.
• A lower deductible typically results in a more expensive pet insurance premium.

Reimbursement percentage

• After reaching your deductible, your pet insurance company usually pays a percentage of the remaining claim amount.
• Most companies will reimburse only 70% to 90% of the vet bill. Some, like Figo, offer a 100% reimbursement percentage, but choosing this option will increase your pet insurance rate.

Annual coverage limit

•  This is the maximum amount your insurer will pay in a year.
• Some companies cap reimbursements at $15,000 or less, while some offer unlimited reimbursement.
• Choosing a higher coverage limit will usually result in a higher pet insurance premium.

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