Average Cost of Pet Insurance
Pet insurance costs an average of $62 per month for dogs and $32 per month for cats for the most popular kind of coverage.
Find the Cheapest Pet Insurance Quotes in Your Area
Those rates are for plans that cover accidents and illnesses.
Among top pet insurance companies, Healthy Paws offers the cheapest pet insurance rates on average for dogs, at $28 per month, while Lemonade has the best rates for cats, at $16 per month.
Accident-only pet insurance is cheaper, at an average of $16 per month for dogs and $9 per month for cats, on average. But it offers less coverage for vet bills, and you can't get it from every company.
Average pet insurance costs
You can expect to pay between $20 and $50 per month for accident and illness pet insurance for a younger, healthy pet.
The cost of pet insurance rates can range from as low as $4 per month to much more than $100 per month. Your pet's age, species and breed, as well as where you live and the coverage you choose, all factor into your insurance rates.
Find the Cheapest Pet Insurance Quotes in Your Area
Dogs cost about 78% more to insure than cats for accident and illness policies. You'll also pay more to cover older pets, purebreds and larger animals, as these pets tend to have more health issues.
What affects how much you pay for pet insurance?
- Your pet is large or older
- The pet breed is prone to illness
- You choose better coverage, such as a lower deductible or higher policy limit
- Vet visits are expensive in your area
- Your pet is a mixed breed or mutt
- You shop around for quotes to find cheap rates
- The plan pays less for vet bills or has a higher deductible
Is the cost of pet insurance going up?
People buying more extensive coverage and dog owners have seen the biggest pet insurance price increases over the last five years.
Since 2020, dog owners who choose a policy that includes coverage for accidents, injuries and wellness treatment have paid an average of 33% more for their annual insurance bill.
Meanwhile, cat owners who pick basic accident-only coverage are paying 9% less than in 2020. That's a drop of around $109 per year.
Five-year change in average pet insurance rates
Cats | Dogs | |
|---|---|---|
| Accident only | -9.4% | 4.8% |
| Accident and illness | 5.4% | 22.3% |
| Wellness, accident, illness | 20.1% | 33.3% |
Average cost of dog insurance
The average monthly cost of dog insurance is $62 per month, but some companies are much cheaper.
The cheapest pet insurance companies for dogs are Healthy Paws, Lemonade and Spot, all of which have coverage for around $30 per month.
Cost of dog insurance by company
Company | Monthly rate |
|---|---|
| Healthy Paws | $28 |
| Lemonade | $31 |
| Spot | $31 |
| ASPCA | $35 |
| Figo | $36 |
Quotes can vary by more than $88 per month for the same pet, location and coverage.
You'll pay more to insure your dog if vet bills are high where you live or you have an injury-prone dog. You'll also pay more if you increase the policy's coverage or lower the deductible. All of these mean the insurance company could have to pay more to care for your dog, so the policy costs more.
Average cost of cat insurance
For cats, the average cost of pet insurance is $32 per month.
Pet insurance quotes for the same cat can differ by more than $40 per month between companies.
Cost of cat insurance by company
The cheapest company for cat insurance is Lemonade, at just $16 per month. Figo, Healthy Paws and Felix also have cheap coverage, at around $20 per month.
Company | Monthly rate |
|---|---|
| Lemonade | $16 |
| Figo | $19 |
| Healthy Paws | $20 |
| Felix | $21 |
| AKC | $24 |
Average cost of medical treatments for pets
If you're trying to decide if pet insurance is worth it, consider the cost of vet bills without insurance. Minor treatment, for an ear infection or upset stomach, for example, will often cost less than a year of insurance, but multiple conditions or something more serious will usually cost more than a full policy.
The most common dog treatments cost $254 on average, while the most common cat treatments cost $267, according to MetLife claims data.
Even some common issues can be expensive, such as treating parvo in puppies — the average claim is over $1,100. And serious conditions like cancer are rarer, but diagnosis and treatment are also much more costly — chemotherapy alone can cost thousands of dollars.
Cost of common dog health problems
Rank | Condition | Cost of vet visit |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ear infection | $149 |
| 2 | Allergies | $249 |
| 3 | Skin infection | $175 |
| 4 | Upset stomach | $385 |
| 5 | Diarrhea | $203 |
In most cases, paying for treatment out of pocket for the most common dog and cat medical conditions is less expensive than the annual cost of insurance.
Pet insurance won't pay for all your pet's medical costs, but it could help lower the burden of expensive and surprising vet bills, like for fracturing a limb or getting cancer.
In these cases, pet insurance will help lower the costs of an expensive procedure. It can also help you choose the right treatment for your pet without worrying about how you'll pay for an emergency vet bill, treatment or ongoing care.
Cost of common cat health problems
Rank | Condition | Cost of vet visit |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Urinary tract condition (UTI) | $295 |
| 2 | Upset stomach | $385 |
| 3 | Kidney failure | $485 |
| 4 | Diarrhea | $203 |
| 5 | Allergies | $235 |
Frequently asked questions
How much is full coverage pet insurance?
Full coverage pet insurance that pays for accidents and illnesses costs an average of $62 per month for dogs and $32 per month for cats. If you add on wellness coverage to pay for routine or preventive care, the average cost of pet insurance increases to $95 per month for dogs and $51 per month for cats.
Does the cost of pet insurance go up every year?
Yes, in most cases you'll pay more for pet insurance each year as your pet ages. Insurance costs more for older pets because they are more likely to be injured. If you have a large increase in pet insurance rates, compare quotes from different companies to find a better deal.
Methodology and sources
Average rates for pet insurance are from the North American Pet Health Insurance Association pet industry report.
Rates from different breeds are from ASPCA pet insurance. Procedure prices come from MetLife internal claims data.
Pet insurance rates by company are based on quotes from 10 top insurance companies for a male dog and cat, both 4 years old, in Charlotte, N.C. Quotes used a typical policy with:
Accident and illness coverage
Accident-only coverage
- $500 deductible
- $10,000 annual maximum coverage
- 80% reimbursement for vet services
Accident and illness coverage
- $500 deductible
- $10,000 annual maximum coverage
- 80% reimbursement for vet services
Accident-only coverage
- $250 deductible
- $5,000 annual maximum coverage
- 70% reimbursement for vet services
Company policy options vary based on availability. Trupanion and Healthy Paws have no annual coverage limit, and Trupanion has a 90% reimbursement rate.
Lead Writer
Matt Timmons is a Lead Writer on the insurance team at ValuePenguin, where he writes in-depth and timely pieces helping find the right coverage for them.
He's covered insurance at ValuePenguin since 2018, specializing in auto and home insurance, as well as life insurance. He's paid special attention to the EV insurance market, where prices are much higher than for gas cars.
Before he started writing about personal finance, Matt wrote about professional skills and online tools at an e-learning company.
How insurance helped Matt
During freshman orientation in college, Matt's iPod was stolen off his table while he was eating lunch. Luckily, he'd bought a college insurance plan the day before and he had money to buy a replacement before classes started.
Expertise
- Auto insurance
- Home insurance
- Insurance rate analysis
- Life insurance
Referenced by
- CNBC
- Miami Herald
- Yahoo! Finance
Education
- BA, Wesleyan University
Editorial Note: The content of this article is based on the author's opinions and recommendations alone. It has not been previewed, commissioned or otherwise endorsed by any of our network partners.
