You might have heard of pet insurance before but dismissed it as a luxury for the wealthy pet owner. Pet insurance is surprisingly unaffordable—unlike the emergency situations which ultimately befall every pet. ASPCA and Healthy Paws are both excellent, cost-efficient options to make sure you’re covered the next time your pet breaks into the pantry or if they need treatment for a chronic illness. Depending on the plan you choose, your insurance coverage should only cost you between $20-$60 per month, plus a $100, $250, or $500 annual deductible. We wish human health insurance was so simple!
Like any insurance company, neither ASPCA nor Healthy Paws cover pre-existing conditions. They also don’t cover breeding-related conditions such as pregnancy, or cosmetic procedures such as ear-tipping or tail-docking. Most plans also don’t pay for spay-neuter surgeries, although the Premium Preventative Care plan from ASPCA will reimburse you up to $150. Read on to deep dive into the world of pet insurance and figure out if it might be a wise investment for you and your pet.
| Company Name | ASPCA | Healthy Paws |
| Pets Covered | Cats & Dogs | Cats & Dogs 14 years old or younger at time of enrollment |
| Types of Plans | Complete Coverage or Accident Only | One plan that covers accidents and long-term treatment such as chemotherapy |
| Deductibles | $100, $250, or $500 annually | $100, $250, or $500 annually |
| Reimbursement | 70-90% | 70-90% |
| Additional Perks | Optional Preventative coverage add-on for only $10 or $25 each month | No maximum payouts |
Brief Overview of ASPCA
- All cats and dogs qualify
- Multiple coverage options
- No vet exam required for approval
- The maximum payout caps at $10,000 annually
- The plans are a little more expensive than Healthy Paws
ASPCA is the most versatile of the two options. Like Healthy Paws, you’re able to visit any vet in the country. Depending on your plan, most health conditions are covered whether it’s an emergency or office visit. There are also no age limits or discrimination based on your pet’s life-stage. A perk for a multi-pet household, ASPCA offers a 10% discount per additional pet, and they insure cats and dogs. It’s marginally more expensive than Healthy Paws, but way cheaper if you consider the additional services they provide.
The only thing we really don’t like about this company is that no matter what plan you choose, the maximum coverage amount caps at $10,000. While this doesn’t sound like a lot, certain chronic illnesses can exceed this amount annually, especially if your pet requires medical visits for any other reasons such as dental or routine exams.
Brief Overview of Healthy Paws
- No maximum payout—annually or for life
- Timely response to claims
- Excellent reviews
- A little cheaper than ASPCA depending on the coverage plan
- The only coverage option doesn’t include wellness exams
- There are more restrictions to qualify
Healthy Paws only offers one insurance plan, but you are able to customize your deductible and coverage. Unlike ASPCA, there’s no maximum payout amount. This makes Healthy Paws an excellent choice for pets with a long-term disability that may require several thousand dollars worth of treatment every year. They’re also a little cheaper than ASPCA, however, there isn’t a perfect comparison since ASPCA also covers more treatments. You can also take your pet to any licensed vet in the country! There’s a 15-day waiting period for accidents or illnesses after approval. It’s simple to get reimbursed when you need to file a claim. Just upload your claim by phone and receive feedback within 24 hours!
Our main beef with this company is that they offer limited coverage options. The rules are also a little vaguer than ASPCA. For instance, you can’t enroll your dog or cat after they’re 14 years old. And, if you don’t enroll your dog before they’re 6 years old they won’t qualify for hip dysplasia coverage.
Other Top Rated Pet Insurance Companies
ASPCA vs Healthy Paws: Plans Available
| Company | Sample Monthly Cost For Dogs | Sample Monthly Cost For Cats | Learn More |
| ASPCA | $34.60 | $18.94 | Click to Get Quote |
| Healthy Paws | $45.88 | $21.42 | Click to Get Quote |
ASPCA
- Accident-only Coverage: For $18-$36 per month, you can protect your pet against unexpected injuries such as accidental ingestion of toxins, foreign objects, emergency surgery, or broken bones.
- Comprehensive Coverage: This more expensive plan ranges between $20-$60 per month but includes everything from accidents to illnesses. They’ll even include the exam fees.
- Preventative Add-On: If you have the Accident-only or Comprehensive insurance as a base plan, you can add the Preventative care for only $10-$25 per month. The Basic Preventative Care plan includes dental cleanings, annual wellness exams, heartworm exams, deworming and rabies vaccines/titers for a maximum payout of $250 per year. The Premium Preventative Care plan includes everything from basic and more. This plan even includes spay-neuter surgery reimbursement up to $150 and has a maximum annual payout amount of $450.
Healthy Paws
This company offers one customizable care plan geared towards emergency situations and chronic illnesses. Unfortunately, they do not cover exam fees. Their plans start around $20 per month and go up to $50. There’s no maximum payout.
ASPCA vs Healthy Paws: Reimbursements and Deductibles
Both companies have annual deductible options of $100, $250, or $500. If your annual deductible is higher, your cost per month will be lower, and vice-versa. ASPCA and Healthy Paws also both offer 70-90% reimbursement options. If you choose a higher reimbursement option, then your monthly fee will also be greater.
ASPCA
- 70%
- 80%
- 90%
- $100
- $250
- $500
- $3,000
- $4,000
- $5,000
- $7,000
- $10,000
The only difference in reimbursements between ASPCA and Healthy Paws is that ASPCA caps its maximum yearly payouts between $3,000 and $10,000. Healthy Paws doesn’t have a limit, although their coverage is comparatively limited.
Healthy Paws
- 50%
- 60%
- 70%
- 80%
- 90%
- $100
- $250
- $500
- $750
- $1,000
- Unlimited
ASPCA vs Healthy Paws: Additional Perks
ASPCA
We like how ASPCA is non-discriminatory about which pets qualify for their program. There’s no vet exam required prior to approval and no age limits. All cats and dogs at any life-stage are welcome to join.
Healthy Paws
No expense is too great for this top-rated company. Customers say they submitted their claims with ease and typically received a response within 2 days.
Company Verdict: Which One Has the Edge?
Customer Service
Edge: Healthy Paws
Both companies scored 9+ reviews, but Healthy Paws has been voted as the top pet health insurance provider for the last 11 years straight!
Price of Plans
Edge: Healthy Paws
Although they’re a little cheaper, it might be a situation of diminishing returns because their coverage is also more limited. However, if you anticipate ongoing treatment, Healthy Paws is more qualified for your investment because there’s no limit on how much they’ll pay you back.
Areas of Coverage
Edge: ASPCA
For a price that’s marginally higher than Healthy Paws, you get much more exclusive coverage that you can customize according to your pup’s perceived needs. Just remember that it takes 15 days for a new policy to activate, so don’t wait until your kitten eats a hair tie to apply.
Perks
Edge: ASPCA
There are no health requirements to qualify for care. Like all health insurance companies however, ASPCA will not cover pre-existing conditions.
Conclusion
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|---|---|---|
| ASPCA | Healthy Paws | |
| Our Rating |
Our Rating:
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Our Rating:
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| Multi-Pet Discount |
Multi-Pet Discount:
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Multi-Pet Discount:
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| Unlimited Plan |
Unlimited Plan:
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Unlimited Plan:
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| Preventative Care |
Preventative Care:
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Preventative Care:
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| Hereditary Conditions |
Hereditary Conditions:
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Hereditary Conditions:
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Though both companies have their clear advantages and disadvantages, we liked ASPCA the best overall. They offer more comprehensive coverage for a very similar price and all dogs and cats qualify for care.
While ASPCA and Healthy Paws both offer exclusive benefits, the best choice for you depends on what type of insurance you need. If you’re looking for an emergency-only plan or coverage to insure your pet against devastating costly diseases such as cancer, Healthy Paws may be the choice for you. There’s no maximum payout per year, so it doesn’t matter if your pet’s treatment costs $500 or $50,000—it’s covered.
However, unlike Healthy Paws, ASPCA offers Complete Coverage and even a Preventative Care option that covers annual wellness exams for an additional $10-$25 a month! However, this is probably not the best choice if you anticipate extremely costly treatment in the near future because there is a maximum annual payout of $3,000-$10,000 depending on your plan.
