If you’re wondering, “is cat insurance worth it?” then you’re in the right place.
Today, we’re going to cover pretty much everything you could want to know about pet health insurance for cats.
Find out how much it costs, what it covers, and whether the benefits outweigh the price.
I’ll even give you my quotes from the top three pet insurance companies!
Let’s get started, shall we?
CHECK Every Paw Pet Insurance Reviews!
What Exactly is Cat Insurance?
Before we answer the question of “is cat insurance worth it,” I think we need to talk a bit about exactly what it is.
The obvious answer is, of course, that it’s health insurance for your cat.
However, the obvious answer isn’t always the most accurate.
Let’s go over what the majority of pet insurance companies cover, then we’ll talk about what they don’t.
Keep in mind, though, that different companies cover different things depending on which plan you choose.
What does cat insurance cover?
- Accidents and acute illnesses (like a kitty cold)
- Congenital issues (health problems that your kitty was born with)
- Chronic conditions that begin after enrolling
- Cancer
- Surgery
- Some diagnostic testing
- Alternative therapy (only a few companies cover this)
- Prescription medications
What cat insurance doesn’t cover
- Wellness exams and routine checkups (there are a couple of exceptions)
- Preexisting conditions. Check our guide about cat insurance that covers pre existing conditions.
- Cosmetic procedures (having a scar removed simply for aesthetic reasons, for example)
- Breeding or pregnancy
- DNA testing
Like I said, coverage depends on the company and the plan. Embrace, for example, has a plan that does cover wellness visits.
Now that we have a general idea of what cat insurance does and doesn’t cover, let’s talk about whether it’s really worth it in the long run.
To determine if cat insurance is worth it, we have to look at a few different factors, including your cat’s breed, general health issues, and, of course, your budget.
Since money is almost always the deciding factor, let’s start there!
Take a look at the table below to learn a bit about the insurance companies that we’ll be investigating.
How Much Does it Cost to Insure a Cat?
I wish I could tell you that it will cost exactly X dollars to insure your cat, but it’s not that simple.
Like all insurances, how much you’ll pay depends on a slew of factors ranging from your cat’s health to your credit score.
You’ll need to get a quote from each company for an accurate cost, but to give you some examples, I did my own quotes from the top three companies.
For reference sake, I used my cat, Alex. He’s a 3-year-old neutered domestic long-haired male cat.
Embrace Pet Insurance Quote
At Embrace, I can expect to pay about $24 a month with a $200 annual deductible and 90% reimbursement rate.
My Embrace plan covers pretty much everything (including alternative therapies) except preexisting conditions.
Trupanion Cat Insurance Quote
My Trupanion quote based on the same criteria and deductible comes out to just over $43 a month.
Alternative therapies are not part of the basic Trupanion plan. I would need to pay an additional $4+ to add it on.
However, Trupanion does have one big advantage: they pay directly to the vet.
If you don’t have the money to pay upfront and wait for reimbursement, this can be a major plus.
āŗāŗGet a FREE quote from Trupanion for more details.
Healthy Paws Pet Insurance Quote
Again, I used the same criteria and cat to get my Healthy Paws quote.
With a $250 deductible (they didn’t offer a $200 one) and 80% reimbursement, it comes out to $13.78 per month.
If I change it to a 90% reimbursement rate, it goes up to about $17 a month.
The plan covers just about everything except wellness visits and preexisting conditions.
āŗāŗGet a FREE quote from Healthy Paws for more details.
While Healthy Paws is definitely the winner for me, your situation might be entirely different.
The only way to find out how much cat insurance costs is to get your own quote.
Do Pet Insurance Benefits Outweigh the Cost?
The next thing we need to do to determine if cat insurance is worth it is to take a look at how the benefits compare to the cost.
Let’s look at the average cost of some of the things that cat insurance covers.
Remember, these are average costs and can vary significantly from vet to vet.
| Reason for Visit | Average Cost |
| Yearly Exam | $50 (not covered) |
| Cancer Diagnostic Tests | $500-800 |
| Radiation Treatment | $1K-4K |
Sprains and bone injuries | $200 |
| Emergency Visits | $300+ |
For emergency visits, you can expect to pay $150+ just to walk through the door and see a doctor.
Now, I’ll be honest here, I’ve had 9 cats over a 23-year period, and I’ve never spent more than $500 a year on health issues, and that’s with multiple cats.
My cat Willow does have constipation issues. I’ve spent maybe $300 a year on her before we got it under control.
How to determine if cat insurance is worth it
There’s probably some super economic formula for deciding whether cat insurance is worth it, but it really comes down to two things:
- How much you can afford to pay each month for insurance
- How much you can afford to pay if the worst case scenario happens
Now, I have three cats and a dog. I could easily afford insurance for Alex through Healthy Paws.
However, I can’t really afford to quadruple the monthly fee for all four pets.
The problem, of course, is that if I can’t afford $60+ a month for insurance, I definitely can’t swing thousands of dollars for cancer treatments.
So, it comes down to how much risk I’m willing to take. None of my cats are breeds that are particularly susceptible to cancer, so I’ll take the risk.
On the other hand, if I had a cat that was at a higher risk, I wouldn’t be so cavalier about it.
Indoor vs. Outdoor Cats
Another common question that comes up is: is pet insurance worth it for an indoor cat.
All of the above information is actually based on indoor cats!
The better question would be: is it worth it for outdoor cats.
To that, I have to say yes, it’s actually even more worth it, since your outdoor cat is at a significantly higher risk for injury and illness.
Bottom Line: Is it Worth It or Not?
I can’t tell you yes or no on whether cat insurance is worth it. That’s something only you can decide!
Personally, it would be worth it to me if I had just one pet. However, to cover four pets, would end up costing more per year than I would actually save.
What are your thoughts? Is cat insurance worth it? Tell us below!
Nicole is one of the writers here on CatVills. She’s been a cat lover most of her life and-at one point- counted five felines as part of her family. Today, she’s proud cat mom to two indoor kitties and caregiver for a slew of ferals.
Last update on 2023-06-09 / Affiliate links / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API
We’ve thought about this for our cats and our dog. Pets can be expensive if something is wrong.
I don’t have a cat but if I did, I’d definitely have insurance. We had a dog once that had to have major surgery and I wish I would have had insurance.
I have always struggled with my dog’s health insurance and if I should get it. We don’t have it and hopefully a disaster or cancer does not happen
I hadn’t heard about cat insurance before. We don’t have it at the moment, but maybe down the line I’ll get it. We have two kitties!
Great post! We have had pet insurance in the past, but the costs went up every year so we cancelled. That decision definitely saved us money.
I did not even know cat insurance existed! I donāt have any cats but it looks like this is a great read for any cat owner.
We got cat insurance for our cat. It worked out to be a really great deal for us.
This is a very timely post for me to read as we are taking our cat to the vet on Tuesday and I am happy I was able to inquire about this vet’s insurance plan. It’s almost the same as this one and covers so much!! I’m totally doing it so that our cat has the best health care possible.
I’ve never heard about Cat Insurance. Thanks for these info. And I think worth it!
My friend subscribed a cat insurance recently. Your post was so helpful for her!
We have two cats and you’ve given me something to think about. We’ve been pretty lucky in that they both have been very healthy. But you never know!
I couldn’t imagine not having insurance for my pets. We have it for our Guinea Pig even. I didn’t realise though until the last year or so, it seems to be much more common to have over here across the pond.
We just recently rescued a couple of kittens, perfect timing for me to read this! I need to check into insurance.
I didn’t know that there is insurance for the pets. Yes getting some pet insurance will be good idea.
Oh, great to know that pet insurance exists. I know some who would be interested in getting this.
I didn’t know there is such a thing as cat insurance. My husband used to have cats, but they didn’t have insurance. Good to know about this.
Thank you for providing a sample of the fees/charges when getting a Pet Insurance. I don’t have a cat so I will make sure my friends know about the importance of getting one.
Having pet insurance is a big relief for a lot of people. My sister’s dog needed several expensive life-saving procedures, and since she has pet insurance, the decision was easy. However, I know that it can be tricky to navigate and some companies leave the policyholders with bigger bills than they expected.
This is really informational I did not know much about cat insurance but now that I do I will inform my family members that have kitties.
This post was helpful. I want to make sure my pet can see the vet.
My friend has had such bad luck with cats lately. Insurance sounds like a good thing for her.
I think it is an important item to have for your pets, but like all things insurance, it is a gamble.
I really enjoyed reading this post, thanks for providing a breakdown.
We don’t have any pets but I find that it is important to have insurance for pets. It will save you so much money in the long run.
I definitely feel like pet insurance is worth it! A lot can go wrong so its important to be safe.
I never thought about pet health insurance for cats but I think it’s worth it
This is a really informative post. I think it can be worth it as it helps save money if there is an issue.
I think it’s good to have the preventative care. We take our cat for wellness checks.
I didn’t know that was a thing. I’d definitely get insurance if I had a cat. Thanks for sharing!