Lemonade’s Preventative Package and Spot’s Gold Preventative Plan are the best pet wellness plans, according to research by the MarketWatch Guides team. Pet insurance providers typically offer wellness plans as add-ons to enhance your core insurance coverage. However, you can purchase other wellness options directly from a vet, such as Banfield Pet Hospital.
Though much less expensive and stressful than emergency vet visits, routine care for your pet can still add up financially. A pet wellness plan can help you manage the cost of preventative vet services like your cat’s or dog’s annual visit, vaccinations and parasite prevention.
What is a Pet Wellness Plan?
A pet wellness plan covers routine veterinary visits and other routine health care such as annual vet checkups, lab work, blood work, vaccines, dental care, physical exams and more. These routine treatments and checkups are essential to maintaining your pet’s health. A pet wellness plan often only covers preventive care and does not include accident and illness coverage.
In short, pet wellness plans cover the routine services that help ensure your pet has a long and healthy life. Many of these services are part of the regular care that Dr. Katie Krebs, an assistant professor in clinical primary care at the University of Pennsylvania’s Ryan Veterinary Hospital, describes as critical aspects of preventative care.
In most cases, wellness plans are add-ons for pet insurance and not available as stand-alone coverage. Wellness plans usually include a monthly fee, or premium, in exchange for reimbursement for preventative vet visits up to a specific annual allowance. However, some providers may use a similar copay method to pet insurance.
What’s the Difference Between Pet Insurance and Pet Wellness Plans?
Pet insurance can provide financial coverage for unexpected pet accidents and illnesses, reimbursing a set percentage of your pet’s total bill after a deductible is applied. In contrast, pet wellness plans can help cover costs associated with planned routine care. Typically, you can purchase wellness plans as standalone service bundles from veterinary hospitals or as add-ons to traditional insurance policies. In most cases, wellness plan service reimbursements are not subject to a deductible or copayment.
Dr. Sarah Proctor, DVM, MPH, a clinical associate professor at the University of New Hampshire Thompson School of Applied Science Agriculture, Nutrition and Food Systems, notes the value of pet insurance:
“Pet insurance is a great idea so you don’t have to make decisions about your pet’s care due to budget limitations. It doesn’t take long to rack up several thousand dollars in bills from a single emergency visit.”
The Venn diagram graphic below illustrates the differences between pet insurance and pet wellness plans.
How Much Do Pet Wellness Plans Cost?
The cost of pet wellness care will depend on the provider and the amount of coverage included. Pet owners cannot buy just a pet wellness plan; they must also buy an accident-and-illness or accident-only insurance plan.
The cost of a pet wellness plan add-on is typically under $20 per month, ranging from $10 to $19 for our top recommended companies, based on quotes we gathered. The cost of a basic pet insurance policy and a preventive care package ranges from around $41 to $67.
Most pet insurance companies offer the same pet wellness plan option for all breeds. The table below has a breakdown of pet wellness plan costs and the overall cost of pet insurance and preventative care.
What You Save With a Wellness Plan
Wellness plans can provide savings for pet owners, but the exact amount varies considerably depending on the provider and plan structure. To achieve maximum savings from a wellness plan, you must use your pet’s entire benefit amount each year. Think of each service on your benefit list as pre-paid — if you fail to use those services, you’ve effectively lost money.
For example, if your wellness plan costs $120 annually and provides $250 in reimbursements each year, you could potentially save up to $130. But if that $250 includes $40 for a microchip your pet already has and $20 for a health certificate you do not use, your savings drops to only $70 for the year.