How Much Does Dog Insurance Cost?

Accident-and-illness insurance for a dog averages $836 a year, according to NAPHIA’s most recent State of the Industry report, which works out to about $70 a month. Accident-only plans are far cheaper, averaging $190 a year, or roughly $16 a month.

Average Dog Insurance Cost Per Month

The average cost of dog insurance is rising. NAPHIA, the North American Pet Health Insurance Association, reports that the average accident-and-illness premium for dogs rose 11.5% in its latest data year, while the accident-only average slipped 1.6%. The monthly figures here are NAPHIA’s yearly averages divided by 12.

Carriers publish their own averages, and most run lower than NAPHIA’s:

• Fetch reports an average dog premium of $35 a month across its active policies and all plan configurations.
• Lemonade puts its average dog policy at $48 a month.
• Embrace says most dogs on its plans cost $20 to $70 a month.
• Spot, citing Insurify data, lists about $40 a month for puppies, $46 for adult dogs and $116 for seniors, with accident-only puppy coverage near $16.

Taken together, these carrier averages and NAPHIA’s figure put many dog policies between $35 and $70 a month. Large or flat-faced breeds, older dogs and big-city ZIP codes push it higher.

Dog Insurance Cost By Breed

Breed is one of the main pricing factors, because insurers price in the conditions each breed is prone to. A breed prone to costly hip surgery, bloat, back disease or breathing problems costs more to cover than a breed with fewer expensive conditions. The table below shows the monthly premium range for each breed on breedcosts.com/, sorted from the highest top-of-range premium down.

Breed	Monthly premium range
Mastiff	$80–$210
Bernese Mountain Dog	$65–$130
Saint Bernard	$55–$130
Rottweiler	$56–$125
Doberman Pinscher	$40–$115
English Bulldog	$70–$110
Cavalier King Charles Spaniel	$35–$105
Cane Corso	$50–$100
French Bulldog	$55–$95
Golden Retriever	$40–$95
Labrador Retriever	$39–$86
German Shepherd	$44–$80
Basset Hound	$40–$80
Pit Bull	$41–$70
Goldendoodle	$40–$70
Siberian Husky	$40–$70
Beagle	$35–$70
Cavapoo	$27–$70
Miniature Schnauzer	$35–$65
Boston Terrier	$36–$60
Bichon Frise	$35–$60
Pomeranian	$35–$60
Shiba Inu	$35–$60
Poodle	$32–$60
Dachshund	$30–$60
Staffordshire Bull Terrier	$30–$60
Border Collie	$27–$60
Morkie	$26–$60
Australian Shepherd	$28–$55
Biewer Terrier	$27–$55
Maltipoo	$25–$55
Chihuahua	$20–$45

Giant breeds sit at the top, partly because anesthesia and weight-based drugs cost more for a bigger dog. Large breeds such as the Rottweiler and Doberman come next, and flat-faced breeds like the English Bulldog and French Bulldog cost more to insure than their size suggests because of airway, spine and skin claims. Fetch’s own breed data shows the same pattern: French Bulldogs average $71 a month on its policies, German Shepherds $53, Golden Retrievers and Goldendoodles $50, Maltipoos $35 and Shih Tzus $30.

What Changes Your Premium

Every insurer builds a quote from the same handful of inputs. The NAIC, the national body of state insurance regulators, lists species, breed, age, location and even gender among the factors carriers use.

Age

Most carriers reprice your dog upward at each renewal as it gets older, so the premium you start with is rarely the premium you keep. A 2022 analysis by Consumers’ Checkbook, which compared 12 insurers across seven metro areas, found increases from puppyhood to age 12 ranging from 155% to 1,195%. In that analysis, a Pets Best plan for a mixed-breed dog cost $34 a month for a puppy, $76 at age 8 and $144 at age 12. An ASPCA plan rose from $71 to $224 a month for a mixed breed, from $82 to $260 for a Beagle and from $133 to $427 for a Dogue de Bordeaux. Trupanion is the main exception, since it sets the premium on the dog’s age at enrollment rather than raising it for birthdays.

Breed

As the table above shows, a Mastiff’s typical premium range runs about four times a Chihuahua’s. Insurers price in the conditions a breed is known for, such as hip dysplasia in large dogs, back disease in Dachshunds and Basset Hounds, and heart disease in Cavaliers.

ZIP Code

Veterinary prices vary widely by region, and insurers charge accordingly. The same dog will usually cost more to insure in a major metro area than in a rural town, so a breed’s average premium is only a starting point for your own quote.

Deductible

A higher deductible lowers the premium because you pay more of each year’s bills yourself. Annual deductibles of $100 to $1,000 are common. Trupanion works differently, with a deductible from $0 to $1,000 that applies once per condition for the life of the pet.

Reimbursement Rate

This is the share of each covered bill the insurer pays after the deductible. Most plans offer 70%, 80% or 90%, and a lower rate means a lower premium. A few carriers go outside that band, with MetLife offering 50% and Figo advertising up to 100%.

Annual Limit

The annual limit caps what the insurer will pay in a policy year. Options range from about $2,000 to $5,000 at the low end up to unlimited, and a lower cap brings the premium down.

Accident-Only Vs Accident-And-Illness

Accident-only plans cover injuries such as broken bones, bite wounds, swallowed objects and car accidents. They don’t cover illness, so cancer, allergies, infections and hereditary disease are excluded. NAPHIA puts the average accident-only dog premium at $190 a year, about $16 a month, compared with $836 a year for accident-and-illness coverage.

Accident-only coverage makes sense mainly as a budget backstop or for an older dog that no longer qualifies for anything broader. Embrace, for example, offers only its accident-only plan to pets 15 and older. For most puppies and young adults, accident-and-illness coverage is the better buy, because accident-only plans leave out illnesses such as cancer, allergies and hereditary disease.

What Dog Insurance Doesn’t Cover

Insurance can’t cover pre-existing conditions, and that rule is close to universal. Any problem a vet has noted before coverage starts, or during the waiting period, is excluded. Some carriers will cover a curable condition again after a symptom- and treatment-free stretch: 180 days at Spot, Pumpkin and Prudent Pet, and 12 months at Embrace and Figo. That is the main reason to enroll young.

Waiting periods also limit early claims. Accident coverage starts anywhere from immediately to about five days after enrollment, and illness coverage usually starts after 14 to 15 days. Orthopedic and knee coverage can carry a much longer wait, from no extra wait at Pumpkin and Spot to 30 days at Lemonade and six months at Embrace, Fetch, Pets Best and Prudent Pet, though an early vet exam can often shorten it.

Other common exclusions include:

• Knee and cruciate ligament problems that appear before coverage or during the waiting period, which several carriers then exclude on both legs for life.
• Hereditary and congenital conditions at many insurers, according to the NAIC, although Fetch, Trupanion and Pumpkin advertise coverage for them when they aren’t pre-existing.
• Routine and preventive care, such as vaccines and checkups, unless you buy a wellness add-on.
• Breeding, pregnancy, cosmetic and elective procedures, grooming and boarding.

Is Dog Insurance Worth It?

At the national average of $836 a year, a policy costs about $8,360 over a 10-year life before any rate increases for age. A healthy dog may never claim that much back; the value lies in the big bills that are hard to absorb at once.

Breed risk is where the math tilts. A French Bulldog faces back disease (IVDD) treatment that can run $4,448 to $26,690, and a Golden Retriever cancer case can cost $3,639 to $18,198. A Dachshund with a disc episode can face $3,000 to $8,000 in treatment, and heart disease in a Mastiff can reach $5,000 to $20,000. One of those claims can outweigh years of premiums.

If you have a low-risk breed and a solid emergency fund, self-insuring can be reasonable. If a single $5,000 bill would force a hard choice, or your breed is known for costly conditions, coverage is usually worth it, especially if you enroll before any condition shows up. To weigh carriers, see the best pet insurance companies compared, and to see where insurance fits in the full budget, read the cost of owning a dog.

Sources

• NAPHIA State of the Industry 2026 Highlights (PDF)
• NAIC: Pet Insurance topic page
• Consumers’ Checkbook: Many Pet Insurance Premiums Skyrocket as Pets Get Old
• Spot: Is pet insurance cheaper for a puppy?
• Embrace: How Much Is Pet Insurance
• Fetch: Prices for Pet Insurance by Breed
• Lemonade: Pet Insurance Cost

Frequently Asked Questions