Pets Best alternatives: 4 insurers that beat it on structure
Some honesty about the assignment: Pets Best scores 8.9 with us and wins most price comparisons it enters, so the case for leaving is narrow. It exists, though, and it's usually one specific line: the $5,000 cap on the cheaper tier, or the six month cruciate wait somebody found out about mid-limp.
Why people shop for a Pets Best alternative
The $5,000 tier is the usual culprit. It's the quote that makes Pets Best look unbeatable, and it's also a number that one emergency surgery can exhaust; our cost guide puts obstruction surgery alone at $3,000 to $7,000. The unlimited tier fixes this and costs more, at which point the price gap that brought you here narrows.
The other reasons are operational. The cruciate wait is six months, waivable only through a vet exam filed in a tight window most people learn about too late. Illness claims wait 14 days. Reimbursement pacing draws mixed reviews during busy periods, though the optional direct pay to your vet softens that. And the underwriter varies by policy, which matters to people who read the paper behind the brand.
Pets Best vs the alternatives at a glance
Typical accident and illness configurations. Details vary by state and plan tier, so treat this as a map and confirm terms on the insurer's current policy documents.
| Dimension | Pets Best | Trupanion | Embrace | Healthy Paws | Lemonade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Monthly cost range | Dogs ~$32 to $48, cats $20 to $29 | Dogs $60 to $110, cats $25 to $55 | Dogs ~$39 to $84, cats $19 to $45 | Dogs $57 to $101 at age 2, rising steeply with age | Dogs ~$30 to $55, cats $14 to $33 |
| Payout caps | $5,000 or unlimited, by tier | None, no annual or lifetime limits | Capped on most configurations | None, no annual or lifetime limits | $5,000 to $100,000 annual, by tier |
| Deductible | Annual, $50 to $1,000 | $0 to $1,000 per condition, once for life | Annual, drops $50 per claim-free year | Annual, resets every year | Annual, resets every year |
| Reimbursement | 70% to 90% | 90%, one plan | 70% to 90% | 70/80/90% enrolled at 5 or under; lower tiers at 6+ | 70% to 90% |
| Exam fees | Included on most plans | Not covered | Optional add-on | Not covered, no add-on exists | Optional add-on |
| Direct pay / claims | Optional direct pay to your vet | Paid at checkout at equipped hospitals | Reimbursement only | Reimbursement, often ~2 days | App claims, simple ones in minutes; no direct pay |
| Waiting periods | 3 days accidents, 14 illness, 6 months cruciate (waivable) | About 5 days injury / 30 days illness, varies by state | ~2 days accidents, 14 illness, 6 months ortho (waiver to 14) | 15 days most states; 12-month hip dysplasia under age 6 | Accidents ~none, 14 days illness, 6 months cruciate |
The four alternatives, and who each one is for
1. Trupanion: the only clear upgrade
Everything Pets Best caps, resets, or makes you wait for, Trupanion structures away: no payout limits, a deductible paid once per condition for life, direct pay settled at checkout at equipped hospitals, and a premium that never rises for birthdays or claims. It costs roughly double, which is the entire debate. The head-to-head frames it as structure vs sticker price, because that's the whole matchup, and the full review covers the exam-fee gap on Trupanion's side.
2. Embrace: the loyalty structure
Embrace's Healthy Pet Deductible drops $50 every claim-free year, dental illness gets $1,000 in the base plan, and its orthopedic waiver window (14 days) is more forgiving than Pets Best's cruciate exam timing. Exam fees become an add-on and the price runs higher. It's the pick for owners who want the policy to get better the longer nothing goes wrong.
3. Healthy Paws: uncapped simplicity, young pets only
One plan with no payout caps, priced between Pets Best and Trupanion. Enroll at 5 or under for the full reimbursement menu; the tiers degrade after that, and premiums climb with age. There are no exam fee options at all. Our comparison calls it a coin flip that lands on your pet's enrollment age.
4. Lemonade: the deeper discount
If you came to Pets Best for price and want to go further, Lemonade's dog quotes start around $30 with cats at $14 to $33. You'd accept a thinner base plan, add-on exam and dental coverage, and the same six month cruciate wait but without a waiver. It's a rational trade for a young pet and a hard budget, and a downgrade in every other case.
You already know the budget quote. The useful second data point is what uncapped, once-per-condition coverage costs for your pet. That's a two minute answer.
Get your Trupanion quote →The switching catch to check first
Every insurer on this page excludes pre-existing conditions, and "pre-existing" starts at symptoms, not diagnosis. Anything your pet showed signs of while insured here, an ear infection, a limp, an odd lab value, becomes uncovered history at the next company. Waiting periods also restart from zero on the new policy. So never cancel the old plan until the new one is past its waiting periods, and read our pre-existing condition guide before you file the cancellation, not after.
When staying with Pets Best makes sense
Most of the time, frankly. Buy the unlimited tier instead of the $5,000 one, file the cruciate waiver exam inside its window, and the two loudest complaints on this page disappear for a few dollars a month. That version of Pets Best is the value benchmark every other quote here has to beat, which is exactly why it sits at 8.9 in our rankings.
Bottom line
Leaving Pets Best only makes sense in a direction. Up means Trupanion and paying for structure. Sideways means Embrace or Healthy Paws and trading one feature set for another. Down means Lemonade and a thinner safety net. Decide the direction before you collect quotes, or the quotes will decide for you.
Is there better pet insurance than Pets Best?
On structure, yes: Trupanion (9.8 in our rankings) removes payout caps, converts the deductible to once per condition for life, and pays vets directly at checkout, at roughly double the premium. On price and coverage combined, Pets Best at 8.9 is the benchmark most alternatives fail to beat.
Is the $5,000 Pets Best cap enough?
For routine years, easily; for a bad year, no. A single obstruction surgery runs $3,000 to $7,000 and cancer treatment can pass $10,000, so the cap can exhaust mid-treatment. If you stay with Pets Best, the unlimited tier is the version we'd buy.
Can I waive the Pets Best cruciate waiting period?
Yes, in most states: a vet exam performed within 3 days before to 7 days after your policy start date, with the waiver form submitted within 30 days, cuts the six month cruciate wait. Miss the window and it can't be added later, which is how most people end up reading pages like this one.
More matchups: Trupanion vs Pets Best · Pets Best vs Healthy Paws · Pets Best vs Nationwide · All comparisons
Keep reading: 8 insurers ranked · Trupanion review · Full cost guide