Pets Best rating (Elite policy): 5 out of 5 stars

Best for: Overall

Pets Best topped Yahoo Finance’s evaluation of the best pet insurance companies thanks to its unparalleled combination of competitive average costs and extensive coverage.

There are three Pets Best policies to choose from, each with slightly different coverage details and costs: Essential, Plus, and Elite. The Elite plan scored five stars in our evaluation, and the Plus (4.7 stars) and Essential (4.6 stars) policies were also top rated.

Pros

• Unlimited annual coverage option available

• Affordable $50 deductible option

• Low average cost in our price comparison, especially for the unlimited annual policy

• Ability to pay a vet directly so you don’t have to wait for reimbursement

• Alternative therapy covered

• Behavioral therapy medication and consultations covered

• Reimbursement can be made directly to a CareCredit card

Cons

• No coverage for supplements or prescription food

• Excludes chronic problems such as hip dysplasia, diabetes, heart disease, hyperthyroidism, and Cushing’s

Learn more: How does pet insurance work? A complete guide.

When shopping for pet insurance, look at these basic details:

• Annual maximum limit choices: $5,000, unlimited

• Deductible choices: $50, $100, $200, $250, $500

• Reimbursement choices: 70%, 80%, 90%

• For accident coverage: 3 days (in most states)

• For illness coverage: 14 days (in most states)

• Special waiting period: 6 months for cruciate ligament issues

• Minimum pet age: 7 weeks

• Maximum pet age: None

Pets Best policies cover a wide range of problems, from hereditary and congenital conditions to cancer to infections. Here’s a closer look at coverage under the Pets Best Elite policy.

Pets Best Elite accident and illness policy

The policy offers the highest level of coverage among Pets Best’s three plans, including:

• The vet exam fee

• Hereditary and congenital conditions such as cherry eye and Wobbler syndrome

• Diagnostics such as X-rays and ultrasounds

• Dental accidents and illnesses

• Behavioral therapy consultations and prescription medicines (but not behavioral treatment or training)

• Alternative therapies such as acupuncture, chiropractic care, cold laser therapy, physical therapy, and hydrotherapy.

• Prescription drugs

• Euthanasia

The accident-only plan covers problems such as broken bones, foreign bodies that are swallowed, and injuries from being hit by a vehicle.

Pets Best offers two tiers of wellness plans: EssentialWellness and BestWellness. Both cover the same routine care expenses but with different pricing and annual maximums:

• EssentialWellness: Benefits up to $305/year for $14-$21.75/month

• BestWellness: Benefits up to $535/year for $26-$32.58/month

The EssentialWellness and BestWellness plans will reimburse you up to specified limits for the following:

• An annual wellness exam

• Vaccinations

• Teeth cleaning

• Spaying and neutering

• Rabies

• Flea/tick prevention

• Heartworm prevention

• Deworming

• Titer vaccine test

• Heartworm test or FELV screen

• Blood, fecal, parasite exam

• Urinalysis or ERD

• Microchipping

Pets Best does not cover any preexisting conditions. It defines a preexisting condition as: “Any condition for which a veterinarian provided medical advice, the pet received treatment for, or the pet displayed signs or symptoms consistent with the stated condition prior to the effective date of a pet insurance policy [Policy Effective Date] or during any waiting period.”

Yes, if you buy pet insurance from Pets Best you’ll have access to its 24/7 pet helpline. This gives you access to veterinary experts with no limits on usage of the helpline. It’s ideal for questions about things the pet has eaten, training tips, and other issues.

Pets Best policies won’t cover expenses such as:

• Prescriptions not included in Pets Best’s formulary

• Breeding

• Boarding and transportation, including ambulances

• Preexisting bilateral conditions, even when they appear on the other side of the body

• Elective and cosmetic procedures, such as tail docking and declawing

• Experimental medications and therapies

• Claims for pets who were found to be healthy and with no clinical symptoms

• Complications from tests and treatments not covered by the policy

• Anal gland expression

• Injuries from intentional acts, such as dog fighting

• Conditions due to racing, such as sled and track racing

• Cremation and burial (although euthanasia is covered)

• Increases: You can increase coverage only at the annual renewal time, such as moving from 70% to 80% coinsurance. However, increasing your annual limit will require canceling the policy and buying a new one. This will reset the waiting periods and the preexisting coverage exclusions.

• Decreases: You can decrease your Pets Best coverage at any time, such as lowering your annual limit or going from 80% to 70% coinsurance.

We found Pets Best’s costs to be competitive, especially for its unlimited policy.

In our evaluation, Pets Best’s policy with $5,000 in annual coverage has costs below the average.

For unlimited annual coverage, Pets Best is a bargain considering the coverage included. While Lemonade has a lower average cost for its base plan, many of Lemonade’s coverage types require extra costs for add-ons.

Yes, Pets Best has a 5% multi-pet discount per pet when you insure more than one cat or dog.

Another advantage with Pets Best is the ability to pay a vet directly. To use Vet Direct Pay, you send a signed copy of a veterinarian reimbursement form along with your claim paperwork.

Here’s what to know about making claims for Pets Best pet insurance:

• To make a claim: You’ll need to submit a completed claim form and copies of all paid invoices. Pets Best may require complete medical records for the pet in order to process the claim.

• To submit claims quickly: Log in to your customer account online and upload everything electronically.

• To receive reimbursements faster: Set up a default reimbursement selection in your account. You can get reimbursement directly to a bank account or a CareCredit credit card if you have one.

• If your claim is denied: You can appeal the decision.

You have 180 days from the vet visit to submit a claim to Pets Best.

Pets Best says it takes five to seven days if payments are going directly to your bank account and three or five days if you’ve chosen to get reimbursement to your CareCredit credit card. Paper checks will take longer.

A good mobile app is important so that you can check your coverage details and claims status. Pets Best’s mobile app is highly rated by users.

With its app, you can access your pet’s coverage information, submit and view claims, receive reminders for payments, access the 24/7 telehealth line, and more.

Take a look at Pets Best mobile app ratings:

• Apple App store: 4.6 of of 5 stars

• Google Play store: 4.8 of of 5 stars

Pets Best pet insurance is available in all 50 states.

You can make claims with Pets Best from any veterinarian in U.S., Canada, and U.S. territory or military installations/bases in foreign countries.

There’s no pet medical exam requirement for buying a Pets Best policy.

You can contact Pets Best either by phone, fax, or mail:

• Contact Pets Best at 1-877-738-7237 from Monday to Friday (6 a.m to 7 p.m. MT) and Saturday (6 a.m. to 2 p.m. MT)

• The fax number is 1-866-777-1434

• The mailing address is: Pets Best Insurance Services, LLC, 965 Keller Rd., Altamonte Springs, FL 32714

Pets Best has a 30-day free look period during which you can cancel a policy for a full refund as long as no claims were paid. This cancellation will void the policy.

You can cancel your Pets Best policy at any time by notifying them in writing via mail, fax, or email. Policies canceled in midterm will be refunded on a pro-rata basis.

We researched the coverage details and prices for 15 pet insurance plans. We then weighted categories and each pet insurer was scored relative to the others to find the best pet insurance companies. Here are the factors we incorporated.

Coverage types: 40% of score. We examined the coverage provided by the base policy, without the extra cost of add-ons. This encompassed coverage for alternative therapy, behavioral therapy, dental illness, euthanasia or end-of-life expenses, exotic pets, hereditary and congenital conditions, preexisting conditions, prescription food and supplements, veterinary exam fees, and advertising/reward for lost/stolen pets.

Average cost: 30% of score. We evaluated costs in five states for $5,000 and unlimited coverage for a mixed-breed dog (age 1), a French bulldog (age 5), and a Labrador retriever (age 8).

Unlimited coverage option: 10% of score. We gave points when pet insurers offered an unlimited annual limit (or a $100,000 limit), which gives pet owners the most robust financial protection possible in the event of a catastrophic pet medical issue.

Direct payments to the veterinarian: 5% of score. We gave points to pet insurers that state on their websites that they accommodate direct vet payments.

No special waiting periods for special conditions: 5% of score. We have points when pet insurers have no waiting periods for special conditions, such as cruciate ligament conditions.

Routine wellness plan: 5% of score. Companies that offer a routine wellness plan in addition to pet insurance received points.

Multi-pet discount: 5% of score. We gave points when pet insurers offered a discount for insuring multiple pets.