Pet Insurance Calculator

This calculator builds a synthetic monthly premium from the same rating factors real pet insurers use, starting from a flat base rate of $45/month for dogs and $28/month for cats and then layering multipliers on top. Age is the biggest lever: dogs get cheaper before age 1 (0.85x), hold steady through age 4, then climb 10% per year through age 7 and 18% per year after that; cats follow the same shape but the steep climb doesn't start until age 10. For dogs, breed size adds its own multiplier — small breeds get a 15% discount, giants pay 45% more — because larger dogs statistically rack up more orthopedic and cardiac claims. Your chosen annual coverage limit feeds a logarithmic factor (1 + log10(limit/5000) × 0.25), so doubling the limit doesn't double the premium — it's a mild scaling curve reflecting that most claims fall well under a policy's ceiling.

Raising your deductible earns a credit capped at 30%, and dropping your reimbursement percentage below the default 80% lowers cost through a linear factor. The wellness add-on is a flat $22 (dog) or $18 (cat) monthly rider, not risk-rated. The most useful number here isn't the premium itself but the net benefit: the calculator estimates average annual vet costs by pet type and age, applies your deductible and reimbursement rate, and subtracts your annual premium — a negative result means you're statistically expected to pay more in premiums than you'd get back in claims, which is normal for insurance (you're buying protection against the tail risk, not the average year).