Embrace and Trupanion are two of the big players in the pet insurance industry, but they commonly carry higher premiums as well. Do big brand reputation and prices make them the ultimate options for your needs?
We compare these two companies head-to-head to help you see their similarities and differences. And if you’re not 100% sold on one of them, we also have additional options for you to review.
Licensed Insurance Professional – Reviewed & Validated
Our licensed insurance professional, Michelle Schenker, has reviewed all content and its supporting research, including each company’s policy, customer feedback, underwriters, and more.
Visit Embrace’s Website | Visit Trupanion’s Website
| Embrace | Trupanion | |
|---|---|---|
| Policy Coverage | 4.9 | 4.4 |
| Customer Service & Reputation | 4.1 | 3.7 |
| Claim Repayment | 3.0 | 2.0 |
| Plan Customization | 4.8 | 2.5 |
| Price Of Policy | 2.6 | 2.5 |
| Overall Winner | 3.9/5 | 3.0/5 |
| Visit Website | Visit Website |
TRUPANION FLORIDA RESIDENTS: The plan reviewed here is not available for new customers in Florida. Contact Trupanion to learn more about what is available in your state and read the policy carefully for details.
Policy Coverage
The table below shows specifically what Embrace and Trupanion cover. Both companies cover x-rays, blood tests, ultrasounds, cat scans, MRIs, rehabilitation, specialized exams, surgery, hospitalization, emergency care, specialty care, hydrotherapy, chronic conditions, cancer, diagnostic treatment, alternative/holistic therapy, euthanasia, behavioral therapy, non-routine dental treatment, heredity conditions, and congenital conditions.
| Embrace | Trupanion | |
|---|---|---|
| Overall Ranking in our Pet Insurance Comparison | Not Ranked | Not Ranked |
| Pre-existing Conditions | ||
| Exam Fees |  | |
| Preventative Care Available For An Extra Fee | | |
| Illnesses Waiting Period | 14 Days | 30 Days |
| Accidents Waiting Period | 2 Days | 5 Days |
| Hip Dysplasia Waiting Period | 6 Months | 30 Days |
| ACL Surgery Waiting Period | 6 Months | 30 Days |
| Enrollment Fee | $25 | $35 ($25 in WA and $0 in MD and MI) |
| 30-Day Money Back Guarantee | 30-Day Free Look Period | 30-Day Certificate |
| Claim Limits | $5,000 to unlimited | Unlimited |
| BBB Rating | A+ | A- |
| Underwriter | American Modern Property and Casualty Insurance Group | American Pet Insurance Company |
| A.M. Best Rating | A+ | Unrated |
| No Exam Required to Set Baseline for Pet's Health | |
One thing that Trupanion has going for it is that it doesn’t list any bilateral exclusions for CCL injuries. Most other pet insurance companies we review exclude CCL injuries if one leg has experienced pre-existing issues. This makes Trupanion a good option for those who have dogs prone to knee issues or have pre-existing conditions because it’s more likely to cover a second, currently healthy knee than its competitors. However, it’s always important to carefully read your contract because the sample policies we’ve examined may be different from yours.
If you’re searching for a pet insurance policy to add preventative care onto, Embrace may be a good option for you. Trupanion doesn’t offer a wellness plan.
As for waiting periods, Trupanion’s is 30 days for ACL surgery and hip dysplasia, while Embrace’s is 6 months. However, Embrace has only a 14-day waiting period for illnesses and 2 days for accidents, whereas Trupanion is 30 days for illnesses and 5 days for accidents.
Depending on your needs, you may see one of the two companies as a better fit than the other. But we give Embrace the edge in this category because it covers exam fees, while Trupanion does not. Embrace also offers a wellness plan and has shorter waiting periods for accidents and illnesses.
Policy Coverage Winner: Embrace
Customer Service & Reputation
One thing we consider for each pet insurance company is the underwriters’ A.M. Best rating. This can give you some insight into the financial stability of the company. The higher the letter grade, the better. Embrace’s underwriter is American Modern Property and Casualty Insurance Group, which holds an A+ rating. Trupanion’s underwriter is American Pet Insurance Company, which is unrated by A.M. Best. Embrace gets the nod here because an A+ rating shows greater stability than an unrated insurer.
Unfortunately, finding negative reviews for Embrace and Trupanion isn’t too difficult. However, they have vast customer bases and it’s more common for people to post poor reviews since they’re disappointed instead of positive reviews when they’re satisfied.
In our comment section for Embrace and Trupanion, there are frequent complaints about each, including long claim processing time, classifying items as pre-existing, denial of claims, premium increases, and more.
The fact that Embrace’s underwriter has an A+ rating for stability from A.M. Best bumps it ahead of Trupanion in terms of customer service and reputation.
Customer Service & Reputation Winner: Embrace
Claim Repayment
For claim repayments, Embrace averages 8-9 days for accidents and illnesses and 5 days for wellness.Meanwhile, Trupanion allows 60 days but averages 14 days. Both of these are on the longer end compared to claim repayments for the competition.
Since Embrace can have a shorter claim repayment period, it’s the winner of this category.
Claim Repayment Winner: Embrace
Plan Customization
Embrace has fully customizable plans. You can choose the annual claim limit ($5,000, $8,000, $10,000, $15,000, or $30,000) online. You can also get an unlimited claim limit, but you must call in for this as an option, which is a little frustrating since other companies that offer this option do so online. Annual deductibles can be $200, $300, $500, $750, or $1,000, and reimbursement is 70%, 80%, or 90%. So depending on your budget, you have some wiggle room to adjust the limits for each to help fit your needs.
On the other hand, Trupanion offers one plan for all insured pets that has unlimited claim limits with 90% reimbursement. It also has a per-incident deductible (which you can choose from $0 to $1,000), which means each emergency will have its own deductible. This can result in more expenses for you.
Plan Customization Winner: Embrace
Price Of Policy
Embrace has a $25 enrollment fee and a $1 transaction fee, and Trupanion has a $35 enrollment fee. But both companies offer 30-day money-back guarantees.
Below are some quotes from January 2, 2021. All information is for pets who are spayed/neutered and not an assistance animal or therapy pet.
| Breed | Birthday | Gender | Location | Deductible | Reimbursement % | Annual Maximum | Price Per Month | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Embrace | Yorkshire Terrier | December 2018 | Male | Ohio (43205) | $200 | 90% | $30,000 | $44.44 |
| Trupanion | Yorkshire Terrier | December 2018 | Male | Ohio (43205) | $200/incident | 90% | Unlimited | $55.89 |
| Embrace | Labrador Retriever | April 2017 | Female | California (90024) | $500 | 90% | $30,000 | $82.34 |
| Trupanion | Labrador Retriever | April 2017 | Female | California (90024) | $500/incident | 90% | Unlimited | $154.16 |
| Embrace | Medium Mixed Breed | December 2015 | Female | Indiana (46201) | $300 | 90% | $30,000 | $51.57 |
| Trupanion | Medium Mixed Breed | December 2015 | Female | Indiana (46201) | $300/incident | 90% | Unlimited | $78.36 |
| Embrace | American Pit Bull Terrier | September 2018 | Male | New York (10012) | $200 | 90% | $30,000 | $150.38 |
| Trupanion | American Pit Bull Terrier | September 2018 | Male | New York (10012) | $200/incident | 90% | Unlimited | $190.01 |
When we ran additional price quotes, Trupanion was consistently among the most expensive when compared against competitors. Embrace was all over the board with its pricing. Quotes for these two companies can be very similar or slightly different, which is why we always recommend gathering quotes from multiple companies.
Overall, Embrace tends to be less expensive than Trupanion in the quotes we ran. Additionally, we like that Embrace gives you more options to help fit your budget. Plus, Trupanion has a per-incident deductible, resulting in more out of pocket expenses for you if there are multiple emergencies in a policy period.
Price Of Policy Winner: Embrace
Coupons
Embrace
- If you have multiple pets, each one gets 10% off (5% in NY).
- Pay annually and get 5% off in NY.
- USAA customers are eligible for a discount of up to 15% off.
Trupanion
What’s The Verdict?
Embrace and Trupanion aren’t our first picks for pet insurance. However, if your dog has pre-existing conditions, Trupanion may be a better option if you need a condition or disease covered that can affect both sides of the body but has only presented itself on one side to-date.
If that’s not the case, then Embrace is who we’d recommend in this showdown. It has more pricing options, a more stable reputation, better claim repayment, and more.
If you didn’t find what you were looking for, our experts have gone in-depth with individual reviews of Embrace and Trupanion so you can expand your comparison.
Overall Winner: Embrace
Our experts have spent hundreds of hours researching to bring you our comprehensive pet insurance reviews, which includes more than 20 companies.
If you prefer to see winners by category, we award the best price, multiple pets, 100% reimbursement, unlimited claims, and “best for” categories, including puppies, older dogs, dental, wellness coverage, bilateral conditions, behavioral therapy, and more in our best pet insurance comparison. You’ll even see winners for exotic pets and cats.
What do you think makes Embrace or Trupanion stand out?