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Endurance is NerdWallet’s top pick for an extended car warranty provider. It offers straightforward sample contracts online and handles claims in-house, which some other warranty providers outsource.
For the three vehicles I shopped quotes for, Endurance’s coverage is on the pricey end compared to other companies. The actual cost of an extended warranty depends on your vehicle’s make, model, age and mileage, plus the level of coverage you choose.
Overall, Endurance offers comprehensive coverage and customer-friendly terms with more transparency than many other providers. To give you a better idea of what Endurance offers, I investigated contracts, compared quotes for different vehicles and listened to dozens of sales pitches. Here’s what I found.
Why trust NerdWallet
Our Home Services Team reviewed nine extended warranty companies across 50 unique rating factors.
We've read hundreds of pages of service agreements to compare coverage, exclusions and policies.
We've researched more than just the biggest national extended car warranty companies.
The Nerds' take on Endurance
Best for inclusive coverage
Cost comparison
$$$
Online quote
Yes
Plan choices
Excellent
NerdWallet rating: 5 out of 5 stars.
What makes it shine: I compared Endurance to other companies through its exclusionary plan, which covers all components except those listed as exclusions. However, the company also stands out for its range of coverage options. Endurance offers three main plans, all clearly explained in a preview contract, plus several other plans for special circumstances like high mileage or luxury vehicles. The Endurance website lets you easily get quotes, see sample agreements and pay to start a plan online. Endurance is also a direct provider and administrator that handles the majority of its own claims in-house, while many other warranty companies outsource claim handling.
What could be better: Endurance’s per-mile and per-month cost, based on an average of 1,200 miles driven monthly, was higher than some providers, although it wasn’t the highest. Also, Endurance doesn’t cover damage to a non-covered part by a covered part (or vice versa), while some other providers do.
📌 Endurance’s extended car warranty plans
Endurance advertises three main plans on its website, but those aren’t your only options. All of Endurance’s plans cover basic, make-or-break issues like an engine failure, but you’ll pay a higher premium for anything more than the essentials.
Secure Plus: Powertrain with additional components. Covers the following components and system:
- Air conditioning.
- Brakes.
- Drive axle.
- Electrical components.
- Engine.
- Hybrid coverage.
- Steering.
- Transfer case.
- Transmission.
- Turbo or supercharger.
Superior: Stated components. Covers everything in the Supreme Plus plan, as well as the fuel system, suspension and cooling system.
Supreme: Exclusionary, or bumper-to-bumper. Covers everything in the Superior plan, plus gaskets.
These are the other plans you can get through Endurance:
- Secure: Basic powertrain coverage with the lowest payments.
- Select Premier: For high-mileage vehicles. Covers essential vehicle components, select air conditioner parts and electrical systems.
- Advantage: Exclusionary, including up to $3,500 in annual maintenance.
- Supreme for Highline Vehicles: For specific luxury vehicles.
Some plans can be customized to include limited coverage for hybrids and Tesla EVs.
💸 How much Endurance will cost you
Monthly fees
These were the costs we were quoted for Endurance’s Supreme plan, adjusted to include down payments and likely contract terms:
- 2025 Toyota SUV with 5k miles: $91.63 monthly or 6.9 cents per mile.
- 2025 Audi sedan with 7k miles: $114.60 monthly or 8.6 cents per mile.
- 2017 Honda sedan with 80k miles: $109.20 monthly or 9.1 cents per mile.
The price you’ll pay depends on your car’s make, model, age and mileage, plus the plan you choose. You have the option to pay upfront or make payments with Endurance. Endurance will reimburse you or the repair facility once your claim is approved.
Endurance has an online customer portal where you can access your contract, payment information and claims. Our team is still able to log into the portal and access our sample contract and quotes.
Where Endurance’s pricing lands in the pack
Endurance’s exclusionary plan fell on the higher end of the average prices we found when shopping. These are the average costs we found when shopping for an exclusionary plan across all of the extended warranty companies we reviewed:
- 2025 Toyota SUV with 5k miles: $63 average monthly (about $35 to $115 range), or 5.29 cents per mile.
- 2025 Audi sedan with 7k miles: $84 average monthly (about $40 to $175 range), or 7.69 cents per mile.
- 2017 Honda sedan with 80k miles: $98 average monthly (about $60 to $140 range), or 8.16 cents per mile.
Deductible cost
I was quoted a $100 deductible per repair for the vehicles I shopped for. The Endurance website states that the company offers flexible deductibles ranging from $0 to $500. Monthly premium payments will be higher with a lower deductible. Other online reviewers report that they were offered deductible options and were able to negotiate their prices.
🤓 Nerdy Tip
Car warranties, including Endurance’s extended warranty plans, pay to repair or replace components and systems that malfunction because of mechanical or electronic failure. They don’t cover normal wear and tear, which means an item stops working because it's worn out. Wear-and-tear items typically include tires, brake pads and rotors. 💡 Endurance membership perks stand out
There are a few extra benefits you get with an Endurance extended warranty that other companies don’t offer. Here are our favorites:
- Elite benefits. For a $29 activation fee, Endurance offers a year of benefits, including tire coverage, windshield repair from road hazards, key fob replacement and up to $500 collision discount.
- Roadside assistance. Endurance offers 24-hour roadside assistance for a flat tire, dead battery, fluid delivery, towing or lockout service.
- Rental car coverage. Endurance pays $30 per day or $150 per repair for you to rent a car while your vehicle is under service. Some extended warranties, such as Carshield and CARCHEX, offer slightly more coverage, up to $60 per day or $420 total.
- Trip interruption coverage. Endurance offers a maximum of $150 per day for 3 days ($450 total). This is on the higher end of coverage compared to other companies we reviewed, and some don’t explicitly offer trip interruption coverage at all.
🔎 Spotted by the Nerds: Endurance has no set aggregate dollar limit for its exclusionary plan. All repairs and benefits can't exceed the average condition trade-in value per J.D. Power at the time of the vehicle repair. This is one of the best aggregate limit policies we saw when shopping for extended warranties. Several companies have a set cash limit, such as $7,500, no matter how much your vehicle is worth. Endurance does have a $10,000 limit for its Secure and Secure Plus plans.
🚨 The catch with Endurance
There are a few aspects of Endurance coverage with limits to watch out for. Here’s what to know:
- Perk usage. You can only use one service within 72 hours and three in 12 months. Services include roadside assistance, rental car coverage and trip interruption coverage. Individual services like towing and fuel delivery are limited to a $150 payout.
- Resulting damage. Endurance doesn’t cover damage caused by a covered component to a non-covered part. It also doesn’t cover the opposite – damage to a covered part by a non-covered component. Several other extended warranties cover resulting damage in one of these directions, but not both.
» Learn more: How to file a car warranty claim in five steps
🚙 Used-car owners should look at Endurance
Endurance has no mileage limits to be eligible for coverage, so it can be a good choice for owners of used cars with higher mileage.
The company’s Select Premier plan covers essential vehicle components, select air conditioner parts and electrical systems for vehicles with up to 150,000 miles. Endurance’s Advantage Prime plan covers vehicles up to 20 years old with unlimited mileage on the odometer, which is rare for extended car warranties.
🤓 Nerdy Tip
We like that Endurance makes it easy to get sample agreements and quotes online, but some high-mileage vehicles will require a phone call. Who can get an Endurance plan?
Endurance sells plans in all U.S. states except for Massachusetts. There are special rules for vehicle services contracts in California, where Endurance sells only mechanical breakdown insurance.
What car owners say about Endurance
This section highlights customer reviews and posts about Endurance. Reddit is an online forum where users share their thoughts in “threads” on various topics. The popular site includes plenty of discussion on financial subjects like extended car warranties, so I sifted through Reddit forums to get a pulse check on how users feel about Endurance. People post anonymously, so we cannot confirm their individual experiences or circumstances. Likewise, I can’t verify the experiences customers post on consumer review websites.
Reddit's overall take on Endurance is mixed. The overall theme is that Endurance is a better option among extended car warranties, but that non-manufacturer warranties are often not worth the investment overall. On the positive side, some users have had genuinely good experiences. One user described getting over $12,000 in repairs covered on a $2,000 warranty. Others recommend Endurance specifically because it administers claims in-house rather than outsourcing them.
🟢 A standout positive review:
"This is the only extended warranty company that exceeded my expectations. There was no haggling about what was covered or excuses why it wasn't. The mechanic said they were surprised how easy Endurance made the transaction."
However, many users report negative experiences with Endurance on Reddit. These experiences tend to involve poor communication, unreachable adjusters, delayed approvals, and claim denials citing "pre-existing conditions." Generally, most Reddit users discussing individual extended warranty companies recommend sticking to a manufacturer’s warranty when possible.
🔴 A standout negative review:
"I was denied access to basic information like claim numbers, inspection results, and status updates. Endurance insisted all communication go through the repair shop, excluding me entirely from the process."
Endurance is Better Business Bureau (BBB) accredited with an A rating. It earns fairly positive average ratings on customer review websites, including the BBB website, Consumer Affairs and Trustpilot, although its total volume of BBB complaints is high.
NerdWallet's Editorial Team Picks for Best Overall Extended Car Warranties
See which extended car warranties our writers and editors think are the best options for car owners.
What to know before buying an extended car warranty
To help avoid costly misunderstandings in the future, make sure to read the coverage and exclusions information in your contract. You have a right to read your contract before purchasing a plan, and it’s important to understand that extended car warranties:
- They always have exclusions to coverage, no matter what their sales pitches say. Read your contract carefully before purchasing a plan — especially anything listed as an exclusion or limit of liability. For example, extended warranties tend not to cover damage to a covered part that’s caused by a non-covered part.
- They’re not a type of insurance. Even though some companies call their service fees deductibles, car warranties do not work the same way as insurance policies. They differ in what they cover and how they pay for repairs or replacements. An extended car warranty is not a substitute for car insurance, and it’s not legally required like car insurance.
- They can deny your claim for several reasons. Examples include work performed on a covered item without approval, or modification of a system with aftermarket or used parts.
- They may not pay enough to cover the full cost of repairing a covered item. For example, extended car warranties often authorize hourly labor rates up to the repair facility's posted labor rate, and reimburse for the hours needed to complete the repair based on a nationally recognized labor guide. Your repair may take longer or cost more than your warranty is willing to pay.
Nerdy Perspective
When I shopped companies that offer extended car warranties, I found that many attempted to gloss over important details and pushed for me to commit on the spot. Repeatedly, I was given a high-level list that included the engine, transmission, electrical system, etc. for exclusionary coverage. When I asked specific questions, I was assured I would be getting a plan that “covers everything.” But when I obtained a sample agreement, that wasn’t always true. Comparing contract details is important.
Frequently asked questions about Endurance
What items are covered by Endurance?
Endurance’s has plans that cover everything from basic powertrain elements like the engine and transmission to cooling, electronic systems and gaskets. Specific coverage for each item is outlined in each customer’s contract.
How long do you have to have Endurance before you can use it?
You will have to wait 30 days and 1,000 miles of driving to submit a claim for repairs. This is a standard wait time with car warranties, though one company we reviewed had no wait time (Olive) and another had a 90-day wait (Toco).
Does Endurance offer refunds?
Endurance does offer a full refund if you cancel within the first 30 days of your plan. After 30 days, you can still cancel anytime. You’ll get a prorated refund, which is the cost of the plan minus the months you had it or the miles you drove, whichever is less. Endurance also subtracts a $50 fee and all claim amounts from your refund.
Can I transfer my Endurance car warranty to a new car owner?
Yes, you can transfer your Endurance car warranty to a new owner for a $50 fee.
Alternatives to Endurance
Olive
Best consumer-friendly terms
Olive
Cost comparison
$$
Online quote
Yes
Plan choices
Limited
Why it's a good alternative to Endurance
Olive:
- Is the only extended car warranty company we reviewed with no waiting period for coverage to begin.
- Spells out exact national guides used to set labor cost limits.
- Has among the lowest per-mile and per-month cost for non-luxury car brands.
This option makes more sense for car owners who don't want to wait 30 days for their extended warranty to kick in.
Carshield
Best for low cost per mile (new car)
Cost comparison
$$
Online quote
No
Plan choices
Excellent
Why it's a good alternative to Endurance
Carshield:
- Offers one of the cheapest per-mile plans for a newer car.
- Covers the cost if they require a teardown to diagnose a problem with your car.
- Has higher maximums for roadside assistance and rental car reimbursement.
This option makes more sense for car owners who want lower premiums and don't mind a higher deductible.
Premier Auto Protect
Best for 24/7 claim filing
Cost comparison
$$$
Online quote
No
Plan choices
Good
Why it's a good alternative to Endurance
Premier Auto Protect:
- Offers 24/7 claims submission.
This option makes more sense for car owners who want the ability to file a claim anytime.
How we rate and review car warranties
Our Home Services team reviews car warranty companies with our readers in mind. We provide unbiased reviews that consider several factors, including cost, covered items, coverage limits, customer ratings, ability to choose your own repair shop and transparency. When rating car warranties, we researched 9 companies, compared terms and conditions in their service agreements and read customer reviews from three consumer review websites. While NerdWallet does have partnerships with some car warranty companies, our editorial team is not involved in that process to ensure unbiased reviews and recommendations. Read more about how NerdWallet rates car warranties.
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