Pawp Review 2025: A Pet Insurance Alternative

Pawp, a telehealth service for your pet, is an alternative to traditional pet insurance. For an annual fee, your pet can have unlimited virtual visits with Pawp’s network of vet professionals. These vets can provide advice, reminders and a personalized care plan for your pet. You can also add Pawp’s Emergency Fund, which pays up to $3,000 per year for emergency care.

Keep in mind that telehealth Pawp vets can’t take the place of your in-person veterinarian. They can’t do things like perform surgery or run diagnostic tests on your pet. If you’re looking for a plan that will pay for these services on a non-emergency basis, consider standard pet insurance instead. (See our list of the Best Pet Insurance Companies.)

• Why doesn't this company have a NerdWallet star rating?

  Because Pawp’s product is so different from pet insurance policies, we can’t give the company a fair star rating based on the same criteria we use for standard pet insurers.

Pawp’s main product is a 24/7 telehealth subscription service, with an add-on for emergency care.

Pawp telehealth

Pawp’s base membership plan provides unlimited virtual visits with a network of veterinary doctors and nurses. The vets often can’t prescribe medicine or make diagnoses. However, they can recommend an in-person vet visit, answer questions and develop an ongoing plan to keep your pet healthy.

Pawp Emergency Fund

Pawp’s Emergency Fund add-on is a bit like a pet insurance plan in that it can help you pay for sudden, unexpected vet expenses. It’s available for an additional fee on top of your annual subscription.

The Emergency Fund offers up to $3,000 for one life-threatening emergency per year, per household. So if you have two cats on your plan, for example, it can pay for emergency care for one or the other — but not both — in a single year.

The Emergency Fund can cover scenarios like bloat, poisoning or a car accident. It can also pay for euthanasia and cremation if necessary. However, it covers only the initial emergency visit, not any follow-ups.

To be reimbursed, you typically must start a video call with a Pawp vet so they can determine whether your pet needs emergency care. If so, you must take your pet to a licensed clinic for treatment within eight hours.

» MORE: The best cheap pet insurance companies

Pawp’s base telehealth service doesn’t pay for anything other than the consultation itself. Say a Pawp vet suggests that your dog may need a diagnostic test or a certain course of treatment. You’ll have to arrange and pay for those services yourself.

If you add the Emergency Fund to your Pawp subscription, it won’t cover:

• Emergencies that happen during your initial waiting period.

• Emergencies related to breeding or pregnancy.

• Treatment for follow-up care after the initial emergency.

• Preventive or other non-emergency care.

• Illnesses that could’ve been prevented by a vaccine that a vet recommended but you chose not to get for your pet.

• Scheduled procedures.

• Situations that weren’t deemed emergencies by a Pawp vet.

• Treatment for conditions caused by neglect or endangerment of your pet.

• Boarding or day care for your pet. 

The main difference between Pawp and pet insurance is which services they cover. Pawp’s base subscription includes virtual exams and advice only. Meanwhile, standard pet insurance plans pay for a wide range of services such as surgeries, medicine and diagnostic tests. Learn more about pet insurance coverage.

Pawp’s Emergency Fund could be an alternative to pet insurance if you’re worried about unexpected expenses. However, it’s fairly restrictive. The emergency must be sudden and life-threatening, so the fund won’t help if your pet is diagnosed with a chronic long-term illness, for example.

Pet insurance generally has higher annual coverage limits than the $3,000 Emergency Fund, too.

That said, we like that the Emergency Fund can cover problems related to conditions your pet had before you signed up for Pawp. Most pet insurance policies won’t cover pre-existing conditions.

» MORE: Is pet insurance worth it?

Age restrictions: Pawp doesn’t have any restrictions on how old or young your pet can be when enrolling.

Waiting periods: A pet insurance waiting period is the time between when you buy your plan and when your coverage starts. While you’ll have immediate access to Pawp’s telehealth vets as soon as you sign up for the base plan, the Emergency Fund has a 14-day waiting period.

The cost of Pawp’s telehealth membership is $99 per year. If you want to add the Emergency Fund, you’ll pay an additional $19 per month.

» MORE: How much does pet insurance cost?

It depends. Having 24/7 access to Paw’s vet professionals could provide peace of mind if a minor health issue arises and you’re not sure it’s worth an in-person vet visit. And the Emergency Fund could pay off if something more serious goes wrong.

If you’re looking for a service that will cover more of your vet bills, pet insurance may offer better value. An insurance plan can pay for medicine, hospital stays and surgery even in non-emergency situations.

Pawp may be a useful option for pets who aren’t a good fit for an insurance plan. For example, you might consider it for an older pet who’s expensive to insure. It may also be a good fit for pets with pre-existing conditions that insurance wouldn’t cover.

Website: Pawp’s website offers basic information about how the plan works, but to sign up for the service you’ll need to download the mobile app.

Mobile app: To access Pawp’s teleheath services, you’ll need to use the app. You can also sign up for membership, see account information and add or remove pets from your plan.

Claims: To file a claim for the Emergency Fund, use the mobile app. You'll need to provide a medical record and paid invoice along with details about your pet’s emergency. Pawp’s staff may request more documentation if necessary.

Customer service: You can email support@pawp.com or reach out through the app.

» MORE: Best pet insurance that covers dental issues

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 pet insurance, so we sifted through Reddit forums to get a pulse check on how users feel about insurers. People post anonymously, so we cannot confirm their individual experiences or circumstances.

Pawp gets mixed reviews from commenters on Reddit. One common complaint is having emergency claims denied, in some cases the denials came even after the pet owner spoke with a Pawp vet and was told to go to the emergency room.

Some commenters express concern about how effectively a veterinarian or vet tech can identify an emergency in a video call. However, a few posters report more positive experiences, including helpful telehealth vets and emergency claims that were approved.

» MORE: Does pet insurance cover surgery?

Questions from Reddit: Our experts answer

Is Pawp good for pets with pre-existing conditions?

It may be. If your pet’s condition could potentially turn into a life-threatening emergency, Pawp’s Emergency Fund could come in handy. A virtual vet could also be helpful in managing your pet’s ongoing conditions. Keep in mind that telehealth vets can't always prescribe medication.

Is Pawp good for people with multiple pets?

You can add up to six pets to your account for the same price, making it relatively affordable compared to the cost of separate pet insurance plans. Having unlimited telehealth visits for multiple pets could save you money on in-person vet visits. But you can only use the Emergency Fund once per year, regardless of how many pets you have.

• See all of NerdWallet’s pet insurance reviews

  AKC Allstate ASPCA Banfield Chewy Costco Embrace Fetch Figo GEICO Hartville Healthy Paws Kanguro Lemonade

  Liberty Mutual MetLife Nationwide Pawp Petco Pets Best Progressive Prudent Pet Pumpkin Spot State Farm Trupanion Wagmo