Embrace vs Pets Best
Embrace wins on coverage depth and score: 8.8 against Pets Best at 8.1 for dogs (8.7 vs 8.4 for cats), with a 12-month curable pre-existing reinstatement path that Lemonade also describes in most states, a wellness allowance covering even grooming and nutrition consults, and a deductible that drops $50 every claim-free year. Both impose 6-month waits on cruciate events (Embrace cuts theirs to 14 days with an early orthopedic exam; Pets Best may waive via vet certification). Choose Embrace for its curable-condition path, or Pets Best for its short accident wait. Compare current quotes for price.
Get a Lemonade quote
Lemonade is the one insurer on this site we can send you to for a live quote. That does not make it the right plan for every pet. As of October 2, 2026, Lemonade Pet is not yet available in Alaska, Idaho, Kansas, South Dakota, Vermont, West Virginia, or Wyoming.
Get a quote from LemonadeSide by side
| Embrace | Pets Best | |
|---|---|---|
| Editorial score (dogs) | 8.8/10 | 8.1/10 |
| Annual limit | $2k-unlimited | $5k-unlimited |
| Deductible | Annual, $100 to $1,000 ($100/$250/$500/$750/$1,000). Drops $50 for every claim-free year via the Healthy Pet Deductible. | Annual, $50/$100/$200/$250/$500/$1,000 |
| Reimbursement options | 70%, 80% or 90% | 70%, 80% or 90% |
| Accident wait | Covered as soon as the policy is effective | 3 days (waivable entirely with a qualifying vet exam submitted within 30 days of enrollment) |
| Illness wait | 14 days | 14 days |
| Orthopedic / cruciate wait | 6 months for cruciate ligament injury, IVDD and hip dysplasia , cut to 14 days if your vet performs an orthopedic exam and submits it within your first two weeks | 6 months for cruciate ligament events. Waiting periods may be reduced or waived when a participating veterinarian certifies the pet (exam up to 3 days before or 7 days after the effective date; form back within 30 days of the exam) |
| Wellness add-on | Available | Available |
| Direct vet pay | No, reimbursement only | No, reimbursement only |
Compare current quotes for the same pet and ZIP code, using the same deductible, reimbursement rate, annual limit, and add-ons. Older catalog price examples do not establish which insurer costs less today.
Pre-existing conditions
Embrace: Curable pre-existing conditions (like an old ear infection or a one-off bout of vomiting) can be re-evaluated and covered again after 12 consecutive symptom-free, treatment-free months. Chronic conditions (diabetes, ongoing allergies, chronic orthopedic issues) stay excluded for good. Few competitors distinguish curable from chronic this explicitly.
Pets Best: Not covered, standard exclusion for signs shown before enrollment or during the waiting period.
Choose Embrace if
Your pet has a curable condition in its past (an old ear infection, a single bout of vomiting), because Embrace re-covers curable pre-existing conditions after 12 consecutive symptom-free months while chronic and knee or ligament conditions stay excluded. Also choose it if you claim rarely (the Healthy Pet Deductible falls $50 per claim-free year) or want the broadest wellness allowance, $250 or $450 a year toward routine care including grooming and nail trims.
Choose Pets Best if
You want a short accident wait. Deductibles run $50 to $1,000 annually, limits come in $5,000, $10,000 or unlimited, and the 3-day accident wait can be waived with a qualifying vet exam within 30 days of enrollment. Note that exam-fee coverage costs extra on the base Essential plan.
The exclusions cheat sheet
A plain-English guide to waiting periods and key exclusions across eight insurers, with links to the full reviews.
Questions
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Written by the WhichPetPlan editorial team. Scores are our own editorial ratings, not an industry standard. See our methodology for how scores are set.