Health Insurance Comparison: A Clear UK Guide

Health insurance comparison is the process of weighing private medical insurance (PMI) policies against each other on cover level, excess, underwriting and price, so you can match a policy to your needs and budget. PMI is an insurance policy that pays towards the cost of private treatment for acute conditions, sitting alongside the NHS rather than replacing it.

Private medical insurance in the UK can vary widely in price, with costs depending mainly on age, cover level, excess and where you live. The right comparison is less about the headline price and more about what each policy actually covers, how it handles your medical history, and the excess you would pay at claim time.

Free Price Compare offers whole-of-market comparison of private medical insurance across the main UK health insurers. This explainer sets out how PMI works and what to compare. It is comparison information, not medical advice; for any health concern, speak to your GP or call NHS 111.

Last updated: September 2026

Written by the Free Price Compare editorial team | Reviewed September 2026

What to compare before you pick a policy

The core things to compare on any private medical insurance policy are the cover level, the excess, the underwriting type, the hospital list and the price. Getting these five right matters more than the monthly figure alone, because two policies at the same price can differ enormously in what they pay for and how they treat your medical history.

Cover level sets what is included. A basic policy might cover only in-patient and day-patient treatment (a hospital stay or a procedure needing a bed), while comprehensive cover adds out-patient consultations, diagnostic scans, and optional extras such as mental health, dental or optical. The excess is the amount you agree to pay towards a claim before the insurer pays the rest, usually chosen per policy year.

• Cover level: in-patient only, or comprehensive with out-patient consultations and diagnostics.
• Excess: commonly £0, £100, £250, £500 or £1,000 per year; a higher excess lowers the premium.
• Underwriting: moratorium or full medical underwriting (explained below).
• Hospital list: some insurers use tiered lists that exclude certain higher-cost hospitals to keep premiums down.
• Optional extras: mental health, therapies, dental and optical, cancer cover enhancements.

When you run an insurance quotes comparison for health cover, line policies up on these features side by side rather than sorting by price alone. Free Price Compare compares cover and price across the main UK health insurers so you can see the trade-offs in one place.

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How much is private health insurance in the UK?

Private health insurance costs around £75 to £85 a month for a single adult on comprehensive cover in 2026, based on broker analyses of thousands of UK quotes, with couples typically paying around £136 to £158 and a family of four around £159 to £181. There is no official regulator figure for an average PMI premium, so these are broker quote estimates rather than authoritative statistics, and your own price depends heavily on your age, postcode, cover level and excess.

The real range is wider than any single average suggests. Entry-level cover for a young, healthy adult can start from around £28 to £35 a month, while an older person seeking full comprehensive cover can pay £200 or more. Age is a major driver of price, and living in London can also push premiums higher than the national average.

Figures are indicative broker estimates and may change. Demand for cover has grown sharply: the total number of people covered by health insurance in the UK reached 6.5 million in 2024, up 4% on 2023, according to the Association of British Insurers (ABI), with 4.8 million of those covered through workplace policies.

Moratorium vs full medical underwriting: which should you compare?

Underwriting is how an insurer decides what to cover based on your medical history, and UK private medical insurance uses two main types: moratorium and full medical underwriting. The type you choose affects how pre-existing conditions are handled and how much certainty you get before you buy, so it is one of the most important things to compare.

Moratorium underwriting

Moratorium underwriting requires no medical forms upfront: the insurer automatically excludes conditions you had, or had symptoms of, in a set period before the policy start (commonly the previous five years). If you then go a continuous period without symptoms, advice or treatment for that condition (often two years), it can become eligible for cover. It is quicker to set up, but you only find out for certain whether a claim is covered when you make it.

Full medical underwriting

Full medical underwriting means you declare your medical history when you apply, and the insurer tells you upfront exactly what is and is not covered. This takes longer to arrange and involves detailed questions, but it removes uncertainty at claim time, which suits people with a known medical history who want clarity before committing.

Neither is universally better. Younger, healthier applicants often choose moratorium for speed, while those with a fuller medical history may prefer the certainty of full underwriting. Price comparison tools can only give a rough guide once medical history is involved, so treat online quotes as a starting point and confirm the detail before you buy.

Compare private medical insurance the clear way

See cover levels, excess options and prices across the main UK health insurers in one place.

Compare health cover

Does health insurance cover pre-existing conditions?

Standard UK private medical insurance generally does not cover pre-existing conditions. A pre-existing condition is any illness, injury or condition you have had symptoms of, taken advice on, or been treated for before the policy started, and insurers typically exclude these either through the moratorium period or through exclusions written into a fully underwritten policy.

How a pre-existing condition is treated depends on the underwriting type. Under moratorium, a condition can sometimes become eligible for cover after a continuous symptom-free and treatment-free period (commonly two years). Under full medical underwriting, the exclusion is set out in writing when you buy. Because rules and time periods vary between insurers, comparing how each handles your specific history is essential, and a specialist comparison or broker route is often more reliable than an instant quote when conditions are involved.

Is cancer covered by private medical insurance?

Cancer cover is included on most comprehensive private medical insurance policies, but the extent varies significantly between insurers and cover tiers, so it is a key point to compare. Some insurers include enhanced cancer cover as standard, covering therapies such as biological, targeted and hormone treatments, while others cap the duration or type of treatment or make full cancer cover an optional upgrade.

Because eligible treatment costs can be substantial, the difference between a capped cancer benefit and unlimited eligible treatment is one of the biggest reasons two similarly priced policies are not equal. Always check the policy’s cancer cover section, including whether it covers advanced or ongoing therapies and whether any limits apply, as part of comparing best health cover in the UK. This is comparison information about how policies differ, not medical advice or treatment guidance.

• Standard vs enhanced: check whether biological, targeted and hormone therapies are included.
• Limits: confirm whether there is any cap on treatment duration or cost, subject to policy terms.
• Recognised facilities: cover usually applies only at approved hospitals and with recognised specialists.

How can I reduce my health insurance premium?

The most effective way to reduce a private medical insurance premium is to raise the excess, since a higher excess lowers the monthly cost. Raising the excess can lower the premium, but you should only choose an excess you could realistically afford if you had to claim.

Other legitimate levers change either what you cover or how you pay. Choosing a guided or restricted hospital list, dropping optional extras you would not use, or paying annually instead of monthly can all lower the cost. The trade-off is always cover versus price, so compare like-for-like before cutting benefits.

• Raise the excess to a level you could pay at claim time.
• Choose a tiered hospital list if you do not need access to every private hospital.
• Remove optional extras such as dental or optical you would not claim on.
• Pay annually where the insurer offers a discount versus monthly instalments.
• Consider a six-week wait option, where the policy only pays privately if the NHS wait exceeds six weeks.

The same care applies to any insurance you compare, whether that is health cover or, as our guide on what information you need to compare insurance shows, having your details ready makes for a faster, more accurate quote.

See health insurance prices for your needs

What does PMI not cover, and how does it work with the NHS?

Private medical insurance does not replace the NHS: it covers private treatment for acute conditions and sits alongside the NHS, which continues to handle emergencies, ongoing chronic-condition management and most routine care. Emergencies and A&E, ongoing management of chronic (long-term) conditions, pre-existing conditions and GP prescriptions are not covered by standard PMI.

PMI is designed for acute conditions, meaning an illness, injury or disease likely to respond quickly to treatment and lead to recovery, such as a joint replacement, cataract surgery or hernia repair. The main draw is faster access to diagnosis and planned treatment. NHS demand remains high, and while waiting times have improved recently, they remain above the constitutional standard: NHS England reported in May 2026 that 65.6% of patients were waiting within 18 weeks, against the standard that 92% of patients should wait no longer than 18 weeks from referral to treatment.

If you already hold or are considering travel cover too, our explainer on whether European health insurance is enough covers how UK PMI and travel health cover differ. For any medical concern, always contact your GP or NHS 111 rather than relying on an insurance policy for advice.

Buying direct, through a broker, or comparing whole-of-market

You can buy private medical insurance directly from an insurer, through a broker, or by comparing whole-of-market, and each route has trade-offs. Buying direct ties you to one insurer’s products; a broker or whole-of-market comparison lets you see several insurers side by side, which matters because cover, hospital lists and underwriting rules differ so much between providers.

Whole-of-market comparison is usually the fastest way to see how the main UK health insurers price the same person, and it is regulated: firms arranging PMI must be authorised by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), whose Consumer Duty, introduced in 2023, requires firms to deliver fair value and good outcomes for customers. Free Price Compare compares private medical insurance across the main UK insurers, and if a claim ever goes wrong you can escalate to the Financial Ombudsman Service.

Whichever route you take, compare cover and underwriting, not just price. The cheapest health insurance in the UK is only good value if it covers what you actually need. If you are also reviewing other protection, our overview of what makes people look for life insurance is a useful companion read.

Compare health cover across UK insurers

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Information correct as of 5 September 2026. Prices, tariffs, policy details and providers change frequently, so please check the latest details before making a decision. This article is for general information only and does not constitute financial advice. Free Price Compare is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA).