Aussies sure do love their pets, with close to three quarters of households around the country owning one. Animal Medicines Australia's 2025 Pets in Australia survey estimated that we own 31.6 million pets across 7.7 million households, which averages out to more than four per pet-owning home.
Of course, if you own more than one animal, making sure they’re adequately covered can feel like a juggling act. Whether you've got two dogs, two cats or another combination of pets, insuring them with the same provider can make your pet insurance policies simpler to manage and potentially cheaper overall.
How does pet insurance work for multiple pets?
Multi-pet insurance refers to having policies for each pet with the same insurer. Rather than being covered by the same policy, each pet still has their own individual cover, benefit limits and claims process. However, as the policies are held with the same insurer, they can be easily managed in one place.
The main benefit of insuring multiple pets with the same provider is that insurers usually offer a discount for doing so. This discount will vary by insurer but typically ranges from 5% to 10% and is permanent. Whether this is applied as a blanket discount to all policies or per pet will also depend on your insurer. It's worth comparing the discounted rate across a few providers, as the savings can add up meaningfully if you have three or more animals to cover.
How much does pet insurance for multiple pets cost?
There’s a wide range of variables that can impact the cost of your pet insurance. However, you can see how much you stand to save annually across a range of examples in the table below with and without a multi-pet discount (MPD):
| Pets owned | Total cost without MPD | Total cost with 5% MPD | Total cost with 10% MPD |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2x female Domestic Shorthair | $792 | $772 | $753 |
| 1x male Ragdoll, 1x female Border Collie | $1,291 | $1,261 | $1,222 |
| 2x male Cavoodle | $1,356 | $1,322 | $1,288 |
| 2x female Sphynx, 2x male Sphynx | $2,116 | $2,036 | $1,955 |
| 1x female Maine Coon, 2x male Labrador | $2,544 | $2,441 | $2,337 |
| 3x male Dachshund, 1x female French Bulldog | $4,309 | $4,138 | $3,967 |
| Quotes based on the average annual cost of insurance for a two-year-old desexed cat or dog living in Sydney, obtained through Compare the Market on 27 May 2026. Policies come with a minimum annual benefit of $10,000, minimum benefit percentage of 80% and maximum excess of $200. MPD applied to second and all subsequent pet insurance premiums onwards. | |||
As you can see, the benefit grows the more you spend on pet insurance. While the savings only add up to around $40 a year for a 10% discount on a second Domestic Shorthair cat, it ends up being over $200 for a Maine Coon and a pair of Labradors.
Aside from the type of animals you own, their breeds and how many you have running around the house, other factors that can impact your insurance premiums include:
- The level of cover you choose: comprehensive policies cost more than accident and illness or accident-only cover across the board; this applies to each individual policy in a multi-pet arrangement.
- Your benefit percentage and annual limit: opting for a higher benefit percentage or annual limit will increase your premium for each pet, while choosing a lower limit or higher excess will bring costs down.
- Where you live: vet costs vary by location, and insurers may price policies differently depending on your suburb, town, city state or territory.
- The insurer you choose: multi-pet discount structures vary significantly between providers, so the same combination of pets could cost different amounts depending on who you insure with.
- The discount: as mentioned, discounts can be 5% or 10% and apply to either all pets with the insurer or each pet after your first, which can make a noticeable difference to your overall pet insurance costs.
The pros and cons of pet insurance for multiple pets
Pros
-
Multi-pet discounts can reduce your overall costs
Insuring all of your pets with the same provider can unlock meaningful savings. Even a small discount adds up when you're paying multiple premiums each year.
-
Managing all policies in one place is more convenient
Having all of your pets insured under the one provider means a single point of contact for renewals, claims and policy changes, rather than juggling multiple providers for different animals.
Cons
-
The total cost can still be significant
Even with a multi-pet discount, insuring several animals at once is a substantial ongoing expense. For some households with more than one pet, annual premiums can run into the thousands.
-
Not all insurers cover all pet types
If you own a mix of dogs, cats and more exotic animals, you may find that not all providers can cover every pet in your household, forcing you to use more than one insurer.