If two heads are better than one, is a couple policy better than separate singles policies? Maybe. Anyway they start from $45 per week, so let's learn more.
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Step 1/2 - About your cover
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What's your age?
Depending on your age, you may be eligible for an
aged-based discount. This is used to estimate your
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What's your household's taxable income?
This is the combined income you and your spouse earn before tax. It's needed to calculate the correct Australian government rebate.
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$93,001 to $108,000
$108,001 to $144,000
$144,001 and over
What kind of health insurance do you need?
Combined (Extras + Hospitals)
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Hospital
What level of hospital coverage would you like?
You can change this at any time later.
Legend
Covered
Restricted cover, You may be partially covered for
this category.
Not covered. Optional for insurer to include.
*Prices updated November 2024, in line with Finder's database of health insurance policies. Prices reflect the cheapest available for a single individual with less than $97,000 income and living in Sydney with a $750 excess.
What extras cover do you need? (Optional)
Select as many as you want or move to the next step
Preventative & general dental
Major dental & implants
Optical
Physiotherapy
Podiatry
Non-PBS pharmaceuticals
Chiropractic
Emergency ambulance
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There are four hospital tiers to choose from: basic, bronze, silver and gold. The higher the level, the better coverage you get. Both you and your partner need to be on the same level in order to qualify for couples health insurance.
Extras policies come with annual spending limits for specific benefits. These limits are per person. So if you have $200 each to spend on dental appointments, your partner wouldn't be able to use your portion and vice versa.
A health insurance policy that includes both extras and hospital cover is considered a 'combined' policy. Combined policies reduce your paperwork by having all your cover with one provider. That said, you are allowed to have hospital and extras cover with different funds – and it's often cheaper.
How much does couple health insurance cost?
A couple policy costs twice the price of the single policy equivalent. A couples policy can be more convenient because you only have to apply once and maintain one direct debit, but it won't cost any less than two individual policies.
Having 2 single health insurance policies may actually save you money, because one of you may be able to opt for a cheaper policy. For example, if only one person needs pregnancy cover, having a couples policy would have you unneccessarily paying for pregnancy cover for both of you.
Of course, if both partners want the benefits offered by a gold-tier policy, there's no harm in taking out a joint policy. In addition to pregnancy and childbirth benefits, gold-tier policies also cover weight-loss surgery, joint replacements and more.
Did you know?
Finder surveyed 1,017 Aussies and just 36% knew two single policies were the same price as a couples policy.
How couples health insurance works with tax
Couples health insurance affects tax in the following ways:
Lifetime health cover loading: The lifetime health cover of both policyholders will be averaged and then applied to the policy. That means if your partner has a 10% loading fee, but you don't have any, your couples policy will be subject to a 5% charge.
Medicare levy surcharge: If you earn more than $180,000 as a couple, you'll be subject to a surcharge of between 1% and 1.5%. However, if you buy a health insurance policy with an excess of $1,500 or less you could save money.
Couples health insurance vs family insurance
If you have children, then your best bet is to sign up for a family health insurance policy, rather than a couples policy. On a family policy your children can be covered at very little extra cost, as long as you inform your insurer and officially add them to your policy.
Why you can trust Finder's health insurance experts
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You save time. We spend 100s of hours researching health insurance so you can sort the gold from the junk faster.
You can trust us. We say it like it is. We aren't owned by an insurer and our opinions are our own.
Frequently asked questions
If you have couples cover, then you'll have to both have the same level of hospital and extras cover. This can sometimes mean that you're paying for cover you don't need - for example if only one of you need cover for child birth. There's nothing stopping you from taking out two separate single policies. In fact, you can often save money by customising your cover like this.
A couples health insurance policy won't cover children - you'll need to move to a family policy. This will cost slightly more than a couples policy, but it will cover your children at least up to their 18th birthday. Most health funds actually let you keep you children on your health policy until later than that though.
Yes, couples health insurance policies have separate limits on extras - that means no mixing and matching with your partner. You may be able to get more customised and cheaper cover if you opt for having separate extras policies.
If you break up with your partner, contact your insurance company as soon as possible. It's likely you'll be able to switch to a single policy without re-serving waiting periods.
Tim Bennett is a Finder insurance & utilities expert. For over 10 years he's reported on news, politics, finance and other topics as a journalist and radio presenter. Tim's roles have included radio news reader and breakfast at the ABC, news producer for SBS and producer for Fairfax Media. Tim regularly appears as a health insurance expert on programs like Sunrise and SBS news, as well as in the Australian, The Daily Telegraph, The Courier Mail and more. See full bio
Tim's expertise
Tim has written 121 Finder guides across topics including:
Nicola Middlemiss is a contributing writer at Finder, with a special interest in personal finance and insurance. Formerly a business and finance journalist, Nicola has written thousands of articles helping Australians better understand insurance and grow their personal wealth. She has contributed to a wide range of publications, including Domain, the Educator, Financy, Fundraising and Philanthropy, Insurance Business, MoneyMag, Mortgage Professional, Yahoo Finance, Your Investment Property, and Wealth Professional. Nicola has a Tier 1 General Insurance (General Advice) certification and a Bachelor's degree from the University of Leeds. See full bio
Nicola's expertise
Nicola has written 239 Finder guides across topics including:
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I am looking for health and dental cover for my husband and I please
Finder
JeniDecember 10, 2018Finder
Hi Paula,
Thank you for getting in touch with finder.
You’re currently at the right page. Kindly select the answer that suits your needs most. For example, if you require orthodontics health cover then you must choose hospital and extras then enter your postcode then click on the orange Search Policies button to start comparing your options. Please note that with most insurance policies, you can choose how basic or comprehensive you want your dental cover to be.
I also suggest that you contact your top 3 chosen insurers for further assistance on choosing the policy for you and your husband.
I hope this helps.
Please feel free to reach out to us if you have any other enquiries.
Thank you and have a wonderful day!
Cheers,
Jeni
JoApril 3, 2017
I went on your website to compare the market but got confused.
My husband is 70yrs old I am 60. We have cover with HCF paying 240.00per month. We rarely claim anything. I want to know is there a fund cheaper which will cater for senior
Finder
ZubairApril 4, 2017Finder
Hi Jo,
Thank you for your question and sorry to hear you’re having trouble comparing your options.
finder.com.au is a comparison and information service and we are not permitted to provide our users with personalized financial advice or product recommendations.
If you would like to compare couple of policies from Australian health funds, please enter your details into the quote comparison tool on this page.
Once you have done you can sort your search results for cheap policies by selecting the option ‘Price (low to high)’ under the ‘Relevance’ menu on the top right side of the screen.
Join a restricted membership fund. If you are eligible, premiums are usually lower and benefits are higher.
Who and what are a restricted membership fund?
Finder
ZubairMarch 10, 2017Finder
Hi Angela,
Thank you for your question.
Restricted health funds are the funds where membership is restricted to certain people. They are usually operated by industry or employment groups and are not-for-profit, being run solely for the benefit of their members. You can apply for cover to two restricted health funds, namely CBHS and Teachers Health Fund.
You may find our restricted health fund guide helpful. The table on that guide lists all the restricted health funds and conditions for joining these funds.
Cheers,
Zubair
JanMarch 30, 2016
Quote for couple top hospital and top doctors. Price per month direct debit. Also names of hospital that is covered by your fund for etc St. vIncents private Lismore, Ballina PRivate Hospital and John Flynn Private Hospital Qld.
Finder
RichardMarch 30, 2016Finder
Hi Jan,
Thanks for getting in touch.
You may get top hospital cover from a selection of insurance brands that offers gold hospital policies.
Please make sure to read the eligibility criteria, features, and details of the policy, as well as the relevant Product Disclosure Statement PDS/T&C’s of the policy before making a decision and consider whether the product is right for you. If necessary, speak to the insurance brand to verify any details.
I hope this was helpful,
Richard
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Depending on your age, you may be eligible for an
aged-based discount. This is used to estimate your
rebate.
Under 65
65 - 69
70 or older
What's your household's taxable income?
This is the combined income you and your spouse earn before tax. It's needed to calculate the correct Australian government rebate.
$93,000 and under
$93,001 to $108,000
$108,001 to $144,000
$144,001 and over
What kind of health insurance do you need?
Combined (Extras + Hospitals)
Extras
Hospital
What level of hospital coverage would you like?
You can change this at any time later.
Legend
Covered
Restricted cover, You may be partially covered for
this category.
Not covered. Optional for insurer to include.
*Prices updated March 2024, in line with Finder's
database of health insurance policies. Prices are based
on a single individual with less than $93,000 income and
living in Sydney with a $750 excess.
What extras cover do you need? (Optional)
Select as many as you want or move to the next step
Preventative & general dental
Major dental & implants
Optical
Physiotherapy
Podiatry
Non-PBS pharmaceuticals
Chiropractic
Emergency ambulance
Remedial massage
Email me my results (optional)
To get a copy of your results for later, add your email below
an
You pay nothing. Finder is free to use. And you pay the same as going direct. No markups, no hidden fees.
You save time. We spend 100s of hours researching health insurance so you can sort the gold from the junk faster.
You can trust us. We say it like it is. We aren't owned by an insurer and our opinions are our own.
I am looking for health and dental cover for my husband and I please
Hi Paula,
Thank you for getting in touch with finder.
You’re currently at the right page. Kindly select the answer that suits your needs most. For example, if you require orthodontics health cover then you must choose hospital and extras then enter your postcode then click on the orange Search Policies button to start comparing your options. Please note that with most insurance policies, you can choose how basic or comprehensive you want your dental cover to be.
I also suggest that you contact your top 3 chosen insurers for further assistance on choosing the policy for you and your husband.
I hope this helps.
Please feel free to reach out to us if you have any other enquiries.
Thank you and have a wonderful day!
Cheers,
Jeni
I went on your website to compare the market but got confused.
My husband is 70yrs old I am 60. We have cover with HCF paying 240.00per month. We rarely claim anything. I want to know is there a fund cheaper which will cater for senior
Hi Jo,
Thank you for your question and sorry to hear you’re having trouble comparing your options.
finder.com.au is a comparison and information service and we are not permitted to provide our users with personalized financial advice or product recommendations.
If you would like to compare couple of policies from Australian health funds, please enter your details into the quote comparison tool on this page.
Once you have done you can sort your search results for cheap policies by selecting the option ‘Price (low to high)’ under the ‘Relevance’ menu on the top right side of the screen.
You may find our guide to seniors health insurance helpful.
All the best,
Zubair
Join a restricted membership fund. If you are eligible, premiums are usually lower and benefits are higher.
Who and what are a restricted membership fund?
Hi Angela,
Thank you for your question.
Restricted health funds are the funds where membership is restricted to certain people. They are usually operated by industry or employment groups and are not-for-profit, being run solely for the benefit of their members. You can apply for cover to two restricted health funds, namely CBHS and Teachers Health Fund.
You may find our restricted health fund guide helpful. The table on that guide lists all the restricted health funds and conditions for joining these funds.
Cheers,
Zubair
Quote for couple top hospital and top doctors. Price per month direct debit. Also names of hospital that is covered by your fund for etc St. vIncents private Lismore, Ballina PRivate Hospital and John Flynn Private Hospital Qld.
Hi Jan,
Thanks for getting in touch.
You may get top hospital cover from a selection of insurance brands that offers gold hospital policies.
Please make sure to read the eligibility criteria, features, and details of the policy, as well as the relevant Product Disclosure Statement PDS/T&C’s of the policy before making a decision and consider whether the product is right for you. If necessary, speak to the insurance brand to verify any details.
I hope this was helpful,
Richard