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How much does private health insurance cost?
The average cost of private health insurance is around $160 per month for a single person. However, the price varies by factors from location to level of cover.
Who is this cover for?
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I'm Tim, your insurance expert.
Here to help you find the right cover for you!
Step 1/2 - About your cover
Which state do you live in?
QLD
NSW
ACT
VIC
TAS
SA
WA
NT
What's your age?
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 July 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
Remedial massage
Email me my results (optional)
To get a copy of your results for later, add your email below
That all said, scroll down for more insight on the cost of private health insurance in Australia.
Average monthly cost of hospital cover in Australia
Hospital cover is available in four different tiers: Gold, Silver, Bronze and Basic. Each tier covers a government-mandated list of treatments, making it easier to compare like-for-like.
We regularly crunch the numbers for our entire database of health funds in order to work out the average premium for each tier of hospital coverage. The most recent calculations are on the chart below. Each tier includes 'plus' policies as well.
These averages are based on the prices from all states for policies with a $750 excess for a single policy holder, before any surcharges or the private health insurance rebate are applied. The price of your policy may be more or less than this, depending on your circumstances.
What can impact the price of my health insurance?
There are several factors that will change the price of your health insurance premiums, whether you get hospital or extras cover. Here are the main ones to consider.
Private Health Insurance Rebate: The price of your policy can vary by over 25% due to rebate. It's mainly based on your age and income.
Lifetime Health Cover Loading: If you don't have hospital cover after age 31, a 2% loading will be added to the price each year you don't have it.
State: The cost of medical care is different in every state, and that's reflected in your premiums.
Policy Excess: A policy with a larger excess will have lower premiums, but you will have more out of pocket costs when you claim.
Average cost of hospital cover in each state
The cost of health insurance varies by state. This is because the cost of private healthcare is more expensive in some locations, which increases the cost of insurance. For example, health insurance is significantly cheaper in the Northern Territory than it is in any other state.
State
Gold
Silver
Bronze
Basic
VIC
$221.24
$157.43
$105.26
$86.91
QLD
$214.61
$153.97
$103.56
$86.49
NSW/ACT
$203.62
$145.62
$97.41
$84.33
TAS
$197.29
$149.90
$102.30
$86.10
SA
$188.48
$142.99
$98.82
$82.73
WA
$177.19
$126.37
$83.12
$68.44
NT
$136.27
$99.06
$65.91
$49.39
Cost of extras cover by state
The current average cost of extras is $12.07
per month for a single 30-year old earning less than $93,000 per year. However, because extras policies are so varied, it's hard to generalise. You should compare health insurance with Finder's tools to work out how much your perfect extras policy is likely to cost.
We regularly run the numbers on our entire health insurance database to find the average cost of extras cover for each state. Our most recent calculations are shown in the chart below.
Prices based on single 30-year old living in NSW earning less than $93,000 per year with a $750 excess. Analysis performed December 2023.
Remember, the cheapest policy is not always the best policy. Here's a good tip - when you're comparing hospital insurance policies, look out for 'Plus' policies. These products cover more treatments than the minimums required from each tier, often for just a few more dollars a month. They're often great value.
How much does health insurance cost?
We ask hundreds of Australians what they're paying for health insurance every month. Here's what they told us in July 2024.
Basic: $99
Bronze: $141
Silver: $183
Gold: $221
Price based on 1,000+ responses for single hospital insurance.
Why compare health insurance with Finder?
We don't ask for your phone or email to see prices.
With 1 click, you can open your results to nearly every fund in Australia.
You pay the same price as going direct – we charge no fees.
Why you can trust Finder's health insurance experts
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.
Frequently asked questions
The cost of private health insurance is affected by a variety of factors, including the level of coverage chosen, the policy excess and the insurer's pricing policies.
Yes, it is possible to switch private health insurance providers in Australia if you are unhappy with your current policy. This can be done at any time, although there may be waiting periods for certain services if you switch providers. It is recommended to carefully compare policies from different insurers and consider any potential costs or disruptions to your current coverage before switching providers.
Yes, there are tax benefits associated with purchasing private health insurance in Australia. These include the Private Health Insurance Rebate, which is a tax offset that can reduce the cost of premiums, and the Medicare Levy Surcharge, which is an additional tax that may apply to individuals who do not have private health insurance. These tax benefits can vary depending on a person's income and age.
If you have a complaint or dispute with your private health insurer, the first step is to try and resolve the issue with the insurer directly. This may involve contacting the insurer's customer service team or escalating the issue to a manager or complaints department. If the issue cannot be resolved directly with the insurer, you can seek assistance from the Private Health Insurance Ombudsman, who can provide information and assistance in resolving disputes with insurers.
When choosing a private health insurance policy, it is important to carefully consider your own health needs and financial situation. This may involve researching and comparing different policies from different insurers, as well as understanding the level of coverage and any exclusions or restrictions that may apply.
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 115 Finder guides across topics including:
Gary Ross Hunter was an editor at Finder, specialising in insurance. He’s been writing about life, travel, home, car, pet and health insurance for over 6 years and regularly appears as an insurance expert in publications including The Sydney Morning Herald, The Guardian and news.com.au. Gary holds a Kaplan Tier 2 General Advice General Insurance certification which meets the requirements of ASIC Regulatory Guide 146 (RG146). See full bio
Gary Ross's expertise
Gary Ross has written 725 Finder guides across topics including:
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Important information about this website
finder.com.au is one of Australia's leading comparison websites. We are committed to our readers and stands by our editorial principles
We try to take an open and transparent approach and provide a broad-based comparison service. However, you should be aware that while we are an independently owned service, our comparison service does not include all providers or all products available in the market.
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When products are grouped in a table or list, the order in which they are initially sorted may be influenced by a range of factors including price, fees and discounts; commercial partnerships; product features; and brand popularity. We provide tools so you can sort and filter these lists to highlight features that matter to you.
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We update our data regularly, but information can change between updates. Confirm details with the provider you're interested in before making a decision.
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.