How much does private health insurance cost?

The cost of private health insurance will depend on different factors such as the health fund you choose, the policy you select, your family group (how many people are being insured) and the state or territory you live in.

As part of Canstar’s Health Insurance Star Ratings and Awards, our expert researchers assessed the cost and features of policies and providers all across Australia. From the extensive research, Canstar is able to provide the average cost of health insurance in Australia based on policies on our database. We’ve considered different life stages or ‘profiles’ for young (aged under 36), established (aged between 36 and 59) and mature (aged 60+) people, as well as those looking for pregnancy and birth cover (obstetrics).

Below we’ve broken it down by combined hospitals and extras, hospital only and extras only policies, as well as policies that cover obstetrics. Readers, please note that the differences in price across profiles for hospital insurance are based on different assumed levels of cover and inclusions, with people in the older profiles assumed to have more comprehensive hospital insurance.

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How much does private health insurance cost?

The average cost of combined hospital and extras health insurance for a single person is:

• ‘Young person’ under 36 years old – $3,199 a year (about $267/mth)

• ‘Established person’ between 36 and 59 years of age – $3,719 a year (about $310/mth)

• ‘Mature person’ aged 60+ – $4,176 a year (about $348/mth)

Canstar Research factored in the private health insurance rebate in these calculations. If you have private health insurance, you may be able to receive a rebate from the government to help cover the cost of your premiums. The rebate is income tested and different thresholds apply depending on whether you are single or a family.

The figures below give an estimation of the cost of hospital and extras health insurance policies, based on the three different life stage profiles. The calculation only considers a lower level of extras cover.

Average cost of combined health insurance for young people

• Single: $3,199

• Couple: $6,227

• Family: $6,490

Average cost of combined health insurance for established people

• Single: $3,719

• Couple: $7,235

• Family: $7,538

Average cost of combined health insurance for mature people

• Single: $4,176

• Couple: $8,113

Source: www.canstar.com.au – 29/01/2025. Based on health insurance policies on Canstar’s database. OSHC, visitor and corporate policies, as well as policies from restricted funds, are excluded. The Australian Government Private Health Insurance Rebate, Base Tier for under 65s, of 24.608% has been applied to premiums. Average premiums based on state averages weighted by proportion of insured population (APRA Quarterly Private Health Insurance). Ratings profiles based on those used in Canstar’s Health Insurance Star Ratings, refer to the methodology for more information. *Hospital & Extras average based on the Tier 1 Extras profile.

Keep in mind that these costs are an average of policy costs across Australia, and provide only a general guide of what costs might be for those looking for a lower level of cover for both hospital and extras. Your location, personal circumstances, health fund, level of cover you choose, and many other factors will impact the cost of a policy. These averages also assume that the Tier 1 Extras profile is used, which includes dental check ups, as well as other optional extras. To obtain an estimate closer to your requirements, you can use Canstar’s health insurance comparison tool and change the filters to suit your situation or book a call with a health insurance specialist.

What does hospital-only cover cost?

The average annual cost of hospital-only cover for a single person is:

• ‘Young person’ under 36 years old – $2,339 a year (about $195/mth)

• ‘Established person’ between 36 and 59 years of age– $2,902 a year (about $242/mth)

• ‘Mature person’ aged 60+ – $3,304 a year (about $276/mth)

To make it easier to compare products, providers have to categorise hospital policies into Basic, Bronze, Silver and Gold tiers. Each tier is required to provide a minimum standard of coverage, with Basic policies providing the lowest level of cover and Gold policies the highest. Providers can also offer ‘Plus’ policies (excluding Gold), which provide extra cover above the minimum standards.

The excess you choose can also impact the cost of your premiums. Like car insurance, typically the higher your excess is, the lower your premiums. But it also means you’ll pay more upfront if you are admitted to hospital.

Here’s a closer look at how much a hospital policy may cost you depending on your life stage and family group. Note that policies for an established person must include cover for heart and vascular treatment; and policies for a mature person must include heart and vascular treatment as well as joint replacements.

Average cost of hospital only health insurance for young people

• Single: $2,339

• Couple: $4,656

• Family: $4,776

Average cost of hospital only health insurance for established people

• Single: $2,902

• Couple: $5,754

• Family: $5,808

Average cost of hospital only health insurance for mature people

• Single: $3,304

• Couple: $6,528

Source: www.canstar.com.au – 29/01/2025. Based on health insurance policies on Canstar’s database. OSHC, visitor and corporate policies, as well as policies from restricted funds, are excluded. The Australian Government Private Health Insurance Rebate, Base Tier for under 65s, of 24.608% has been applied to premiums. Average premiums based on state averages weighted by proportion of insured population (APRA Quarterly Private Health Insurance). Ratings profiles based on those used in Canstar’s Health Insurance Star Ratings, refer to the methodology for more information.

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What does extras-only cover cost?

The average annual cost of extras-only cover for a single person is:

• Tier 1 (lower level of coverage) – $907 a year (about $76/mth)

• Tier 2 (mid-level of coverage) – $1,109 a year (about $93/mth)

• Tier 3 (higher level of coverage) – $1,239 a year (about $104/mth)

The cost of extras-only health insurance can vary depending on the types of inclusions you want. As there is no standard tiers for extras-only insurance, Canstar has broken it down into three different tiers. Tier 1 represents a lower amount of coverage, while Tier 3 represents the highest level of coverage.

To give you a rough idea of how the tiers break down, Tier 1 is the most basic tier of extras-only health insurance and must at least include dental check-ups, with other inclusions optional. Tier 3, by contrast, is the most comprehensive tier, and must include cover for dental check-ups, crown veneers, root canals, physiotherapy, chiropractic, optical and a range of other items. These are further defined in our Health Insurance Star Ratings and Awards methodology.

Here’s the average cost of an extras policy for singles, couples and families, based on the three different levels of cover.

Average cost of Tier 1 extras insurance

• Single: $908

• Couple: $1,805

• Family: $1,962

Average cost of Tier 2 extras insurance

• Single: $1,109

• Couple: $2,192

• Family: $2,332

Average cost of Tier 3 extras insurance

• Single: $1,239

• Couple: $2,446

• Family: $2,602

Source: www.canstar.com.au – 29/01/2025. Based on health insurance policies on Canstar’s database. OSHC, visitor and corporate policies, as well as policies from restricted funds, are excluded. The Australian Government Private Health Insurance Rebate, Base Tier for under 65s, of 24.608% has been applied to premiums. Average premiums based on state averages weighted by proportion of insured population (APRA Quarterly Private Health Insurance). Ratings profiles based on those used in Canstar’s Health Insurance Star Ratings, refer to the methodology for more information.

What does pregnancy cover cost?

Here’s the average cost of a policy that covers pregnancy (obstetrics) for singles and families, based on:

Average cost of combined health insurance with obstetrics cover

• Single: $4,780

• Family: $9,571

Average cost of hospital only health insurance with obstetrics cover

• Single: $3,735

• Family: $7,390

Source: www.canstar.com.au – 29/01/2025. Based on health insurance policies on Canstar’s database. OSHC, visitor and corporate policies, as well as policies from restricted funds, are excluded. The Australian Government Private Health Insurance Rebate, Base Tier for under 65s, of 24.608% has been applied to premiums. Average premiums based on state averages weighted by proportion of insured population (APRA Quarterly Private Health Insurance). Ratings profiles based on those used in Canstar’s Health Insurance Star Ratings, refer to the methodology for more information. *Hospital & Extras average based on the Tier 1 Extras profile.

Related: How much does it cost to have a baby in Australia?

Additional reporting by Nick Whiting.

Cover image source: Ground Picture/Shutterstock.com