Health Insurance Plan Comparison Worksheet

Who this is for

Compare health plans on what they cover and what a year would cost. Page one sets each plan's hospitals, benefits, waiting periods and exclusions side by side; page two adds premium, excess and the costs you expect to pay.

Households renewing a health insurance policy, people weighing an employer scheme against buying their own, and anyone choosing cover for the first time.

What this helps you track

• Hospitals, out-patient benefits and extras for each plan, side by side
• Waiting periods, existing conditions and exclusions to check
• The premium for everyone covered, with the excess per claim
• A yearly cost for each plan at the use you expect
• The checks to make before renewing or switching

How to use it

1. Write the plan names, who is to be covered and the renewal or start date at the top; put your current plan first.
2. Fill in the cover grid for each plan from its table of benefits, its policy document or the insurer's own pages.
3. On the second page, enter each plan's premium for everyone covered for a year, the excess per claim and any yearly limit on what you pay.
4. Estimate how many claims you expect and what you would pay that the plan would not, from your own last year where you can.
5. The year cost and the summary are worked out in the browser and the workbook; on paper, multiply the excess by the claims and add up.
6. Run through the switching checks before you sign, and keep notes of quotes and reference numbers.

Formats

• Printable PDF (A4 and US Letter)
• Fillable PDF with form fields
• Fill in online, saved in your browser
• Excel / Google Sheets workbook

The printable is laid out inside a box that fits both A4 and US Letter, so the two files are identical and neither one is scaled. The fillable PDF has real form fields. The workbook uses plain formulas only — SUM, IF, COUNTIF and the like — so it opens in Excel, LibreOffice and Google Sheets without anything breaking, and every calculated cell is grey so you can see which figures it worked out.

How to print

Download the A4 or US Letter file to match the paper in your printer, open it in a PDF reader and print at 100% — not "fit to page", which shrinks the writing space. Both files leave a 14 mm margin, which clears the unprintable edge on home printers. To print the online version with your entries in it, use the Print this sheet button, which prints only the sheet and none of the page around it. More on printing.

Questions

Does the sheet say which plan is best?

No. It shows what each plan covers and what a year would cost at the use you expect. Which matters more is yours to weigh, and the lowest yearly figure is not always the cover you need.

What if a plan has a yearly deductible rather than an excess per claim?

Enter the deductible in the excess column and 1 in claims, so it is counted once. If there is a limit on what you pay in a year, enter it and the sheet caps the out-of-pocket part at that figure.

How do I estimate the other costs I would pay?

Look at last year: GP and consultant visits, scans, therapy and prescriptions, and what each plan would pay back for them. What you pay is the cost less the plan's benefit. It is an estimate, so round sensibly.

Where do waiting periods and existing conditions go?

There are rows for both in the cover grid. Copy the wording from each policy, and ask the insurer in writing if it is unclear, especially before switching from a plan you have held for years.