Small businesses are making their mark on the economy and in their communities, with the U.S. Census Bureau reporting a record high 5.5 million business applications in 2023 [0]. This is the latest data available.As small-business owners hustle to file paperwork, find clients and customers and work toward profitability, they may overlook a key part of business planning — life insurance.Why small-business owners need life insuranceWhether you’re a one-person show or managing a complex operation with multiple employees, life insurance can be valuable to your business plans, says Alison Salka, senior vice president at LIMRA Research, a Connecticut-based insurance trade…

Coming home to find you’ve been robbed is any renter’s nightmare. You’re left wondering whether renters insurance will cover theft or you’re out of luck. The good news is that renters insurance often covers stolen items. But some limits apply.Here’s what you need to know about renters insurance and theft. Does renters insurance cover theft?Renters insurance typically covers theft, whether the items were stolen from your home, vehicle or elsewhere. Your landlord is generally not responsible for items stolen from your house or apartment. Their insurance covers the physical structure you live in, not your stuff. That’s why having renters…

The best companies for pet dental insurance at a glanceThe best companies for pet dental insurance at a glanceMost dogs and cats have some form of dental disease by age 3, studies show.[1] Left untreated, these diseases can lead to tooth loss, infections and even heart problems. That’s why it’s important to consider pet insurance that covers dental issues.To find the best pet dental insurance plans, we looked for highly rated companies that cover a wide range of tooth problems in their standard plans. (Some companies don’t cover dental illnesses, while others charge extra for the coverage.) We also chose…

Best pet insurance for pre-existing conditions at a glanceAKC: Best for incurable pre-existing conditions.ASPCA: Best for broad coverage.Hartville: Best for straightforward waiting periods.Pumpkin: Best for quick claim reimbursement.Spot: Best for older pets.If your furry pal has a known health problem before you buy a pet insurance policy, your insurance company may not pay to treat it. That’s because most pet insurance plans won’t cover pre-existing conditions. But there are a few exceptions.To find the best pet insurance companies for pre-existing conditions, we started with highly rated insurers. We then looked for companies that cover existing health issues in certain situations.…

Dec. 31 will mark more than the end of 2025. Barring a holiday miracle, enhanced subsidies that have enabled millions of Americans to afford health insurance through the Affordable Care Act marketplace will also end when the clock hits midnight.The “enhanced premium tax credits,” enacted during the pandemic in 2021 and extended in 2022, have helped more than double ACA enrollment to more than 24 million Americans in 2025. Currently, 93% of enrollees benefit from subsidies that offset some or all of their premium, according to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services.» Stay informed: Check out our news hub…

A pet insurance policy can reimburse you for vet bills if your furry friend gets sick. But buying insurance adds another expense to your monthly budget. So how much is pet insurance, and can it save you money in the long run?How much is pet insurance?For accident and illness coverage, the average cost of pet insurance in the U.S. is $749 per year for dogs, or about $62 per month, according to the most recent data from the North American Pet Health Insurance Association[0]. The average cost of accident and illness coverage for cats is $386 per year, or about…

You come home to find your dog vomiting and listless. After rushing them to the vet, you learn that they swallowed one of your socks and need emergency surgery — to the tune of several thousand dollars. Can you afford to pay that bill? If not, pet insurance might be worth considering.Pet insurance helps cover the cost of medical care for your furry friend. It can reimburse you for expenses like cancer treatment, emergency care, prescription medications and surgery.In some dire scenarios, pet insurance could save the life of an animal that would otherwise be euthanized if its owner couldn’t…

If you’re looking for life insurance, there are dozens of companies, term lengths and coverage amounts to choose from.Price will no doubt factor into your decision and may even determine what type of policy you choose. For a snapshot of those prices, NerdWallet compared average life insurance rates for men and women at different ages and health tiers, across multiple coverage options.Compare Life Insurance Rates.Get instant quotes from same-day Life Insurance companies and compare now.How much is life insurance?The average cost of life insurance is $26 a month. This is based on data provided by Policygenius, a life insurance brokerage,…

It’s hard to pinpoint how much life insurance you should buy down to the penny, but you can make a good estimate by using our life insurance calculator below.In general, you should add up your long-term financial obligations, such as mortgage payments or college fees, and then subtract your assets. The remainder is the gap that life insurance will have to fill.Life insurance calculatorThis simple life insurance calculator uses your existing assets and debts to figure out how much life insurance coverage you need.Why you can trust NerdWalletHow to manually calculate how much life insurance you needFor a quick life…

Marketplace health insurance ratings methodologyNerdWallet evaluates marketplace health insurance plans based on marketplace data about plans’ premiums, out-of-pocket costs and benefits, prescription drug coverage, dental coverage, government quality rating data, complaint data, records about how plans approve and deny claims and more.We evaluate individual plans and then aggregate scores to the company level. When a plan is missing data for a certain metric, we exclude it from calculations. For example, the federal government calculates official star ratings for marketplace health insurance plans, but many plans are unrated, and others have incomplete ratings. NerdWallet’s analysis incorporates government quality ratings when they’re…