World Nomads vs. SafetyWing: Which Travel Insurance Is Best for Your Trip

As much as travel insurance isn’t as fascinating, it’s essential, especially when you’re a digital nomad, long-term backpacker, or an adrenaline-loving adventurer. It will protect you against costly emergencies. Without it, a stolen camera, a sudden illness, or an emergency evacuation can derail your trip and turn months of planning into a financial nightmare.

Digital nomads and remote workers face unique risks, so choosing the right plan is critical.

This guide compares two popular options- SafetyWing and World Nomads side-by-side to enable you pick the plan that best fits your trip, activities, and budget.

In this guide we’ll look at;

1. Overview of Providers.

2. What Each Plan Covers: Side-By-Side.

3. Pros and Cons.

4. Final Thoughts.

OVERVIEW OF PROVIDERS.

World Nomads is a veteran travel insurer that deals with all types of travelers, but it's best suited for digital nomads, adventurers and thrill seekers. It’s known for covering a broad range of activities (250+ sports) depending on your country of residence, as well as the country you’re visiting. It offers standard, explorer and Epic plans, including multi-trip annual plans. It’s strong on adventure/ sports coverage.

SafetyWing on the other hand is built for nomads, remote workers and long-term travelers. They operate on a monthly subscription model with two tiers (Essential vs. Complete) that’s designed for long stays, and flexible travel. Coverage is global (180+ countries) and their policies can be bought from anywhere.

Travel insurance matters for nomads because being abroad for months means more exposure with often no local health cover. For adventure travelers it matters because medical evacuations and specialized rescue are expensive, and more so, for sports injuries.

WHAT EACH PLAN COVERS: SIDE-BY-SIDE

1. Medical & Emergency Evacuation.

World Nomads has tiered emergency limits depending on the plan you choose. For example Standard, Explorer or Epic. Typical emergency medical limits are in the mid-hundreds of thousands depending on the plan and country. Emergency evacuation benefits are high especially for the Explorer and Epic plans.

SafetyWing’s Essential plan provides solid emergency medical cover, which is advertised at around $250,000, and is only for acute illnesses or injuries. The complete plan offers broader benefits and higher limits. The complete plan even covers routine care, check-ups, pregnancy and ongoing conditions. It is positioned as a full health and travel solution. Essential plan covers up to $250,000, while Complete covers up to $1,500,000. Get your quote here.

*ProTip: If you want very high medical emergency or evacuation limits on a single trip, World Nomads’ higher plans or SafetyWing’s Complete both give strong protection— compare the exact amounts for your destination.

2. Trip Cancellation/Interruption & Delays

World Nomads includes trip cancellation and interruption for covered reasons, which may include illness, injuries, and even disasters. They also offer an optional “Cancel For Any Reason” add-on. Both the Explorer and Epic plans offer higher limits.

SafetyWing offers limited benefits for trip delays and interruptions under its Essential plan, covering the cost of transportation to a hospital for an illness. Essential provides ~$100/day (max 2 days), while Complete offers up to $150/day (3 days) for a covered delay. The Complete plan includes stronger trip interruption benefits than the Essential plan.

*ProTip: If you prepay tours or international flights and worry about cancellation, make sure the plan includes trip-cancellation or consider Cancel For Any Reason (CFAR) add-ons where available.

3. Adventure & High-risk Sports

World Nomads actively markets coverage for 250+ adventure activities (from scuba to rock-climbing, and more), with Explorer or Epic covering the most extreme activities. Check the activity list here. Some high-risk sports may require an extra add-on.

SafetyWing covers many leisure sports under its plans but may require an Adventure Sports add-on or the higher Complete plan for more high-risk activities.

4. Baggage, Electronics & Gear.

World Nomads covers loss or theft of luggage and gear, and are included with per-item limits. They also offer the Digital Nomads Pack for digital nomads who travel with expensive kit like smartphones, cameras and laptops.

SafetyWing covers electronics like laptops, tablets and cameras for up to $2,000 per stolen item and an annual limit of $5,000 per policy. Read the full policy for more details.

*ProTip: If you carry expensive equipment (camera, laptop), check the per-item limit and consider a special gadget cover if needed.

5. Pricing & Policy Model.

World Nomads offers per-trip pricing where you choose to buy for each trip based on age, trip length and destination. Alternatively, you can choose the annual multi-trip which covers 45-day trips over a year. Price varies by age, trip length, destination and plan level. The Standard plan is cheaper. Explorer and Epic costs more for higher cover. Premiums are generally higher that SafetyWing but reflect broader coverage. Please confirm if the annual multi trip travel insurance is available in your country.

SafetyWing uses the monthly subscription model. For example, for ages 18-39, Essential is ~56$/month and auto-renews each 4 weeks until you cancel or reach 12 months. For Complete, it’s ~$161/month and requires a 12-month minimum commitment, although you can pay monthly. SafetyWing is great for open-ended travelers who want to travel continuously. Get your quote.

*ProTip: If you’re on an open-ended nomad journey and want continuous cover, SafetyWing’s monthly model is attractive. If you plan short but activity-packed trips, one-off World Nomads plans might be better.

6. COVID-19

World Nomads covers COVID-19 illness as a medical condition. They will reimburse medical costs if you get COVID abroad, and cover trip interruption if you’re too sick to travel. It also covers trip cancellations for a COVID diagnosis before departure.

SafetyWing also treats COVID-19 like any sickness and even covers mandated quarantines ($50/day for up to 10 days). The antibody test will however not be covered.

7. Policy Flexibility (Extend, Renew, Buy Abroad)

World Nomads allows you to extend a current policy mid-trip by purchasing extra days online. However, you generally can’t upgrade the plan from say, Standard to Explorer mid-trip once you’ve booked. Policies are one-off including the annual plan, and refunds are limited (usually only if canceled within a short cooling-off)

SafetyWing can be purchased or renewed from anywhere. The Essential policies renew each month, up to 12 months, after which the plan expires. You cannot extend beyond one year with the same policy. Therefore, you must restart the policy. You may also cancel or stop renewal at any time. The Complete plan also runs 12 months, and then you can start a new contract. Both plans allow you to buy coverage while abroad.

8. Customer Support & Claims Process

World Nomads offer 24/7 emergency assistance and an online claims portal. Many travelers’ reviews report good experiences on settled claim, and even the speed of the claim settlements, with some claiming to have been paid in under a month. Others, however, noted difficulty reaching support or getting clear responses on complex claims. Overall, Trustpilot reviews cited that reviewers overwhelmingly had a great experience with World Nomad.

SafetyWing also provides 24/7 live chat support. Trustpilot reviews are positive with reviewers highlighting prompt and helpful customer service, and fast claim reimbursements. Many praise SafetyWing’s ease and quick responses online. 

9. Extras and Unique Features.

World Nomads offers optional add-ons, for example, Digital Nomad Pack for expensive electronics, and Adventure Pack for high-risk sports.

SafetyWings Complete plan insures any new chronic condition indefinitely. It also covers maternity, dental and wellness checks- benefits that are rare in travel insurance. SafetyWing also offers a separate Remote Health insurance for distributed companies/teams. This reflects its focus on health insurance.

RELATED: How To Choose The Right Travel Insurance Policy

PROS AND CONS.

World Nomads

Pros: 

• High medical limits.

• Wide adventure/ sports coverage.

• Trip cancellation options.

• High evacuation limits on higher plans.

• Flexible single-trip extensions.

• Extras that appeal to nomads (gear, electronics coverage).

• Established brand with good claims track record.

Cons:

• Per-trip policy model (less convenient for continuous travel)

• Higher premiums for Explorer/Epic.

• Not available in all regions.

SafetyWing

Pros:

• Flexible subscription model.

• Affordable pricing.

• Easy to buy/renew online from anywhere.

• Good customer service with quick claims.

• Ongoing care and maternity under complete plan.

• Good value for international travel.

• Home-country medical coverage (short-term)

• Broader health benefits in the Complete plan (closer to an expat health product)

Cons:

• Fewer adventure sports covered (must buy add-on)

• Modest limits on Essential plan.

FINAL THOUGHTS.

Both World Nomads and SafetyWing are great, but they solve slightly different needs. If you want a subscription built around long-term travel and is flexible with month-to-month protection as a digital nomad or remote worker, SafetyWing is ideal. If you want a single-trip policy tailored to extreme activities, World Nomads is a great fit. Read the full policies; compare the exact limits and exclusions for your destination and activities before you buy.

Get an instant quote from SafetyWings or World Nomads.

Safe travels!

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