The Dufresnes

SafetyWing offers two versions of its Nomad Insurance, and the names don't quite tell you what you're actually choosing between. Essential is flexible travel medical insurance for emergencies while you travel. Complete is closer to real, ongoing health insurance for people who live abroad. Pick the wrong one and you either overpay for coverage you don't need or find a gap exactly where you needed cover. Here's how we — full-time travelers who've carried SafetyWing for years — think through the decision.

🎁 Going with Essential? Get 8 weeks of theft coverage free

New Nomad Essential members can get 8 weeks of electronic theft coverage free with code THEDUFRESNES — free cover for your laptop, camera, and phone.

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The short answer

• Choose Essential if you're traveling long-term but still have a home base, want month-to-month flexibility, and mainly need emergency medical + evacuation coverage. It's the cheaper, "cancel anytime" option — and the one that unlocks our 8-weeks-free electronic theft coverage bonus.
• Choose Complete if you live abroad with no home base and this is effectively your only health insurance — because it covers routine care, dental, mental health, maternity, and new conditions that develop while you're insured.

Side-by-side comparison

	Nomad Insurance Essential	Nomad Insurance Complete
What it really is	Travel medical insurance	Health + travel insurance
Starting price (age 18–39)	~$62.72 / 4 weeks	~$161.50 / month
Billing & commitment	Every 4 weeks, cancel anytime	12-month commitment
Buy while already abroad	Yes	Yes
Emergency medical & hospitalization	Yes	Yes
Emergency evacuation	Yes	Yes
COVID-19	Yes	Yes
Routine & preventive care	No	Yes
Dental	No	Up to ~$1,000/yr
Mental health	No	Yes
Maternity	No	Yes
Pre-existing conditions	Not covered	Broader coverage (with rules)
New/chronic conditions on plan	No	Yes
Adventure sports	Optional add-on	Broader activity coverage
Electronics theft	Optional add-on — 8 weeks free with code THEDUFRESNES	Optional add-on
Age limit	69	69

Starting prices are for the youngest age band and rise with age. Always pull a live quote for your exact age and dates. The 8-week electronic theft coverage bonus is for new Nomad Essential members only.

When Essential is the right call

Essential is the plan most travelers actually want. It's built for the classic scenario: you have a home country and home healthcare to return to, but while you're on the road you need cover for the things that go genuinely wrong — a hospital stay, an accident, an emergency evacuation, a COVID infection far from home.

Its strengths:

• Cheap enough to just leave running. Starting around $62.72 per 4 weeks for under-40s.
• Truly flexible. It bills every four weeks and you can cancel anytime — ideal if your travel dates are fuzzy.
• You can start it mid-trip. Already abroad and realized you're uninsured? You can still buy it.
• 8 weeks of free electronic theft coverage for new members with code THEDUFRESNES — genuinely useful if you travel with a laptop and camera like we do.

Its limits:

• No routine, preventive, dental, or maternity care — it's not everyday healthcare.
• Pre-existing conditions aren't covered (only narrow acute-onset exceptions).
• Adventure sports are a paid add-on, not automatic. If you'll be diving, riding motorbikes, or trekking at altitude, add the sports coverage before you go — this is the single most common gap we see travelers get caught by.

When Complete is worth the jump

Complete costs meaningfully more and asks for a 12-month commitment, so it's not the default choice — but for one group it's a genuinely different (and better) product: people who have no home base at all.

If you've given up your apartment, you don't have national health cover to fall back on, and you're living out of a suitcase indefinitely, Essential leaves a real hole — it won't handle a routine check-up, a filling, therapy, a pregnancy, or a chronic condition that develops while you're abroad. Complete does. It behaves like the health insurance you'd otherwise have "back home," but it follows you around the world instead.

Worth knowing before you commit: Complete is a 12-month contract. You can cancel within the first 15 days of a new term, but cancel partway through and you may only be refunded up to about 65% of the unused portion (unless you have a qualifying life event). Go in expecting to keep it for the year. Note that the 8-week electronic theft coverage bonus is an Essential-only perk, so it doesn't apply to Complete.

Pricing and the discounts that actually exist

There's no SafetyWing % off coupon and no seasonal sale to hold out for — pricing is age-based and adjusted annually. The two real ways to save:

1. New Essential members: 8 weeks of electronic theft coverage free with code THEDUFRESNES.
2. Loyalty discount (automatic, any plan): 5% off after 12 months of continuous coverage, 10% after 24 months, 15% after 36 months.

For anyone treating insurance as an always-on part of their setup, that loyalty discount is a real reason to keep one continuous plan rather than starting and stopping.

How to decide in 30 seconds

Ask yourself one question: do I still have a home country with healthcare I'd return to?

• Yes → Essential. Add the sports coverage if you need it, use code THEDUFRESNES for your 8 weeks of free theft coverage, and you're done.
• No, I live fully abroad → seriously consider Complete, because Essential won't be enough on its own.

Still not sure? Start with Essential — it's flexible, cancellable, and comes with the theft-coverage bonus — and move up to Complete if your life abroad becomes permanent. For a fuller look at coverage, claims, and our real experience, read our full SafetyWing Nomad Insurance review (internal link — add live URL once published).

Start your SafetyWing plan with code THEDUFRESNES →

Frequently asked questions

Is Complete just a more expensive Essential? No — it's a different type of product. Essential is travel medical insurance for emergencies; Complete is ongoing health insurance (routine care, dental, mental health, maternity, chronic conditions) for people living abroad. You're not just paying more for the same thing.

Which plan gets the 8 weeks of free electronic theft coverage? The Essential plan. The bonus (via code THEDUFRESNES) is for new Nomad Essential members only, so if that free laptop-and-camera cover matters to you, it's another point in Essential's favor.

Can I switch from Essential to Complete later? Yes. A common path is to start on flexible Essential coverage and upgrade to Complete once you realize you're living abroad long-term with no home base.

Is there a percentage discount code for either plan? No. SafetyWing doesn't use % off coupon codes. The customer perk is the free 8-week electronic theft coverage on Essential, plus the automatic loyalty discount after 12, 24, and 36 months of continuous coverage.

Does Essential cover adventure sports? Only if you add the optional sports coverage. It's not automatic, so add it before you travel if you'll be doing anything high-risk.

Which plan do most travelers choose? Most shorter-term and long-term travelers with a home base use Essential; Complete is aimed at people who live abroad with no home healthcare to fall back on.

The Dufresnes are SafetyWing ambassadors. Starting a plan through our link supports our free guides at no extra cost to you. This article is general information, not insurance advice — always read the current policy documents and get a live quote before buying.