Clínica
Health insurance:
is it worth it?
Compare the annual cost of insurance with the cost of paying for consultations as you go — and see which profile benefits most.
How much individual insurance costs per year
Individual health insurance in Portugal costs, on average, between €50 and €70 per month per adult on mid-range plans — ranging from about €20/month on basic plans to €100–150/month on premium plans with high cover limits. In annual terms, the typical range is this:
| Plan level | Monthly cost | Annual cost |
|---|---|---|
| Basic (contracted network) | €20 | €240 |
| Basic | €30 | €360 |
| Basic | €40 | €480 |
| Mid-range (outpatient + inpatient) | €50 | €600 |
| Mid-range | €60 | €720 |
| Mid-range | €70 | €840 |
| Complete (childbirth, serious illness, international) | €80 | €960 |
| Complete | €90 | €1,080 |
| Complete | €100 | €1,200 |
| Complete | €110 | €1,320 |
| Complete | €120 | €1,440 |
| Complete | €130 | €1,560 |
| Complete | €140 | €1,680 |
| Complete | €150 | €1,800 |
| ADSE (subsystem, not insurance) | 3.5% of the holder's salary or pension — e.g. €1,200 → ~€42/month | Variable, depending on salary |
If the annual calculation does not justify itself in your situation, you can pay only for the consultation you need — without a 12-month premium. Article 1, SNS vs private, explains when public care is enough and when one-off private care makes more sense.
Basic
About €240 to €480 per year — mainly access to the contracted network.
Mid-range
€600 to €840 per year — outpatient and inpatient care, the most common range.
Complete
€960 to €1,800 per year — childbirth, serious illness and international cover.
Pay as you go
You pay only for the consultation you need, when you need it — without a 12-month premium.
Compare with the cost of paying consultation by consultation
| Medical act | One-off private cost (reference) |
|---|---|
| General or specialist medical consultation | ~€40–€95 (more in dermatology and sought-after specialties) |
| Telemedicine / video consultation | €15–€39 depending on the service |
| Diagnostic tests | Highly variable — from €30 to several hundred euros |
At LON Clinic, the general medicine consultation and the traveler's consultation each cost €39 — below many in-person specialist consultations, and without an annual policy.
When insurance is clearly worth it
- Families with children — higher frequency of consultations and unexpected needs
- People with chronic illness or high risk — the inpatient and ongoing-treatment cover quickly offsets the annual premium
- Anyone who uses private care regularly — if you already pay for 2–3 specialist consultations a year out of pocket, insurance tends to be worth it
- Maternity planning — private childbirth has high costs without insurance
When it may not be worth it
- Young and healthy, with no planned use of the private system — it can be cheaper to pay as you go when (and if) you need it
- Occasional and specific use — for example, you only need a travel-medicine consultation before a trip, not cover throughout the year
- You already have access through an operator (Vodafone/MEO) or an employer — it may already cover the essentials at no extra cost
- A good relationship with the SNS in your area — if waiting times in your region are not a problem, the benefit of private care decreases
Pay per consultation, when you need it
For anyone who only needs occasional, prompt access — not continuous cover throughout the year — paying for a one-off telemedicine consultation can clearly work out cheaper than annual insurance. That is the typical case of anyone who only needs a consultation before a specific trip, or a one-off medical opinion.
Frequently asked questions
You pay only for the consultation you need
If you conclude that annual insurance is not worth it in your situation, LON Clinic is the direct alternative: you pay only for the consultation you need, when you need it, with no 12-month commitment. Consultations are by telemedicine, in Portuguese, English, Spanish, French and German, and the clinic has a component with a special focus on travel medicine.
One consultation,
without an annual policy
Book online, the same day, and pay only for what you need.
See consultations →Telemedicine · no travel · no 12-month commitment
Premium and medical-act figures are market references, subject to change. They do not replace a personalised quote or the product's General Conditions. Always confirm with the insurer and the ASF.
Revisto pela equipa médica da Lon Clinic ·