Silver health insurance

Silver hospital insurance is the second most comprehensive tier of hospital coverage you can buy. It's available from around $29 a week*.

Who’s this health cover for?

Key takeaways

  • Silver tier hospital policies are the second most comprehensive hospital insurance policies available in Australia (second only to Gold).
  • The cheapest silver hospital policies start from around $29 a week*.
  • Silver hospital insurance covers hospital treatments including dental surgery, back, neck and spine.
*Prices are based on a single individual with less than $97,000 income, $750 excess and living in Sydney.

Pros and cons of Silver health insurance

Pros

  • A good level of cover for treatment in a private hospital
  • Includes cover for heart and vascular system related treatments
  • Many Silver plus policies offer a lot of flexibility around which Gold treatments you need covered

Cons

  • While cheaper than Gold, Silver cover is still on the pricier end, generally costing around $115+ per month
  • Silver policies cover some uncommon treatments that not everyone needs cover for
  • Doesn't cover outpatient services without additional extras cover

Award Winning Silver Hospital Cover: RT Health Silver Plus Standard Hospital $750 Excess

Award Winning Silver Hospital Cover badge

RT Health have come in strong this year, taking its first Finder Award for the Silver Hospital Tier in 2025. The Silver Plus offering goes beyond the tier requirements, resulting in the highest value product in the category.

Highly commended

Bupa Silver Plus Intermediate Hospital $750 Excess

Bupa's Silver Plus Intermediate Hospital policy is Highly Commended in the Silver Hospital Health Insurance category. It presents a compelling blend of value and features, delivering comprehensive cover for a wide spectrum of treatments at the Silver Plus level.

HCF Hospital Standard Silver Plus

HCF's Hospital Standard Silver Plus policy earns a Highly Commended spot in the Silver Hospital Health Insurance category. Packed with impressive benefits, it offers extensive cover that truly exceeds the standard Silver requirements, making it a solid choice.

Alanna Glenn's headshot

"I originally signed up for a Gold insurance policy because I wanted to cover everything. As it turns out, a Silver policy covered everything I needed so I dropped down a tier and save money on my repayments every month."

Money Expert

What are the hospital health insurance tiers?

Each of the different health insurance tiers has to cover a standardised set of treatments. Here's a quick summary of each tier.
Gold hospital cover icon

Gold hospital cover

Gold-tier hospital insurance covers all 38 treatments outlined by the Australian government. This includes treatments like joint replacements, pregnancy and insulin pumps, as well as all services covered by Silver-tier policies.

Average premium: $282.61 a month for a single policy.*
Lowest premium: $196.56 a month for a single policy.*
Silver hospital cover icon

Silver hospital cover

Silver-tier hospital insurance covers at least 26 treatments outlined by the Australian government. This includes treatments like dental surgery, lung and chest, and podiatric surgery, as well as all services covered by Bronze-tier policies.

Average cost: $162.39 a month for a single policy.*
Lowest premium: $115.04 a month for a single policy.*
Bronze hospital cover icon

Bronze hospital cover

Bronze-tier hospital insurance covers at least 18 treatments outlined by the Australian government. This includes treatments like joint reconstructions, gynaecology, and ear, nose and throat, as well as all services covered by Basic-tier policies.
Average cost: $103.77 a month for a single policy.*
Lowest premium: $89.80 a month for a single policy.*
Basic hospital cover icon

Basic hospital cover

Basic-tier hospital insurance isn't required to fully cover any treatments outlined by the Australian government, but it does need to have restricted cover for rehabilitation, hospital psychiatric services and palliative care. Generally, Basic cover is primarily used to avoid the Medicare Levy Surcharge and Lifetime Health Cover loading.

Average cost: $87.10 a month for a single policy.*
Lowest premium: $75.77 a month for a single policy.*

*Average prices updated June 2025, in line with Finder's database of health insurance policies. Prices are based on a single individual with less than $97,000 income and living in Sydney with a $750 excess.

Who might need Silver cover?

couple icon

Those not looking to start a family

If you're not planning to start a family in the near future but still want reasonable coverage, then a Silver policy might be a good choice for you. It provides you with a range of benefits but doesn't provide cover for clinical categories you're not going to use, such as pregnancy and birth, and assisted reproductive services. Some sub-groups of people this might include are:

  • Established singles that want a good level of cover
  • Couples or partners without children
  • Families with children that aren't planning to have any more

Old man

Older Australians

Silver-tier cover provides a range of benefits that are suitable for older Australians. However, there are some treatments that may be important for some older people that aren't available with all Silver policies. Here are some examples:

Mandatory in Silver cover
  • Heart and vascular system
  • Lung and chest
  • Blood
  • Back, neck and spine
Not mandatory in Silver cover
  • Cataracts
  • Joint replacements
  • Weight loss surgery
  • Insulin pumps

surgeon icon

People with specific needs

The Silver-tier covers more specialised treatments than Bronze cover, so can be useful for people with more specific medical needs that they need coverage for. Additionally, many providers offer 'Silver plus' policies with cover for a small selection of Gold-tier treatments. These policies add a lot of flexibility for people who want coverage for some Gold-tier treatments, but don't need the highest level of coverage.

Silver health insurance: Frequently asked questions

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Written by

Insurance expert

A seasoned journalist with over 10 years of experience in news, politics and finance reporting, Tim has previously held roles at the ABC, SBS and Fairfax Media. Tim’s expert insights have been quoted in The Australian, The Daily Telegraph, The Courier Mail and more. He regularly appears on TV and radio, and has been interviewed on 7 News, Sunrise, SBS News, ABC Local, 3AW and 5AA. Tim is passionate about simplifying complex insurance topics for Australian consumers. He holds a Bachelor of Arts (Politics) from Macquarie University and a Tier 1 General Insurance (General Advice) certification, which meets the requirements of ASIC Regulatory Guide 146 (RG146). If you’re interested in a media interview with Tim, please reach out to our PR team at aupr@finder.com. See full bio

Tim's expertise
Tim has written 155 Finder guides across topics including:
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Co-written by

Journalist

James Martin was the insurance editor at Finder. He has written on a range of insurance and finance topics for over 7 years. James often shares his insurance expertise as a media spokesperson and has appeared on Prime 7 News, Insurance News, 7NEWS and The Guardian. An experienced journalist, James' work has featured in publications including The Irish Times, Companies100 and In Business. He holds a Tier 1 General Insurance (General Advice) certification and a Tier 1 Generic Knowledge certification, both of which meet the requirements of ASIC Regulatory Guide 146 (RG146). See full bio

James's expertise
James has written 186 Finder guides across topics including:
  • Car, home, life, health, travel and pet insurance
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