Best Digital Nomad Insurance [2023 Guide]
When it comes to arranging the Best Travel Insurance as a Digital Nomad, you’ve got several key things to consider.
After all, despite how kickass the lifestyle of a World Travelling Online Professional can be; it’s not without it’s complications.
For instance, did you know that there are actually several different types of Travel Insurance Plans ?
Some are far more suitable for Digital Nomads than others!
In this article we’ll explain why plus walk you through How To Pick the Best Nomad Travel Insurance specifically for you.
Then we’ll slam down Ten Brutal Reviews of the Top Insurance Plans for Nomads of the Digital Variety.
Things to Consider when Picking the Right Digital Nomad Insurance for You
Right! Before we dive into our Digital Nomad Insurance Reviews, we’re going to arm you with a few key considerations to clutch to your digital bosom as you decide which Insurance Plan is the best one specifically for you:
#1 - How much tech you have
When the cost of your Digital Nomad gear exceeds the maximum value covered by an insurance company, the rest isn’t covered.
Consider working out the total value of your tech to make sure it falls within the maximum value covered by a digital nomad insurance company. Most travel insurance plans only cover up to $2500, whereas World Nomads cover up to $3000.
#2 - What you'll be doing
Among the Travel Insurance Companies that do provide protection for injuries, the range of activities they cover vary considerably.
We’ve found World Nomads to have the widest range. You can find out the full scope of activities covered by a travel insurance company by looking on their website.
#3 - Where you're going
The Best Travel Insurance Companies offer Global coverage, but some are restricted or non applicable in certain countries.
#4 - Where you're from
Some Travel insurance companies only apply to citizens of certain countries, usually the same country as that of the travel insurance companies origins.
#5 - Your Budget
Not only does the cost of travel insurance companies vary considerably, but many also offer several plans each for people with different budgets.
There’s little point splashing out on an extremely expensive travel insurance plan if you’re low on cash and only need minimal coverage!
Digital Nomad Insurance Reviews
Lots of backpackers and digital nomads agree that Genki Explorer is the best choice for travel insurance. Genki offers flexible monthly subscriptions that cover all countries in the world. Their insurance option can be canceled at any time you wish.
Additionally, Genki Explorer has made healthcare easier when you get sick or get into emergency situations. Through them, you’ll be able to get medical attention from any doctor at any hospital in any country.
If you are a frequent traveler and looking for a convenient insurance option, you should definitely consider Genki Explorer.
Our No. 1 Travel Insurance for Digital Nomads
What we love about Genki’s Travel Health Insurance (called Genki Explorer) is that they cover medical care in every country, and are available to citizens of any country.
As digital nomads and backpackers, this insurance is designed to be the best and the most favorable option as they cover sports injuries, COVID-19, or hospital visits, to name just a few.
With their 24/7 hotline, you’ll be able to swiftly get the quality treatment that you need as they guarantee that all transactions will be taken care of directly with the hospital.
Genki Pros
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Medically necessary treatments at your own convenience
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You choose your doctors and hospitals
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Cover minor to major sports injuries (with some exceptions), COVID-19, pregnancy, emergency dental and eye treatments, initial mental illnesses, and other medically necessary treatments
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Covers you in your home country up to 6 weeks every 6 months
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Direct billing to hospitals and no overall cost limits
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24/7 hotline guaranteeing swift care
Genki Cons
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Limited coverage in your home country (but still gives you home country coverage for 6 weeks every 6 months)
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Doesn’t cover pre-existing conditions (6 months before)
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Injuries acquired from doing dangerous activities/sports are not covered
Is Genki Insurance for You?
Lots of backpackers and digital nomads agree that Genki Explorer is the best choice for travel insurance. Genki offers flexible monthly subscriptions that cover all countries in the world. Their insurance option can be canceled at any time you wish.
Additionally, Genki Explorer has made healthcare easier when you get sick or get into emergency situations. Through them, you’ll be able to get medical attention from any doctor at any hospital in any country.
If you are a frequent traveler and looking for a convenient insurance option, you should definitely consider Genki Explorer.
Runner up for Best Travel Insurance for Digital Nomads
Why Digital Nomads Love this Travel Insurance – In addition to covering office & admin work; World Nomads also have your back on over 150 other travel type activities like diving, motorbiking and trekking.
As well as covering high-value equipment, you can also list equipment separately; which means you can avoid paying to cover more gear than you have.
Praised by Lonely Planet, National Geographic and Rough Guides, World Nomads the most reputable travel companies today and their packages have been designed specifically for short & long term travellers and adventurers.
World Nomads Pros
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Flexible - You can buy more cover or claim online while still travelling
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Cover up to $3000 worth of gear - $500 more than most travel insurance companies!
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Cover Abroad Medical Expenses and Dental Work
World Nomads Cons
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Age Limit of 70 for Certain Products
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Don't offer Primary Health Insurance. Only cover Emergency Medical & Dental Treatment.
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To get motorcycle and scooter accident coverage, you need an International Drivers License
Is World Nomads for You?
In our opinion as well as that of countless Bloggers, Adventures and Backpackers, World Nomads, without a doubt, is one of the best Travel Insurance Company for Digital Nomads, with nearly every major Travel Company pairing up with them.
That’s because of their all encompassing and flexible travel plans, their excellent customer service and the wide range of adventure activities they cover.
Anyone who is looking to get a travel insurance plan that covers the widest possible scope of adventure activities, whilst also covering a higher monetary value of tech than other insurance companies and great emergency medical coverage – should definitely choose World Nomads.
Unless you’re over 70, have way over $3000 in gear, require primary health care; or you need motorcycle / scooter coverage but can’t get an International Drivers license, you will be glad you chose these guys.
Why Digital Nomads Love Safety Wing – With an insanely easy to use platform and dedicated customer service, SafetyWing also provides Primary Health Care.
Most other Primary Health Insurance Companies only work in the country of a given home address, which is what makes Safety Wing so appealing for Digital Nomads who need global primary health care.
Combine this with an insanely easy to use platform, tech protection up to $2500 and travel insurance; and it’s easy to see why Safetywing are fast rising through the ranks of favourite travel insurance companies for Digital Nomads.
Safety Wing Pros
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Provide Global Primary Health Insurance
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Option to pay every 4 weeks and cancel at any time
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Cover Trip Interruption and Delay
Safety Wing Cons
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Do not Cover Adventure Sports or Trip Cancellations
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Premium increases according to age for those over 39
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Does not cover theft of any electronics!
Is SafetyWing for You?
Safety Wing market themselves as a travel medical insurance policy for Digital Nomads. As far as medical insurance for travellers go, they excel at this; being the only digital nomad friendly travel insurance firm that provides full primary health insurance.
Therefore, if primary health insurance is of your main concern, then Safetywing is the right choice for you.
Because Safetywing also cover up to $2500 worth of tech; this makes them a very attractive option for Digital Nomads.
However, it should be noted that electronic tech isn’t covered if it gets stolen. This, combined with other things like no coverage for trip cancellations or extreme sports, means that in all other regards SafetyWing are not as good as world Nomads from a travellers perspective.
In short, if your an adventurous traveller and/or full tech protection are your main priorities, you should opt out of SafetyWing and instead choose World Nomads. Only choose SafetyWing if primary health insurance is your number one priority.
Why Digital Nomads Love True Traveller – For residents of EEA Countries and the UK, True Traveller offer the cheapest travel insurance out there.
The policy was designed for those who love adventure and don’t shy away from adventure actiites.
True Traveller Pros
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Exceptional discounts if you pre-pay for a year or more.
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No limit on home visits
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Possible to purchase whilst on the road
True Traveller Cons
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ONLY available to people in the UK and other EEA Countries
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Do not cover private medical treatment
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Extensions are very expensive
Is True Traveller Insurance for You?
Straight off the bat, if you’re not a member of the UK or a EEA country, definitely not as you won’t get covered.
Also, if you don’t know exactly how long you’ll be traveling for, best give these guys a miss, because they have the most ridiculously expensive extension fees.
But – if you have a fixed time length for which you’ll be travelling and live in a country eligible for Traveller Insurance, True Traveller could be a good third choice after World Nomads and SafetyWing.
They offer great prices, professional customer service and cover everything from medical expenses to electronic gear protection.
Why Digital Nomads Love IMG – IMG cover extreme activities that most other insurance companies would steer well clear of – like diving, helicopter rides and rock climbing.
It’s therefore no wander they are used by missionary groups, international diplomats and marines!
IMG Pros
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Tailored for extreme activities - even those that pose significant risk or injury or getting stranded
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Compared to other providers, it's cheap to extend or renew your policy
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Medical Coverage up to a whopping $500,000
IMG Cons
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Some clients complain of slow claims handling
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They focus mainly on medial coverage. If you also want coverage for lost luggage, you must buy 2 separate packages
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Can't return to home country for more than 14 days during trip or insurance policy gets cancelled.
Is IMG for You?
If you’re the sort of Digital Nomad who is also a truly hardcore adventurer, IMG might be for you. Check out their website for the epic list of insane activities they cover. Do note, this isn’t primary health insurance though.
That said; if you’re after travel insurance for an even slightly less insane trip, one where you’ll be frequently working and have lots of electronic tech – IMG is not the best bet! For this, we’d recommend World Nomads.
Why Digital Nomads Love John Hancock John Hancock are relatively straight forward to sign up with and offer a package for every budget.
However, we honestly can’t say many Digital Nomads love John Hancock – and neither did we! Read on for more details.
John Hancock Pros
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Offer medical coverage and 24/7 global assistance
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3 Medical Coverage Packages available to suit all budgets
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Easy to read contract with no confusing wording
John Hancock Cons
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Get's terrible reviews from a variety of sources
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Provides no coverage for adventurous activities or extreme sports
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Very Poor customer service and experience
Is John Hancock for You?
If you were to. check out the reviews for John Hancock, you’d see a lot of travellers would tell you no.
At NomadsNation we do like to show you all the options available – if you’re willing to ignore other peoples and advice of avoiding this travel company, maybe your experience will be different. But from us; it’s a firm no. If you’re sensible: John Hancock is not for you.
Why Digital Nomads Love Travelex – Like World Nomads, Travelex are one of the rarer digital nomad insurance companies that include both medical and gear protection in their packages.
They come with some handy perks like children 17 and under being covered at no extra cost as well as trip interruption and delay benefits.
Travelex Pros
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All of it's plans include equipment coverage
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Highly customisable Travel Protection
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Trip Cancellation for Business Reasons included
Travelex Cons
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Website is not easy to use
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Slow Response Time
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Not all nationalities can make claims for damaged equipment
Is Travelex for You?
If the idea of being able to customise your travel insurance plan to suit your individual requirements and lifestyle habits seems attractive, you should consider checking out the full range of benefits of Travelex on their website.
Personally, we feel Travelex are similar to World Nomads and Safety Wing as they have many of the same perks, although these are normally just a tad weaker than the other two travel websites. For example Travelex allows you to insure up to $2500 of gear whereas with World Nomads it’s $3000.
Their unnecessarily complicated website and occasionally slow customer service do get frustrating.
Why Digital Nomads Love Travel Guard – Travel Guard are another travel insurance firm who have evolved with the modern digital era and realised that for many people medical coverage is not enough – therefore they also cover equipment.
They have 3 packages available, making them budget traveller friendly as well as meaning you don’t have to pay the same amount as someone taking far more gear than you.
Travel Guard Pros
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Suit all budgets by offering 3 packages: silver, gold and platinum.
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All Packages cover equipment in addition to emergency medical services
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No per item limits
Travel Guard Cons
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Only U.S. Citizens are Eligible.
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Hard to Contact
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Price of coverage varies according to age of traveller
Is Travel Guard for You?
If you’re a U.S. Citizen, aren’t well over the age of 40; and you want to go with a truly budget friendly travel insurance plan, Travel Guard could be for you.
For those who want to protect their tech, but don’t have loads of it – say $700 worth or less, the silver package could be perfect for you!
But, travellers planning on taking part in adventure activities, for primary health insurance, who need to protect more tech and/or who are easily frustrated by an insurance company that is surprisingly hard to reach should look elsewhere.
Why Digital Nomads Love APA – APA cover a higher monetary value of gear than any other travel insurance company we know of – provided it’s gear for photography.
Their premium plan also expands beyond this with liability coverage and protection of some office gear.
Apa Pros
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Cover Owned and Rented Photo Equipment up to $21,000!
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Reliable Customer Service
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Plan 2 Covers office items and up to $2000 General Liability
Apa Cons
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Do not Cover Extreme Sports
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Do not cover medical bills
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Do not cover trip cancellation or delay
Is APA for You?
Simply put dear reader, if you’re a hardcore photographer with well over $3000 worth of photography gear, then APA is definitely your best best for protecting all that photography tech.
That said, you would need to look to another insurance company to also get medical coverage, travel insurance and coverage for sports and adventure activities which ups the price significantly.
Therefore, even if. you are a digital nomad of. the photographic variety, unless you have many thousands of dollars worth of tech, APA are totally unnecessary, with none of the other perks of Travel Insurance Companies like SafetyWing and World Nomads.
Why Digital Nomads Love Insure My Equipment – They are quite similar to APA, with abnormally high value tech coverage.
However, their tech coverage expands beyond just that used for photography and takes into account equipment used for a wide range of other professions (see below).
Insure My Equipment Pros
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Covers equipment for photography, sound, lighting, generators, video recorders, editing and more.
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Covers against theft, natural disaster damage and equipment in transit, falls, water damage, fire and more.
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Covers incidents both in clients country of residence as well as abroad
Insure My Equipment Cons
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Doesn't cover medical expenses
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60 day minimum policy
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No Coverage for Adventure Actiiite
Is Insure My Equipment for You?
You should be cottoning on to how this works by now young Padawan. If you’re a techy professional – a photographer, camera worker, musician etc and you’re looking for high value coverage of your gear, well beyond the total value offered by other Travel Insurance companies then Insure My Equipment is a good choice.
You’ll still have to purchase medical insurance separately though, in addition to travel protection and adventure activities coverage.
Therefore if you only have a few thousand dollars worth of tech, do not go with these guys! It’ll be unnecessarily expensive with none of the other digital nomad friendly perks that you’d get with World Nomads or SafetyWing.
Why Digital Nomads Love Protect Your Bubble – Based in the UK, Protect Your Bubble offer an exceptionally flexible system. It’s possible to protect 3 items of tech for just £14.99 a month!
They offer unlimited repairs, worldwide coverage and as well as covering theft and damage also cover mechanical breakdown.
Protect Your Bubble Pros
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Choose exact items you want insured and receive quote based off that list
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Offer coverage in country of residence and abroad
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Extremely flexible and suitable for those travelling light
Protect Your Bubble Cons
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ONLY offer insurance for residents of a few countries
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Don't offer medical coverage
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Some high end video equipment not covered
Is Protect Your Bubble for You?
If you’re travelling light and/or on a budget – a backpacker or a student perhaps, Protect Your Bubble could be ideal for you.
That’s because you can pay in monthly instalments by the item that you insure, meaning you can get away with a very low insurance fee overall, especially when you only want to insure one or two items.
However, Protect Your Bubble are strictly an equipment insurance service so you won’t be covered for the likes of medical bills or delayed travel expenses.
Buyers Guide -
What do Digital Nomads need from a Travel Insurance Plan?
#1 - Electronic Tech Coverage
Chances are, as a Digital Nomad, you’ve got your own unique arsenal of electronic tech that you rely on.
It’s your electronic bow and arrow, the one you stalk through the pixelated woods with, in pursuit of online success. Without it – you go hungry.
That’s why it’s crucial to choose an insurance plan that covers your electronic gear.
But guess what?! Not all travel insurance plans do this! Dun – dun – dunnnn!
Now… strap yourselves in for this next bombshell: Among insurance plans for digital nomads that do cover gear – there’s still crucial differences!
Differences such as the circumstances under which electronic tech is covered – and the maximum value of gear you can be insured for.
So far, we’ve found World Nomads to offer the most extensive tech coverage at the greatest value.
We’ll talk about this a little more later in the Digital Nomad Insurance Reviews Section.
#2 - Travel Coverage
By this, we mean insured covered for unexpected events such as Trip Cancellation or Interruption.
Imagine for example that your busy whizzing this way and that around the globe on your Digital Quest and you have to make a number of flights.
Say the transit between two flights is particularly tight and due to a delay, you miss your next stop!
You’ll want an insurance plan that reimburses you fully for this. If you’re making a lot of flights it can be cheaper to have this covered by your insurance plan rather than get extra protection for each flight.
It’s also handy to have all of your luggage protected in case it get’s lost in transit.
There’s also the need to be insured against unforeseen circumstances in the countries you’re visiting – such as environmental or political disasters.
Two particularly great Travel Insurance Companies for this which also suit Digital Nomads other requirements are World Nomads and SafetyWing.
We’ll talk more about both of these soon.
#3 - Travel Health Insurance
You definitely want to be covered for emergency medical expenses whilst abroad – as well as have protection for any injuries sustained.
The best Insurance Plans for Digital Nomads are those that take into account the crazy lives we have and provide coverage for activities such as trekking, tubing, ballooning, water-sports and other extreme sports.
Good travel health coverage means being covered for emergency medical treatment following unexpected illness and any injuries sustained throughout your travels.
It’s worth noting that primary health care (treatment beyond emergencies) isn’t covered by the vast majority of Travel Insurance Companies, with the exception of SafetyWing.
As a Digital Nomad, your primary concern should be getting covered for any major medical procedures you need following an accident or major illness sustained on your travels.
World Nomads and SafetyWing offer the best travel health insurance for digital nomads – with a few key differences between them.
We’ll cover that in the Reviews Section, coming up real soon!
Final Thoughts on Travel Insurance for Digital Nomads
Just before you go gallivanting off into the pixelated sunset and purchasing your digital nomad insurance policy, here’s several final tips for choosing the best package for you:
- Read the Documents Provided – Here you’ll find a full list of all situations and contexts in which you’re covered and in which you’re not. Extremely handy to know. If there’s a type of coverage your’ interested in but can’t find it on the list, you may be able to purchase it as an additional item. But that’s not always the case.
- Consider your Trip – Some locations are far safer than others. Having an idea of the overall risk of your trip is useful when considering what you do and don’t need coverage for.
- Contact the Travel Insurance Companies Representatives Before Purchasing- To clarify with them any doubts or concerns you may have. This is also an excellent way of getting a feel for how knowledgeable and responsible the insurance company is. After-all if they can’t help you with a few queries, how can you count on them during an emergency!?
And that’s all there be to it. As you can see, there’s a whole range of travel insurance options out there. Some are more tailored for Digital Nomads than others.
We still hold strong that the best two insurance firms for Digital Nomads are World Nomads and SafetyWing.
For Digital Nomads of the adventurous sort and with just that little bit more gear than the rest – World Nomads are by far the best option.
Digital Nomads who desperately want Primary Health Insurance and aren’t likely to partake in adventure activities, should opt for SafetyWing.
Ultimately though, the one who has to make the choice is you. Choose Wisely. Nomads Nation Out. (Roll Credits).
Looking for more great Digital Nomad content?
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- These are the Coolest Places to Live in Mexico!
- Ever heard of Remote Year travel program for Digital Nomads?
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