Travel Protection Cost Calculator: How to Calculate Trip Cost

Key Takeaways

Trip cost for travel protection quotes should include only prepaid, non-refundable expenses like airfare, hotels, cruises, tours, and rental cars—not refundable bookings, tips, souvenirs, or unplanned expenses.
Travel protection typically costs 4–12% of the insured trip cost, with age, trip length, plan level, and time to departure also affecting the premium.
Insuring 100% of arrangements subject to cancellation penalties is required to qualify for Cancel for Any Reason coverage and Pre-existing Medical Conditions coverage under premium plans, provided all other eligibility requirements outlined in the plan are also met.
For partially refundable expenses, include only the non-refundable portion in your trip cost calculation to avoid overpaying for coverage that won't result in reimbursement.

Calculating your trip cost accurately is one of the most important steps in getting a travel protection quote — and one of the most commonly misunderstood.

If you’re wondering how much travel protection costs, the answer often starts with entering the right trip cost.

The same principle applies in reverse — you may also be underinsuring your trip. The goal is accuracy, not a higher or lower number. The point is that you should only cover the insurable expenses associated with your trip. To do that you need to understand what trip costs travel protection actually covers, before you buy a plan.

Why Trip Cost Affects Your Travel Protection Price

There are a number of factors that go into crafting a custom travel protection quote for your trip, and one of those is trip cost. It’s the last thing we ask for in the quote form and is one of the most important inputs in your travel protection price. Age, trip length, plan level, and time to departure also matter. You can learn more about what influences cost in our guide to the factors that affect the price of a travel protection quote.

Trip cost matters so much because of two important benefits in our plans, Trip Cancellation and Trip Interruption, cover a percentage of your trip cost.

For example, if you have our Premium plan and need to cancel your trip for a covered reason, you may be reimbursed up to 100% of your insured trip cost. If your trip is interrupted for a covered reason, up to 175% of your trip cost may be reimbursed, which may help cover extra transportation costs to rejoin your trip or return home. Be sure to review your plan details; reimbursement percentages are subject to plan terms, conditions, and limitations.

Other benefits, like Baggage or Medical and Dental, may cover only up to a set dollar amount, which is not connected to the trip cost.

Entering an accurate trip cost is especially important if you are interested in adding Trip Cancellation for Any Reason coverage to our Premium plan. To qualify for the coverage, you must insure 100% of all arrangements that are subject to cancellation penalties or restrictions. The same requirement applies if you want to take advantage of coverage for Pre-existing Medical Conditions under our Premium plan. Please note that eligibility for both Trip Cancellation for Any Reason and Pre-existing Medical Conditions coverage is also subject to specific purchase timeline requirements and other plan terms, conditions, and limitations.

Trip Costs Travel Insurance May Cover

The travel protection coverages that are dependent on trip cost may reimburse you for prepaid, non-refundable trip expenses. . Generally, travel protection will not reimburse expenses you have not paid for or costs that are refundable by your travel provider.

Here’s a breakdown of common trip costs and whether they may be covered by travel protection. If it’s in the “not covered” list, don’t include it in your trip cost calculation.

May Be Covered*	Not Covered
Non-refundable (or the non-refundable portion of):	Refundable prepaid expenses (plane tickets, hotels, tour costs, etc.)
Plane tickets	Tips
Cruise bookings	Snacks and incidental purchases
Hotels	Souvenirs
Tour costs	Unplanned local transportation (like cabs and metros)
Events	Same-day event tickets
Prepaid meals	Expenses purchased after departure that were not prepaid and insured
Rental car (if prepaid and non-refundable)	Travel rewards points (except frequent flyer miles)

* Coverage depends on the terms, conditions, limitations, and exclusions of the plan and the reason for cancellation or interruption.

If You Used Cash and Points

If you booked your trip using a combination of cash and points, include the cash amount you paid out of pocket in your trip cost. Miles may be covered only under certain plans, so check the plan terms before including them.

How Refundable Expenses Affect Your Trip Cost Calculation

Pay close attention to the first item on the “Not Covered” list. If you've already paid for a plane ticket or hotel room and it is fully refundable, you generally should not include that cost in your trip cost calculation. The hotel, airline, or other travel supplier is responsible for issuing the refund.

Insurance is designed to cover losses you cannot recover through other means.

In addition, if a prepaid expense is partially refundable, travel protection may reimburse only the difference between what you paid and what you were refunded.

For instance, if the cruise line refunded you $5,000 on a $7,500 river cruise, travel protection may reimburse the $2,500 difference.

Explore refund policies for airlines

How to Calculate Your Total Insurable Trip Cost

Use this four-step process to total your insurable trip cost.

Add up the prepaid, non-refundable costs you’ve already paid for in the “May Be Covered” column.
Subtract any amount your airline, hotel, cruise line, or tour operator would refund.
Include trip costs for all travelers that are covered by the travel protection plan.

Review any cash-and-points bookings, and include only the eligible cash payments unless your plan specifically allows the value of miles to be included. You can use our Trip Cost Calculator, a travel protection quote calculator, to help determine the accurate trip cost for travel protection.

Whatever that number is, you should enter it as the total trip cost when getting a travel protection quote — not a higher number that might include refundable or non-prepaid expenses.

If only $5,000 of an $8,000 trip is non-refundable, insuring the full $8,000 means paying for protection on $3,000 that may not be reimbursed. At a typical 4–12% rate, that extra $3,000 may add about $120–$360 to your premium. For another example, see why you shouldn’t over-insure your trip.

Check Refund Policies Before You Enter Trip Cost

Travel providers often have date parameters around their refund policies — 75% back if you cancel 90 days or more prior to your trip, 25% if you cancel between 30 and 90 days, and so forth. When calculating your trip cost, include only the portion of your expenses that would be non-refundable based on the cancellation terms in effect when you purchase your travel protection plan.

If More Than One Traveler Is Covered

If two travelers are on one policy, combine shared and per-person costs. For example, if your hotel is $1,200 total, your rental car is $400 total, and airfare is $500 per person, the combined trip cost is $2,600 if those expenses are prepaid and non-refundable.

For more guidance, read how to calculate trip costs when buying travel protection.

What Will Your Travel Protection Actually Cost?

Travel protection typically costs about 4–12% of your insured trip cost. To see how much travel protection costs, it helps to start with the total you plan to insure. That range is a useful benchmark for the average cost of travel protection, but age, trip length, plan level and other factors also affect the quote.

If your insured trip cost is $3,000, your premium may range from about $120 to $360.
If your insured trip cost is $6,000, your premium may range from about $240 to $720.

These examples are rough estimates provided for illustrative purposes only. Actual premiums vary based on multiple factors.

Get a Travel Protection Quote at the Right Price

When calculating trip cost to get the most accurate travel protection quote price, focus on prepaid, non-refundable travel expenses.

Focusing only on prepaid, non-refundable expenses often results in a lower trip cost figure — and a more accurate, appropriately priced plan.

Before you start, review what you need before getting a travel protection quote.

Once you have your total prepaid, non-refundable trip cost, get a travel protection quote and compare plans.

Frequently Asked Questions

What counts as trip cost for travel insurance?

Trip cost generally means prepaid, non-refundable expenses, such as airfare, hotels, cruises, tours, events, prepaid meals, and rental cars. If an expense is refundable or you haven’t paid it yet, don’t include it.

How much does travel protection cost based on trip cost?

A common range is about 4–12% of the insured trip cost, although age, trip length, plan level, and other factors.

Should I include refundable flights in my trip cost calculation?

No. If a flight is fully refundable, the airline is responsible for the refund. If it’s partially refundable, include only the non-refundable portion.

Do I need to insure 100% of my trip cost?

If you want to qualify for certain options, such as Trip Cancellation for Any Reason (CFAR) coverage, you must insure 100% of all arrangements that are subject to cancellation penalties or restrictions. The same requirement applies to coverage for Pre-existing Medical Conditions under our Premium plan. Eligibility for both benefits is also subject to applicable purchase timeline requirements and other plan terms, conditions, limitations, and exclusions. CFAR coverage is not available to New York residents.

Can I include travel rewards points in my trip cost?

Generally, don’t include travel rewards points. If you paid cash on a points booking, include the eligible cash portion, and check the plan terms to see whether frequent flyer miles may be covered.