AppleCare vs Verizon insurance: Which is better for you?

After choosing the right phone, the second challenging part is selecting the most suitable insurance for your new shiny device. Unfortunately, most people take the easy way and go with the insurance offered by their carrier without doing any research.

While this might be the best option for many people, choosing Verizon wireless phone protection over AppleCare+ might not be the best choice for most people. Selecting one insurance over the other without doing any research is like gambling.

Luckily, if you’re here reading this, you will not make this mistake. At the end of the day, you should make your own decision based on what matters the most to you; some people might prefer Verizon wireless phone insurance while over might find AppleCare+ more beneficial based on their offerings.

Verizon Wireless phone protection

First, it’s important to know that Verizon, unlike Apple, offers four different protection plans for mobile devices. These plans include:

• Total Equipment Coverage: For $11.40, this plan insures you against loss, theft, damage, and post-warranty manufacturer device defects.
• Wireless Phone Protection: This plan covers loss, theft, and damages with a next-day replacement for $7.25 per line.
• Extended Warranty: For just $4.15, this covers what Apple’s one-year warranty would normally cover. The coverage includes device defects such as a bad battery, unresponsive screen, bad charging port, or any other malfunctioning hardware piece not caused by accidental damage.
• Verizon Mobile Protect: This is Verizon’s most expensive mobile protection plan. This plan costs $17 per line. In addition to all the other mentioned features, the Verizon Mobile Protect plan offers same-day delivery and setup. Additionally, this plan includes the Tech Coach app service, Verizon Digital Secure ($10 value), and Call Filter service which is free for all Verizon customers.

Apple Care Plus plan

Compared to Verizon, Apple makes it easier to select a plan because they only offer two options. These options are AppleCare+ and AppleCare+ with Theft and Loss.

Plan 1: AppleCare+

AppleCare+ is Apple’s least expensive protection plan. Using Apple’s top iPhones (iPhone 14 Pro and 14 Pro Max), this plan will cost you $9.99/monthly or $199 for a two-year coverage.

With this plan, you’ll receive accidental damage protection, prioritized 24/7 technical support, and battery service and replacement. Additionally, you’ll get:

• Lightning cable replacement: As long as your USB-C to Lightning cable does not show heavy abuse, AppleCare+ will replace it with a new one.
• Onsite technician: You’ll be able to schedule a technician to come and repair your screen at your home or work office.
• Same-day service: Your device will be fixed on the same day of the appointment.
• iPhone Express Replacement Service: Through the iPhone Express Replacement Service, you’ll receive your iPhone replacement overnight. Apple will put a hold on the phone’s value on your credit card until you send your old device back.
• Mail-in repairs: You’ll be able to mail in your device for repair in a prepaid shipping box. This method will not hold any charges on your credit card.
• Unlimited repairs: You can keep breaking your iPhone throughout the whole year, AppleCare+ includes unlimited accidental damage repairs.

Another big advantage is that Apple has 272 stores in the US with a total of 521 stores around the world. Because of this, you’re likely to be within a few minutes from an Apple retail store. They might serve you out of the country, but this is not guaranteed.

Plan 2: AppleCare+ with Theft and Loss

As its plan name suggests, AppleCare+ with Theft and Loss includes everything that’s included with the regular AppleCare+ plan plus coverage for loss or theft of the device. With AppleCare+ with Theft and Loss, you will be entitled to two iPhone replacements within a year period. In order for the loss or stolen request to get approved, you will have to pay a $149 deductible and the device must have Find My iPhone enabled at all times.

On iPhone 14 Pro or iPhone 14 Pro Max, this plan will cost you $13.49/month or $269 for a two-year coverage.

AppleCare vs Verizon insurance

So now that we know all of Verizon and Apple’s insurance plans, it’s important to know which of them are most similar to each other. In this case, Verizon’s Wireless Phone Protection plan competes directly with AppleCare+ while Total Equipment Coverage competes with AppleCare+ with Theft and Loss.

Verizon Wireless Phone Protection vs AppleCare+

Since these two protection plans go hand-in-hand, you will need to pick one which is the most convenient for you.

For most people, AppleCare+ would be more suitable than Verizon Wireless Phone Protection. This is because AppleCare+ only cost around $3 more dollars and provides more convenience and features.

The other BIG deal is that with AppleCare+, you can be assured that your replaced device or part will be an original piece. Verizon’s insurance is provided by a third-party company named Asurion. While for the most part, you will receive a device with OEM-quality parts, Asurion does not have the same quality control as Apple. Because of this, you might be one of the unlucky few who receive a device with non-original parts.

Asurion themselves clarify that they may use non-original parts: “Non-original parts may be used for repair of the covered product.”

Cheapest mobile phone insurance: AppleCare+ or Wireless Phone Protection?

But not let’s conclude so fast. If you have more than one line and care more about saving a few bucks than the quality of your device, then Asurion (Verizon Wireless Phone Protection) would be a better choice for you.

As you can see, if you have more than one line and aren’t really worried about the quality of the device you might receive, then the Verizon Wireless Phone Protection plan would be a better choice for you. With five lines, you will be paying $13.70 less on a monthly basis, which would total a yearly saving of $164.

Another reason why Verizon Wireless Phone Protection is a better choice than AppleCare+ is that while being less expensive, it also covers loss and theft on top of accidental damages. This is a huge deal for many.

AppleCare+ with Theft and Loss vs Total Equipment Coverage

Verizon Total Equipment Coverage offers everything that the Wireless Phone Protection plan covers. In addition, for $4 more, you’ll get a post-manufacturer warranty.

This means that if a hardware part of your device stops working, like the microphone or earpiece, it will be covered under this plan. You will also have the option of replacing a bad or degraded battery.

If saving money over quality is your priority, then Verizon’s Total Equipment Coverage is a better choice than AppleCare+ with Theft and Loss.

*Prices based on iPhone 14 Pro and 14 Pro Max.

At the end of the year, you will save a total of $125 if you choose Verizon Total Equipment Coverage over AppleCare+ with Theft and Loss on an account with five lines.