BestMed Medical Scheme vs Discovery Health
💙 BestMed Medical Scheme versus Discovery Health compared and revealed.
💙 We tested them side by side and verified their medical aid plans benefits, affordability, and much more.
💙 This is a complete guide to BestMed and Discovery Health in South Africa.
👉 In this in-depth guide you’ll learn:
- ☑️ What is a Medical Scheme?
- ☑️ Which medical aid is the best for young families?
- ☑️ Which medical aid is best for a young person?
- ☑️ How to compare medical aids against each other?
- ☑️ Which should you choose: BestMed or Discovery Health?
💙 So if you’re ready to go “all in” with the BestMed versus Discovery Health in South Africa, this guide is for you.
👉 Let’s dive right in…
BestMed Medical Scheme vs Discovery Health Summary
Overall Comparison
| ✔️ Feature | 🥇 BestMed (2026) | 🥇 Discovery Health (2026) |
| General comparison | 5/5 | 5/5 |
| Number of plans | 14 | 25 |
| Lowest premium | 1,736 ZAR – 12,572 ZAR (2026) | R1 184.00 (KeyCare Series) |
| Highest premium | 12,572 ZAR ( (Pace4) | R11 430.00 (Executive Plan) |
| Student Plan | No | No |
| Gap Cover | No | Yes |
| Hospital plans | Yes | Yes |
| Maternity benefits | Yes | Yes |
| Number of members | 250 000 | 3.3 million |
Plan benefits
| ✔️ Feature | 🥇 BestMed | 🥇 Discovery Health |
| Name of Plan | • Beat1 • Beat1 Network • Rhythm1 • Rhythm2 • Beat2 • Beat2 Network • Beat3 • Beat3 Network • Pace1 • Beat4 • Pace2 • Pace3 • Pace4 | • Executive Plan • Comprehensive Series • Priority Series • Saver Series • Core Series • Smart Series • KeyCare Series |
| Price per plan | • Beat1: R2 347.00 • Beat1 Network: R2 111.00 • Rhythm1: R1 615.00 • Rhythm2: R2 368.00 • Beat2: R2 869.00 • Beat2 Network: R2 581.00 • Beat3: R4 199.00 • Beat3 Network: R3 779.00 • Pace1: R5 706.00 • Beat4: R6 832.00 • Pace2: R8 132.00 • Pace3: R9 336.00 • Pace4: R11 662.00 | • Executive Plan: R11,430 • Comprehensive Series: R7,945 – 9,298 • Priority Series: R4,981 – 5,796 • Saver Series: R2,898 – 4,535 • Core Series: R2,507 – 3,652 • Smart Series: R1,350 – 2,822 • KeyCare Series: R1,184 – 3,687 |
| GP Visits | Yes | Network only |
| GP in room visits | Yes | Network only |
| Specialist visits | Yes | Yes (in and out of hospital) |
| Acute medication | Yes | Yes |
| Chronic medication | Yes | Yes |
| Basic pathology | Yes | Yes, up to Discovery Health Rate |
| Basic and emergency dentistry | Yes | Basic only |
| Basic optometry | Yes | Yes, 100% of Discovery Health Rate |
| HIV benefit | Yes | Yes |
| Maternity benefit | Yes | Yes |
| Road accident claims | Yes | Yes, full cover |
BestMed Medical Scheme vs. Discovery Health
👉 Both BestMed and Discovery Health are popular and well-known medical aid schemes that provide a comprehensive selection of tailored plans. Here, we compare these two medical aid schemes to help you decide on the best option for your healthcare needs in 2025.
Which offers more affordable coverage – BestMed or Discovery Health?
👉 While Discovery Health offers the lowest premium on its KeyCare Series, overall BestMed offers a greater selection of affordable medical aid plans designed for individuals, young families, and pensioners.
Do both schemes offer gap cover?
👉Gap cover is a short-term insurance policy which provides shortfall cover where doctors and specialists charge above medical aid rates of cover.
👉 BestMed doesn’t have their own Gap cover. Once your savings are depleted, you have access to your day-to-day benefits. Therefore, you do not have to fund any gap.
👉Discovery Health do have gap cover.
💙 Gap cover is available to members of Discovery Health Medical Scheme excluding members on KeyCare plans. Discovery Gap Cover is a non-life insurance policy, underwritten by Discovery Insure Ltd, registration number 2009/011882/06, a licensed insurer and an authorized financial services provider.
💙 This is not a medical scheme and the cover is not the same as that of a medical scheme. This policy is not a substitute for medical scheme membership
Do both schemes offer hospital plans?
👉 Yes, both BestMed and Discovery Health offer hospital plans. You have a choice of only having hospital coverage with your plan or combining it with day-to-day expenses.
👉 Both plans cover you in the hospital for unlimited emergency and planned procedures. You also get access to some additional benefits for wellness and preventative care. It includes full cover in hospitals for specialists and full cover for chronic medication.
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Who is BestMed Medical Scheme?
👉 Bestmed was founded in 1964 and currently has more than 250 000 lives under its care. The Scheme is the largest self-administered scheme in South Africa and the fourth largest open medical scheme.
👉 BestMed has also been recognised for its outstanding contribution to the medical aid and healthcare industry, and has received a number of awards. In 2020 and 2021 it received the highest rating for perceived quality, perceived value, customer service and customer loyalty in the Medical Scheme Industry Category in the South African Customer Satisfaction Index (SA-csi). The scheme also received the highest rating for customer expectations, and have the lowest rating in the industry for beneficiary complaints.
👉 Bestmed was ranked number one in the Medical Aid Industry performance category of the 2020 Ask Afrika Orange Index® and was also awarded the Excellence in Creating Access to Quality Healthcare (Organizations) award at the 2020 annual Titanium Awards presented by the Board for Healthcare Fundraisers (BHF).
👉 BestMed recognize that people’s healthcare needs are different, depending on their age, marital status, family size, general health, priorities and budget and keeping this in mind, offers three main medical plan ranges, each with its own unique benefit options to choose from.
👉 They have a solution for you whether you simply only want to pay for hospital expenses or demand a more comprehensive product. The three categories for plans on offer are beat, pace, and rhythm.
👉 The Beat range provides flexible hospital benefits as well as savings on certain options to cover out-of-hospital expenses. Beat1, 2, and 3 also allow you to reduce your monthly contribution by choosing a Network option.
👉 The Pace range offers more comprehensive in-hospital and out-of-hospital benefits. In addition, these options all have additional savings accounts to cover extensive out-of-hospital expenses.
👉 The Rhythm range consists of Network only options that offer in-hospital and GP benefits.
Who will benefit from BestMed Medical Scheme?
👉 BestMed offers comprehensive medical cover that is well-suited towards individuals, established families and higher income earners as well as pensioners.
👉 BestMed also operates on a network-based coverage basis, so that individuals should first check whether they reside in areas that fall within the pre-selected GP, hospital and specialist network, making it a better option for those residing in urban areas.
☑️ You might also consider the following options BestMed has to offer:
Who is Discovery Health?
👉 Discovery Health is a non-profit organization controlled by the Medical Schemes Act 131 of 1998, as amended, and the Medical Schemes Council (CMS). According to the Scheme guidelines, it is a recognized open medical scheme that anybody can join.
👉 Members own the Scheme, and its operations are controlled by an independent Board of Trustees (the Trustees or the Board). The Scheme outsources its administration and managed care functions to Discovery Health (Pty) Limited under a formal contractual relationship.
👉 One of the Scheme’s strategic priorities is value-based healthcare. Their strategy, which places their members at the centre of care, compensates providers based on health outcomes rather than the volume of services they deliver.
👉 It gives members access to programmes and providers committed to continuous quality improvement.
👉 Discovery Health strives to ensure that our members have access to the safest, most efficient, and effective healthcare available in South Africa through a variety of quality of care programmes and innovations that are regularly examined by the Scheme on an ongoing basis.
👉 The Scheme also provides its participants with information relevant to their needs.
Who will benefit from Discovery Health?
👉 Discovery Health offers comprehensive medical cover that is well-suited towards established families and higher-income earners. Discovery Health offers a comprehensive selection of plans, with greater coverage being afforded at higher premiums, with additional benefits for these members.
👉 Discovery Health also operates on a network-based coverage basis, so individuals must first determine if they reside within the pre-selected GP, hospital, and specialist network, making it a superior option for urban residents.
👉 You might also like the following service Discovery has to offer
Frequently Asked Questions
Which medical aid offers the cheapest medical plan, Bestmed or Discovery Health?
Discovery Health definitely offers the cheapest medical plan with its KeyCare Start Series plan at R1184.00 per month. The cheapest plan with Bestmed is namely the Rhythm1 Network plan at R1 615.00 per month.
Which medical aid, Bestmed or Discovery Health are the most popular?
At present Discovery Health has over 3.3 million members compared to the 210 000 members of Bestmed. Although BestMed offers a wider choice between 13 plan options, Discovery Health with only seven plans are still more popular.
Do Discovery Health and Bestmed medical aids offer the option of gap cover?
No, Discovery Health and have an option to apply for gap cover, where Best Med don’t have their in house gap cover.
Do Discovery Health and Bestmed medical aids have a waiting period?
Yes, both Discovery Health and Bestmed have a general three-month waiting period during which you are unable to submit a claim.
Which is the best medical aid between Bestmed and Discovery Health?
Overall, Bestmed has received numerous awards since its inception in 1964 which speaks for itself. It also has the lowest rating in the industry for beneficiary complaints. Discovery Health was founded in 1992 and provides fair pricing and a variety of packages to meet a variety of budgets and medical needs.
