American Home Shield vs. AHW Home Warranty | 2021

Home Service Research Team
·9 min read

Adobe Stock - Iriana Shiyan

Deciding between a home warranty plan from American Home Shield and AHW Home Warranty? In this article, our review compares these two companies on their coverage plans, pricing, and customer reviews, and helps you determine which company offers the best home warranty for you and your home. Continue reading for a detailed analysis of each of these providers.

To get a free quote from American Home Shield, call 844-529-9298 or complete this form.

In this article:

  • American Home Shield vs. AHW Home Warranty Comparison

  • Pros & Cons

  • American Home Shield Coverage Plans

  • AHW Home Warranty Coverage Plans

  • American Home Shield vs. AHW Home Warranty Cost

  • Customer Reviews

  • Conclusion

  • Frequently Asked Questions

American Home Shield vs. AHW Home Warranty Comparison

American Home Shield

  • Get a free quote: Visit site

  • Our rating: Best Overall

  • Number of plans: 3

  • Premium cost: $50–$60 per month

  • Service fee: $75–$125

  • State availability: All but AK

  • BBB rating: B

  • Years in business: 49 years

BUY IT

AHW Home Warranty

  • Our rating: Best for Air Conditioner Coverage

  • Number of plans: 3

  • Premium cost: $40–$49 per month

  • Service fee: $75

  • State availability: All but CA, IA, MO, OK, and WA

  • BBB rating: B

  • Years in business: 3

Pros & Cons

To help you determine which company is best for you and your home protection needs, here's a quick overview of each company's pros and cons.

American Home Shield: Pros

  • Longest-running home warranty company

  • Offers coverage for items with unknown pre-existing conditions

  • Holds a Better Business Bureau (BBB) accreditation and a B rating

American Home Shield: Cons

  • Offers only five optional add-ons

AHW Home Warranty: Pros

  • Offers 19 optional add-ons

  • Offers one month of free coverage when customers sign up for a plan

  • Provides 24/7 customer service

AHW Home Warranty: Cons

  • Currently the target of a class-action lawsuit by the Arizona Attorney General for alleged fraudulent behavior

  • Doesn't have an online chat function for easy use

American Home Shield Coverage Plans

American Home Shield offers three coverage plans called ShieldSilver™, ShieldGold™, and ShieldPlatinum™. The ShieldSilver Plan covers important home systems like your air conditioning and plumbing, the ShieldGold Plan protects a combination of both systems and appliances like your dishwasher and refrigerator, and the ShieldPlatinum Plan covers everything in the other two plans, adding roof leaks, an HVAC tune-up, an extra $3,000 of coverage per appliance, unlimited AC refrigerant, and $1,000 for code violations or permits.

BUY IT

American Home Shield also offers five optional add-ons to consumers:

  • Septic pump

  • Pool and spa

  • Well pump

  • Guest unit up to 750 square feet

  • Electronics extended warranty

View the specific items covered under each American Home Shield plan below:

ShieldSilver:

Includes the following major systems:

  • Plumbing

  • Electrical

  • Air conditioning

  • Heating

  • Ceiling fans

  • Built-in exhaust, vent, and attic fans

  • Breakers and fuze boxes

  • Faucets and valves

  • Whirlpool tub motor and components

  • Water heaters

  • Toilets

  • Ductwork

  • Doorbells

  • Garage door openers

ShieldGold:

Covers everything in the ShieldSilver plan, plus:

  • Dishwashers

  • Refrigerators

  • Hot or cold water dispensers

  • Clothes washers

  • Clothes dryers

  • Ovens

  • Ranges/cooktops

  • Built-in microwave ovens

  • Garbage disposals

ShieldPlatinum:

Covers everything in the other two plans, plus:

  • Roof leak repairs

  • One free HVAC tune-up

  • Unlimited AC refrigerant limits

  • $1,000 coverage for code violations

  • $3,000 increase to appliance coverage limit

To get a free quote from American Home Shield, call 844-529-9298 or complete this form.

AHW Home Warranty Coverage Plans

AHW Home Warranty's coverage plans are very similar to those offered by American Home Shield—AHW offers a Systems plan, an Appliances plan, and a Combo plan.

The Systems and Appliances plans cover systems and appliances, respectively, and the company's Combo plan combines the coverage of the Systems plan and Appliances plan and adds coverage for these items:

  • Exhaust hood

  • Ceiling fan

  • Instant hot water dispenser

  • Garbage disposal

  • Attic fan

  • Bathroom exhaust fan

  • Doorbell

  • Kitchen fan

AHW Home Warranty also offers 19 optional add-ons:

  • Whole-house humidifier

  • Additional microwave

  • Central vacuum

  • Well pump

  • Wine refrigerator

  • Secondary refrigerator

  • Water softener

  • Sump pump

  • Septic system

  • Lawn sprinkler system

  • Additional central AC unit

  • Additional central heating unit

  • Pool and spa

  • Additional washer/dryer

  • Ice maker

  • Limited roof leaks

  • Sump pump

The lists below show what each AHW Home Warranty plan covers.

The Appliances plan covers the following:

  • Washer and dryer

  • Dishwasher

  • Refrigerator (with ice maker)

  • Freezer

  • Microwave ovens

  • Oven/range/stove/cooktop

  • Trash compactor

The Systems plan covers:

  • Hot water heater

  • Ductwork

  • Jetted bathtub

  • Garage door openers

  • Air conditioning system

  • Heating system

  • Plumbing system

  • Electrical system

The Combo plan covers everything in the two plans listed above, plus:

  • Doorbell

  • Kitchen fan

  • Exhaust hood

  • Bathroom exhaust fan

  • Ceiling fan

  • Instant hot water dispenser

  • Attic fan

  • Garbage disposal

American Home Shield vs. AHW Home Warranty Cost

The sample quotes our reviews team received indicate that AHW Home Warranty offers a cheaper monthly premium than American Home Shield. Additionally, AHW Home Warranty offers a $75 service fee, while American Home Shield lets homeowners choose a service fee between $75–$125. The service fee a homeowner selects with American Home Shield impacts the cost of their monthly premium.

Note: The optional add-on cost for these two companies depends on the specific item selected. Typically, each optional item adds about $40 to $180 to a homeowner's annual home warranty cost.

American Home Shield Cost

  • Monthly premium: $39.99 to $63.99

  • Service fee: $75 to $125

AHW Home Warranty Cost

  • Monthly premium: $42 to $52

  • Service fee: $75

Customer Reviews

American Home Shield is accredited with the Better Business Bureau (BBB) and holds a B rating with the organization. While AHW also has a B rating, the BBB revoked AHWs accreditation in November 2020 for failure to adhere to certain required standards.

Regarding customer reviews, AHW Home Warranty has received better customer reviews on average than American Home Shield. Though it holds a higher average rating, it's hard to compare the two companies evenly on customer reviews because American Home Shield has received a significantly higher number of reviews.

Additionally, the Arizona Attorney General filed a class-action lawsuit against AHW in May 2021 for alleged fraudulent activity, including fabricating positive consumer reviews, misrepresenting its years in business, and concealing the identity of its chief executive. Our research team has reached out to the company and has not yet received a comment.

Conclusion

American Home Shield and AHW Home Warranty are two of the most popular home warranty companies in the industry because of their variety of coverage plans and affordability.

Our review team named American Home Shield the best overall home warranty because of its breadth of coverage, coverage for undetectable pre-existing conditions, positive reputation, and years of experience in the home warranty industry. We recommend American Home Shield for homeowners who want to choose their own service fee or want a home warranty company with decades of experience.

To get a free quote from American Home Shield, call 844-529-9298 or complete this online form.

Alternative Home Warranty Providers

Best Overall

bhg BUY IT

Best Basic Plan

bhg BUY IT

Best Discounts

bhg BUY IT

Best Coverage Upgrade

bhg BUY IT

Most Plan Variety

bhg BUY IT

Best Membership Perks

bhg BUY IT

If you're looking for a more affordable option, consider Select Home Warranty over American Home Shield and AHW Home Warranty. Our review team named this provider as the best for budget shoppers because it sells its coverage plans for under $40 per month. In addition, Select Home Warranty includes free roof leak coverage with all of its plans.

To get a free quote from Select Home Warranty, call 888-370-3956 or complete this online form.

Home Warranty Rating Methodology

The Home Service Research Team at Better Homes & Gardens strives to provide unbiased and objective reviews to readers by compiling relevant information on home warranty companies and rating the providers on a variety of factors.

Here's what our review process looks like:

  • We examine each provider's website to determine plan details, coverage, customer service offerings, and other benefits. We also speak with company representatives to get more insight on plan details.

  • We read sample contracts from each home warranty company to analyze and compare coverage details, limits, and exclusions.

  • We read at least 100 third-party customer reviews for each home warranty company to determine the real-life benefits and drawbacks of each provider.

  • We gather cost information for a variety of home warranty plans in different states by completing online quote forms and speaking with sales representatives to simulate the quote process.

  • We revisit each company's offerings on a seasonal basis, ensuring that we include the most up-to-date information in our reviews.

We also created a 100-point rating system to score companies based on objective factors, such as plan options, coverage, and customer service:

Overall, the Home Service Research Team has reviewed over 70 home warranty companies to select the top-rated providers in the industry.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the waiting period for AHW Home Warranty and American Home Shield?

The waiting period for new AHW Home Warranty or American Home Shield customers is 30 days. This means that coverage won't kick in and homeowners won't be able to file a claim until this 30-day period is over.

What are the benefits of a home warranty?

Homeowners with a home warranty can protect their home's systems and appliances from expensive repairs or replacements caused by normal wear and tear. Instead of paying large amounts of money out of pocket, homeowners pay a low monthly premium and a service call fee for every service request they make.

What items are covered by a home warranty plan?

What a home warranty plan covers depends on your home warranty provider and the plan you purchase. Home warranty companies commonly sell plans that protect appliances only, systems only, and both appliances and systems.

Do American Home Shield and AHW Home Warranty cover plumbing systems?

Yes, both of these companies cover plumbing systems in their Combo and Systems plans.

What are some other reputable home warranty companies?

Here are some home warranty companies that made our review team's top home warranty list: