CarShield vs. Endurance Review

Editor’s Note: On July 31, 2024, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) announced that CarShield will pay $10 million to settle FTC charges that its advertisements and telemarketing for vehicle service contracts are deceptive and misleading, and that many purchasers found that repairs were not covered. Based on this information and further review, our research team has reevaluated CarShield’s ratings for this comparison. 

Motor1 Reviews Team Take:

• Endurance is our highest-rated warranty provider and takes the award for Best Coverage due to its wide coverage selection and long term limits.
• CarShield holds our award as the Best for Electric Vehicles due to its coverage option exclusively for all-electric cars, which is unique in the industry.
• Endurance has a significant lead over CarShield in our industry-wide rankings, largely due to CarShield’s recent charges of deceptive advertising and customer complaints about coverage.

Shopping for extended warranty plans can feel complicated with all of the options to pick from. If you can’t decide between a CarShield or Endurance plan, we’re here to make your choice easier. In this head-to-head comparison, we take a deeper look at CarShield vs. Endurance by considering their industry standing, coverage options, plan costs, and overall customer satisfaction.

After spending 1,475 hours researching the industry’s best extended car warranty companies, our team is uniquely qualified to help you decide if CarShield or Endurance is the right warranty provider for you.

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Our CarShield and Endurance Warranty Review and Methodology

We’ve reviewed dozens of auto warranty providers to find the best the industry has to offer each year. Independent warranty companies in our review are rated based on their scores in five main categories: industry standing, coverage, cost, transparency, and customer service.

Below, we broke down our overall ratings for both CarShield and Endurance so you can easily compare them against each other.

	CarShield	Endurance
Industry Standing	2.6	4.6
Coverage	4.8	4.9
Cost	4.4	4.6
Transparency	3.0	4.9
Customer Service	3.8	3.9
Motor1 Rating	3.9	4.6

How We Rated CarShield and Endurance Warranties

To give you the most current information on a warranty provider, we update our review standards several times each year. Below are more details about what we look for in each rating category and how our research contributed to CarShield’s and Endurance’s scores:

Industry Standing Winner: Endurance

Providers are given a score in this category based on any awards, ratings, or recognitions by trusted warranty evaluators, like Kelley Blue Book, Carfax, or the Better Business Bureau (BBB). We also consider customer reviews on sites like the BBB and Trustpilot, as well as how much experience a warranty provider has.

CarShield is well known thanks to its celebrity endorsements from people like Ice-T and its ads and features on popular platforms like ABC, CNN, and USA Today. However, the company agreed in July 2024 to pay $10 million to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to settle charges of deceptive advertising. This development led our team to drop CarShield’s industry standing rating from 4.6 out of 5.0 to 2.6 out of 5.0.

Endurance earned 4.6 out of 5.0 stars from our team thanks to its various industry awards and many years in the warranty business. It’s also a direct provider, meaning it manages all contracts and claims itself. The average rating across all providers in our industry-wide review was 4.1 out of 5.0, putting Endurance above the average and CarShield well below.

Coverage Winner: Endurance

Providers that offer several coverage options are rewarded with a higher score in this category. If a company offers plans with long-term limits and several benefits, its Coverage score increases.

Endurance earned the superlative of Best Coverage in our review, so it’s no surprise that it earned a 4.8-star rating out of 5.0 in this category. It offers six levels of coverage that can last up to 8 years/200,000 miles. It also offers mechanical breakdown insurance (MBI) to California residents and a plan that combines warranty coverage and maintenance benefits.

While Endurance offers excellent coverage and rare maintenance perks, CarShield offers specialty coverages for motorcycles and RVs and a plan exclusively for electric vehicles (EVs). These coverages are rare in the industry, which led us to award CarShield with 4.8 out of 5.0 stars and the superlative of Best for Electric Vehicles.

The average rating for coverage across all providers in our review was 4.0 out of 5.0, showing that CarShield and Endurance both perform above average in this category.

Cost Winner: Endurance

Providers that offer affordable coverage plans, multiple deductible options, and discounts can expect to see the highest scores in our cost category.

Endurance earned 4.6 out of 5.0 stars for cost thanks to its competitive prices. CarShield earned a 4.4 rating. The industry average across the dozens of providers in our review is 4.2 out of 5.0, putting Endurance above average and CarShield below. We’ll detail more on our findings in our CarShield vs. Endurance cost section.

Transparency Winner: Endurance

When it comes to this category, if a company offers a money-back guarantee and allows customers to view sample contracts on coverage plan pages, it receives a high score. Its website also has to be relatively clear and easy to navigate.

At first glance, both Endurance and CarShield meet the criteria for a high score here. Each company offers a 30-day money-back guarantee, sample contracts to browse online, and helpful resources to better understand the warranty and automotive industries.

However, CarShield’s recent trouble with the FTC (which revolves around misleading customers) led us to reconsider our transparency ratings. Endurance now has a commanding lead in this category, with a rating of 4.9 out of 5.0 compared to just 3.0 out of 5.0 for CarShield. Our average rating for this category is 3.9 out of 5.0.

Customer Service Winner: Endurance

Strong customer reviews, a helpful mobile app, and the availability of online chat earn providers high scores in this category.

CarShield earned a 3.8 out of 5.0 from our review team thanks to its largely positive review record across various platforms. However, we found during our secret shopping that its customer service representatives could be pushy when choosing a plan.

We gave Endurance 3.9 stars out of 5.0 based on its reviews through the BBB and Trustpilot, as well as its app review scores on the App Store and Google Play. However, it doesn’t offer an online chat feature, which CarShield and many other competitors do.

The average across the 41 providers scored in our review was 3.8 out of 5.0 stars. Take a closer look at both providers in our customer service section.

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CarShield vs. Endurance: Overview

Both CarShield and Endurance are well-known names in the warranty industry and serve a large customer base. Each of these providers is a top pick among third-party providers due to reliable coverage and relative affordability.

About CarShield

CarShield has been brokering extended car warranties since 2005 and is headquartered in Saint Peters, Missouri. It offers six comprehensive automobile plans to choose from with coverage terms of up to 300,000 miles. It’s also one of the only providers to sell specialty coverage for electric cars, all-terrain vehicles (ATVs), and motorcycles. CarShield is one of the best extended car warranty options for drivers on a budget thanks to its monthly financing options.

Read more: CarShield Warranty Review

About Endurance

Endurance provides the most comprehensive warranty on the market and was founded in 2006 in Northbrook, Illinois. Unlike CarShield, Endurance is not a broker. As a direct provider, it underwrites its own vehicle service contracts. Of its six plans, one is unique in the industry for combining extended warranty coverage with maintenance coverage. Another notable aspect about Endurance is that each contract comes with a free year of Endurance Elite Benefits, which provide access to the best benefits in the industry.

Read more: Endurance Warranty Review

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CarShield vs. Endurance: Coverage

We reviewed 41 companies in the warranty industry to get an idea of what coverage each provider offered. When comparing CarShield vs. Endurance coverage, you’ll see that both providers offer a variety of auto coverage plans that can last for up to 200,000+ miles.

Services and Perks	CarShield	Endurance
Automobile coverage levels	8 (one reserved for motorcycles and ATVs)	6
Highest mileage limit	300,000 miles	Unlimited
Coverage waiting period	30 days and 1,000 miles*	30 days and 1,000 miles
Online sample contracts	✓	✓
Roadside assistance	✓	✓
Rental car reimbursement	✓	✓
Trip interruption coverage	✓	✓
High-mileage vehicle plan		✓
Maintenance plan		✓
Motorcycle and ATV plan	✓
High-tech specialty plan	✓
Electric vehicle plan	✓

*CarShield’s coverage waiting period varies by the plan you choose. For monthly contracts, the waiting period is 25 days and 500 miles.

Both companies’ coverage lineups include basic powertrain plans, mid-tier plans, and full bumper-to-bumper warranties similar to a manufacturer’s warranty. However, each provider also offers unique specialty plans. You can get repairs from any repair shops or dealerships certified by the National Institute for Automotive Service Excellence (ASE^®) with plans from either provider.

The EnduranceAdvantage™ plan is a combination of an extended warranty and a maintenance plan, while CarShield’s Aluminum coverage is tailored to high-tech vehicles with many advanced electrical features. CarShield also offers a unique EV warranty plan that covers parts like the electric drive unit, battery pack, and more.

In May 2024, our research team conducted a survey of 1,000 consumers who had purchased an extended warranty. When asked what mattered most to them when choosing a warranty company, 29 percent of respondents considered coverage options to be the most important factor. About 22 percent said coverage benefits were their primary considerations.

Below you’ll find specific details about Endurance and CarShield warranty coverage.

CarShield Coverage

While motorcycle and ATV owners can also find coverage with a plan for specialty vehicles, CarShield offers seven coverage plans exclusively for cars:

CarShield Warranty Plan	What It Covers
Diamond	This is exclusionary coverage for newer vehicles and is most similar to a factory warranty. Excluded parts include trim, hoses, belts, upholstery, carpet, and other wear and tear items.
Platinum	The highest level of inclusionary coverage, this plan covers parts like the engine, transmission, cooling system, steering, air conditioning, and electrical system.
Gold	This offers enhanced powertrain coverage for the engine, transmission, starter, alternator, power window motor, fuel system, and more.
Gold Select	This plan is similar to the Gold level but doesn’t cover the fuel system. The Gold Select tier is designed for higher-mileage vehicles.
Silver	CarShield’s basic powertrain plan covers lubricated engine parts, the drive axle, water pump, and transmission.
Aluminum	This specialty plan for luxury vehicles and cars with high-tech systems covers power steering, cruise control, gauges, instrument clusters, LCD screens, and GPS systems.
Electric Vehicle	This plan is exclusively for EVs, covering the electric drive unit, electrical system, battery pack, and other EV parts.

CarShield Perks

Every CarShield warranty comes with added benefits, including:

• 24/7 roadside assistance: This benefit provides help with roadside services as well as towing to the nearest repair shop if your vehicle becomes inoperable.
• Substitute transportation: If your vehicle is in the shop for covered repairs and is scheduled for more than four hours of labor, a rental vehicle can be reimbursed for up to $100 per day.
• Trip interruption coverage: If your vehicle breaks down more than 100 miles from your home and must be left at a repair facility overnight, this provides meal and lodging coverage up to $125 per day for a maximum of four days.

Endurance Coverage

Endurance offers six levels of coverage for standard vehicles:

Endurance Perks

Endurance has one of the best benefit packages in the industry. Customers get rental car coverage, 24/7 roadside assistance, and trip interruption coverage for the duration of their contracts. In addition, drivers get free enrollment into the Endurance Elite Benefits program for their first year of coverage. This program offers the following perks:

• Tire repairs and replacements
• Key fob replacement 
• Identity theft recovery 
• Up to $5,000 in repair financing loans
• Up to $1,000 in total loss protection
• Collision discount

After your first year of coverage, Endurance Elite Benefits will cost you $29 per month or roughly $350 per year.

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CarShield vs. Endurance: Cost

Our automotive research team reached out to CarShield and Endurance to find out which car warranty provider offers the best coverage prices. We also collected 2,215 data points to help gather the most thorough cost data for these two providers.

Bumper-to-Bumper Warranty Costs

We got bumper-to-bumper coverage quotes from both companies for a 2021 Honda CR-V with 60,000 miles. Each plan came with a $200 deductible. Here’s what CarShield and Endurance offered in terms of pricing:

	Term Length	Financing Terms	Down Payment	Total Cost	Cost per Year of Coverage
CarShield Diamond	Unlimited	$149.99 monthly	N/A	Varies	$1,799.88
Endurance Supreme	2.5 years/40,000 miles	$96.85	First month + $29	$2,934.20	$1,162.08

Endurance’s extended warranty came at a far lower rate overall than the comparable option offered by CarShield. While CarShield offers the flexibility of monthly payments that you can cancel at any time, Endurance offers a competitive price per year of coverage for its comprehensive plans.

Powertrain Warranty Costs

When it comes to powertrain coverage, CarShield provides a cheaper monthly rate. However, its yearly cost for coverage was yet again higher than Endurance’s. Both quotes we collected are for a 2017 Honda CR-V with 100,000 miles.

	Term Length	Financing Terms	Down Payment	Total Cost	Cost per Year of Coverage
CarShield Gold	Unlimited; month-to-month	$149.99 per month	N/A	Varies	$1,799.88
Endurance Secure	2.5 years/40,000 miles	$111.00 per month	First month + $29	$3,359.00	$1,332.00

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CarShield vs. Endurance: Customer Service

Endurance holds an A- rating from the BBB, while CarShield currently boasts an A+. It remains to be seen how CarShield’s FTC settlement will affect the company’s BBB rating. The table below shows how customers review each company on the BBB and Trustpilot.

Rating Sites	CarShield	Endurance
BBB customer service rating	1.6	3.7
Trustpilot customer service rating	4.3	3.7

*Ratings are out of 5.0 stars each.

Both CarShield and Endurance received impressive marks on Trustpilot. It’s worth noting that CarShield has nearly 50,000 reviews on Trustpilot while Endurance only has about 9,000. Our team analyzed thousands of customer reviews to get a sense of what customers liked and disliked about each provider. 

CarShield Customer Reviews

Positive customer service reviews of CarShield report the ease of canceling coverage and excellent customer service. Negative reviews report issues with advertising, including unsolicited phone calls and mailers.

Endurance Customer Reviews

Endurance customer reviews shed light on helpful customer service agents and long-term customer satisfaction. However, some drivers also report receiving unsolicited mailers and hit-or-miss customer service.

Our Team’s Experience

We made calls during the quote process to test out each provider’s customer service experience ourselves. With Endurance, we found it difficult to get multiple quotes for different tiers of coverage, as the representative strongly pushed the company’s highest tier. We also received incessant follow-up calls, which wasn’t appreciated.

With CarShield, we were put on hold multiple times for a total of 15 minutes. It was also hard to get a quote for anything other than the highest tier of coverage. While this was our experience with both providers, there are plenty of customer reviews from pleased customers. Your experience may be different if you decide to call for a quote.

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CarShield vs. Endurance: Bottom Line

Both Endurance and CarShield have long histories of selling great extended vehicle protection plans that give drivers peace of mind. However, controversy over CarShield’s advertising practices has damaged the company’s industry reputation.

Based on our reviews of both providers, we believe Endurance is a better option than CarShield. Still, we recommend getting quotes from each company before making a final decision.

Other Recommended Car Warranty Companies

CarShield and Endurance are solid options when it comes to extended car warranties, but they might not be the best fit for every car owner. You can ensure you’ll find the best provider for your needs by comparing free quotes from several companies. To get you started, we’ve included our other top picks below.

Carchex: 4.5 Stars

Carchex takes home our Best for Used Cars award, which comes from its variety of coverage options and affordable prices for cars up to 20 years old. Carchex is a reputable company highlighted by its A+ BBB rating and positive customer review score on Google.

Read more: Carchex Review

Olive: 4.2 Stars

Olive^® earns a solid rating from our team due to its unique subscription-based billing model. This company gives customers the ability to cancel their subscription at any time, and coverage starts as soon as you purchase your plan online. Olive offers three vehicle protection plans that can work for the varying needs of its customers.

Read more: Olive Review

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CarShield vs. Endurance Car Warranty: FAQ

Below are some frequently asked questions about CarShield and Endurance extended warranties:

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Methodology

In an effort to provide accurate and unbiased information to consumers, our expert review team collects data from dozens of extended auto warranty companies to formulate rankings of the best providers. Companies receive a score in each of the following categories, as well as an overall weighted score out of 5.0 stars.

• Industry Standing: Warranty providers with a history of strong business practices and endorsements from experts receive the highest scores in this category.
• Coverage: This rating is based on types of extended warranty plans available, coverage terms, and added benefits like roadside assistance.
• Cost: Our research team reviews sample quotes for a variety of plans and vehicles. Companies with lower prices per year of coverage receive the best scores.
• Transparency: This score takes into account contract transparency and the availability of a money-back guarantee.
• Customer Service: We comb through customer reviews and perform our own shopper analysis to get a sense of the responsiveness and helpfulness of each warranty company.

*Data accurate at time of publication.

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