Average Cost of Car Insurance (With Quotes, Updated May 2022)

The average car insurance costs in your state can vary widely depending on the type of coverage you’re buying, how many miles you drive, where you live, and other factors. In this guide, we’ll break down the average car insurance rates by state to help you find out how much you might pay to protect your car.

To get the best car insurance in your area, it pays to compare rates from multiple car insurance companies. Insurify can save you time and money with our one-stop online car insurance comparison tool to help you in finding the cheapest car insurance quote. Find out how much you can save today!

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According to Insurify’s internal database and recent research report the average cost of car insurance in the U.S. was $121 per month. Car insurance rates vary widely depending on who is insuring you and where you live.

To get a better idea of how much car insurance might cost, consider using an online tool to compare car insurance quotes. You’ll get personalized rates from some of the top insurers based on your own information.

See More: Best and Worst Sites to Compare Car Insurance

While we’d all like to believe auto insurance companies base their rates on only your driving record and ZIP code, that’s usually not how it works. In reality, there are many factors that impact your car insurance costs:

• Your driving record
• How much you use your car and how many miles you drive
• Where you live
• Your age, gender, and marital status
• The car you drive
• Whether you have a good or poor credit score
• The type and amount of insurance coverage

While some factors have less of an impact than others, it can help explain why one person pays a higher monthly premium for auto insurance than another with a seemingly similar profile.

Your driving record, where you live, the kind of car you drive, and your policy options all have an impact on your auto insurance rates. But you might not realize how much your location impacts your premiums.

The NAIC reports many factors that impact state-to-state differences in cost. For example, each state has different weather, accident rates, traffic and population density, vehicle theft rates, liability insurance requirements, and auto laws.

Why do car insurance costs differ by area?

Car insurance is about managing risk. The lower the risk, the less you’ll pay in premiums—that’s why drivers with clean driving records (no DUIs, speeding tickets, or at-fault accidents) and excellent driving histories typically pay lower rates.

The same is true for your location. States have different car insurance requirements and auto laws in place that make the area low- or high-risk to the insurance company. For example, auto insurance in North Dakota has the lowest average liability premiums, according to a report by the NAIC. It also has one of the lowest counts of federally declared emergencies in the U.S.

Why is it more expensive to insure cars in some areas than others?

Location is a significant factor in determining your car insurance rates. Auto insurance premiums are usually more expensive in areas with a higher population density, traffic volume, vehicle theft rate, occurrence of natural disasters, and insurance requirements set by the state. That’s because there’s a higher risk of damage in those areas.

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Most states require some form of liability insurance. Other types of coverage (such as comprehensive and uninsured/underinsured motorist) may be optional. Here are the primary types of car insurance coverage to consider when shopping for a car insurance policy:

• Liability coverage: Covers the cost of another person’s injuries if the driver is at fault
• Property damage liability: Covers the cost of damage done to another person’s property while driving
• Uninsured and underinsured motorist: Covers costs of the driver’s injuries if caused by someone without auto insurance
• Collision coverage: Covers vehicle damage if the driver collides with another vehicle or object
• Comprehensive coverage: Covers vehicle damage from fire, weather, theft, and other causes
• Medical payments: Covers treatment expenses for the driver and passenger
• Personal injury protection (PIP): Covers medical costs, lost wages, and funeral expenses
• Excess medical payments: Covers costs that exceed the coverage limits of PIP coverage

You’ll notice full coverage insurance isn’t on this list. That’s because it isn’t a type of coverage. Instead, full coverage is a combination of three types of insurance: liability, comprehensive, and collision. If your lender requires you to have full coverage on a vehicle you’re financing or leasing, you need to carry state-mandated coverage plus comprehensive and collision.

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How much you pay for car insurance depends on the auto insurance policy you choose. For example, general liability coverage is cheaper than full coverage that includes collision and comprehensive insurance. This chart shows the average price of liability premiums by state, according to the 2018–2019 Auto Insurance Database Report from the NAIC.

The most expensive states for liability auto insurance are Michigan, New York, Rhode Island, and Louisiana. The cheapest states for car insurance are Maine, Vermont, North Carolina, and Hawaii.

With an estimated 212 million drivers in the United States, it’s no surprise that car insurance is a multi-billion dollar industry. People choose car insurance based on a variety of factors, but one of the biggest draws is pricing. After all, who doesn’t want to pay less for their premiums?

• Maintain a clean driving history
• Shop around to get at least three price quotes to compare rates
• Compare insurance costs before you buy a car
• Increase your policy deductible
• Consider reducing coverage on older cars
• Bundle homeowners and auto insurance to get a discount
• Establish a good credit record
• Ask about available car insurance discounts

Maintaining a good driving record is one of the best ways to save on auto insurance. However, it also pays to shop around. Remember that rates and discounts can vary from one insurer to the next—compare at least three quotes before you buy a policy.

See More: Cheap Car Insurance

Whether you’re about to get a quote for your own policy or looking to buy a new car, it’s worth taking some time to understand the average car insurance costs. Know how insurers determine your rates and how your location impacts your cost.

You could pay more or less than the average driver. It depends on many factors, including where you live. Before you commit to a policy, shop around to compare rates from multiple insurance companies—especially if you happen to reside in one of the states with higher average rates.

See More: Best and Worst Sites to Compare Car Insurance

https://insurify.com/report/auto-insurance/2021/. Insurify.