120+ more*Quotes generated for Insurify users in and around Santa Barbara, California within the last 10 days. Last updated on August 1, 2026. Actual quotes may vary based on the policy buyer’s unique driver profile.
*Quotes generated for Insurify users in and around Santa Barbara, California within the last 10 days. Last updated on August 1, 2026. Actual quotes may vary based on the policy buyer’s unique driver profile.
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Plutus Award winner
Over 12 years writing about insurance and personal finance
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Licensed auto and home insurance agent
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NPN: 20564519
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30+ years in financial services
Clinical Professor of Finance, University of San Diego
Updated
In Santa Barbara, the average cost of a liability insurance policy, which meets the minimum California car insurance requirements, is $81 per month. Full-coverage insurance policies, which offer additional insurance coverage on top of the required minimums, average $159 per month in Santa Barbara.
Santa Barbara’s rates are lower than the average cost of car insurance in California. Overall, California drivers pay an average of $96 per month for liability coverage and $200 per month for full coverage.
Drivers in Santa Barbara also pay low rates compared to nearby Oxnard and Los Angeles, in part because of the city’s size. Santa Barbara boasts a population of just over 87,000, while Oxnard has a population of over 200,000, and Los Angeles is one of the largest cities in the nation with more than 3.8 million residents, according to the U.S. Census.
California is an at-fault insurance state, which means your insurance coverage pays for the other party’s damages if you cause an auto accident.[1] To comply with state law, you must carry property damage and bodily injury liability insurance that meets California’s minimum coverage limits.
USAA offers the cheapest liability-only car insurance in Santa Barbara, with an average rate of $55 per month. This is cheaper than the California state average rate for liability insurance.
In the table below, you’ll find the cheapest rates for liability coverage in California.
Insurance Company | Average Monthly Quote: Liability Only |
|---|---|
| USAA | $65 |
| Aspire General | $69 |
| GEICO | $70 |
| Sun Coast | $71 |
| Mercury | $73 |
| National General | $73 |
| Dairyland | $81 |
| Root | $86 |
| Direct Auto | $88 |
| Allstate | $90 |
| Farmers | $92 |
| Anchor | $95 |
| Bristol West | $100 |
| State Farm | $100 |
| Kemper Special | $104 |
| Travelers | $105 |
| 21st Century | $115 |
| Kemper Rsvp | $115 |
| First Acceptance | $154 |
| Chubb | $179 |
Liability quotes start at $55/mo.
Although California legally requires drivers to carry liability insurance, many Santa Barbara drivers may choose to purchase full-coverage car insurance for more protection.
Not only does Santa Barbara see a huge influx of tourists each year, which increases the potential for auto accidents, but the city can also experience several types of natural disaster, like wildfires, flooding, and earthquakes.[2] Including these risk factors when calculating your insurance needs may save money overall, since you’ll have coverage if you need to make a claim after severe weather or an uninsured motorist damages your car.
You can find cheap full-coverage car insurance in Santa Barbara from Aspire General, with an average rate of $101 per month.
The table below lists other insurance companies with the cheapest full-coverage car insurance rates in Santa Barbara.
Insurance Company | Average Monthly Quote: Full Coverage |
|---|---|
| Aspire General | $121 |
| Root | $134 |
| Mercury | $140 |
| GEICO | $141 |
| USAA | $144 |
| Kemper Special | $158 |
| Kemper Rsvp | $161 |
| Sun Coast | $167 |
| Anchor | $177 |
| Dairyland | $191 |
| National General | $194 |
| Allstate | $199 |
| Farmers | $205 |
| Bristol West | $213 |
| Direct Auto | $213 |
| State Farm | $221 |
| Travelers | $233 |
| 21st Century | $253 |
| First Acceptance | $339 |
| Chubb | $394 |
California residents can find some of the most affordable car insurance in Santa Barbara. Only Santa Maria has cheaper average car insurance. On the other end of the spectrum, drivers in Los Angeles and Glendale pay the most for auto insurance in all of California.
Drivers pay cheaper rates in Santa Barbara for a number of reasons. It’s a smaller and less populous city than Los Angeles and Glendale, which means fewer people on the road.
Additionally, the average commute time in Santa Barbara is only 17 minutes, which is 40% shorter than both the national and California averages.[3] A shorter commute time means less traffic and a lower risk for accidents.
In the table below, compare the average car insurance quotes in Santa Barbara with quotes from other cities in the state.
City | Average Monthly Quote |
|---|---|
| Anaheim | $163 |
| Bakersfield | $132 |
| Berkeley | $153 |
| Chula Vista | $128 |
| Elk Grove | $143 |
| Fontana | $160 |
| Fremont | $138 |
| Fresno | $131 |
| Glendale | $268 |
| Hayward | $153 |
| Long Beach | $171 |
| Los Angeles | $225 |
| Modesto | $143 |
| Moreno Valley | $147 |
| Oakland | $170 |
| Oxnard | $138 |
| Riverside | $150 |
| Roseville | $140 |
| Sacramento | $158 |
| San Bernardino | $157 |
| San Diego | $130 |
| San Francisco | $171 |
| San Jose | $136 |
| Santa Ana | $154 |
| Santa Barbara | $120 |
| Santa Maria | $114 |
| Stockton | $146 |
| Temecula | $130 |
| Victorville | $161 |
*Quotes generated for Insurify users in and around Santa Barbara, California within the last 10 days. Last updated on August 1, 2026. Actual quotes may vary based on the policy buyer’s unique driver profile.
*Quotes generated for Insurify users in and around Santa Barbara, California within the last 10 days. Last updated on August 1, 2026. Actual quotes may vary based on the policy buyer’s unique driver profile.
Your driving record is one of the biggest factors determining your car insurance quotes. Here are the cheapest auto insurance companies in Santa Barbara, depending on your driving history:
Cheapest car insurance for Santa Barbara drivers with a clean driving record: USAA
Cheapest car insurance for drivers with a speeding ticket in Santa Barbara: USAA
Cheapest car insurance for Santa Barbara drivers with an at-fault accident: USAA
Cheapest car insurance for drivers with a DUI in Santa Barbara: USAA
Getting a speeding ticket in California can be expensive. While the base fines on traffic violations are relatively low, starting around $35, each citation comes with additional penalties, so that a simple speeding ticket can cost nearly $240.[4]
In Santa Barbara, 3% of drivers have a speeding ticket, according to Insurify data. Getting a speeding ticket will typically affect auto insurance rates.
The 6% of drivers in Santa Barbara with an at-fault accident on their record may also face higher insurance premiums, especially considering California is an at-fault insurance state. Your insurance company will consider you a higher risk if you have an at-fault accident in your driving history.
Driving under the influence (DUI) in California comes with serious penalties, including long-term license suspension, fees, and even jail time.[5] In Santa Barbara, 1.45% of drivers have a DUI on their record, which is a traffic violation so serious it may lead to your insurance company dropping your coverage. This is more than Los Angeles, where less than 1% of drivers have a DUI.
The Santa Barbara police department often conducts DUI checkpoints, especially during holidays.
Here’s the average cost of car insurance in California based on driving record.
Driving Record | Average Monthly Quote |
|---|---|
| Clean driving record | $120 |
| Speeding ticket | $152 |
| At-fault accident | $153 |
| DUI | $162 |
Santa Barbara and its surrounding areas offer winding roads, scenic drives, and temperate weather for much of the year, making it an ideal spot for anyone who enjoys California car culture. But that doesn’t mean driving in Santa Barbara is always idyllic. Santa Barbara drivers should keep these potential issues in mind:
Street sweeping: About 80% of Santa Barbara’s 254 paved streets receive regular street sweeping, which can happen as often as four times per week. When street sweeping is scheduled, all vehicles must be removed from the road.
State St. traffic patterns: At the center of Santa Barbara is the State Street Promenade, a multi-block pedestrian mall that’s closed to vehicle traffic, while cross street traffic can still pass through it. This can make for tricky driving, especially considering the number of bars and pedestrians on State Street at any given time.
Expensive self-pay parking: Santa Barbara offers self-pay parking for visiting drivers, but it’s pricey. You’ll pay $3.50 per hour for a maximum of $20 per day.
Santa Barbara residents typically don’t have to deal with much traffic congestion. The average commuter in Santa Barbara only spends about 17 minutes in the car on the way to and from work, which is less than the California and national averages.
But the widening of Highway 101, which runs through Santa Barbara, is a long-term construction project with an end date of 2028. Though the construction will reduce congestion in the long run, for now it may increase traffic in and around Santa Barbara, according to the Santa Barbara County Association of Governments.
Additional traffic on the road increases the likelihood of accidents, which can increase insurance premiums.
Teen drivers pay the highest average rates of any age demographic, since they’re inexperienced behind the wheel. The average cost of auto insurance for teen drivers in Santa Barbara is $146 per month.
In California, teens can apply for a learner’s permit at 15 and a half, and they can apply for a driver’s license at 16.[6]
You can find the cheapest rates for teen drivers in California in the table below.
Insurance Company | Average Monthly Quote: Liability Only |
|---|---|
| USAA | $119 |
| Aspire General | $124 |
| GEICO | $126 |
| Sun Coast | $128 |
| Root | $129 |
| Mercury | $132 |
| Dairyland | $140 |
| National General | $144 |
| Direct Auto | $170 |
| Bristol West | $176 |
| Allstate | $176 |
| Anchor | $181 |
| Farmers | $182 |
| Kemper Special | $187 |
| State Farm | $192 |
| 21st Century | $204 |
| Kemper Rsvp | $207 |
| Travelers | $216 |
| First Acceptance | $277 |
| Chubb | $365 |
Monthly rates start at $146 for teen drivers
Senior drivers pay the lowest auto insurance rates of any age demographic, because they have decades of experience on the road. USAA is the cheapest insurer for the 21% of Santa Barbara residents older than 65.[7]
In the table below, compare the cheapest rates for senior drivers in California.
Insurance Company | Average Monthly Quote: Liability Only |
|---|---|
| USAA | $54 |
| GEICO | $57 |
| National General | $59 |
| Mercury | $59 |
| Aspire General | $63 |
| Sun Coast | $64 |
| Dairyland | $71 |
| Direct Auto | $74 |
| Farmers | $75 |
| Allstate | $75 |
| Anchor | $79 |
| State Farm | $81 |
| Root | $81 |
| Bristol West | $86 |
| Travelers | $86 |
| 21st Century | $93 |
| Kemper Special | $94 |
| Kemper Rsvp | $104 |
| Chubb | $139 |
| First Acceptance | $140 |
If you need affordable car insurance in Santa Barbara, the answers to the following questions can help you find the right coverage for your insurance needs.
Santa Barbara drivers pay an average of $81 per month for liability coverage and $159 per month for full-coverage auto insurance. Just remember that these are average car insurance quotes, and you may get cheaper or more expensive quotes depending on your eligibility, driving record, and other factors.
USAA has the cheapest liability-only car insurance in Santa Barbara, with an average rate of $55 per month, according to Insurify data.
State Farm, Nationwide, USAA, Safeco, and Amica are Insurify’s top picks for California drivers. But the best car insurance company will differ from one driver to another. Some Santa Barbara drivers may get the best coverage and quote from a national insurance company, while others may want a more specialized insurance company.
To find affordable car insurance in Santa Barbara, start by requesting quotes from multiple insurers to find low rates for the coverage you need. Don’t forget to look at how the discounts stack up, as well. Sometimes you can save money by bundling homeowners or renters insurance with your auto insurance, by paying in full, or having certain safety features on your vehicle.
Finally, see how much you could lower your premiums by raising your deductible and adjusting your coverage limits. Just make sure you’ll still be able to cover your out-of-pocket expenses if you need to make a claim.
It can be. Santa Barbara has some of the lowest car insurance rates in California, with an average rate of $120 per month. But if you need full coverage, have an incident on your record, or are a teen driver, you pay more for car insurance.
Insurify data scientists analyzed more than 250 million quotes served to car insurance applicants in Insurify’s proprietary database to calculate the premium averages displayed on this page. These premiums are real quotes that come directly from Insurify’s 500+ partner insurance companies in all 50 states and Washington, D.C. Quote averages represent the median price for a quote across the given coverage level, driver subset, and geographic area.
Unless otherwise specified, quoted rates reflect the average cost for drivers between 20 and 70 years old with a clean driving record and average or better credit (a credit score of 600 or higher).
Liability-only premium averages correspond to policies with the following coverage limits:
Quotes for Allstate, Farmers, GEICO, State Farm, and USAA are estimates based on Quadrant Information Services’ database of auto insurance rates.
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Plutus Award winner
Over 12 years writing about insurance and personal finance
Featured in
Licensed auto and home insurance agent
4+ years experience in insurance and personal finance editing
NPN: 20564519
Featured in
30+ years in financial services
Clinical Professor of Finance, University of San Diego
At Insurify, our goal is to help customers compare insurance products and find the best policy for them. We strive to provide open, honest, and unbiased information about the insurance products and services we review. Our hard-working team of data analysts, insurance experts, insurance agents, editors and writers, has put in thousands of hours of research to create the content found on our site.
We do receive compensation when a sale or referral occurs from many of the insurance providers and marketing partners on our site. That may impact which products we display and where they appear on our site. But it does not influence our meticulously researched editorial content, what we write about, or any reviews or recommendations we may make. We do not guarantee favorable reviews or any coverage at all in exchange for compensation.
