12+ years writing about insurance and personal finance
Emily is a widely recognized expert on personal finance and has authored several personal finance books. She’s a frequent guest on national and regional media.
3+ years producing insurance and personal finance content
Main architect of the Insurify Quality Score
Courtney’s deep personal finance knowledge extends beyond insurance to credit cards, consumer lending, and banking. She thrives on creating actionable content.
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Everything may be bigger in Texas, but that doesn’t mean Texans should overpay for homeowners insurance. The average cost of homeowners insurance is $3,697 per year, or $308 per month, in the Lone Star State. Budget-minded homeowners may want to check out Liberty Mutual and Mercury, which offer the lowest homeowners insurance quotes in the state.
Texas homes are vulnerable to different natural disasters, including hurricanes, flooding, and tornadoes, which makes it especially important for homeowners to have the right type of insurance coverage. Here’s what you need to know about finding the best, cheap home insurance in Texas.
Quick Facts
Flooding is a potential problem for Texas homes, but flooding isn’t a covered event with standard homeowners insurance.[1]
Texas has one of the highest average monthly rates for homeowners insurance in the country.
The average cost to rebuild a home in Texas ranges from $220,000 to $750,000, depending on location.
Best home insurance companies in Texas
Texas has plenty of home insurance companies to choose from. The right home insurance for you will depend on your specific situation and insurance needs, so it’s a good idea to shop around and compare quotes.
The Insurify Quality (IQ) Score uses more than 15 criteria to objectively rate insurance companies on a one-to-five scale. The Insurify editorial team researches insurer data to determine the final scores.
Average Annual Premium
Best For
Farmers
4.2
$2,169
Cheapest rates
Mercury
3.8
$3,553
Bundling
Nationwide
4.2
$4,850
Online tools
Stillwater
4.4
$2,496
Customizable coverage
Table data sourced from real-time quotes from Insurify’s partner insurance providers and quote estimates from Quadrant Information Services. Actual quotes may vary based on the policy buyer’s unique profile.
Insurify Quality (IQ) Score
Insurify uses an in-house, proprietary method to rate and review the best home insurance companies. The Insurify Quality (IQ) Score uses crucial criteria, including average premiums, customer satisfaction, discounts, third-party ratings, and more, to calculate a final score for a company.
Criteria are weighted by importance to the consumer — factors such as customer reviews and affordability influence the score more than availability and third-party ratings. With the IQ Score, Insurify is able to provide quantitative ratings for homeowners to better compare home insurance companies and make informed decisions to meet their coverage needs.
Farmers offers the lowest average rates to Texas homeowners in Insurify’s data analysis. Homeowners can also customize their home insurance policies with Farmers’ Flex Personal Home policies, which can include emergency mortgage assistance, water backup and sump pump coverage, declining deductibles, and more.
This insurer also makes it easy to manage policies digitally, with a number of online tools and a highly rated mobile app.
Pros
Lower-than-average rates for Texas home insurance
Plenty of coverage options available
Cons
Below-average J.D. Power customer satisfaction rating
Texas is one of 10 states that regional home insurance company Mercury services. This company offers affordable auto, home, and business insurance and advertises a discount of up to 15% on your homeowners policy, plus up to 14.5% on your auto policy when you bundle. Mercury offers additional discounts, including savings for homeowners who install theft-detection devices and water-leak detection systems.
With a highly rated mobile app and the ability to get a quote, start a claim, and manage your account entirely online, Nationwide offers an excellent option for consumers who want to handle their policies digitally.
Though Nationwide’s customer service rating from J.D. Power is below average, the company received no homeowners insurance complaints in Texas in 2022, according to the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC).
Pros
Credit card fraud protection included in standard home insurance policy
Offers optional flood insurance
Cons
Identity theft and water backup not included in base coverage
Below-average J.D. Power customer satisfaction rating
Best insurer for customizable coverage: Stillwater
Stillwater Insurance Group is a newer insurer compared to others. It launched in 2000 as Fidelity National Property and Casualty Insurance Group. However, despite its relative youth in the homeowners insurance market, the company offers a robust list of additional coverages, such as animal liability, identity theft expense recoupment, personal injury, and water backup coverage.
Pros
Online claims and quotes available
A- (Excellent) rating from AM Best
Cons
Poor mobile app ratings
NAIC complaint index of 2.29, more than twice the industry average
Cheapest home insurance in Texas
The cheapest home insurance in Texas won’t be the same for every homeowner. That’s because different factors, like ZIP code, age of your home, claims history, credit, types of coverage, and your chosen deductible, can all affect how much you pay. Additionally, each insurer uses a different formula for determining premium rates, so it pays to shop around.
In Texas, Farmers is the cheapest home insurance company, with an average annual premium of $2,169, or $181 per month. Other inexpensive insurers in Texas include those in the table below.
Insurance Company
Average Annual Premium
Farmers
$2,169
Armed Forces Insurance
$2,511
United P&C
$3,036
Travelers
$3,081
Lighthouse
$3,244
Texas Farm Bureau Group
$3,544
Mercury
$3,553
USAA
$3,715
State Farm
$3,846
Bankers Insurance Group
$4,018
Foremost
$4,383
Amguard Insurance Company
$4,744
Texas Fair Plan Association
$4,847
Nationwide
$4,850
Allstate
$5,371
American Strategic Insurance
$6,351
Chubb
$9,716
Table data sourced from real-time quotes from Insurify’s partner insurance providers and quote estimates from Quadrant Information Services. Actual quotes may vary based on the policy buyer’s unique profile.
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Cost of homeowners insurance in Texas
Home insurance premiums cost an average of $308 per month in Texas. Although this isn’t the most expensive average cost for homeowners insurance in the nation, it’s among the highest premium prices in the country.
The relatively high cost of homeowners insurance in Texas is partially due to its location. The second-largest state in America experiences a variety of perils, including flooding, hurricanes, tropical storms, wildfires, and tornadoes, and these can cause devastating property damage.
But different factors can affect your premium costs in Texas, including the age of your home and its replacement cost, your area’s labor costs, your claims history, and your deductible amount.[2]
Cost of homeowners insurance by dwelling coverage amount
Dwelling coverage is the part of a home insurance policy that pays to repair or rebuild your home if it’s damaged in a covered event.
A common mistake homeowners make is assuming they should get dwelling coverage equal to their home’s purchase price. But repairing or rebuilding your home may cost more or less than what you paid for it, depending on the price of building supplies and labor, among other costs.[3]
The average cost to rebuild a home in Texas ranges from around $220,000 in Wichita Falls up to nearly $750,000 in Missouri City.
That’s why it’s important to understand the cost of rebuilding your home so that you can get the right amount of dwelling coverage. The higher the coverage limits you choose for your dwelling coverage, the more you’ll pay in premiums.
Coverage Limit
Average Annual Premium
$100,000
$1,791
$150,000
$2,382
$200,000
$2,974
$300,000
$3,969
$400,000
$4,996
$500,000
$6,069
Table data sourced from real-time quotes from Insurify’s partner insurance providers and quote estimates from Quadrant Information Services. Actual quotes may vary based on the policy buyer’s unique profile.
Cost of homeowners insurance by deductible
The deductible is the amount of money you have to pay before your insurance kicks in. A low deductible means you pay less when you make a claim before the insurance policy covers the rest. But keeping a low deductible usually means paying higher premiums.
Raising your deductible lowers your premium amount, which can be an easy way to reduce your home insurance costs. Just make sure you don’t increase your deductible to an amount that you can’t afford if you make a claim.
Here’s how a deductible can change the annual premium of a Texas home insurance policy with $300,000 in dwelling coverage.
Deductible Amount
Average Annual Premium
$500
$4,026
$1,000
$3,969
Table data sourced from real-time quotes from Insurify’s partner insurance providers and quote estimates from Quadrant Information Services. Actual quotes may vary based on the policy buyer’s unique profile.
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How to get cheap homeowners insurance in Texas
Texas homeowners can use different strategies to lower the cost of their homeowners insurance. Here are some of the most effective ways to save on home insurance policies:
Bundle homeowners and auto insurance. Many insurers offer discounts to customers who purchase more than one type of policy with them. Choosing an insurance company that can handle both your home and auto insurance can save you money on both policies.
Improve your home’s safety and disaster readiness. Insurance companies often offer discounts to homeowners who improve their home’s security with things like smoke detectors, burglar alarms, and deadbolts. Some homeowners even get discounts when they invest in disaster preparedness, with features like storm shutters or reinforced roofing.[3]
Maintain good credit. The Texas Department of Insurance allows insurers to use credit history to help set homeowners insurance premium rates.[4] Improving and maintaining good credit can help you save money on your home insurance and improve your finances in general.
Increase your deductible. Increasing the amount you pay for your deductible is one of the most efficient ways to quickly lower your premiums. Just make sure you’re prepared to pay the higher deductible amount if you need to make a claim.
Texas homeowners insurance rates by city
Different states, as well as different ZIP codes within a state, can have different home insurance quotes. The differences in home insurance policy costs across Texas have to do with the higher or lower risk of various perils in different parts of the state.[2]
For example, Corpus Christi is on the Gulf of Mexico and is more likely to experience damage from tropical storms and hurricanes than land-locked Amarillo. But wildfires are more common in the western part of the state, which could affect home insurance prices in cities like Amarillo. And though flooding is a common peril across the entire Lone Star State, some parts of the state may be more prone to flooding than others.
Table data sourced from real-time quotes from Insurify’s partner insurance providers and quote estimates from Quadrant Information Services. Actual quotes may vary based on the policy buyer’s unique profile.
How much homeowners insurance do you need in Texas?
When you take out a mortgage on a home in Texas, the mortgage company will require you to purchase a home insurance policy. Texans should aim to have enough replacement cost coverage to rebuild their home in case of a catastrophe, as natural disasters commonly affect the Lone Star State.
Different home insurance policies will work better for different homeowners. Your location, the value of your home, and the current cost of construction materials are all important factors to keep in mind when choosing a homeowners policy. Since each home has different risk factors or potential perils, it’s important to compare quotes from at least three different insurance companies before purchasing your policy.
It’s also important to understand exactly what your home insurance policy covers when you buy it. You need to know if the policy covers everything you need it to cover or if you need to purchase supplemental policies for things like flooding, hurricane damage, or wildfire damage.
What are some of the biggest risks when owning a home in Texas?
Owning a home always comes with risks, but the specific risks vary depending on where you live. Some of the most common natural disasters in the Lone Star State can cause serious damage to your home, and your homeowners insurance may or may not cover them. It pays to be prepared for the most common perils in Texas, such as the following.
Flooding
This is the most common disaster in the state of Texas, and it affects the entire state.[5] Unfortunately, homeowners insurance policies don’t cover flood damage, so you must purchase separate flood insurance. The National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) provides flood insurance to property owners and renters in any of the 23,000 participating NFIP communities, and about 1,400 of these communities are in Texas.
Hurricanes
These tropical cyclone storms can cause catastrophic damage on the coast and for several hundred miles inland, and the state sees about one hurricane per every six years, but if you include tropical storms, the number increases to nearly one storm per year.[6] While you can’t purchase a specific hurricane insurance policy type, you can usually include a package of products on your policy that can protect you against events like flooding and wind damage.
Wildfires
Wildfires can be a common peril in Texas, especially after a period of drought.[7] While most homeowners insurance policies cover fire damage, you should review your policy documents to determine whether you have adequate coverage in case of a wildfire.
Texas homeowners insurance FAQs
Here’s Insurify’s guide on buying home insurance. You can also check out the answers to common questions about home insurance coverage in Texas below.
How much is home insurance in Texas?
The average cost of home insurance in Texas is $3,697 per year, or $308 per month. But depending on where you live in the state, you may need to purchase additional coverages, like flooding and hurricane policies, which can increase your costs.
Who has the cheapest homeowners insurance in Texas?
Farmers is the cheapest home insurance company in Texas and has average premiums of $2,169 per year, which comes out to $181 per month.
Does Texas require homeowners insurance?
No, Texas doesn’t have any laws that require homeowners to purchase insurance for their homes, but your mortgage company will require it. Even if you don’t have a mortgage, home insurance is one of the most important protections you can purchase. It helps pay to repair or rebuild your home, and personal liability policies in your home insurance coverage can pay for legal fees and medical costs if someone is hurt on your property and sues you.
Why is homeowners insurance so high in Texas?
As a state on the Gulf of Mexico, Texas is vulnerable to severe weather events, like hurricanes and tropical storms, which can damage homes. Plus, flooding is one of the most common disasters in the state, which can drive up home insurance prices.[5]
Methodology
Insurify’s team of data scientists analyze millions of home insurance quotes and weigh publicly available reviews, claims payout rates, complaint indexes, financial strength scores, company reputations, and proprietary quoting data. Our editorial team applies this insight to inform our unbiased reviews and recommendations.
Texas Department of State Health Services. "Wildfires." Accessed November 8, 2023
Emily Guy Birken
Emily Guy Birken is a former educator, lifelong money nerd, and a Plutus Award-winning freelance writer who specializes in the scientific research behind irrational money behaviors. Her background in education allows her to make complex financial topics relatable and easily understood by the layperson.
Her work has appeared on The Huffington Post, Business Insider, Kiplinger's, MSN Money, and The Washington Post online.
She is the author of several books, including The 5 Years Before You Retire, End Financial Stress Now, and the brand new book Stacked: Your Super Serious Guide to Modern Money Management, written with Joe Saul-Sehy.
3+ years producing insurance and personal finance content
Main architect of the Insurify Quality Score
Courtney’s deep personal finance knowledge extends beyond insurance to credit cards, consumer lending, and banking. She thrives on creating actionable content.
