The Most Popular Cars by State

insurify insights
Insurify InsightsData & Research Team

Insurify’s team of data scientists and content specialists presents Insurify Insights, a series of automotive, home, and health studies focusing on the topics that impact us all. Through expert analysis of over 4 million car insurance applications and an array of top data sources, the Insurify Insights team produces new data-driven articles, trend analyses, regional superlatives, and national rankings every week. See Insurify Insights as featured in Forbes, Fox News, USA Today, NPR, and more.

Published November 15, 2023 at 2:24 PM PST

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Click here to see the Most Popular Cars by State report for 2021.

Americans have a diverse set of preferences when it comes to favorite car models, but some are perennial crowd-pleasers.

With more used than new car sales taking place per year, America ’s best-selling cars may not be the hottest new vehicles on the market (in fact, the average age of a car in the United States is nearly 12 years). But they certainly are the most beloved, appealing to a wide array of drivers across multiple states. Many of the most popular cars have a reputation for reliability going back decades. Take the Chevrolet Malibu, for instance, which has been in production for over half a century. These tried and true models have stood the test of time and are still some of the most popular cars in the country.

To determine the most popular car models in America this year, the data science team at Insurify turned to their database of over 2 million car insurance applications.

Most Popular Cars in America state map

Insights

  • For the third year in a row, Honda reigns supreme: Dependable, sturdy, and long-lived, the Honda Civic and Honda Accord remain the preferred car in seventeen out of fifty states. That said, the Nissan Altima has gained some traction in state-by-state rankings since last year and is the most popular car in fourteen states. Chevrolet, a subsidiary of General Motors, is also popular across the United States: the Chevrolet Malibu and the Chevrolet Impala are the most popular car in eight and four states, respectively.

  • Regional differences: There are quite a few regional differences when it comes to the most popular car by state. While the Nissan Altima is the most popular car in many states in the South and Southwest, Honda takes the lead in most of the coastal states. The Honda Accord dominates the rankings on the East Coast and the Honda Civic does the same in the West. Drivers in the Midwest tend to prefer Chevrolets —either Impalas or Malibus.

  • Body styles: When it comes to preferences in body style state-by-state, Americans tend to prefer sedans over SUVs. In fact, only two out of fifty states favor SUVs over sedans; Alaska and Wyoming prefer the Toyota RAV4 and the Ford Explorer, respectively.

  • Unique preferences: Some states stand apart from the others when it comes to car model preferences. Alaska, Hawaii, Vermont, and Wyoming are all states whose favorite cars are preferred by no other states. These four stand-alone states prefer the Toyota RAV4, Toyota Corolla, the Subaru Impreza, and the Ford Explorer, respectively.

Methodology

The data science team at Insurify, a website used to compare auto insurance rates, referred to its database of 2 million insurance applications. When applying for car insurance, car owners must disclose their driving history, including the make and model of the car they drive. Data was grouped by drivers’ state of residence, in order to determine the most popular car in each state. These cars were then ranked based on the number of states in which they occupied the number one slot, in terms of popularity.

MSRP and MPG data were gathered from the manufacturers’ websites for the least expensive 2020 package, with the exception of the Ford Focus, which was discontinued in 2019. 2019 Ford Focus MSRP and MPG data were gathered from the Kelley Blue Book, as this information was no longer available on the manufacturer’s website. Vehicle safety ratings were gathered from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s 5-Star Safety Ratings for the latest model year of each vehicle.

Insurify Insights
Insurify InsightsData & Research Team

Insurify’s team of data scientists and content specialists presents Insurify Insights, a series of automotive, home, and health studies focusing on the topics that impact us all. Through expert analysis of over 4 million car insurance applications and an array of top data sources, the Insurify Insights team produces new data-driven articles, trend analyses, regional superlatives, and national rankings every week. See Insurify Insights as featured in Forbes, Fox News, USA Today, NPR, and more.