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There’s way more to Ohio than the “three C’s”— Cincinnati, Columbus, and Cleveland. How else could agriculture be the state’s largest industry? Even so, Ohio ’s 11.5 million residents are tightly packed—and one-third are renters.

Whether or not your landlord requires you to have renters insurance, it’s an affordable way to have peace of mind you probably didn’t even know you wanted. Ohio renters have plenty of options for cheap renters insurance; we’ll recommend some in this article. But first, what is renters insurance, and why should you consider buying a policy?

Renters insurance coverage tends to feature three main components: liability coverage, loss of use, and personal property coverage. You might not be familiar with those yet, so let’s run through them quickly:

Renters insurance offers liability coverage to protect you from being sued if someone gets hurt in your home. The policy covers medical bills that might result from an accident, such as someone falling down your stairs—and the legal bills if they were to sue you.

Loss of use coverage is helpful when you have to vacate your home for repairs because of damage that is covered on your policy.

Personal property coverage (also called personal belongings ) will reimburse you for your stuff for covered damage on your renters insurance policy, like vandalism or theft.

One quick caveat: you won’t be guaranteed coverage for every situation. Always read the policy closely with your insurance agent, and keep in mind these protections only apply if the insurer rules your claim to be what it calls a “ covered loss.”

Many Ohio renters insurance policies also come with additional coverage, like identity theft protection and pet insurance. There are a surprising number of perks for such an affordable policy.

Buying a new insurance policy is a good time to get quotes on all your insurance and try to save money. Not only is Insurify your go-to resource for information on renters insurance, but our free quote-comparison tool will help you get quotes from across the industry to make sure you’re getting the best rates on auto insurance, life insurance, and everything else you need covered.

What factors determine the cost of renters insurance in Ohio?

You can’t control many of the factors that determine your renters insurance premium, but they’re important to keep in mind when setting out to find the best policy.

Coverage Level

Needless to say, the less coverage you decide you need, the lower your insurance premium. The cheapest policies around tend to be no-frills, with fewer coverage options and add-ons and medium-level coverage limits. But set the amount of coverage on your policy carefully because if you don’t set it high enough, what’s the point?

Deductible

Your deductible is the amount you must always pay before your coverage kicks in. So when you set your deductible, think about it carefully because you’ll have to pay it right away in order to be reimbursed for a covered loss. If you can afford to set a higher deductible, you will benefit from a lower premium. But do the math carefully—it’s not always worth it.

Value of Property

Expensive property is more expensive to insure. That’s the simple truth of it!

Residence Type

Similarly, apartments with lower square footage and fewer residents will be cheaper to insure than renters who are in a four-bedroom house with three kids and four dogs.

Credit Score

Almost every insurer takes your credit score into account when setting your renters insurance premium. But it won’t make or break you. Here are some of our tips for raising your credit score by 100 points in 30 days.

Owning Pets

Having pets may force you to get liability coverage in case medical expenses arise from a dog bite or property gets peed on or chewed while you’re away from home. And they will raise your rates slightly. But you can find a pet-friendly policy; it just takes some extra shopping!

Ohio -Specific Factors

Renting is going down in Ohio, but rent prices are going up, pushing the cost of renters insurance a bit above the national average. Ohio is a temperate state with a low risk of hurricanes and other major storms. But if you live on the Ohio River in Cincinnati or elsewhere, you might want to consider flood insurance.

[infogram showing average cost of renters insurance in Ohio compared to New York, California, Florida, and Texas (or for cities––NYC, Los Angeles, Miami, and Houston)]

How to Find Cheap Renters Insurance in Ohio

It’s not that hard to find affordable renters insurance, and with a few tricks, you can steadily bring the cost down and take advantage of your specific situation to get the best deal from the company that offers you the most discounts.

Shop around and compare quotes

Don’t go with the first insurance company that offers you an Ohio renters insurance policy. Shop around and bargain. There are lots of insurers out there.

Consider bundling

The best way to start shopping for renters insurance is to get a renters insurance quote from the insurance company that also sells you your auto policy. Bundles—also called multi-policy discounts —provide huge gains for policyholders who combine auto insurance with other coverage options. Companies love to reward loyalty.

Install safety devices

A security system and safety equipment is a common discount that insurance companies offer for renters insurance.

Automatic payment discount and other deals

If you manage your account responsibly by setting up automatic payments, enrolling in paperless billing, or even paying your annual premium up front, you can gain discounts for being reliable.

Best Companies for Cheap Renters Insurance in Ohio

Some of the largest insurance companies in the industry have a strong presence in Ohio and they’re good options to consider for your renters insurance coverage.

State Farm

When it comes to protecting you and your rental property, State Farm is generally going to have what most customers need at competitive rates. One downside: if you need lots of coverage options, State Farm ’s policies are pretty limited.

Nationwide

Headquartered in Columbus, Nationwide is a global insurance company with a sterling reputation offering solid policies for Ohio renters insurance. It’s a good place to bundle car insurance and doesn’t place limits on personal property coverage.

Liberty Mutual

Liberty Mutual is touted for its affordability. College students take note: you can choose low limits for personal property coverage. So if your place is small and doesn’t contain a lot of valuable stuff, you can benefit from a lower premium.

USAA

USAA provides fantastic prices and a surprising array of coverage options. One special perk is that their renters insurance policies include replacement cost coverage, which reimburses you for the full cost to recover your personal property as good as new when you make an insurance claim. (Most companies only pay the depreciated value of what you lost.)

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What is renters insurance—and what does it cover?

But wait. What is all this talk about renters insurance anyway? Why should you buy it? What does renters insurance cover? Let’s get the basics out of the way:

Renters insurance protects you from a number of bad things that could happen to you on your rental property. It’s similar to home insurance, but it’s for a place you don’t own.

While your landlord’s insurance covers damage to the building itself, your renters insurance policy protects you from property damage and theft, along with personal liability coverage in case someone gets hurt. There’s a little more to it, so here’s a nice chart that spells out the basics:

Coverage TypeWhat It (Usually!) CoversWhat’s (Usually!) Not Covered
LiabilityMay cover medical payments or property bills if you accidentally damage someone else’s property or a guest hurts themselves in your residenceAny liability costs that exceed your coverage limit, damage to your personal property, additional living expenses
Personal PropertyThe cost to repair or replace your personal belongings should they be damaged or stolenDamage to personal property over your coverage limit, liability damages, or additional living expenses
Additional Living ExpensesAdditional coverage that pays for hotel bills or other living expenses if your current residence is damaged or otherwise not habitableThe cost of repairing damage to your rented residence (your landlord’s insurance policy may cover that)

Frequently Asked Questions

  • While it can vary highly by rental property, Ohio renters insurance rates are on par with the national average, about $15 per month.

  • State Farm and Nationwide rule the roost; for low coverage needs and cheap prices, try Liberty Mutual.

  • Absolutely! Insurance companies call this a multi-policy discount. Do your best to take advantage of one.

  • Log on to Insurify for the best and fastest quote-comparison service out there to make sure your insurance policy is the one you deserve. It’s free and takes only a few minutes!

How to Find the Best and Cheapest Insurance Quotes in Ohio

Choosing the right insurance company is a very personal process. With Insurify, you can compare quotes from around the industry to find the right match for you. Get started with home insurance quotes to save some money right off the bat, and then start bundling!

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Tanveen Vohra
Tanveen VohraEditorial Manager

Tanveen Vohra is an editorial manager at Insurify specializing in writing about property and casualty insurance. Through her work, she helps consumers better understand the components of their insurance policies so they can make smarter purchase decisions. She received a bachelor's degree from SUNY Buffalo. You can connect with her on LinkedIn.