It’s possible to get car insurance without a credit check. But you might be limited to certain types of car insurance, like usage-based or telematics insurance.
5+ years writing insurance and personal finance topics
Auto, home, health, and life insurance expertise
Elizabeth has extensive insurance industry experience, having written for Insureon, Rate Retriever, and Insurify. She’s also finance and insurance editor for Car and Driver.
5+ years in insurance and personal finance content
Ashley is a seasoned personal finance editor who’s produced a variety of digital content, including insurance, credit cards, mortgages, and consumer lending products.
Clinical Professor of Finance, University of San Diego
Dan is a well-recognized and widely quoted financial services expert, regularly appearing in a variety of national and local media as a subject matter expert.
Konstantin has led data teams across multiple industries, including insurance, travel, and biology. He’s led Insurify’s engineering team for more than three years.
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Cheapest recent rates
Drivers using Insurify have found quotes as cheap as $35/mo for liability only and $40/mo for full coverage.
*Quotes generated for Insurify users within the last 10 days. Last updated on April 18, 2024
Rates shown are real-time Insurify user quotes from 100+ insurance companies and Quadrant Information Services data. Insurify’s algorithm excludes anomalous quotes and anonymizes personal details, then displays refined quotes by price, date, and insurer popularity up to 10 days ago from April 18, 2024. Actual quotes may vary based on the policy buyer’s unique driver profile.
*Quotes generated for Insurify users within the last 10 days. Last updated on April 18, 2024
Rates shown are real-time Insurify user quotes from 100+ insurance companies and Quadrant Information Services data. Insurify’s algorithm excludes anomalous quotes and anonymizes personal details, then displays refined quotes by price, date, and insurer popularity up to 10 days ago from April 18, 2024. Actual quotes may vary based on the policy buyer’s unique driver profile.
Credit history affects car insurance rates for most drivers. Car insurance companies in almost every state are legally allowed to run your credit when you apply for a policy. The only states that prohibit insurance providers from using credit as a rating factor are California, Hawaii, Massachusetts, Michigan, and Washington.[1] Maryland limits how insurers may use credit information.
Insurance companies often consider your credit when setting auto insurance premiums because it may indicate how likely you are to file a claim. Drivers with excellent credit are less likely to file claims than drivers with poor credit, based on insurance industry data. But it may be possible to get car insurance with no credit check.
“This is an example of why building and maintaining a good credit score should be a top priority for all consumers," says Daniel Roccato, clinical professor of finance at the University of San Diego. "Credit impacts all facets of your financial life.”
Here's what you should know about how credit can affect insurance costs, and how comparing quotes from multiple insurers can help you find the coverage you need at the best possible price.
Quick Facts
Insurance companies use information from your credit history to generate a credit-based insurance score, which predicts your likelihood of filing a claim.
Some car insurance companies insure drivers without checking their credit, and some states prohibit the use of credit scores.
Usage-based and telematics car insurance policies may not require a credit check.
How to get no-credit-check auto insurance
It’s possible to get approved for car insurance with no credit check. For example, if you live in a state that doesn’t allow insurers to run a credit report, you can avoid a credit check. Even if you have a poor credit score, it shouldn’t affect your rate if you live in one of these states.
Another way to get no-credit-check car insurance is to purchase a usage-based insurance policy. With this type of car insurance, your monthly premium is based on the distance you drive, rather than a fixed monthly premium. Some telematics insurance policies, which track your driving habits, are also available without a credit check.[2]
Find Cheap Car Insurance for Any Credit Score
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How does your credit score affect car insurance pricing?
Credit scores affect car insurance rates because they indicate how likely a driver may be to file insurance claims.
“There is a strong correlation between drivers with bad credit and higher-than-usual insurance claims,” says Nick Schrader, an insurance agent with Texas General Insurance. “Drivers with poor credit may also be more likely to miss payments or have their insurance lapse.”
When drivers fail to pay their insurance premiums or file an insurance claim, their insurance company loses money. To offset these potential risks, most car insurance companies charge higher rates for drivers with poor credit and lower rates for drivers with good credit.[3]
To help you understand how much you might pay for car insurance based on your credit score, Insurify data scientists analyzed rate data from five top national insurance companies. Here are the average liability-only car insurance premiums for drivers with excellent credit, good credit, average credit, and poor credit:
The below rates are estimated rates current as of: Wednesday, April 17 at 12:00 PM PDT.
Konstantin has led data teams across multiple industries, including insurance, travel, and biology. He ’s led Insurify’s engineering team for more than three years.
Disclaimer: Table data sourced from real-time quotes from Insurify's 50-plus partner insurance providers and quote estimates from Quadrant Information Services. Actual quotes may vary based on the policy buyer's unique driver profile.
Additional insurance cost-rating factors to consider
Of course, your credit score isn’t the only factor that can affect your car insurance premium. Here are some other criteria that insurance companies consider when calculating your rate:
Location
Your state and ZIP code have a big impact on the cost of your car insurance. For example, if you live in an area with a high risk of severe weather or a high rate of vehicle theft, you may pay more for insurance.
Age
Young driverswho are newly licensed have an increased risk of accidents, and therefore, pay the highest rates.[4] Car insurance premiums start to drop as drivers gain more experience behind the wheel.
Driving record
If you have aclean driving recordwith no recent accidents or traffic violations, you’ll pay less for car insurance than drivers with one or more infractions on their record. Drivers with at-fault accidents, speeding tickets, DUIs and other moving violations typically see higher car insurance premiums. Some violations, like a DUI, will significantly increase your premium.
Gender
Statistically, men are more likely to get into accidents than women. As a result, males usually pay higher auto insurance rates than females.[5]
Which states don’t allow credit score checks?
Not every state allows insurance companies to use a credit-based insurance score. The following states currently prohibit insurance companies from using credit as a rating factor:[1]
These states prohibit the use of credit checks for a few reasons. First, many people are unaware that insurance companies check credit scores when they apply for car insurance. Additionally, many people don’t understand how or why their credit score affects their premium.
Advocacy groups have also argued that using a credit-based insurance score targets low-income individuals and minorities, and isn't necessarily an indicator of an individual’s likelihood to experience insurance losses.
Which insurance types don’t require a credit score check?
While most car insurance policies require a credit check, certain types of insurance don’t. These two types of auto insurance may not require a credit check:
Usage-based coverage: With a usage-based car insurance policy, your premium is based on the number of miles you drive each month. You pay a small monthly fee plus an additional rate for every mile you drive. It can be a good option if you drive infrequently, but this type of policy could be more expensive if you drive a normal amount (around 10,000 miles or more per year). Based on Insurify rate data, Mile Auto, one of the most well-known usage-based insurance companies, has an average premium of $121 per month. Nationwide SmartMiles and Allstate DriveWise are also popular usage-based insurance policies.
Telematics: A telematics car insurance policy uses a device in your vehicle to track your mileage and driving habits, like acceleration, brake force, and when you drive (at night versus during the day). If you practice safe driving habits consistently, you can be rewarded with a lower rate. A few major insurance companies offer telematics insurance programs, like Progressive Snapshot, State Farm Drive Safe and Save, and Allstate Drivewise.
The best way to get car insurance with bad credit is to comparison shop. Using a comparison-quote platform makes it easy to see which car insurance company can offer you the lowest rate for your coverage needs.
After providing some information about yourself and your vehicle, you’ll get matched with personalized quotes from top-rated insurers in your area. Comparing quotes all in one place makes it easy to find a policy that fits your needs.
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Cheap auto insurance for drivers with bad credit
Based on Insurify’s analysis of recent rate data, the cheapest auto insurance companies for drivers with bad credit scores are Amigo USA, Kemper Preferred, and Farmers/21st Century. These companies may require a credit check, but if you have poor credit or no credit, you can still get an affordable rate.
In the table below, you can see the cheapest insurers for drivers with a low credit score and the average monthly premium for full and liability-only coverage:
The below rates are estimated rates current as of: Wednesday, April 17 at 12:00 PM PDT.
Konstantin has led data teams across multiple industries, including insurance, travel, and biology. He’s led Insurify’s engineering team for more than three years.
Disclaimer: Table data sourced from real-time quotes from Insurify's 50-plus partner insurance providers and quote estimates from Quadrant Information Services. Actual quotes may vary based on the policy buyer's unique driver profile.
Tips for raising your credit score
If you have poor credit, raising your score can help you get a lower car insurance rate. Here are a few tips for improving your credit score:
Make on-time payments. Paying your bills on time is important, especially if you want to improve your credit score. If you have trouble remembering due dates, consider enrolling your accounts in automatic payments so you never risk missing a payment.
Pay down your balances. If you have debt, whether it’s loan debt or credit card debt, work on paying down your balances. Also, keep an eye on your credit utilization (how much of your available credit you’re using compared to your total available credit). The lower your credit utilization is, the better your credit score will be.
Limit new accounts. Avoid opening new credit cards or taking out new loans frequently. This can cause your credit score to drop. Only open new accounts when you really need them, and make sure you can afford the monthly payments beforehand.
Cheap car insurance companies for drivers without credit history
It’s not just poor credit that can affect your car insurance rate. Having no credit history can also increase your premium. Based on Insurify’s rate data, Mile Auto is the cheapest insurer for drivers with no credit history, with an average premium of $81 per month for liability-only car insurance. National General and Kemper Specialty also offer some of the lowest rates for drivers with no credit, according to recent premium data.
The table below outlines the average monthly quotes for from some other insurance companies that offer policies to drivers with no credit history:
The below rates are estimated rates current as of: Wednesday, April 17 at 12:00 PM PDT.
Konstantin has led data teams across multiple industries, including insurance, travel, and biology. He’s led Insurify’s engineering team for more than three years.
Disclaimer: Table data sourced from real-time quotes from Insurify's 50-plus partner insurance providers and quote estimates from Quadrant Information Services. Actual quotes may vary based on the policy buyer's unique driver profile.
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No-credit-check car insurance FAQs
Here are answers to some commonly asked questions about getting car insurance with no credit check.
Can you get car insurance without a credit check?
Yes, you can get car insurance with no credit check. But you may be limited to certain types of car insurance, like usage-based auto insurance and telematics auto insurance.
Why do insurance companies check your credit score?
Car insurance companies look at your credit history, not your credit score. They use your credit history to generate a credit-based insurance score that indicates how likely you are to have insurance losses. In general, drivers with excellent credit pay the lowest rates, whereas drivers with bad credit or no credit pay the highest rates.
How can you get cheap car insurance with a bad credit score?
One of the best ways to get cheap car insurance with bad credit is to use an online quote-comparison platform. With a single application, you can see which insurers can offer you the lowest rates based on your credit score, and the type and amount of coverage you want.
Can you get car insurance without a credit history?
Yes, you can get car insurance without a credit history, but you’ll probably pay a higher premium. If you have no credit, consider applying for usage-based or telematics car insurance policies, which may not require a credit check.
Methodology
Insurify data scientists analyzed more than 90 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 50+ 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:
Bodily injury limits between state-minimum rates and $50,000 per person, $100,000 per accident
Property damage limits between $10,000 and $50,000
No additional coverage
Full-coverage premium averages correspond to the same bodily injury and property damage limits in addition to:
Comprehensive coverage with a $1,000 deductible
Collision coverage with a $1,000 deductible
Quotes for Allstate, Farmers, GEICO, State Farm, and USAA are estimates based on Quadrant Information Services’ database of auto insurance rates.
Elizabeth Rivelli is a freelance writer covering insurance and personal finance. She has extensive knowledge of various insurance lines, including property and casualty, health, and life insurance. Her byline has been featured in dozens of publications, including Investopedia, Forbes, Bankrate, NextAdvisor, and Insurance.com.
5+ years in insurance and personal finance content
Ashley is a seasoned personal finance editor who’s produced a variety of digital content, including insurance, credit cards, mortgages, and consumer lending products.
Clinical Professor of Finance, University of San Diego
Dan is a well-recognized and widely quoted financial services expert, regularly appearing in a variety of national and local media as a subject matter expert.
Konstantin has led data teams across multiple industries, including insurance, travel, and biology. He’s led Insurify’s engineering team for more than three years.
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