Many or all of the products featured here are from our partners who compensate us. This influences which products we write about and where and how the product appears on a page. However, this does not influence our evaluations. Our opinions are our own. Here is a list of our partners and here's how we make money.
Although California is one of the most expensive states to live in, California drivers actually pay less for auto insurance than most other states.
According to NerdWallet’s analysis, the average cost of full coverage insurance in California is $1,659 per year, or about $138 a month, for a 35-year-old driver with a clean driving record. The average cost of a minimum coverage policy in California is $506 per year, or about $42 per month.
California is one of the most consumer-friendly states when it comes to car insurance. Insurers are banned from using a driver’s gender or credit score to price insurance premiums. This means drivers with poor credit won't necessarily pay more for a policy than those with good credit.
Why you can trust NerdWallet: Our writers and editors follow strict editorial guidelines to ensure fairness and accuracy in our writing and data analyses. You can trust the prices we show you because our data analysts take rigorous measures to eliminate outliers and inaccuracies in pricing data, which include rates from every locale in California where coverage is offered and data is available. When comparing rates for different coverage amounts, ages and backgrounds, we change only one variable at a time, so you can easily see how each factor affects pricing.
See what you could save on car insurance
Easily compare personalized rates to see how much switching car insurance could save you.
Cost of car insurance in California, by company
NerdWallet compared car insurance rates from 27 companies in California. Mercury offers the cheapest full coverage in the state, on average, with an annual rate of $1,023, or $85 per month, for a 35-year-old driver with a clean driving record.
Meanwhile, Geico is the cheapest option for minimum coverage. The company has an average rate of $207 per year, which breaks down to around $17 a month.
Here are the average yearly rates for all California companies, sorted from lowest to highest rate based on average full coverage cost.
Company | Average full coverage rate per year | Average minimum coverage rate per year |
|---|---|---|
$1,023 | $353 | |
$1,051 | $207 | |
$1,108 | $294 | |
Grange Insurance Association | $1,171 | $302 |
Workmen's Auto | $1,211 | $340 |
$1,226 | $374 | |
CIG | $1,263 | $495 |
$1,285 | $501 | |
$1,407 | $486 | |
$1,473 | $552 | |
Pure | $1,558 | $406 |
$1,562 | $454 | |
$1,566 | $416 | |
$1,589 | $457 | |
$1,599 | $465 | |
First American | $1,687 | $504 |
$1,798 | $557 | |
$1,806 | $718 | |
$1,888 | $410 | |
$1,949 | $686 | |
State National | $1,976 | $564 |
$2,094 | $729 | |
$2,189 | $741 | |
CSE | $2,384 | $613 |
$2,683 | $782 | |
$3,334 | $1,006 | |
$904 | $236 | |
*USAA is only available to military, veterans and their families. | ||
The cost of car insurance depends on factors such as age, driving history and the type of vehicle you drive. As a result, these rates might not reflect the quotes you receive from insurance companies. If you want the cheapest car insurance in California, shop around and compare quotes for at least three insurers.
Cost of car insurance in California, by age
Your age is one of the most important factors when it comes to your car insurance premium. Insurance companies see young drivers as more likely to cause an accident or get a speeding ticket. And whether it’s from a lack of experience or a higher tendency to take risks, the reality is that younger drivers pay more for car insurance in California. For example, a 20-year-old driver will pay over 75% more than a 30-year-old with the same coverage limits.
Here is the average cost of car insurance in California by age for both full and minimum coverage.
Age | Average full coverage rate | Average minimum coverage rate |
|---|---|---|
20 | $3,042 | $939 |
30 | $1,733 | $524 |
35 | $1,659 | $506 |
40 | $1,620 | $499 |
50 | $1,559 | $489 |
60 | $1,539 | $491 |
70 | $1,669 | $540 |
See what you could save on car insurance
Easily compare personalized rates to see how much switching car insurance could save you.
Cost of car insurance in California, by driving history
Your driving history affects the price of your car insurance. And with the cost to insure California drivers on the rise, practicing safe driving habits is the easiest way to keep your premium from increasing.
According to our analysis, drivers with a single at-fault accident on their record pay $1,000 more, on average, for full coverage car insurance than someone with a clean driving history. Drivers with a single DUI conviction pay over $2,000 more, on average, than good drivers.
Here’s our analysis of the average annual California car insurance costs for both full and minimum coverage based on driving history.
Driving history | Average full coverage rate per year | Average minimum coverage rate per year |
|---|---|---|
Good driver | $1,659 | $506 |
One speeding ticket | $2,301 | $694 |
One recent accident | $2,699 | $825 |
DUI | $3,710 | $1,275 |
Learn more about California car insurance |
|---|
For more information about California car insurance, check out these articles: |
NerdWallet averaged rates based on public filings obtained by pricing analytics company Quadrant Information Services. We examined rates for drivers of a variety of ages for all ZIP codes in any of the 50 states and Washington, D.C. Although it’s one of the largest insurers in the country, Liberty Mutual is not included in our rates analysis due to a lack of publicly available information.
In our analysis, “good drivers” had no moving violations on record; a “good driving” discount was included for this profile. These are average rates, and your rate will vary based on your personal details, state and insurance provider.
Sample drivers had the minimum required coverage by law. Some policies include additional coverage at the insurer’s discretion.
In situations where minimum additional coverages were added, we used the same assumptions for all other driver profiles, with the following exceptions:
For drivers with minimum coverage, we adjusted the numbers above to reflect only the minimum coverage required by law in the state.
For drivers with one at-fault crash, we added a single at-fault crash costing $10,000 in property damage.
For drivers with a DUI, we added a single drunken driving violation.
For drivers with a ticket, we added a single speeding violation for driving 16 mph over the speed limit.
We used a 2020 Toyota Camry L for all drivers and assumed 12,000 annual miles driven. We analyzed rates for drivers of the following ages: 20, 30, 35, 40, 50, 60 and 70.
These are rates generated through Quadrant Information Services. Your rates will be different.
On a similar note...
