AAA vs. State Farm Car Insurance

State Farm is one of our picks for the best overall car insurance companies, winning specifically for best value. It generally has affordable rates and high customer satisfaction ratings. Meanwhile, AAA’s rates tend to be higher-than-average, and customer service can depend on which regional affiliate is available in your area.

AAA Is Better For:

• Drivers with low credit
• Drivers who lease or finance their vehicles and need gap coverage
• Those who want accident forgiveness

State Farm Is Better For:

• Drivers who want a more budget-friendly option
• People who live in areas where State Farm has significantly higher customer satisfaction ratings, including the Central and North Central regions
• Families with teen drivers

In terms of cost, AAA is on the higher end compared to most insurers, with an average annual premium of $3,009 — that’s 28 percent more than the national average. State Farm, meanwhile,  has an average premium of $2,030, which is below the national average and almost $1,000 less than AAA.

State Farm significantly beats AAA on cost for every driver category for which there is data, except for drivers with poor credit. In this category, AAA’s average premium is almost half that of State Farm.

Winner: State Farm, except for drivers with poor credit

If you’re looking for only standard auto insurance coverages, AAA and State Farm both have you covered. They offer liability coverage, comprehensive and collision (also known as full coverage), uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage, medical payments coverage, and personal injury protection.

In order to access AAA insurance, you’ll generally need to be a member, which means you’ll also have access to its top-tier roadside assistance services. With most other insurers, including State Farm, you’ll need to include roadside assistance coverage as an add-on to your policy if you’re interested in it.

The following is a breakdown of the coverages you can choose from with both companies:

*Vehicle loans from State Farm Bank include Payoff Protector coverage, which is similar.

Winner: AAA

Auto insurance discounts are a great way to save money on your premium, and both AAA and State Farm have many available that you may qualify for. One of the best discounts you can get with most insurers is a bundling discount when you purchase more than one policy type from the same company. For example, if you get home and auto insurance with either State Farm or AAA, you’ll get a discount on both policies.

AAA offers several payment-related discounts that State Farm doesn’t, including pay-in-full, paperless, and autopay discounts. Meanwhile, State Farm has safety and anti-theft feature discounts that AAA does not. Whether one company offers better discounts than the other will come down to your individual situation and what you qualify for.

Here is a list of the main discounts you may be eligible for from AAA and State Farm.

Winner: Tie; the best insurer in this category will depend on which specific discounts you’re eligible for.

When evaluating how AAA and State Farm stack up in terms of customer service, it’s important to keep in mind that AAA is not a single company, so regional affiliates can have very different ratings.

Claims Satisfaction

On J.D. Power’s 2025 U.S. Auto Claims Satisfaction Study, State Farm falls between various AAA affiliates. AAA (Auto Club of Southern Calif.) and CSAA ranked the highest, with State Farm only four points behind CSAA. All three are well above average. Meanwhile, Auto Club Group scored three points below average.

AAA (Auto Club of Southern Calif.) and CSAA also had a strong showing on the 2026 CRASH Network Report Card, both earning B ratings and earning spots on the Honor Roll. Auto Club Group beats State Farm here but still has a below-average rating. In general, all of the major national insurers, including State Farm, rank low on this study. The CRASH Network report is based on surveys with auto shops about their experiences managing claims with various insurance companies, which is a good indicator of how smoothly policyholders can expect the process to be.

Winner: AAA, specifically Auto Club of Southern Calif. and CSAA

Customer Service

State Farm is the only major national insurer to rank above average in every region in J.D. Power’s 2025 U.S. Auto Insurance Study.⁴ AAA is only rated in seven out of 11 regions, so comparison isn’t possible across the board. However, for those seven regions, an AAA company ranked higher than State Farm in five of them.

In most cases, when AAA scored higher than State Farm, it wasn’t by a huge margin. The exceptions are California and the Southwest, where an AAA company ranked first, at 41 and 28 points above State Farm, respectively. On the flip side, in the two regions where State Farm ranked higher — the Central and North Central regions — it outscored AAA by over 30 points.

Here’s a breakdown of each company’s score (out of 1,000) by region — as noted above, AAA companies were not included in four regions of the study:

The NAIC Complaint Index is another metric that’s helpful to look at when evaluating customer service, as it tracks the number of customer complaints filed against insurers compared to the market average, accounting for the company’s size. The average number of complaints is represented by an index of 1. State Farm has a lower complaint index than the three AAA companies we looked at, but it’s still above average at 2.46. AAA’s complaint index is the highest of the four, by far, at 3.89.

Winner: AAA

Shopping

J.D. Power’s U.S. Insurance Shopping Study rates insurers based on prospective customers’ experience obtaining quotes and purchasing policies. Auto Club Group and State Farm both earned very high ratings, ranking second and third, respectively. CSAA and AAA ranked a bit lower, though still above average.

Both companies allow you to start quotes online but require you to speak to an agent to finalize and purchase, though AAA may offer online quotes in some cases.

Winner: State Farm overall, since it beats out two of the three AAA companies on the shopping study, but Auto Club Group, specifically, ranks slightly higher.

The AAA and State Farm mobile apps have the same ratings on both the App Store and the Google Play Store, with the Apple rating being slightly higher. The companies also provide robust online platforms where policyholders can access policy information, make payments, and file claims.

State Farm comes out on top in J.D. Power’s Digital Experience Study, which rates customer experience with insurance companies’ digital offerings, both before and after they officially become policyholders.

In the shopping category, which rates customers’ experiences shopping for a policy online, Auto Club Group, State Farm, and AAA all ranked above average, while CSAA was near the bottom. In the service category, which rates existing policyholder interactions with digital tools, State Farm ranked above average, with a score 17 points higher than AAA, which ranked below average.

Winner: State Farm

GEICO vs. AAA Scorecard

State Farm and AAA are both great options for car insurance — both have solid financial strength ratings and sell policies through local agents, providing personalized service. For drivers prioritizing cost, State Farm tends to offer lower average rates, with an average annual premium almost $1,000 lower than AAA’s. The only exception is drivers with low credit, for whom AAA has significantly cheaper rates, on average.

AAA is best known for its roadside assistance service and operates as separate regional companies instead of a single nationwide provider. However, it is available in all 50 states, unlike State Farm, which is currently unavailable in Massachusetts and Rhode Island (though it plans to re-enter Massachusetts in 2027). In most cases, you need to be an AAA member to purchase its insurance.

AAA offers more coverage options than State Farm, including accident forgiveness, custom parts coverage, and gap coverage. State Farm does offer a sort of gap coverage for vehicle loans obtained through State Farm Bank, but drivers who finance their car elsewhere will not be able to get this coverage through State Farm.

When it comes to customer service, State Farm has solid ratings in most categories, often beating out other major providers. Depending on which AAA affiliate is available in your region, it may offer better or worse customer service than State Farm. In particular, Auto Club of Southern California and CSAA tend to be highly rated for customer satisfaction.

At AutoInsurance.com, we evaluate auto insurers in four key areas:

• Price (40%): We analyze average premiums for both full and minimum coverage for a standard driving profile of a good driver with good credit. We also looked at rates for other driver profiles, including those with violations or low credit. We also consider available discounts. Full coverage averages use the following limits:
  • Bodily injury liability: $100,000 per person/$300,000 per accident
  • Property damage liability: $50,000 per accident
  • Uninsured and underinsured motorist bodily injury: $100,000 per person/$300,000 per accident
  • Comprehensive and collision: $500 deductible
• Claims handling (25%): An auto insurer’s claims handling process should be quick, transparent, and efficient, with clear communication, fair evaluation of damages, and timely payment or resolution. We assess claims practices using sources like the CRASH Network Insurer Report Card and J.D. Power’s claims satisfaction report, and financial strength from sources like AM Best and S&P Ratings. We also include real-life customer experiences when possible.
• Customer experience (25%): We evaluate the ease of the customer journey, from getting a quote and purchasing a policy to making changes or accessing documents. We consider the availability and quality of both online and agent interactions, as well as the functionality of the company’s website and mobile app. Our sources include J.D. Power studies, the NAIC complaint index, BBB ratings, and app store reviews.
• Coverage options (10%): We review each company’s coverage offerings and prioritize providers with options beyond the state-required minimums, such as accident forgiveness, gap coverage, rideshare coverage, and more.

Read more about our ratings and methodology.