Best Car Insurance in California in 2025

GEICO is the cheapest provider for drivers in California, on average. It serves 10 percent of the state’s drivers and is about $400 cheaper than the state average for full coverage.

Affordable Full Coverage Rates

If you’re seeking affordable full coverage (liability, comprehensive, collision, and uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage), look no further. GEICO will have the cheapest rates for the average driver in California, with average costs hovering around $122 per month.

Affordable Liability-Only Rates

If you’re looking for the absolute cheapest option to drive legally, California requires only minimum liability and uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage. GEICO is also the cheapest provider for minimum liability, with an average cost as low as $38 per month.

Unique Discounts for Federal Workers

Almost 150,000 federal workers are located in California, making it the state with the most federal workers in the country.⁴ If you work for the government or military, you can qualify for one of the following discounts.

Mercury is a California-based insurance provider that has been offering coverage for more than 60 years. It has over 100 local agents, various coverage options, and a highly rated digital platform.

Affordable Rates for Teens

Teens pay the highest rates for car insurance among any other age group. In California, average rates for teens are 157 percent higher than for drivers in their 30s, rising to over $6,000 annually for the most expensive rates.

With Mercury, you can take advantage of cheaper average rates and teen-focused discounts, like a good student discount, to minimize those costs. GEICO and State Farm also offer competitive rates for households with teen drivers, so it’s worth getting a quote from all three to see who offers you the best rate.

Several Ways to Save

If you want to bring your costs down even further, Mercury offers several additional discount opportunities. Ask your agent about the following discounts to save more on your car insurance:

• Anti-theft discount
• Automatic billing discount
• E-signature discount
• Good driver discount
• Good student discount
• Multi-car discount
• Multi-policy discount
  • 15 percent off for homeowners
• Paid-in-full discount
• RealDrive discount
  • 5 percent discount just for signing up — larger savings available for people who drive less

Extensive Coverage Options

If you want to keep yourself or your teen safer on the road, look into Mercury’s extensive list of additional coverage options:

• Collision and comprehensive coverage
• Medical payments coverage
• Personal injury protection
• Mechanical protection insurance (engine, transmission, and electric system coverage)
• Rideshare insurance
• Rental car reimbursement
• Umbrella insurance

USSA offers some of the cheapest rates and has the highest customer service score in the Golden State. USAA was made for military members, veterans, and military families, and it’s easy to see why when you review its unique military discounts and coverage options, which we’ll break down below.

The Cheapest Average Rates in the State

With an average annual rate of $1,545 for full coverage, USAA is the second-cheapest provider in the state after GEICO. That’s about $350 cheaper than the state average. If you qualify for a USAA membership, talk to an agent about signing up and assessing your monthly and annual costs.

Highest Customer Service Score

J.D. Power reviews car insurance providers for their customer service quality, claims process, digital shopping experience, and more. USAA is consistently ranked among the best providers in most categories, and in 2024, it earned the highest score for customer service and claims satisfaction in California (although it’s not technically ranked because it doesn’t meet the study criteria).

USAA’s 747 out of 1,000 score is over 60 points higher than the second-highest provider (AAA) and 110 points higher than the state average (637).

Discounts Made for Military

USAA has several discounts that will benefit military members and their families.

As one of the few companies to offer a hybrid and electric vehicle discount, Travelers is a great option for the many electric vehicle owners in California. Insurance for electric vehicles tends to be more expensive than gas-powered cars, so you should take advantage of the many Travelers discounts available to you.

Save on Your Electric Vehicle and Hybrid

You can save up to 10 percent on your car insurance with Travelers when you own or lease a hybrid/electric vehicle. Talk to your agent about whether or not you qualify to learn more.

Very Few Customer Complaints

In 2024, the National Association of Insurance Commissioners gave Travelers a score of 0.27 on the customer complaint index, meaning Travelers had fewer than half the complaints of its competitors.⁶

Excellent Commercial Auto Coverage

If you’re one of the state’s more than 4 million small business owners or operate a fleet of vehicles, you might need commercial auto insurance.⁷ Travelers offers commercial auto plans for everyday vehicles, trucks, fleets, vehicles for oil and gas companies, vehicles for public entities, and street maintenance vehicles.

State Farm is the largest auto insurance provider in the entire country. With more than a century of experience, a host of local agents to choose from, and several safety-related discounts, State Farm is our top pick for safe drivers in California.

Big Savings for Safe Drivers

Although State Farm has a higher average rate than other companies in California, it offers sizable discounts for safe drivers.

If you qualify for the following discounts, you could see your premium drop by a significant amount:

Get More Out of Your Policy

Looking to get more coverage out of your policy? State Farm offers a number of additional coverage options, including:

• Car rental coverage
• Travel expenses coverage
• Medical payments coverage
• Emergency roadside service coverage
• Rideshare driver coverage

Insure More Vehicles

As the largest provider in the country, State Farm offers insurance for several vehicle types. On top of gaining coverage for your personal vehicle, you can also get insurance for your:

• Boats
• Collector and classic cars
• Commercial vehicles
• Fleets
• Motorcycles
• Off-road vehicles
• Motorhomes
• Recreational vehicles (RVs)