The Best Auto Insurance in North Dakota 2024

USAA is a company that’s available solely to veterans, military members, and their spouses and children and we named it the best auto insurance for the military. It makes it easy to insure your car while you’re deployed, and save money by avoiding coverages you don’t need. Along with Grinnell Mutual, it’s one of the cheapest options in North Dakota.

Competitive Prices and Military-Specific Discounts

Being deployed and having to leave your family is part of the job description when it comes to the military. And even if you’re leaving your car in a garage on a military installation, you’ll still need comprehensive insurance, which covers property damage from non-collision events like weather, fire, vandalism, and auto theft. Fortunately, USAA lets you save up to 15 percent off your comprehensive coverage if you are deployed or garage your car on a military installation. Additionally, you’ll receive a low-mileage discount, which varies based on your annual mileage.

Discounts are part of how USAA keeps its premiums low across the state:

Good Rates for Families with Youthful Drivers

Families with teen drivers pay more for auto insurance, and North Dakota is no exception. USAA offers some of the lowest rates for families with teen drivers across the state.

According to a 2023 report from the North Dakota Department of Insurance, a family with two vehicles and a 16-year-old driver can expect to pay around the following for full coverage (assuming clean driving records and parents with good credit):

USAA’s rates are competitive across the board, in particular for families with teens in Grand Forks and Minot.

Additionally, USAA offers accident forgiveness, a feature that’s especially important with teens behind the wheel. If you’ve been with the company for five years and haven’t had any accidents, it may not raise your rate the first time you cause an accident. This could save you a ton of money, as USAA’s cost of auto insurance with accidents can increase by 42 percent for those who do not have accident forgiveness.

24/7 Roadside Assistance

Especially if you’re away from home, you want to make sure your spouse and children are protected in the event that they get stranded on the side of the road. Fortunately, USAA offers 24/7 roadside assistance, which includes:

• Battery jumpstart
• Flat tire
• Fuel delivery
• Lockout services
• Towing
• Winching

You’ll pay nothing for a stuck vehicle, jumpstar, lockout services, or a flat tire replacement, minus the cost of the spare. For towing, your car will be taken to the nearest repair shop, and fuel delivery is available at a contracted rate, less than what you’d pay if you called a tow truck company directly.

Allstate offers a slew of discounts, including for bundling your home and auto insurance, insuring a new car, having a student on your policy with good grades, and paying on-time, to name a few. It’s available to people who drive for pleasure as well as rideshare drivers, filling in the gaps of their transportation network company (TNC)’s insurance.

Home and Auto Bundling Discount

You can save money whenever you bundle home and auto insurance together under the same provider, but the exact amount you can save differs by state. For Allstate customers in North Dakota, that percentage comes out to up to 15 percent due to the company’s multi-policy discount, along with the enrollment discount. You can take advantage of this bundle whether you own your home or rent, and whether you drive a motorcycle or a car.

Rideshare Coverage

What rideshare drivers need to know about car insurance, and what they may not be aware of, is that the rideshare company’s coverage only covers you when a passenger is in the car. However, if you are waiting for a ride or driving to pick someone up, the TNC coverage does not apply, and a personal auto insurance policy does not cover commercial driving.

That’s where Allstate’s rideshare coverage kicks in. It’s supplemental insurance that ensures you’ll be covered the entire time you’re driving for Uber and Lyft, not just when you have a customer in the car.

Among our top picks for car insurance in North Dakota, only Allstate, Grinnell Mutual, and USAA (which is only available to military members and veterans), offers rideshare coverage. You can expect to pay about $868 annually ($72 monthly) for a liability-only policy from Allstate that includes rideshare coverage in North Dakota.

Rental Reimbursement

Your car is the shop for a covered claim, but as you probably know, public transportation in the state is lacking. Your spouse needs their car for work, so how do you get around? With Allstate’s rental reimbursement coverage, you can get reimbursed for the cost of a rental car, Uber and Lyft rides, or even public transportation. It’s one of Allstate’s many available add-ons, which include roadside assistance and a personal umbrella policy in addition to the state’s required coverages and rideshare insurance.

The average annual cost of car insurance in North Dakota is only $859 for Nationwide customers, but it’s even lower for certain groups like single females in their thirties, married couples in their sixties, or couples in their twenties with young children. Prices go down even lower for safe drivers, as they cost Nationwide less money in claims.

Discounts for Safe Drivers

Do you have a clean driving record for the past five years? If so, you can save money with Nationwide. To save even more money, consider Nationwide’s usage-based insurance (UBI) program, SmartRide. Not only will you get a 10 percent discount for signing up, but you can save up to 40 percent more by demonstrating those safe driving behaviors as measured by the SmartRide app. If you drive fewer miles and avoid hard braking, fast accelerations, and driving between midnight and 5 a.m., you might as well get rewarded for it.

Additionally, once you’ve maintained an accident-free driving record with Nationwide, you can get another 10 percent off your premium. That’s three ways for safe drivers to save with Nationwide.

Senior Defensive Driving Discounts

On average, a married couple, ages 65 and retired, will pay the following amounts each year for car insurance from Nationwide:

• Fargo: $723
• Bismarck/Mandan: $826
• Grand Forks: $748
• Minot: $843
• Remainder of state: $881

However, that couple could save an additional 5 percent off their Nationwide premiums if they have no-fault accidents in the past 36 months and complete a state-approved accident prevention course. For the average couple in their sixties in Fargo, their monthly cost would come out to just about $57 a month with Nationwide. Not too shabby!

Local Agents

Some people may not want to get their auto insurance online. If you want a local experience, in-person or over the phone, Nationwide has agents within the following cities within North Dakota:

• Ashley
• Beach
• Beulah
• Bismarck
• Buxton
• Cando
• Cavalier
• Dickinson
• Fargo
• Grand Forks
• Harvey
• Hazen
• Hebron
• Hillsboro
• Langdon
• Linton
• Mandan
• Minot
• Mohall
• Napoleon
• New Salem
• New Town
• Park River
• Powers Lake
• West Fargo
• Williston
• Wishek

As a comparison, GEICO has no local agents in North Dakota, so Nationwide is a better option if you want a more human-to-human connection.

Did you know that, according to the U.S. Census’ estimates for 2022, there are 256,825 people ages 50 and older living in North Dakota, accounting for 33 percent of the state’s population?⁸ That means that up to a third of the state may be able to guarantee a contract renewal with GEICO, meaning you won’t have to scramble to find a new policy when yours expires. Additionally, GEICO rewards senior drivers with discounts for driving safely, having multiple cars, and taking a defensive driving course, among others.

Senior Driving Discounts

On average, GEICO has amazing low prices for seniors. In North Dakota, GEICO’s average annual rate for a married couple in their sixties is $736 for full coverage, while its average cost for a 72-year-old single female is just $489. That’s less than Allstate and Nationwide. But you can save even more money with the following discounts:

• Defensive driving discount: Save up to 10 percent by completing a GEICO-approved defensive driving course on a voluntary basis.
• Multi-vehicle discount: Save up to 25 percent on coverages when you insure more than one car with GEICO.
• Multi-policy discount: You can also save money by bundling your car insurance policy with condo, mobile home, renters, or homeowner’s insurance.
• Veteran discount: GEICO offers discounts up to 15 percent to both active-duty military members as well as military retirees.

Guaranteed Renewal and for Seniors

GEICO can guarantee a renewal of your contract if you:

• Are 50 and older
• Have had no accidents or traffic violations within the past three years
• Do not use your vehicles for business purposes
• Don’t have anyone on your policy under age 25

Many companies will not cover senior drivers after a certain age, fearing that they will cause more accidents and cost them more money. However, if you meet these criteria, you won’t have to worry about this with GEICO.

Great Customer Service

Out of all the companies in this list, GEICO had the highest ratings from customers who participated in J.D. Power’s 2023 Customer Satisfaction study for personal auto insurance in the Central region, which includes North Dakota. The company earned a rating of 819 out of 1,000. To put that in comparison, Allstate got an 806 and Nationwide got a 792. Although the company lacks local agents in North Dakota, it more than makes up for it with tons of digital support options, from the GEICO app and website to a regular old call line.

Out of all the companies on this list, Grinnell Mutual has the lowest prices, on average. Full coverage insurance for a single, 30-year-old female costs an average of only $491 per year, which comes out to about $41 per month. Grinnell Mutual also has the lowest prices for married couples in their thirties, married couples in their forties with young drivers on their policy, or single 48-year-old females with young drivers. Prices are even lower for safe drivers who qualify for the Grinnell Mutual Elite Driver Program, which we’ll explain below.

Grinnell Mutual Elite Driver Program

People with clean driving records can benefit from Grinnell Mutual’s Elite Driver Program, as they’ll receive discounts on full coverage insurance. However, to qualify, you must have:

• A household with fewer than two at-fault accidents and minor moving violations in the past three years, ideally none of either
• All drivers have U.S. driving experience
• Vehicles used for personal use only

While this coverage is not available for rideshare drivers or drivers with more than two at-fault accidents or minor moving violations on their records for the past three years, it is an option for safe drivers to save on car insurance, farm, and business coverage.

Low Average Premiums

Grinnell Mutual offers some of the cheapest car insurance in North Dakota. Here are its average annual rates for different driver profiles, compared with the state average across all companies:

• Single female, age 30: $491, 14 percent lower than the state average of $574
• Married couple, age 35: $590, 7 percent lower than the state average of $633
• Married couple in their forties with a young driver: $1,241, 3 percent lower than the state average of $1,211
• Single female, age 48, with a young driver: $878, 2 percent lower than the state average of $900

While Grinnell isn’t always going to be the cheapest option, like for single females in their seventies or a 25-year-old couple with young children, it does offer the lowest rates for the above groups, on average. As with any auto insurance company, you need to get a quote to learn exactly how much you’ll pay.

Wide Range of Coverages

Of course, Grinnell Mutual offers the basic coverages that North Dakota requires, but it takes things a step further with the following optional coverages, all bundled together under what the company calls Auto Plus:

• Air bag reinstallation: This coverage will reimburse you for the costs of getting your air bags reinstalled after they deploy without involvement in an accident.
• First-year total loss: A new vehicle purchased in the past years with fewer than 15,000 miles that has been declared a total loss will be replaced with the exact same car, one model year newer.
• Lockout services: We’ve all been there before, locked out of our cars and entering sheer panic. In this case, Grinnell will pay up to $100 for lockout services, typically part of roadside assistance.
• Lock replacement: If you lose your car keys, you’ll get up to $250 for replacement of your electronic entry device, keys, or key entry pad.
• Personal property: While comprehensive coverage includes auto theft, it won’t reimburse you for personal items stolen from your car. That’s where personal property coverage comes in, paying you up to $500 to replace your missing or stolen items.
• Pet injury: If your pet is killed or injured during an accident (an event that hopefully never happens), Grinnell will pay up to $500 for vet fees, or even a new pet adoption.
• Rental car coverage: Different from rental car reimbursement, rental car coverage will kick in if there is any property damage or loss-of-use costs for a car you rented, to the tune of up to $750.