Compare Home Insurance Quotes (May 2024) (2024)

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Finding home insurance that’s affordable and offers the right coverage can be difficult, especially when you consider all of the factors affecting your rate. That’s why comparing home insurance quotes from different providers is so important. Comparing home policy quotes gives you a chance to put the best homeowners insurance companies head-to-head to find the right coverage.

Be sure that you’re comparing quotes for similar coverage, deductibles and benefits, or your comparison might not be accurate. Consider these elements when comparing providers to help you get the right homeowners insurance policy:

• Coverage: What coverage limits does each company offer? Do the companies offer actual cash value or replacement cost value insurance? Make sure to look at individual coverage limits for your dwelling, personal property and personal liability.
• Pricing: Is pricing noticeably different between carriers for similar coverage options? Do the companies offer discounts?
• Deductibles: What are the deductible options for each carrier? Can you change your deductible to lower your insurance costs?
• Additional Benefits: What benefits or policy perks do the carriers offer, such as claims forgiveness or identity theft protection? Does the homeowners insurance cover unique risks through endorsem*nts?

There are multiple ways to obtain home insurance quotes, which we explain in more detail below.

Use a Quote Comparison Tool

We recommend using our quote comparison tool if you don’t want to spend too much time looking for an estimate. You must provide information about your location and home property type, size and age. The tool will also ask for your current insurance provider and personal details including your name, phone number, email address, gender, date of birth and marital status. Once you submit the form, you will immediately get a quote if available or an agent will contact you to help you find the best deal.

Request Quotes From Providers Directly

To request a quote from the provider directly, you can either fill out a form on the company’s website or call its customer service number. In both scenarios, you will provide information about your personal situation, property, household and desired coverage levels. Requesting a quote by phone might take longer than submitting a form online depending on the insurer’s response time. However, many insurers offer both options. Note that some providers who offer online quote tools will require you to work with an agent to finalize your details before allowing you to sign up for a policy. This is almost always true for homeowners that live in a high-risk area.

Work With an Insurance Agent

You can work with an insurance agent to find a suitable policy if you need personalized assistance or have complex insurance needs. To find an agent, consider asking for referrals from friends and family, searching online or contacting the insurer directly, as some have a network of agents and local offices. Once you find a suitable agent, schedule a consultation to discuss your coverage needs and personal situation.

The agent will then use their knowledge to obtain quotes on your behalf, present you with the options and answer any questions you might have. You can then select the most suitable policy based on your discussion. Although you can get expert guidance this way, it might take longer than requesting quotes online and you might have to pay the agent service fees.

If you live in a high-risk area, you will likely only be eligible to receive quotes through an agent.

You must provide information about your property, household and personal characteristics to get a quote. Insurance providers use this information to analyze your needs and determine the appropriate amount of coverage. We explain more about the required information below to help you streamline the quote process.

Information About the Home

• The address of your property
• Whether your home is single-family owned, multi-family, etc.
• The year your home was construction
• Total square footage
• Type of construction materials used
• Details about security and safety features
• Roof type and approximate age

Information About the Homeowner

• Your legal name and contact details, such as your phone number and email address
• Your date of birth and the birthdates of other household members
• Details about your occupation
• Information about any recent insurance claims you have filed
• Your marital status and the marital status of other residents
• Your social security number for a credit check (this does not impact your score)

Your provider, location, coverage choices, and credit and claims history can influence how much a home insurance policy will cost.

Provider

The insurance company you choose for home insurance affects how much you’ll pay. Some companies, on average, charge higher rates than others. For example, the average home insurance premium through Progressive is $4,077.33, while State Farm’s average rate is $2,084.90 — almost half the cost. Additionally, the cheapest homeowners insurance company on average might not be the cheapest for you. Other factors, like your location, can cause providers to charge you more or less than average.

Location

The location of your home is one of the most important factors in your cost of home insurance. Insurance companies use location data — like weather patterns, crime rates and number of natural disasters — to help determine your home insurance rates. Homes in locations with a higher risk of damage generally cost more to insure. If you live in a particularly risky location, you may even have to look for a high-risk insurance company to cover your home or get additional coverage like flood insurance. For example, homes in Oklahoma cost an average of $6,325.00 to insure and homes in Texas have average insurance rates of $5,137.00. Meanwhile, the average cost of homeowners insurance in California is $1,587.00. It may be beneficial to talk with a local agent or insurance agency to get a better idea of costs in your area.

Coverage and Deductible Choices

Another factor that affects your home insurance premiums is the type of coverage you choose as well as your deductible amount. Coverage types and amounts can vastly change your insurance rates. Choosing a higher coverage limit or specialty coverage types will increase your premiums. Likewise, your deductible — the amount you pay out-of-pocket before your insurance pays a claim — influences your homeowners insurance costs. In general, a higher deductible will lower the cost of premiums while a lower deductible will increase your premiums.

Credit Score

Although not a direct factor in your insurance costs, your creditworthiness can influence your premiums. Insurance companies in most states can use what’s known as “credit-based insurance scores” to help calculate your insurance premiums. Your insurance score isn’t exactly the same as your credit score, but it comes from information lenders like banks and credit card companies provide on your credit report. Most states have regulations in place to prevent insurance companies from basing your premiums solely on your credit score. However, a higher credit score could help you secure lower insurance rates, depending on your insurance carrier and location.

Claims History

Filing a homeowners insurance claim could raise your insurance rates. The more claims you file, the more you’ll generally pay for home insurance. Switching to a different insurance company may not make a difference, either. Most insurance companies will look at your claims history over the past five to seven years with previous providers. Some companies may even drop your coverage or refuse to insure your home if you file too many claims in a certain amount of time. Luckily, some homeowners insurance companies offer claims forgiveness, which lets you file several claims before your rates go up.

Unfortunately, you can’t control every factor that goes into calculating your home insurance premiums. After all, moving your home to a lower-risk location to save money on insurance isn’t a practical solution. The good news is you can still save money on homeowners insurance through policy changes, discounts and risk reduction.

Here are some of the best ways to save money on home insurance.

• Bundling policies: The majority of home insurance companies also offer other types of insurance. Most will give you a multi-policy discount on your home insurance if you bundle your policy with other types of coverage. The most common bundle is with auto insurance, but you may be able to bundle with life insurance or another type of policy. The amount you’ll save on coverage varies between providers, but many companies offer up to 25% off your premiums.
• Looking for discounts: Bundling home and car insurance policies isn’t the only discount for home insurance. Insurance companies usually offer a range of homeowners insurance discounts to help policyholders reduce their insurance rates. Not everyone qualifies for all discounts, like savings for insuring a new home construction or discounts on home insurance for veterans and military members. However, other discounts are generally easy to qualify for. For example, many insurance companies offer discounts if you switch to paperless policy documents or put your policy on auto-pay. Other common discounts are safety-related. You might get a discount if you have burglar alarms, a home security system or smart home devices that help prevent things like water damage.
• Reducing risks: Cutting down on the hazards around your home could lower your insurance premiums — directly and indirectly. For example, home insurance is generally higher if you have high-risk items in your yard (called “attractive nuisances”) like a pool or trampoline that could lead to medical payment claims. If you’re not using these items, consider removing them to save money on your insurance. Indirectly, you can also save money by avoiding the need to file a claim. Adding a security system, for example, provides peace of mind, can deter threats like vandalism and help keep your family members safe. With a lower chance of property damage, you’re less likely to need to file a claim.
• Improving your credit: Your credit score might only play a small part in your insurance costs, but improving it could still help make your insurance premiums more affordable over time. Payment history is the most important factor in calculating your credit score. Making payments on time to accounts like credit cards and your mortgage should help increase your score.
• Comparing insurance companies: You’ll have a better chance of finding affordable home insurance coverage if you get quotes from at least three different insurance providers. This way, you can ensure that you get the coverage you need at the best price.

Home Insurance Discounts

Many home insurance providers offer discounts, which may include:

• Claim-free history discount
• Home and auto insurance bundling discount
• Homeowners association discount
• Loyalty discount
• Military discount
• New or renovated house discount
• No-mortgage discount
• Policy paid in full discount
• Roof age discount
• Safety devices and security system discounts
• Senior or retiree discount

You can apply discounts during the home insurance quote process. We recommend speaking with an insurance agent to determine available discounts and eligibility.

Homeowners insurance covers your home, property and belongings if damaged or destroyed by a covered peril. The most common type of homeowners insurance is an HO-3 policy, which includes dwelling, structure, personal property, loss of use, liability and medical payments coverage.

You can customize your coverage limits based on the value of your property and belongings.

HO-3 Coverage Categories

In insurance terms, perils are events like natural disasters or theft that cause damage or loss of property. Covered perils are specific events or situations when your homeowners insurance will cover the cost of repairs or replacements.

Perils covered under most standard HO-3 homeowners insurance policies include:

• Damage caused by a vehicle
• Explosions
• Falling objects
• Fire or smoke
• Hail, snow, ice or sleet
• Lightning
• Power surges
• Theft or vandalism
• Water damage
• Windstorms

We recommend carefully reading your homeowners insurance plan to understand which perils it covers.

What Damage is Not Covered by Home Insurance?

Most home insurance policies exclude damage caused by the following:

• Certain natural disasters like floods or earthquakes
• “Acts of war”
• Typical wear and tear
• Neglect or lack of maintenance
• Pest infestations

You can purchase flood insurance separately through the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) or add it as an endorsem*nt through your private insurer.

Endorsem*nt Options

If you want additional protection from certain perils or for valuable items, most providers offer endorsem*nts. Common endorsem*nts include coverage for:

• Earthquakes
• Flooding
• Sinkholes
• Windstorms
• Water or sewage backup
• Service lines
• Personal property replacement cost coverage
• Extended replacement cost coverage
• Extended coverage for valuables
• Home business coverage
• Identity theft protection

If your insurance is paying to replace damaged or stolen property, how much you receive depends if you have actual cash value (ACV) or replacement cost value (RCV) coverage.

ACV coverage is less valuable because your insurance will only pay the worth of the damaged item minus depreciation. For example, say your TV, which you've owned for five years, gets stolen. With ACV coverage, your insurance will reimburse you for the value minus depreciation over time (five years), not the full cost of a new replacement TV.

On the other hand, RCV coverage pays you the full cost to replace a damaged or stolen item. RCV coverage is more expensive, but it can be more valuable in the long run since you will receive the full amount required to replace any damaged, lost or stolen items without depreciation.

We at the MarketWatch Guides Team gathered home insurance quotes for the providers in this article using data from Quadrant Information Services. Quadrant is a leading source of property and casualty insurance solutions and data.

Our sample homeowner is a 40-year-old single male with good credit and no prior claims history. Our sample policies featured a $1,000 deductible and the following coverage and limits:

• Dwelling: $350,000
• Other Structures: $25,000
• Personal Property: $150,000
• Loss of Use: $50,000
• Liability: $300,000
• Medical Payments: $1,000

For each provider, we gathered a quote for 50% of the ZIP codes in every state it is licensed in. We used the most populous ZIP codes for our study. We took the average of these individual quotes to calculate a national average premium per provider. Our sample rates are for informational purposes only. Actual premiums will vary.