As both new and used car prices continue to rise, now is a great time for most Americans to consider ways to save money. If you’re in the market for a new car or one that’s new to you, one very important variable to consider is how much money you’re willing to spend on car insurance, and that varies based on several factors, including the brand of car you choose to buy. Fortunately our friends at Consumer Reports released a list of the top 10 cheapest car brands to insure, pulling data from Insurify’s nationwide average yearly insurance premium study.
In order to compile this list, Insurify analyzed over 90 million real-world insurance quotes provided by major car insurance companies to shoppers across the United States. A spokesperson from Erie Insurance told Consumer Reports, “getting insurance quotes on a few different models before buying is a smart move, since vehicles with stronger safety ratings, proven reliability, and anti-theft features typically cost less to insure.” This list has some different results than CR’s list of the cheapest new cars to insure, as it includes insurance quotes given to folks who inquired about used vehicles too, not just new ones.
The top five
The top five cheapest car brands to insure in descending order are Subaru, Buick, Volvo, GMC, and Mini. The difference between the cheapest average annual car insurance premium and the 10th cheapest is not particularly significant, just around $300 per year, but as someone attempting to live off a writer’s salary, I understand that every dollar counts.
Subaru is the cheapest car brand to insure by a relatively significant margin, with an average annual premium of just $2,088. The Subaru Forester topped Consumer Reports’ list of the cheapest recommended new cars on sale today with an average annual premium of just $2,184, which is remarkably low for a brand new vehicle. The Subaru Crosstrek came in third on that list with an average annual premium of $2,283, and the Subaru Impreza rounded out the list as the tenth-cheapest new car to insure with an average annual premium of $2,382.
The Buick brand clinched second-place spot behind Subaru, with average annual insurance premiums of $2,148. Volvos and GMCs came in third and fourth, respectively, though they both have the same average annual insurance premium cost at $2,184. Mini rounds out the top five cheapest car brands to insure, with an average annual insurance premium of $2,208.
Sixth through tenth place are still pretty reasonable
Jeep is the sixth-cheapest car brand to insure, which comes at a bit of a surprise given the brand’s dismal reliability ratings, but I can’t argue with an average annual insurance premium of $2,268. Mazda came behind Jeep in seventh place, with an average annual premium of $2,292, followed by Ford in eighth place with an average annual premium of $2,340. Ford also had one vehicle that made CR’s list of cheapest recommended new cars to insure; the Bronco Sport is the second-cheapest new car to insure at $2,279, only bested by the Subaru Forester.
Chevrolet and Honda tie for the ninth-and-tenth-cheapest car brands to insure, respectively, each with an average annual premium of $2,376. One possible reason for the surprisingly high placements of companies that have poor reliability reputations like Ford and Chevrolet is that the data shows pickup trucks tend to be cheaper to insure than other vehicle types – 16% cheaper than the average sedan.
Insurance costs vary based on several factors
While this list can help guide you in the right direction to find an affordable car to insure, there are a litany of variables that insurance companies take into consideration when they give you a quote. For example, I recently moved from the heart of Hollywood in Los Angeles to Long Beach, and my car insurance instantly became about 60% cheaper the moment that I changed my home address on my insurance.
Insurance companies take into account your driving record, age, sex, location, credit score, and what kind of car you are trying to insure. If the vehicle you’re looking to insure has good crash test ratings or active safety features like automatic emergency braking, it can also lower your insurance rates. For these reasons, and for the sake of saving what precious little money you still have in your bank account, it’s a good idea to shop around for your car insurance and get quotes from multiple providers before making a purchase decision.
