Best Cheap Car Insurance Rates in South Dakota?

Where a driver lives and parks their vehicle is a major factor that affects the cost of car insurance. We compared car insurance rates for one sample driver from 12 auto insurance companies across 39 cities, and found that costs can vary by as much as 60% between the costliest and the most affordable auto insurer in South Dakota. That's why it's critical to compare auto insurance quotes if you'd like to save money on your premiums. Enter your zip in our quoting tool above for a list of insurers near you, or continue reading about South Dakota auto insurance.

Cheapest Auto Insurance in South Dakota

Based on our analysis of quotes across 39 cities and towns, we were able to identify which carriers were the cheapest car insurance companies in South Dakota. Our example motorist found his lowest auto insurance rates with State Farm, Buckeye Insurance, GEICO, Farmers Mutual of Nebraska, and Allied. On average, our sample SD driver’s quotes were around $1,101 for a year’s worth of coverage – a 11% savings from the state average.

Most Expensive Auto Insurance Companies in South Dakota

Our benchmark South Dakota motorist found that with the costliest insurer, premiums could be as high as $1,622 a year for our benchmark driver. The five most expensive South Dakota auto insurance providers all had rates above $1,250: Unitrin, Progressive, Allstate, American Family, and North Star. Your premiums, however, will be highly tailored and depend upon your personal situation, and each company can define their preferred driver risks differently.

List of Auto Insurance Companies in South Dakota

Here is a list of all the South Dakota car insurers that we collected rates from for the study, which includes both local and national providers. Note that in order to buy insurance with Farm Bureau Mutual, you must be a Farm Bureau member; the annual membership dues are $50 in South Dakota. The companies are listed in the order of average annual premium for our single male driver, from the lowest to the highest:

Cheapest Car Insurance in South Dakota: by City

Auto insurance costs vary quite a bit by insurer within each city. We were able to determine the three cheapest insurers for each of South Dakota’s largest cities, using our example driver profile, and have listed them in the table below. Following the table is our breakdown of auto insurance costs in the five largest South Dakota cities.

Sioux Falls, SD

The largest city in South Dakota, Sioux Falls is home to more than 248,000 people, and is filled with more than 70 local parks and greenways. We found Sioux Falls to be among the better places for cheap auto insurance in South Dakota. The average annual coverage cost about $1,138 for our sample motorist. For a chance to save more, be sure to get quotes and compare across at least three insurers. The driver we studied was able to save up to almost $200 by going with one of their five lowest cost auto insurance options in South Dakota: GEICO, State Farm, Allied, Western National, and Buck Eye. These carriers offered quotes that were roughly 11% lower than the city’s mean for our driver, with GEICO and State Farm quoting cheap rates below $1,000 a year.

Rapid City, SD

Named after the Rapid Creek, upon which the Gateway to the Black Hills was established, Rapid City is the second largest city in South Dakota. Our study found it to be near the costlier end of the auto insurance cost spectrum. Rates averaged $1,335 for our South Dakota benchmark motorist. However, we also found chances to save. For cheap Rapid City auto insurance, we recommend motorists include State Farm, Western National, GEICO, and Buck Eye when shopping for coverage. Our motorist found these companies generally offer quotes up to 23% cheaper than the city’s mean. With the cheapest insurer, State Farm, our Rapid City sample driver could save as much as $339 a year.

Aberdeen, SD

The third largest city in South Dakota, the city of Aberdeen is the county seat of Brown County and home to more than 26,000 people. Our benchmark motorists found Aberdeen auto insurance rates just below the state’s average, costing $1,170 a year. Nevertheless, our study showed with the most affordable auto insurance rates in Aberdeen, annual rates could be as low as $948. The five lowest-cost car insurers in Aberdeen were State Farm, GEICO, Allied, Farmers Mutual, and Buck Eye. We'd recommend you consider these insurers when you shop for a quote, as our example driver generally found them to be 11% cheaper than most other insurers in the city.

Brookings, SD

Brookings ranks first on our "Best Cities" list with car insurance rates of $1,127 (9% more affordable versus the state mean). With a population of over 22,000, it is the fourth largest city in South Dakota. Interstate 29 and U.S. Route 14 cut through the Brookings, providing easy access to the museums, annual Summer Arts Festival, and South Dakota State University that residents can enjoy. The city and county were both named after Wilmot Wood Brookings, who was one of the first European settlers in South Dakota. South Dakota State University and 3M are two of Brookings's largest employers. For the least expensive car insurance coverage in Brookings, motorists should consider looking into State Farm, Allied, Western National, Farm Bureau, and GEICO. Our benchmark driver living in Brookings found these insurers had the most affordable coverage for rates as low as $960 (State Farm) a year.

Watertown, SD

Watertown is the fifth largest city in South Dakota. Its 22,000 residents are connected by Highway 81, Highway 212, and Interstate 29. It is well known for its Bramble Park Zoo and Redlin Art Center that houses many original works by Terry Redlin, a popular wildlife artist. It is also considered one of the most affluent cities in South Dakota. The average cost of auto insurance was around $1,141 a year for our guy living in Watertown. Low costs aside, with the right insurers, motorists here could look to save even more, namely with: State Farm, Allied, GEICO, Progressive, and Farm Bureau. They nabbed the title of the cheapest auto insurers in Watertown, and generally offered our benchmark drivers quotes that were 11% lower than the local average costs, and as low as $936 (State Farm) a year!

Best Rated Car Insurance Companies in South Dakota

Finding the best car insurance company can go beyond the cost of coverage to aspects like claims processing and customer satisfaction. The closest measure of customer satisfaction we researched was to look at customer complaints logged with the state. To find the South Dakota insurers who rank best by consumer satisfaction, we analyzed which ones received the least complaints. We calculated each of 13 SD companies’ number of complaint per million written premiums. The lower the complaint ratio is, the less consumers have been unsatisfied with the company.

Minimum Car Insurance Requirements in South Dakota

The South Dakota Financial Responsibility Law requires a minimum auto insurance liability of $25,000 per person, $50,000 for bodily injury per accident, and $25,000 for property damage per accident. Read more about the auto insurance requirements in South Dakota here.

Cost of Car Insurance in South Dakota

Our study also covered a number of other cities and towns in the Mount Rushmore State. The five best cities for our consumers in terms of car insurance had an average annual rate of $1,132, a 9% reduction compared to the state mean. These cities range in size from 2,000 residents to nearly 10x the size at 22,000 residents. They were all located on the eastern side of South Dakota and include both college cities and small towns. On the other hand, our most expensive spots in the Mount Rushmore State have an annual average rate of $1,431, a 15% difference from the state average. These cities are all located in the western half of South Dakota with a rich history rooted in its Wild West beginnings. They tended to be smaller cities with populations ranging from less than 800 to 10,000.

Here's where all of the 39 locations stack up, from cheapest to the most expensive.

Methodology

We looked at rates in South Dakota for our profiled driver, a single 30 year old male who drives and owns a 2011 Toyota Camry primarily for commuting to work. He racks up 12,000 miles a year on the road. The driver has a good credit score and driving history with no traffic violations or accidents in the last five years. The quotes are based on a basic liability protection policy for the 2011 Toyota Camry across 12 insurers, including both national (such as GEICO and State Farm) and regional (such as Western National Insurance and Farmers Mutual of Nebraska) companies. From Aberdeen to Yankton, here are the 39 cities included in our study on an alphabetical basis. Rank refers to where each location placed in a list ordered from the cheapest to the most expensive.

Sources: South Dakota Dept of Labor and Regulation / Division of Insurance, South Dakota Auto Insurance Mandatory Coverage