Best Car Insurance Rates in Florida (2019)

Our analysis found that Florida Farm Bureau offered the cheapest car insurance in Florida. This auto insurance company quoted our profile motorists an annual rate of $381 (on average), 65% less than the Florida state average of $1,098. However, we discovered that car insurance rates in the same city can range widely from company to company. For this reason, to get the best rates, drivers should gather multiple quotes from local and national auto insurers. Enter your ZIP code above to start shopping for auto insurance from companies near you.

Cheapest Car Insurance Companies in Florida

The three cheapest auto insurance companies in Florida are Florida Farm Bureau, USAA and GEICO. These companies quoted our benchmark drivers an average annual cost of $529—a mean savings of $569 per year.

Travelers and State Farm rounded out the top five most affordable companies in Florida. Your rates will differ depending upon where you live and your driving record, among other factors, and you should comparison-shop to ensure you find the best rates. Start by entering your ZIP code below for a list of cheap insurers near you.

Cheap Car Insurance in Florida: by City

Location is one of the most important factors in the cost of insurance. Car insurance prices in Florida can differ drastically from city to city. For example, the average cost to insure a car in Liberty County is $836 per year, which is 38% of the cost in Miami-Dade County. This equates to an extra $1,362 per year that the average Miami driver would pay compared to the average driver in Bristol, Florida.

Furthermore, each insurer has different claims experience in each city, so the prices within a city can be quite different as well. In Jacksonville, Florida, one year of premiums at the most expensive company would pay for car insurance at the cheapest company for nearly seven years (6.75 years). Below are auto insurance costs and the three cheapest companies for the largest cities in Florida, averaged across our three policyholder scenarios.

Jacksonville, Florida

Jacksonville's 823,000 residents live in one of the most spacious cities in the United States. The city has a number of superlatives behind its name: the largest urban park network, the second biggest jazz festival and the largest concrete cable bridge. For the largest city in Florida, Jacksonville's auto insurance costs actually aren't that expensive. The average citywide annual premium is $1,230 per year, which is 12% higher than the state average. Rates for retired senior citizen couples average just $490 per year, while families with two teenagers can see rates of about $2,275 per year.

For cheap car insurance in Jacksonville, get quotes from Florida Farm Bureau, GEICO and State Farm. These three auto insurers, in addition to USAA (limited to military families), had the cheapest costs in Jacksonville of $618 per year on average—savings of 50% over the average city premium.

Miami, Florida

The most expensive place for auto insurance in Florida is the urban metropolis of Miami. Between its miles of beaches and its three-time NBA champions, the Miami Heat, the city's residents do not shy away from high temperatures, and average auto insurance premiums here are just as high. Auto insurance in Miami costs about $2,198 per year—which is about double the Florida mean.

There are always opportunities to save, however. If you're looking for cheap car insurance in Miami, we recommend the Florida Farm Bureau, GEICO and Travelers (average premium: $1,083). Going with these auto insurance companies will save drivers about 51%, or $1,100 per year compared to the Miami average.

Tampa, Florida

Located in Hillsborough County, Tampa is the third largest city in Florida with 336,000 residents. It is here that Ray Charles began his music career and Babe Ruth hit his longest home run.

Drivers can expect to pay on average $1,841 per year to buy auto insurance in Tampa, which is about 68% higher than the Florida average. For cheap auto insurance in Tampa, we suggest the Florida Farm Bureau, Travelers and GEICO, which had the lowest rates in our study. Together, these companies would save you 56% compared to the average city cost, with a mean annual premium of $807.

St. Petersburg, Florida

With over 360 days of sunshine per year, St. Petersburg, Florida, is a haven of sunny retreats. Perhaps just as important as its beaches is the city's distinction of being the birthplace of commercial aviation and Major League Baseball spring training.

It costs on average $1,497 to insure a car for personal injury protection (PIP) and property damage in St. Petersburg—that's 36% higher than the Florida average. But if you go with Florida Farm Bureau, GEICO or Travelers, three auto insurance companies offering the most affordable rates in St. Petersburg, you can see an average rate of $713—52% lower than the city average.

Orlando, Florida

Home to Walt Disney World, Universal Orlando Resort and SeaWorld Orlando, Orlando is a national tourist destination. The Orlando Magic and 239,000 other residents also call this city home.

Car insurance in Orlando costs about $1,417 per year averaged among our three profiles. This makes Orlando 29% more expensive than the typical city in the Sunshine State. If you’re looking for the best, cheap auto insurance in Orlando, Florida, Farm Bureau Insurance, GEICO and Travelers had the lowest rates in our study (excluding USAA, which, for military members, would have been the actual third cheapest). Among these three auto insurers, their average rate of $661 represent a 53% discount versus the typical insurer in the city.

Hialeah, Florida

The sixth largest city in Florida, Hialeah is located just nine miles northwest of Miami. Named for the pretty prairie the city was founded on, Hialeah is known for Hialeah Park, a grand thoroughbred horse race track. Equestrians and other residents in Hialeah can see an average annual car insurance cost of around $2,198, likely in large part due its proximity to Miami. For nearly a 50% savings, consider Florida Farm Bureau GEICO, and Travelers, which are the lowest cost providers in the Miami-Dade County, according to our analysis.

Tallahassee, Florida

181,000 residents, one prehistoric mastodon skeleton and the largest magnet laboratory call this city home. It costs $994 to insure a car in Tallahassee, which makes it the only of the 10 largest cities in Florida to have an average cost below the state mean. Florida Farm Bureau, Auto-Owners Insurance and State Farm provided the three of the most affordable rates in Tallahassee, averaging $428 per year. At the mid-$400s level, residents are paying 50% below the city average and 61% below the state average.

Fort Lauderdale, Florida

With access to over 23 miles of sandy oceanfront coastline and a sunny and warm tropical climate, Fort Lauderdale is a great beach town. It’s been known as the Venice of America with more than 300 miles of inland waterways. Auto insurance in Fort Lauderdale costs $1,748 per year, which is 59% pricier than the average city in Florida. You can shave off half of those costs, however, if you go with Florida Farm Bureau, GEICO or Travelers, the three cheapest auto insurance companies in Fort Lauderdale (mean annual premium $868).

Port St. Lucie, Florida

You can find the world’s largest tropical bonsai tree collection at the Heathcote Botanical Gardens or the world’s only museum on the Navy SEALs in Port St. Lucie. Insuring a vehicle in this city costs about $1,258 per year—14% costlier than elsewhere in Florida. Getting quotes from Florida Farm Bureau, GEICO or State Farm should be a good start for cheap auto insurance in what locals refer to as “PSL.” Based on our analysis, these three averaged to $640 per year, 49% cheaper than the typical insurer in the city.

Pembroke Pines, Florida

The city of Pembroke Pines is bordered by the Florida Everglades to the west and is situated for easy access to I-75 and the Florida Turnpike. The average annual car insurance costs for the driver profiles we sampled is $1,748. Our data indicate that Florida Farm Bureau, GEICO and Travelers had the best rates, at $868 on average—a 50% decrease from the citywide cost.

Gainesville, Florida

Home to the University of Florida, the Florida Gators and a resident population of 188,000, Gainesville is the 17th largest urban area in Florida. The average cost of car insurance in Gainesville is $961 per year, or 12% cheaper than the average premium in Florida. Florida Farm, GEICO and Travelers had some of the cheapest rates in Gainesville, averaging about $476 per year.

Fort Walton Beach, Florida

We found Fort Walton Beach, located in Okaloosa County, to have an annual auto insurance cost of $1,014. For low rates in Fort Walton Beach, we recommend you gather quotes from Florida Farm Bureau, State Farm, USAA and GEICO, which averaged $461—a reduction of $553 from the citywide average.

Leesburg-Eustis-Tavares, Florida

$1,064 is the mean annual auto insurance premium for drivers in the urban area of Leesburg, Eustis and Tavares. The four cheapest car insurance companies from our study were Florida Farm Bureau, State Farm, Travelers and USAA. The insurance costs from these companies were 47% better than the average for these cities.

Panama City, Florida

Panama City—which is located on Florida’s Emerald Coast—we found to have an average annual auto insurance cost of $567. GEICO's rates were the cheapest in the city at $338, while Liberty Mutual provided the most expensive quotes, at $836 on average for our profiled drivers.

Best Auto Insurance Companies in Florida

The best car insurance companies in Florida with the highest ratings are: AAA, Southern-Owners Insurance, Amica, Florida Farm Bureau and Safeco. As we mentioned above, Florida Farm Bureau Insurance ranked as the cheapest auto insurance company in Florida, so it's great to see that they are also one of the top-rated auto insurers in the state. GEICO, State Farm and Progressive—three of the largest auto insurers in Florida—perform better than average as well, with relatively low complaint index numbers. At the other end were Windhaven, Ocean Harbor and First Acceptance, which received the most complaints relative to their market share size.

This is our summary of the Florida Auto Insurance Complaint Index (the lower the Complaint Index number, the better; Index of 1 = average):

To find the best auto insurance companies in Florida, we looked at which companies received the fewest complaints at the Florida Office of Insurance Regulations. We consolidated individual underwriters into their parent group. Next, we weighted the companies' share of complaints by their share of premiums, and lastly looked at the thirty largest insurance groups in Florida to make it relevant to the majority of drivers.

Cost of Car Insurance in Florida: by City

The average cost of auto insurance in Florida is $1,098 per year, averaged for our three driver profiles across 67 counties in the state. The cheapest county was Liberty County, with average rates of $836. On the other end of the spectrum was Miami-Dade, with an average annual car insurance rate of $2,198 per year. This table breaks down the costs for the 75 cities in Florida that we included in our study, with at least one city in each of the 67 counties. Note that these costs are just samples and will not necessarily represent what your actual auto insurance rates will be. Car insurance quotes are tailored to your background and circumstances, so it's best to enter your ZIP code below for a list of cheap companies to begin your comparison shopping.

Auto Insurance in Florida: Minimum Coverage Requirements

We have included the minimum insurance coverage you are required to have on your car per the Florida Office of Insurance Regulation. Bodily injury and uninsured motorist coverage come standard and recommended with your policy by insurers, but they are rejectable. Florida's minimum required car insurance coverage limits are as follows:

Though you may meet the state's minimum requirement, we recommend that you consider opting in for a higher level of coverage. If you are in a particularly expensive accident, your minimum coverage may not be enough to fully cover the damages and you may have to pay out-of-pocket. This applies whether you're a college student at the University of Central Florida, a new family starting out in Tallahassee or you are a retiree in the Sunshine State.

Florida Auto Insurance Rate Increases

After a 9.4% year-over-year rate increase in 2017—the largest in the last 6 years—Floridians will be happy to know that 2018 was a much better year for car insurance costs. There have only been a 2.5% increase in car insurance rates across the ten largest auto insurance companies in Florida during this time. Cumulatively, car insurance rates across these insurers have have increased 30.8% from 2013 to 2018.

Hikes in auto insurance rates are usually preceded by increased losses—which happen when insurers pay out for claims—incurred by insurance companies. Losses can increase for a variety of reasons, such as mass vehicle damage from a hurricane or more distracted driving accidents.

How We Conducted the Analysis

We averaged Florida auto insurance rates for three sample policyholders across 26 insurers in 67 counties. Premiums are averaged at the parent company level, since drivers can't choose which affiliate underwrites their insurance. Our sample policies included bodily injury and property damage liability coverage. Below, we have summarized the three driver profiles we used to gather quotes:

Family Profile: This policy was for a 50-year-old couple with two children, ages 20 and 18, who have had good driving records for the previous three years. They drive a 2012 Toyota Camry and a 2007 Toyota Corolla for a combined 20,000 miles per year. They carry a basic liability coverage of $25,000 / $50,000 for bodily injury, and $50,000 for property damage.

Senior Couple: Our sample policy covered a 65-year-old and 70-year-old senior married couple who drive a 2007 Toyota Camry and have had no traffic violations or at fault accidents in the last three years. There have liability limits of $50,000 / $100,000 in bodily injury and $100,000 of property damage on the car.

25-Year-Old Female: For this policy, our driver had one minor traffic violation and one not-at-fault accident in the past three years. She has a 2012 Toyota Camry that with insurance limits of $25,000 / $50,000 in bodily injury liability coverage and $50,000 in property damage liability coverage.

Average premiums are for illustrative purposes, as individual quotes will differ based on driving history, ZIP codes, vehicle type, coverage limits chosen and other factors.

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