How Much Is Renters Insurance for an Apartment?
The average cost of renters insurance for an apartment is $228 per year, or about $19 per month. However, quotes vary depending on where you live, your insurance history and the coverage limits you choose. Understanding these factors can help you find a renters insurance policy that's affordable and tailored to your apartment.
Compare Cheap Renters Insurance in Your Area
How much is renters insurance for an apartment?
Renters insurance rates for an apartment fluctuate between $14 and $24 per month, on average. However, the cost of renters insurance varies depending on the amount and type of coverage you choose and where you live.
Compare Cheap Renters Insurance in Your Area
Average cost of apartment renters insurance
Company | Monthly rate | Annual rate |
|---|---|---|
| Lemonade | $15 | $181 |
| State Farm | $18 | $217 |
| Travelers | $18 | $221 |
| Progressive | $19 | $224 |
| Allstate | $24 | $290 |
| Farmers | $24 | $293 |
| Liberty Mutual* | $14 | $169 |
*Rates from Liberty Mutual are based on $25,000 of personal property coverage (the company's maximum amount), while all other quotes include $30,000 of coverage.
Basic personal property protection doesn’t cover some items like expensive jewelry or firearms. Instead, they have separate limits, which come standard, that your insurer will pay if they are damaged. Adjusting your coverage for these items or types of items by adding endorsements to your policy will increase the cost of your renters insurance.
Most apartment rental insurance policies do not cover damage caused by hazards such as floods, earthquakes and sinkholes. If you live in an area where these are common, you may want to buy extended protection at an extra cost. These types of extensions can be expensive. For example, the average cost of flood insurance from the National Flood Insurance Program is around $700 per year.
Apartment insurance cost by city
We compared renters insurance prices across 10 of the largest cities in the country and found that Lemonade is the cheapest provider of apartment renters insurance. A policy with $30,000 of personal property coverage and $100,000 of liability coverage is $36 less per year than Lemonade’s cheapest competitor, State Farm.
Rates from Liberty Mutual are even cheaper than those from Lemonade, however the maximum amount of personal property coverage it offers is $25,000, so it may not be the best fit for renters with larger apartments or expensive items to insure.
Monthly Renters Insurance Rates by City and Company
Chicago
Houston
Los Angeles
New York City
Washington DC
Chicago
Houston
Los Angeles
New York City
Washington DC
Find Cheap Renters Insurance Quotes in Your Area
City | Average monthly rate | Cheapest monthly rate | Cheapest Company |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chicago | $16 | $10 | Lemonade |
| Dallas | $22 | $14 | Lemonade |
| Houston | $25 | $14 | Liberty Mutual* |
| Los Angeles | $21 | $19 | Allstate |
| New York City | $15 | $10 | State Farm |
| Philadelphia | $20 | $13 | Lemonade |
| Phoenix | $19 | $14 | State Farm |
| San Antonio | $21 | $15 | Liberty Mutual* |
| San Diego | $16 | $10 | Lemonade |
| Washington DC | $13 | $10 | Travelers |
*Rates from Liberty Mutual are based on $25,000 of personal property insurance (the company's maximum), while all other policies were quoted at a $30,000 limit
While the amount of protection you purchase is one of the most important determining factors of your price, it isn't the only one. Your insurance history and location will also determine your renters insurance rate. We recommend comparing quotes from multiple companies to find the best policy for you.
Cheap apartment renters insurance
The cheapest apartment insurance for you will vary based on where you live, your insurance history and the coverage options that you choose. Lemonade and State Farm offer good prices and excellent customer service for apartment renters.
Lemonade: Best renters insurance for apartments
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Editor rating
Why it's great
Lemonade offers apartment renters cheap rates and reliable customer service.
Lemonade is the best option for apartment insurance if you want to get a quick, cheap online quote — the entire process takes less than three minutes. Across all of the cities in our study, Lemonade also offers consistently inexpensive renters insurance for apartments. You can usually purchase a $30,000 policy for around $15 a month.
Lemonade's intuitive interface makes it easy to get a cheap policy by allowing you to customize your coverage. After Lemonade's chatbot-style artificial intelligence gathers your personal information, you'll get a quote that you can adjust by changing your coverage limits.
Unfortunately, Lemonade is currently only available in 26 states and Washington, D.C. If you're a renter who lives in a state that doesn't get coverage — like Florida, Idaho or Utah — you won't be able to take advantage of its low rates.
State Farm: Best for bundling apartment and car insurance
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Editor rating
Why it's great
State Farm has affordable renters and car insurance policies, along with the best bundling discount available.
If you feel more comfortable working with a major insurance provider, State Farm offers affordable coverage for apartment renters across all 50 states. Overall, State Farm has the second cheapest average cost at $18 per month, or $217 per year.
State Farm is also a good option for renters looking for other types of insurance, like a car, business or pet policy as they offer some of the cheapest car insurance rates in the country. Additionally, State Farm has the largest auto-renters bundling discount — 4.7%.
What is renters insurance for apartments?
Renters insurance for apartments protects tenants from the costs of personal property damage or theft and legal liability.
Apartment renters insurance is similar to homeowners insurance, except it does not cover the building's structure, which makes a renters policy considerably cheaper. Your landlord is responsible for damage to your apartment building, and should have a landlord insurance plan to cover their expenses.
Typical renters insurance coverage
An apartment renters insurance policy covers damages to personal property, liability and loss of use or additional living expenses. You can customize your policy's cost by changing any of the limits of your protections independently. The most common apartment renters insurance coverages are:
- Personal property insurance, which covers damage to your belongings from a covered loss, like fire or theft.
- Personal liability insurance covers the cost of a lawsuit if someone is injured in your apartment, or you're responsible for damaging their property.
- Additional living expenses or loss of use coverage will help cover your expenses if your apartment becomes uninhabitable. This includes moving costs, rent or hotel expenses and food costs if you're unable to cook in your temporary home.
- Medical expenses pays a limited amount toward medical bills if a guest is injured in your apartment.
Luckily, even a cheap renters insurance policy for your apartment can often provide you with adequate protection. But it's still important that you consider the amount of coverage you need to protect yourself and your belongings.
When buying insurance, you should create a home inventory to calculate the cost of your belongings. That way, you can ensure you have enough coverage to replace things if something happens to your stuff.
You should also consider how likely it is that you'll face a lawsuit from someone else over an injury you'd be responsible for, and calculate how much money it would cost you to stay somewhere else if your apartment was rendered unlivable for an extended period.
Frequently asked questions
How much is renters insurance per month for an apartment?
Apartment renters insurance costs $19 per month, on average, for $30,000 of personal property coverage and $100,000 of liability coverage.
Who has the best renters insurance?
Lemonade has the best insurance for apartment renters. Not only does it offer the cheapest rates at $15 per month on average, but the company has a reputation for excellent customer service. However, Lemonade insurance is only available in 26 states {"content":"AZ, AR, CA, CO, CT, GA, IL, IN, IA, MD, MA, MI, MO, NV, NJ, NM, NY, OH, OK, OR, PA, RI, TN, TX, VA and WI","icon":"","label":"","triggerText":"26 states"} . State Farm is a good alternative for renters who don't have access to Lemonade.
Do I need to get renters insurance for my apartment?
Renters insurance is not mandated by law, but many landlords require you to buy a policy before leasing an apartment. We recommend purchasing a renters insurance policy to ensure that your property is protected, even if it's not required.
Methodology
To calculate average apartment renters insurance rates, we compiled quotes for apartments in 10 of the largest U.S. cities from seven major insurance companies. Our sample renter is an unmarried 30-year-old male with no roommates or pets living in an apartment building with the following limits:
Coverage | Amount |
|---|---|
| Personal Property | $30,000 |
| Personal Liability | $100,000 |
| Medical | $1,000 |
| Deductible | $500 |
The quotes you receive for an apartment renters insurance policy will likely differ from ours due to your insurance history, location and the coverage limits you choose.
Editorial Note: The content of this article is based on the author’s opinions and recommendations alone. It has not been previewed, commissioned or otherwise endorsed by any of our network partners.