Best Car Insurance in Alabama: Top Companies in 2024 (2024)

Best Car Insurance in Alabama

Our picks for the best car insurance in Alabama are:

1. Travelers: Best for Most Drivers
2. State Farm: Best Customer Experience
3. Geico: Best for Budget-Conscious Drivers
4. USAA: Best for Military
5. Progressive: Best for Tech-Savvy Drivers

We ranked these providers first by considering their average costs in Alabama for full- and minimum-coverage insurance. We also considered coverage options along with which types of drivers each company is best for.

Compare Alabama Auto Insurance

To compare providers, we rated Alabama car insurance companies on categories of reputation, availability, coverage, cost and customer experience. See a comparison of our recommendations for the best Alabama car insurance:

*Our research team considers nationwide factors when rating providers. The ranking order of providers in this table is specific to car insurance in Alabama.

Customer Experience

A reliable customer experience is one of the most important things to look for in a car insurance company. Our customer experience rating is made up of our own secret shopping experiences from the company, reviews from the Better Business Bureau (BBB) and Trustpilot and multiple J.D. Power studies. We also surveyed almost 7,000 car insurance customers in 2022 and considered their insights.

Best Car Insurance Companies in Alabama

Now we’ll take a closer look at each of our top five picks for the best car insurance in Alabama. The main J.D. Power scores come from the J.D. Power 2023 U.S. Auto Insurance Study℠, which shows customer satisfaction scores by region. For this article, we’ll be looking at results from the Southeast region, which includes Alabama, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina and Tennessee.

Rates in this article apply to 35-year-old drivers with good credit scores and clean driving records, as that is a driving profile that represents many people and excludes several factors that raise rates.

#1 Travelers: Best for Most Drivers

J.D. Power score: 818/1,000

AM Best financial strength rating: A++

BBB rating: A

Travelers offers the cheapest full-coverage rates in the state at $1,332 per year. Its minimum coverage rates are $370 per year.

Read more: Travelers Insurance Review

Coverage

Travelers offers all the standard car insurance options you’d expect from a major company:

• Liability insurance: Compensates other people when you cause an accident
• Collision insurance: Repairs your car after an accident (requires a deductible)
• Comprehensive insurance: Repairs your car after hitting a stationary object and covers environmental damage, theft and vandalism (requires a deductible)
• Medical payments: Covers your medical bills after an accident
• Personal injury protection: Covers your health costs, lost wages and death benefits after an accident
• Uninsured/underinsured motorist: Covers your repair and medical bills if someone without enough insurance causes an accident

Travelers also offers a few add-ons like roadside assistance and rental car coverage. You can get gap insurance to cover the difference between your car’s market value and what you owe on a loan after a total loss. You can also purchase a new car replacement to cover the value of a new vehicle if your car is totaled within the first five years of ownership. Travelers also offers accident forgiveness and rideshare insurance. And its usage-based program, IntelliDrive®, gives discounts based on your driving habits.

Reputation

Travelers maintains an A rating from the BBB, which shows it resolves nearly all complaints from customers in a timely manner. The BBB notes that Travelers has left three complaints unresolved at this time, but all complaints were answered.

#2 State Farm: Best Customer Experience

J.D. Power score: 847/1,000

AM Best financial strength rating: A++

BBB rating: C-

State Farm’s average rates in Alabama are $344 per year for minimum coverage and $1,657 per year for full coverage.

Read more: State Farm Insurance Review

Coverage

State Farm offers a wide range of coverage options in Alabama. You can get all the standard options like liability or full coverage, of course. Beyond that, State Farm offers rental car coverage, travel coverage when you have an accident far from home, roadside assistance and rideshare coverage.

Teens can participate in the Steer Clear^® educational program and receive a discount after completion. Having good grades also gives students under 25 years old a discount. Finally, State Farm’s usage-based program, , can help good drivers save money.

Reputation

State Farm has high ratings on multiple J.D. Power surveys. It ranks above average for the Southeast region on the Auto Insurance Study, and comes in first place with 877 out of 1,000 points in the 2023 U.S. Insurance Shopping Study.

Through these studies, J.D. Power polled thousands of customers on a variety of aspects of insurance coverage. That said, the company has a C- rating from the BBB for not resolving several customer complaints on the platform.

#3 Geico: Best for Budget-Conscious Drivers

J.D. Power score: 828/1,000

AM Best financial strength rating: A++

BBB rating: A-

Geico’s average rates in Alabama are $362 per year for minimum coverage and $1,431 per year for full coverage.

Read more: Geico Insurance Review

Coverage

Geico only offers a few add-ons. These include roadside assistance and rental car reimbursem*nt, which are standard for most companies. The unique option is mechanical breakdown insurance. This covers electrical and mechanical breakdowns, like a power window motor failing. Coverage works similar to an extended warranty, except you don’t have to sign a long contract.

Geico has a usage-based program called DriveEasy that can award discounts based on your driving habits.

Reputation

Geico’s A- rating on the BBB shows it responds to customer issues on time, but it did let one complaint on the platform slip through the cracks. Geico also ranks below average on the J.D. Power Auto Insurance Study for the Southeast region. These ratings suggest you can find better service from other companies in the state, but Geico is still worth checking out for its low minimum coverage rates.

#4 USAA: Best for Military Members

J.D. Power score: 876/1,000

AM Best financial strength rating: A++

BBB rating: Not Rated

USAA’s average rates in Alabama are $347 per year for minimum coverage and $1,391 per year for full coverage.

Read more: USAA Insurance Review

Coverage

USAA is only available to military members, veterans and their immediate family members. The company really only offers a few options beyond the basics. You can get roadside assistance and rental reimbursem*nt during an approved claim. You can also get car replacement assistance to cover 20% more than your car is worth if it gets totaled.

USAA also offers a usage-based program called SafePilot® that can award discounts of up to 30% based on your driving habits.

Reputation

USAA has one of the best reputations as an auto insurance company. It frequently scores high in J.D. Power surveys, even though it isn’t officially ranked because of its membership restriction. USAA was the highest scoring provider on the Auto Insurance Study for the Southeast region and the second-highest on the Insurance Shopping Study.

If you’re a military member looking for coverage with the best service, USAA is definitely the company to check out.

#5 Progressive: Best for Tech-Savvy Drivers

J.D. Power score: 836/1,000

AM Best financial strength rating: A+

BBB rating: A

Progressive’s average rates in Alabama are $440 per year for minimum coverage and $1,420 per year for full coverage.

Read more: Progressive Insurance Review

Coverage

Progressive stands out for offering many coverage add-ons. Here’s the rundown:

• Loan/lease payoff: Covers the balance of your auto loan after a total loss (up to 25% of the vehicle value)
• Rental car reimbursem*nt: Covers a rental car up to a limit during a claim
• Roadside assistance: Covers towing, lockout assistance, spare tire installation, fuel delivery and battery service
• Trip interruption: Covers up to $100 per day ($500 per occurrence) for food and lodging if your car breaks down over 100 miles from home
• Vehicle protection: Covers major systems and minor dents and dings on newer vehicles
• Custom parts and equipment: Covers aftermarket modifications usually up to $5,000
• Rideshare coverage: Covers the gap when you’re logged into a rideshare app waiting to accept a trip
• Deductible Savings Bank^®: Subtracts $50 from your deductible every six months you go without a ticket or accident
• Pet injury coverage: Pays up to $1,000 of your vet bills if your pet is injured in an accident

We ranked Progressive as the Best for Tech-Savvy Drivers for its usage-based program, Snapshot, which is a mobile app and usage-based program that can save you an average of $231 per year for practicing safe driving habits, according to its website.

Reputation

Progressive has an A rating from the BBB, but it performed slightly below average on the J.D. Power Auto Insurance Study for the Southeast and the Insurance Shopping Study. The majority of customers have had a neutral or positive experience, but some have had issues with communication during claims, according to BBB reviews.

How To Find the Best Car Insurance in Alabama

There are a few steps to finding the best car insurance in Alabama. These include knowing insurance laws, deciding what coverage you need and shopping around.

Know Alabama’s Insurance Requirements

Alabama requires drivers to carry minimum liability insurance in the coverage limits of 25/50/25. This means:

• $25,000 of bodily injury liability coverage per person
• $50,000 of bodily injury liability coverage per accident
• $25,000 of property damage liability coverage per accident

Liability coverage only pays other people for damages you cause. It doesn’t fix your car or cover your medical bills in any way.

Decide What Your Priorities Are

If you have an auto loan, your lender will require you to have a full-coverage auto insurance policy, which adds collision and comprehensive coverage to the mix. You can decide whether to get medical coverage like personal injury protection (PIP).

You might want to find the most affordable car insurance policy. In that case, think about minimum coverage or a full coverage policy with a high deductible. On the other hand, you might value a strong customer service reputation over the cheapest price.

Take a minute to decide the most important thing you want to find when you shop around for auto insurance coverage.

Shop Around

Once you know what you’re looking for, the next step is to compare multiple companies. We recommend getting quotes from at least three providers, because you’ll find different add-ons and prices from each.

You can also use an insurance agent to compare rates on your behalf. It can cost slightly more to go this route, but it can be helpful in finding the right coverage. If insurance companies classify you as a high-risk driver based on poor credit history or poor driving history this may be a service worth taking advantage of.

Keep an Eye Out for Better Coverage

It’s important to know there’s no penalty for switching insurance companies as long as you maintain coverage on a registered vehicle. Just because you start a six-month insurance policy doesn’t mean you can’t switch after a couple of months. There are times when you need insurance right away, like when you purchase a new vehicle, but you can always change companies down the road to find the best rates and coverage.

Average Cost of Car Insurance in Alabama

Location plays a big part in how much car insurance costs, and our rate data shows Alabama drivers pay less than the national average. Good drivers in the state pay about $42 per month or $502 per year for minimum coverage and $148 per month or $1,775 per year for full coverage. These rates are cheaper than the national averages of $627 for minimum coverage and $2,008 for full coverage insurance premiums per year.

Alabama Car Insurance Costs by City

Where you live in the state can also affect what you pay for insurance. In general, cities with higher population density have higher car insurance costs. Below, you can see monthly and yearly full-coverage rates for 20 populous areas of the state.

Note: These rates are from 2022 data and costs may have increased.

Car Insurance Discounts in Alabama

Common discounts you’ll find include bundling, safe driver and usage-based discounts.

Bundling Discounts

You can get bundling discounts for insuring multiple vehicles or having multiple types of insurance with the same company, like auto and homeowners. This can be useful for families with teen drivers or students to save on overall costs. You can find out what discount you’d get by bundling when you add vehicles and drivers during the quote process.

Safe Driving Discounts

Almost all companies give a discount for being a safe driver, but the requirements can vary. You might need to have five years of claim-free driving for one company and seven for another.

Whether a company has a safe driver discount or not, you’ll find higher average premiums if you have at-fault accidents, speeding tickets or DUIs on your record.

Usage-Based Discounts

Another way to get money off your annual premium is with usage-based discounts like State Farm’s Drive Safe & Save. You’ll find the best discounts if you avoid nighttime driving, hard braking and quick acceleration. Mileage is another factor, so you’ll save more if you have a short commute or work from home.

Best Alabama Car Insurance: The Bottom Line

To wrap up, our top picks for Alabama car insurance are Travelers, State Farm, Geico, USAA and Progressive. You can find reasonable rates and good coverage from any of these companies, so we recommend comparing a few car insurance quotes when you shop.

Best Auto Insurance in Alabama: FAQ

Here are some frequently asked questions about the best car insurance in Alabama.

Our Methodology

Because consumers rely on us to provide objective and accurate information, we created a comprehensive rating system to formulate our rankings of the best car insurance companies. We collected data on dozens of auto insurance providers to grade the companies on a wide range of ranking factors. The end result was an overall rating for each provider, with the insurers that scored the most points topping the list.

Here are the factors our ratings take into account:

• Industry standing (20% of total score): Our research team considered market share, ratings from industry experts and years in business when giving this score.
• Availability (10% of total score): Auto insurance companies with greater state availability and few eligibility requirements scored highest in this category.
• Coverage (30% of total score): Companies that offer a variety of choices for insurance coverage are more likely to meet consumer needs.
• Cost and discounts (25% of total score): Auto insurance rate estimates generated by Quadrant Information Services and discount opportunities were both taken into consideration.
• Customer experience (15% of total score): This score is based on volume of complaints reported by the NAIC and customer satisfaction ratings reported by J.D. Power. We also considered the responsiveness, friendliness and helpfulness of each insurance company’s customer service team based on our own shopper analysis.

Our credentials:

• 800 hours researched
• 45 companies reviewed
• 8,500+ consumers surveyed