I can understand why you might be seeking an answer to the most affordable car to insure. If you are like me that is looking for insurance coverage, but then the cheapest by car model or make, then this post is for you. This post is written out of curiosity in search of the cheapest Cars to insure in 2020 and 2021. So seat tight and read to the end.
To start with, the cheapest car to insure are Honda CR-V, Chrysler Pacifica, and Honda Odyssey, the reason being that they offer annual savings of $1,000 and above when you measure it with the most expensive models or Honda makes.
In general, minivans and small pickup trucks on average are the least expensive cars to insure. Be it as it may, large sedans are known to cost much buying insurance policy or coverage.
However, while the above-stated car makes is the least to insure. On a contrary, auto insurance costs vary for vehicles based on certain reasons and factors. In other words, certain factors contribute to why some cars are cheap to insure while others are high. Factors like;
- High repair costs.
- Poor safety record.
- Few or no anti-theft features.
What are the Cheapest Cars to Insure?
First, the highest expensive car to insure is the Tesla Model S, the reason been the high repair cost. On the other hand, the least/cheapest and easiest car to insure is the Honda CR-V with an annual auto insurance cost of $2,346. Why is it so? That’s because Honda CR-V $2,346 insurance cost is 22% less than the average yearly premiums across all of the vehicles.
Again, the CR-V’s insurance costs were $2,397 less per year than the most expensive car to insure. So, to make this clearer, while researching online I came across a study ValuePenguin conducted on the least 50 car models or make to insure. Thus, the below list came into view.
| Rank | Car name | Type of car | Vehicle price | Annual auto insurance rate |
| 1 | Honda CR-V | Small SUV | $25,102 | $2,346 |
| 2 | Chrysler Pacifica | Minivan | $21,996 | $2,416 |
| 3 | Honda Odyssey | Minivan | $26,391 | $2,457 |
| 4 | Ford F-Series | Standard Pick-up Truck | $22,849 | $2,471 |
| 5 | Toyota RAV4 | Small SUV | $20,257 | $2,475 |
| 6 | Chevrolet Equinox | Small SUV | $19,837 | $2,560 |
| 7 | Chevrolet Colorado | Small Pick-up Truck | $17,816 | $2,562 |
| 8 | Toyota Tundra | Standard Pick-up Truck | $29,920 | $2,577 |
| 9 | Honda Ridgeline | Small Pick-up Truck | $27,226 | $2,611 |
| 10 | Ford Fiesta | Subcompact Car | $12,063 | $2,621 |
| 11 (tie) | Dodge Grand Caravan | Minivan | $20,175 | $2,634 |
| 11 (tie) | GMC Canyon | Small Pick-up Truck | $24,446 | $2,634 |
| 13 | Toyota Tacoma | Small Pick-up Truck | $22,749 | $2,670 |
| 14 | Nissan Frontier | Small Pick-up Truck | $25,992 | $2,687 |
| 15 |
Kia Sedona |
Minivan | $22,877 | $2,699 |
| 16 | Honda Fit | Station Wagon | $17,760 | $2,720 |
| 17 | Toyota Sienna | Minivan | $25,189 | $2,746 |
| 18 | Ford Escape | Small SUV | $17,710 | $2,834 |
| 19 | Chevrolet Cruze | Compact Car | $14,849 | $2,841 |
| 20 | Chevrolet Tahoe | Standard SUV | $39,568 | $2,888 |
| 21 | Honda HR-V | Station Wagon | $20,679 | $2,931 |
| 22 | GMC Sierra | Standard Pick-up Truck | $23,357 | $2,937 |
| 23 | Ram Pickup | Standard Pick-up Truck | $20,157 | $2,998 |
| 24 | Chevrolet Impala | Large Sedan | $21,193 | $3,001 |
| 25 | Toyota Camry | Midsize Sedan | $20,147 | $3,036 |
| 26 | Honda Accord | Midsize Sedan | $23,561 | $3,042 |
| 27 | Honda Civic | Compact Car | $19,601 | $3,042 |
| 28 | Chevrolet Silverado | Standard Pick-up Truck | $24,773 | $3,057 |
| 29 | Nissan Sentra | Midsize Sedan | $13,475 | $3,059 |
| 30 | Chevrolet Traverse | Standard SUV | $28,009 | $3,072 |
| 31 | Ford Focus | Compact Car | $13,140 | $3,083 |
| 32 | Volkswagen Jetta | Compact Car | $14,754 | $3,109 |
| 33 | Kia Soul | Station Wagon | $15,186 | $3,114 |
| 34 | Chevrolet Camaro | Subcompact Car | $20,875 | $3,141 |
| 35 | Toyota Corolla | Midsize Sedan | $15,651 | $3,164 |
| 36 | Ford Taurus | Large Sedan | $18,123 | $3,173 |
| 37 | Nissan Murano | Station Wagon | $23,949 | $3,188 |
| 38 | Nissan Rogue | Station Wagon | $18,969 | $3,193 |
| 39 | Chrysler 300 | Large Sedan | $21,029 | $3,268 |
| 40 | Nissan Altima | Midsize Sedan | $16,824 | $3,269 |
| 41 | Toyota Highlander | Small SUV | $29,207 | $3,283 |
| 42 | Jeep Grand Cherokee | Standard SUV | $26,125 | $3,347 |
| 43 | Toyota 4Runner | Standard SUV | $31,467 | $3,355 |
| 44 | Dodge Charger | Large Sedan | $22,760 | $3,378 |
| 45 | Ford Mustang | Subcompact Car | $22,218 | $3,485 |
| 46 | Nissan Versa | Compact Car | $11,947 | $3,525 |
| 47 | Ford Explorer | Standard SUV | $28,322 | $3,587 |
| 48 | Mercedes-Benz C-Class | Subcompact Car | $34,752 | $4,122 |
| 49 | Mercedes-Benz E / CLS-Class | Subcompact Car | $48,694 | $4,129 |
| 50 | Tesla Model S | Large Sedan | $69,184 | $4,743 |
Expensive Cars are high to Insure – What a Myth
Basically, when you talk about buying Auto insurance coverage, people normally think the more expensive the car the higher the insurance cost. But that is not true. Thus, the study above shows that the least expensive vehicles did not always have lower insurance costs than more expensive cars.
For example, vehicles that cost between $25,000 and $30,000 in a real sense have the lowest auto insurance rates at $2,871 per year on average, which is 6% less than the cheapest cars that cost between $10,000 and $15,000.
That said, there are still expensive cars that align with the conventional thinking of many. Also, from the above case study, it’s clearly seen that most expensive cars that cost more than $30,000 are actually higher to insure with annual car insurance premiums of $3,847.
What type of car is the cheapest to insure?
Of the truth, when you want to buy a car, I’m sure you did have chosen what car type to buy depending on your needs. You might choose to buy an SUV or a minivan. Both do completely different jobs. And both are used for different travel or driving purposes.
So, to help know that type of vehicle that is cheap when it comes to buying an insurance policy, I have also drawn some data from the case study ValuePenguin published.
| Car type | Cheapest model | Average yearly rate |
| Small SUV | Honda CR-V | $2,346 |
| Minivan | Chrysler Pacifica | $2,416 |
| Standard Pick-up Truck | Ford F-150 | $2,471 |
| Small Pick-up Truck | Chevrolet Colorado | $2,562 |
| Subcompact Cars | Ford Fiesta | $2,621 |
| Station Wagon | Honda Fit | $2,720 |
| Compact Car | Chevrolet Cruze | $2,841 |
| Standard SUV | Chevrolet Tahoe | $2,888 |
| Large Sedans | Chevrolet Impala | $3,001 |
| Midsize Sedans | Toyota Camry | $3,036 |
Cheapest Cars to Insure – Which is the least expensive Car Model to insure?
First, you need to know that there are lots of car brands or make out there. However, for the sake of this study, we are going to focus on car make from the United States of America. Although other countries like Canada, Germany, South Korea, etc. have lots of car brands.
More so, you need to bear in mind that car models are two views; there are luxury car brands and standard or ordinary car brands. Even at that, there are super luxury car brands. Like Bentley, Rolls Royce, Lamborghini, Ferrari, Range Rover, Lexus, Mercedes, BMW, and lot’s more. Below is the Cheapest Cars to Insure by make.
| Rank | Make | Average yearly rate |
| 1 | Honda | $2,736 |
| 2 | GMC | $2,785 |
| 3 | Chrysler | $2,842 |
| 4 | Chevrolet | $2,890 |
| 5 | Kia | $2,907 |
| 6 | Toyota | $2,913 |
| 7 | Ram | $2,998 |
| 8 | Dodge | $3,006 |
| 9 | Ford | $3,036 |
| 10 | Volkswagen | $3,109 |
| 11 | Nissan | $3,153 |
| 12 | Jeep | $3,347 |
| 13 | Mercedes-Benz | $4,125 |
| 14 | Tesla | $4,743 |
Why does the car you drive affect your insurance rates?
At the beginning of this post, I listed three factors that contribute to the cost of insuring a car. So, here now I will talk about those factors and how they affect how much you will pay to insure a car.
It will briefly explain, if you sell auto insurance, the major thing that should be your concern is drivers getting into auto accidents. Because when they do, surely they will file a claim. And that on your own side as an insurance company will result in spending.
Take, for instance, if there is a record showing that a particular car model has lots of claims filed in the past by drivers. It simply tells an insurance company a particular car model has a probability of a high accident rate. Therefore, drivers have to pay extra. The more reason drivers of sports cars pay more. Because sports cars are likely to get involved in an auto accident.
On the other hand, vehicles that cost more to repair. Even vehicles that cost much to buy have higher insurance rates. Because in the event of an auto accident or coalition that will require that the vehicle be repaired or replaced the insurance policy has to at least make you pay a high premium that will almost equal the amount to replace the car or repair damages.
Finally, before I go further in discussing other factors that affect insurance rates, I would like to talk about the Anti-theft features. If a particular model of car can be easily stolen, it’s a basis for an auto insurance company to make you pay a higher premium. Because in such instances they might need to replace your car.
Other factors that impact auto insurance rates
To begin with, other factors contribute to the insurance rate consumers get. Thus, it includes;
Insurance rates by credit history
Another case study found online shows that the rates of premium paid are affected by the credit history of the person buying the insurance coverage. In other words, insurance companies use credit history to calculate how much an individual pays to ensure his/her car. The table below shows how much extra different insurance companies make you pay for having either good credit, poor credit, or excellent credit score. Or spending habits.
| Insurance provider | 6-month premium — Very Poor Credit | 6-month premium — Great Credit |
| Allstate | $1,692 | $885 |
| Farmers | $1,293 | $714 |
| GEICO | $1,087 | $512 |
| Liberty Mutual | $1,921 | $705 |
| Nationwide | $1,059 | $637 |
| Progressive | $1,658 | $617 |
| State Farm | $1,435 | $527 |
| USAA | $1,199 | $475 |
| Average | $1,418 | $634 |
Insurance Rates by Age:
See, to be sincere, age plays a major role in deciding how much more you will pay for insurance coverage, especially for young drivers. Thus, the most expensive insurance premiums are paid by teen drivers. On the other hand, the most affordable insurance rates are paid by 50-year-olds. That’s a cost gap of over $5,500 per year.
In other words, insurance companies view teen drivers as very risky and potentially expensive clients to insure. Thus, data show that teen drivers drive more recklessly and get into more accidents than drivers in any other age group. Especially the advanced in age. As such, the table below shows what goes for each insurance company.
| Insurance provider | 6-month premium — 16-year-old | 6-month premium — 50-year-old |
| Allstate | $4,393 | $930 |
| Farmers | $4,013 | $755 |
| GEICO | $2,221 | $549 |
| Liberty Mutual | $5,268 | $693 |
| Nationwide | $2,518 | $646 |
| Progressive | $5,047 | $712 |
| State Farm | $2,040 | $608 |
| USAA | $2,114 | $461 |
| Average | $3,452 | $669 |
Other factors include;
- Driving history.
2. Location.
3. Gender.
4. Insurance history.
5. Annual mileage.
How to Cut Car Insurance Costs
Of a truth, car insurance premiums can be expensive, especially for comprehensive car insurance plans. Thus, if you own a car, you can’t simply ignore car insurance premiums as it is mandatory for every vehicle owner to have car insurance coverage. Infant, in the United States its law that your vehicle must be under insurance including the driver.
Be it as it may, it goes without saying that everyone wants to pay as minimum as possible for their motor insurance premium.
That said, here’s a catch:
Before you opt for any auto insurance plan, ensure that it offers adequate insurance coverage for your car. Otherwise, you might end up paying a bomb at the time of claim processing. Aside from that;
- Firstly, Compare insurance plans from different companies.
- Drive more carefully.
- Also, Increase your deductible.
- Insure multiple cars or drivers.
- Also, Take a defensive driving course.
- Stick with less expensive cars, as expensive ones cost more.
- Also, Improve your credit rating.
- Speak to an agent.
- Also, Ask for a discount.
- Choose personalized insurance to enable you to remove coverage you may not need.
- Lastly, Go for pay as you go insurance coverage.
Summary
To cap it up, Insurance rates are heavily affected by so many things as it increases the price a customer pays for car insurance premiums. In other words, the less risky your rating factors are, the cheaper your car insurance policy will be. Although, some auto insurance rating factors such as a driving record or vehicle type have relatively sizeable impacts on car insurance costs. On the other hand, factors like gender or marital status are deemed less important.
It’s Your Turn Now
Finally, I want to thank you for reading to this point. Don’t forget to comment or share it with your friends. As the knowledge of the Cheapest Cars to Insure in 2020, 2021, and beyond will help them in making decisions of what car type, model, and which auto insurance company to turn to for coverage. Thanks a lot.