Cheap Homeowners Insurance Companies

You’ve just bought a home. And in between wondering how to pay for expenses like furnishings, upkeep, and utilities, you’re also trying to save on homeowners insurance.

A home is a major investment. You can imagine how horrible it would be losing it to a natural disaster like a hurricane, or suffering losses due to burglary.

How would you cope with the immense burden of costs to repair or replace, especially when money is already a concern?

Finding Cheap Home Insurance

So if your goal is cheap home insurance, the Insurance Information Institute says to shop around.

The way to get the best price is obtaining quotes from companies highly rated in other areas, like coverage and customer service for instance. For this article, we’ve evaluated over 50 homeowners insurance companies to help you make a good decision about which is best for you, so you can rest easy that your home will be protected no matter what happens.

6 Best Cheap Homeowners Insurance Companies

After evaluating all of the top providers, we have compiled a list of the top 6 best companies for cheap homeowners insurance.

1. Allstate

Allstate’s home insurance line began in 1957 under the umbrella of Sears, Roebuck, and Co. Allstateprovides homeowners insurance policies underwritten by different companies under the Allstate brand. Sears was Allstate’s parent company until 1995. Now, Allstate operates independently as a publicly traded insurance company, and is highly rated as best for first-time home buyers.

Allstate is known for providing coverage for older homes and less expensive policies for homes that are over eight years old. The company offers quick online quotes for consumers looking for homeowner policies, and it has been recognized by Ethisphere Institute as one of the World’s Most Ethical Companies from 2015 through 2018. It provides fairly consistent customer service at a similar level of quality to other major insurers, and its billing practices are rated as above average, making the insurer popular with customers.

The standard homeowners policy offered by Allstate includes dwelling coverage, personal property coverage, liability protection, and guest medical protection. The premium prices for this package are consistent with other major insurers, while the coverage may be cheaper. Allstate also provides various add-on coverages, such as water backup, scheduled personal property, yard and garden, musical instruments, identity theft protection, electronic data recovery, business property, and other options. It also offers other plans like landlord coverage, mobile home, condo, flood and renters insurance, a personal umbrella policy (protecting you against large liability claims when you’ve reached the limit on your property coverage), and HostAdvantage to protect belongings when you’re home-sharing. If you’re looking for discounts, Allstate offers multi-policy, automatic payment, new customer, theft or fire protection, new construction/recent homebuyer, smoke-free, 55-plus seniors and claim-free savings.

2. Amica

Since its founding in 1907, Amica has nurtured a loyal customer base through excellent discounts for bundled policies, multiple years without insurance claims, time spent working with the insurer, autopay and electronic billing, alarm and automatic detection systems, and new/remodeled home coverage. In addition, it’s achieved distinction as best for customer service.

Amica does relatively well in terms of financial strength, garnering an A+ rating from AM Best. Their customer service ratings are generally better than other insurance companies, earning 2 out of 5 stars from the Better Business Bureau and 4 out of 5 stars on TrustPilot.

When it comes to coverage, Amica’s standard homeowners policy provides many options, including coverage on dwelling, personal property, personal liability, loss of use coverage, and protection for other structures like sheds, garages, and fences. It also offers an in-between package, Extended Home Insurance Coverage, as well as a premium plan, Platinum Choice® Home Insurance Coverage, which is an affordable package that is more thorough than a standard home insurance policy. The Platinum plan, offering a fair rate for a large coverage package, includes dwelling replacement, personal property replacement, water backup/sump overflow, computers, credit cards, business properties, valuable items, loss assessment, and liability and medical payments. There are also a variety of add-on coverages available, such as theft, home business, identity fraud, flood and valuable items coverage.

Amica doesn’t use agents to sell its products. When you contact them, you’ll have direct contact with an Amica representative. There is no middleman, so the service team works directly with you; you’ll never have to wait to speak to one particular person.

3. Geico

Geico, established in 1936 as the Government Employees Insurance Company, sells policies underwritten by a variety of other companies. Its parent company, Berkshire Hathaway Group, provides some of the homeowners policies offered through Geico, with the remainder being supplied by affiliations with 33 other insurers including Travelers, UP&C, Liberty Mutual and others. Because of this, the same offerings may not be available to all areas they operate in. Its insurance products are generally available in most areas of the U.S., sometimes with different prices, limits, and options, such as in Florida, where coverage and availability is limited.

Geico was honored as a leader in ethical practices in the property/casualty insurance industry by Ethisphere Magazine. In terms of financial strength, its A.M. Best rating is A++ (Superior); its Standard and Poors corporate credit rating is AA+; Moody’s gives its parent Berkshire Hathaway an Aa2 rating; and the Ward Group placed Geico on its top 50 group of financially high-performing insurers for the 27th consecutive year. The 2017 award recognized that Geico achieved outstanding financial results in the areas of safety, consistency, and performance.

Geico’s homeowners insurance policies cover the home itself, property damage, personal property, personal liability protection and medical payments for minor injuries to guests in your house. The company also offers mobile home insurance, condo/co-op insurance, landlord insurance, jewelry and umbrella insurance (Umbrella insurance covers you after you’ve reached the limits on your regular homeowners policy.) Discounts are given for smoke alarms or fire extinguishers, home security systems and bundled home/auto policies.

Geico’s website is user-friendly and has an intuitive online quote process that’s easy to navigate, with some quotes being processed in as little as 15 minutes.

4. Progressive

Progressive, based in Ohio, is one of the largest homeowners insurance companies in the U.S. This insurance company is high-performing in the area of financial strength, gaining an A+, AA, and Aa2 rating from AM, Standard & Poor’s, and Moody’s, respectively. When it comes to customer experience, however, Progressive does not fare as well, earning ratings of four out of 10 and one out of five stars on TrustPilot and BBB. Progressive’s greatest selling point is that it is best for agent-assisted comparison shopping.

Basic coverages offered by Progressive include dwelling coverage, other structures protection, personal property protection, loss of use, liability protection and medical payment coverage. Optional coverages include water backup and personal injury, which covers legal fees and additional damages from slander and libel lawsuits, wrongful entry and malicious prosecution, wrongful eviction, and false arrest, detention or imprisonment. These coverages can be added when a home insurance policy is first purchased, or at a later date. If you insure through Progressive, the company can also assist you in obtaining separate policies for floods, earthquakes, mudslides, landslides and sinkholes. Progressive also notes that while general wear and tear is not covered by any policy, if your old roof were to be damaged in a storm and heavy winds ripped off the shingles, then you’d be covered.

When prospective home insurance buyers are interested in seeking a quote from Progressive, they can apply both online and by phone. Progressive offers a number of discounts, for example, for bundling home and auto insurance; alarm systems and safety devices; new home purchase discounts; for paying in full up front; new home construction; 10 day quote in advance discount; and receiving policy documents by email.

5. State Farm

State Farm, with over $64 million in premiums written during 2017 alone, is one of the country’s largest insurers. Founded in 1922, it made its reputation with a personalized approach to insurance and a commitment to financial stability and growth. Top financial agencies in the U.S. have ranked it very highly, for example, Standard & Poor gives State Farm an AA; AM Best Financial rates it A++, and its Moody’s Financial score is Aa1. State Farm is widely considered a financially stable insurance provider, in part because it was able to secure an impressive 10.05 percent of the market share in 2017. For policyholders who need to file claims, these financial accomplishments represent good news. It is also ranked as best for local agent support.

Tempering these standings, however, is a slightly tarnished reputation that State Farm has gotten from its involvement in high-profile bribery, political campaign financing and overcharging scandals. The company holds a TrustPilot score of 3.5 out of 10 stars and was given an A- rating from the Better Business Bureau.

State Farm’s basic homeowners insurance coverage includes protection for dwelling, other structures, personal property, liability, guest medical, and additional living expense coverage. Optional additional coverage options include water backup, enhanced dwelling, and scheduled personal property. Plus, State Farm offers policies for condo unit owners, renters and rental properties, manufactured homes, farm and ranch, personal articles, and flood insurance. For its standard coverage, State Farm prices are comparable to other insurers, although it is said to have a below-average selection of discount programs.

6. MetLife

MetLife is one of the longest-running insurance companies around, having been founded in 1868. Metropolitan Life Insurance Company, based in New York City, has since expanded its operations greatly, becoming a large multinational presence in the insurance industry, providing coverage in all U.S. states and doing business in more than 50 branches in locations all over the world. MetLife underwrites and sells insurance products for individuals, families, corporations, and governments.

In terms of financial strength, MetLife wrote $3 billion in premiums in 2017 and has a market share of 0.70%. Their Standard & Poor’s Financial Rating is A-, Moody’s Financial rates them as A3 and AM Best gives MetLife an A+. On the negative side, it has a BBB Rating of D- and a Trust Pilot score of 2 out of 5 stars.

Metlife offers a standard spectrum of home insurance policies with add-ons and customizable options to protect you against tornadoes, hail, fire, theft, vandalism and other hazards. Some of these special circumstances may require you to pay additional fees. One add-on will replace the contents in your home without deduction for depreciation. Another feature pays you the full cost to rebuild your home if needed, even when it’s higher than the amount for which your home was originally insured. Plus, identity protection services are included with every policy.

MetLife offers the usual discounts, like bundled home and auto, safety discounts, and group discounts when a policy is purchased through an employer. For budget-conscious homeowners, if you need a straightforward plan without a lot of bells and whistles, which could apply if you’re a first-time homebuyer in an area not known for extreme weather events, MetLife home insurance is a good choice.