It would sure make life easier if we could simply tell you the one company in San Francisco that has the best car insurance rates in California. Unfortunately, it’s not that simple as there are a whole bunch of unknown elements like the vehicle you are insuring, your credit history, any tickets or violations, and if you have maintained coverage continuously. We are going to cover the different ways to avoid overpaying and also should give you a good beginning to your quest for cheaper car insurance in San Francisco.
Comparing quotes for low-priced auto insurance is confusing at best, and determining which companies quote the cheapest insurance rates for business use may require a bit more work. Each insurer has a different process to determine premium rates, so we’ll take a look at the insurance companies with the overall cheapest rates in San Francisco, CA.
It’s a good idea to know that California insurance rates are calculated based on many things which can significantly increase or decrease the policy premium. Simply improving your credit score, buying another vehicle, or getting a reckless driving citation can produce rate changes that can cause some rates to be more affordable than competitors.
Compare Cheap Insurance Quotes for Business Use
| Rank | Company | Cost Per Year |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | USAA | $1,143 |
| 2 | Wawanesa | $1,157 |
| 3 | Century National | $1,178 |
| 4 | CSAA | $1,186 |
| 5 | Nationwide | $1,213 |
| 6 | 21st Century | $1,325 |
| 7 | Grange | $1,447 |
| 8 | Progressive | $1,512 |
| 9 | Mercury | $1,548 |
| 10 | GEICO | $1,559 |
| 11 | Allstate | $1,559 |
| 12 | Allied | $1,603 |
| 13 | The Hartford | $1,623 |
| 14 | MetLife | $1,638 |
| 15 | Unitrin | $1,682 |
| 16 | State Farm | $1,699 |
| 17 | Esurance | $1,756 |
| 18 | Travelers | $1,806 |
| 19 | Bristol West | $1,831 |
| 20 | Farmers | $1,966 |
| Compare Rates Now Go | ||
USAA generally has some of the cheapest car insurance rates in San Francisco at around $1,143 annually. This is $508 less than the average policy premium paid by California drivers of $1,651. Wawanesa, Century National, CSAA, and Nationwide also rank well as some of the lowest-priced San Francisco, CA insurance companies.
In the above example, if you currently buy coverage from Century National and switched to USAA, you may realize a yearly savings of around $35. Customers with CSAA may save as much as $43 a year, and Nationwide policyholders might realize rate reductions of up to $70 a year.
Understand that those estimates are averaged for all drivers and vehicles and do not factor in an exact zip code location for business use. So the car insurance company that can offer you the best price may not even be in the list above. That illustrates why you need to compare rates from multiple companies using your own driver and vehicle profiles.
The car, truck, or SUV you are insuring is one of the main factors when shopping for economical insurance for business use. Vehicles with lots of horsepower, poor safety ratings, or a high likelihood of having liability claims will cost much more to insure than more economical and safe models. The information below estimates coverage premiums for some of the most affordable vehicles to buy coverage for.
| Make and Model | Estimated Cost for Full Coverage |
|---|---|
| Honda CR-V LX 2WD | $1,371 |
| Ford Escape XLS 2WD | $1,542 |
| Ford Edge SEL 2WD | $1,592 |
| Ford Focus SE 4-Dr Sedan | $1,597 |
| Chevrolet Equinox LS 2WD | $1,621 |
| Ford F-150 Lariat Crew Cab 2WD | $1,653 |
| Toyota Tacoma 4WD | $1,679 |
| Ford Explorer Eddie Bauer 2WD | $1,684 |
| Toyota Prius | $1,708 |
| Nissan Rogue SL 2WD | $1,735 |
| Hyundai Sonata GLS 4-Dr Sedan | $1,745 |
| Dodge Grand Caravan CV | $1,740 |
| GMC Sierra 2500HD SLE Crew Cab 4WD | $1,745 |
| Chevrolet Silverado LS Crew Cab 4WD | $1,740 |
| Honda Odyssey EX | $1,743 |
| GMC Sierra 3500HD SLE Extended Cab 2WD | $1,772 |
| Toyota RAV4 Limited 4WD | $1,777 |
| Jeep Wrangler Unlimited Rubicon 4WD 4-Dr | $1,785 |
| Volkswagen Jetta 2.0T Station Wagon | $1,795 |
| Chevrolet Malibu LT | $1,811 |
| Chevrolet Impala LT | $1,824 |
| Jeep Grand Cherokee Laredo 2WD | $1,832 |
| Toyota Camry Hybrid | $1,853 |
| Compare Rates Now Go | |
Data rating is based on single male driver age 50, no speeding tickets, no at-fault accidents, $1,000 deductibles, and California minimum liability limits. Discounts applied include multi-vehicle, homeowner, safe-driver, claim-free, and multi-policy. Rates do not factor in specific location which can impact price quotes significantly.
Based upon the rates shown, we can tell that cars like the Honda CR-V, Ford Escape, and Ford Edge will be the cheaper vehicles to insure for using your car for business. The cost of a car insurance policy will be more costly because there is more claim risk for business use, but generally speaking those specific models will probably have the cheapest rates that you’ll find.
For using your car for business, one of the more important criteria that are used to help calculate auto insurance rates is your zip code in San Francisco. Areas with increased crime or more people tend to have higher auto insurance costs, whereas less populated areas have the luxury of lower rates.
The following table lists the most expensive cities in California for business use to purchase a policy in. San Francisco is listed at #3 with an annual cost of $1,763 for the average policy, which is about $147 per month.
| Rank | City | Annual Premium |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Glendale | $2,121 |
| 2 | Los Angeles | $2,104 |
| 3 | San Francisco | $1,763 |
| 4 | Oakland | $1,738 |
| 5 | Sacramento | $1,703 |
| 6 | San Bernardino | $1,644 |
| 7 | Santa Clarita | $1,595 |
| 8 | Stockton | $1,588 |
| 9 | Fontana | $1,566 |
| 10 | Long Beach | $1,562 |
| 11 | Garden Grove | $1,554 |
| 12 | Moreno Valley | $1,551 |
| 13 | Modesto | $1,532 |
| 14 | Fresno | $1,517 |
| 15 | Riverside | $1,482 |
| 16 | Santa Ana | $1,439 |
| 17 | Anaheim | $1,430 |
| 18 | San Jose | $1,423 |
| 19 | Huntington Beach | $1,416 |
| 20 | Fremont | $1,403 |
| 21 | San Diego | $1,381 |
| 22 | Bakersfield | $1,381 |
| 23 | Chula Vista | $1,350 |
| 24 | Irvine | $1,330 |
| 25 | Oxnard | $1,318 |
| Find the Best Rates Go | ||
Annual rates are comparative as specific San Francisco garaging address can influence coverage rates significantly.
Picking the highest-rated car insurance company can be rather challenging considering how many companies there are to choose from in San Francisco. The rank data in the next section could help you choose which auto insurance companies you want to consider comparing rates from.
The rankings below are only comprised of major nationwide insurance companies, so smaller regional companies are not taken into consideration for the list. To compare prices from these top insurers and more, simply click here.
Top 10 Major Auto Insurance Providers Overall in San Francisco
- USAA
- American Family
- AAA of Southern California
- State Farm
- The Hartford
- AAA Insurance
- GEICO
- The General
- Titan Insurance
- Progressive
Top 10 Major Auto Insurance Providers in San Francisco Ranked by Value
- USAA
- American Family
- The Hartford
- AAA of Southern California
- Titan Insurance
- The General
- AAA Insurance
- State Farm
- Mercury Insurance
- Nationwide
Illustration showing the impact of accidents and violations
The obvious way to snag cheap insurance rates for using your car for business is to drive carefully and avoid accidents and traffic citations. The example below shows how traffic citations and at-fault accidents drive up auto insurance rates for different ages of insureds. The price estimates are based on a single female driver, comprehensive and collision coverage, $500 deductibles, and no discounts are applied.
In the previous chart, the average cost of car insurance in San Francisco per year with no accidents and a clean driving record is $1,978. Get written up for one speeding ticket and the average cost surges to $2,243, an increase of $265 each year. Then throw in two accidents along with the one speeding ticket and the yearly cost of insurance for business use increases to an average of $4,627. That’s an increase of $2,649, or $221 per month, just for being a less-than-perfect driver!
Get discounts on San Francisco auto insurance rates
Auto insurance companies that offer quotes for business use may provide discounts that could reduce prices by 40% or more if you qualify. Popular insurance companies and the discounts they provide are:
- The Hartford offers premium reductions for good student, vehicle fuel type, defensive driver, driver training, air bag, and anti-theft.
- American Family may have discounts that include TimeAway discount, multi-vehicle, good driver, mySafetyValet, air bags, and defensive driver.
- Progressive offers discounts for online signing, online quote discount, multi-policy, multi-vehicle, and continuous coverage.
- Travelers has savings for payment discounts, good student, continuous insurance, home ownership, new car, student away at school, and multi-car.
- Farmers Insurance may offer discounts for mature driver, alternative fuel, pay in full, distant student, and teen driver.
- USAA policyholders can earn discounts including good student, vehicle storage, multi-policy, family discount, safe driver, new vehicle, and defensive driver.
- Liberty Mutual offers discounts including good student, newly retired, teen driver discount, multi-car, and new move discount.
The chart below illustrates the comparison of car insurance costs with and without policy discounts. The costs are based on a male driver, no violations or accidents, California state minimum liability limits, full physical damage coverage, and $100 deductibles.
The first bar for each age group shows the price with no discounts. The second shows the rates with multiple policy, anti-theft, multiple vehicle, passive restraint, claim-free, and safe-driver discounts applied. When these discounts are applied, theamount saved on insurance for business use is 28% or $777.
Why you should be shopping around
San Francisco, CA insurance rates are based on many factors which can substantially change the cost of having a policy. Improving your credit rating, having a teen driver, or getting a few speeding tickets can trigger changes in premium resulting in some companies being much cheaper than others. Also, insurance companies change prices multiple times each year to adjust for gains or losses. Higher than normal claim frequency or severity can result in additional price hikes, while profitable underwriting may cause more affordable San Francisco car insurance rates.
The bar chart below analyzes the cheapest car insurance in San Francisco, CA for a 30-year-old female driver with a clean driving record, no accidents, and solid credit. If we estimate prices based on her current rating profile, USAA offers the cheapest car insurance rates in San Francisco at $1,477 per year. This is $174 less than the average policy premium paid by California drivers of $1,651. Wawanesa, Century National, CSAA, and Nationwide are the remaining cheapest San Francisco, CA auto insurance companies.
Now let’s give the driver in the first example a chargeable claim, poor credit, and a traffic citation. Due to the fact that every auto insurer uses their own method for determining rates in each state, comparing quotes may result in a different list of the cheapest San Francisco car insurance companies as shown below.
Grange now has the cheapest insurance rate in San Francisco with Mercury, Progressive, GEICO, and Allied also being competitive. This illustrates why it is crucial to shop around with many companies to find cheap auto insurance rates for business use.
Insurance prices are influenced by many risk factors and change frequently, so the lowest-price company a year ago may now not even be in the top five.