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Best cheap home insurance in San Diego in 2024
Powered by Coverage.com (NPN: 19966249)
Coverage.com, LLC is a licensed insurance producer (NPN: 19966249). Coverage.com services are only available in states where it is licensed. Coverage.com may not offer insurance coverage in all states or scenarios. All insurance products are governed by the terms in the applicable insurance policy, and all related decisions (such as approval for coverage, premiums, commissions and fees) and policy obligations are the sole responsibility of the underwriting insurer. The information on this site does not modify any insurance policy terms in any way.
The best home insurance companies San Diego
Across California, homeowners are struggling to secure a home insurance policy. San Diego is no exception. State Farm — the largest home insurance company in California — announced that on top of no longer accepting new policies, it will also drop around 30,000 home insurance policies in the Golden State beginning summer 2024. The decision is expected to disproportionately affect San Diego homeowners, with some ZIP codes expected to see more than 50 percent of policies dropped.
With all of the turmoil in the California home insurance market, it can be extra challenging to find not just any home insurance company, but one that offers robust policy options, strong customer service scores and high third-party financial strength ratings. Bankrate can help. Our insurance editorial team did some digging into the local insurance market and found that Mercury, Auto Club and Liberty Mutual offer some of the best home insurance in San Diego.
Bankrate Score
Avg. annual premium
$300K dwelling coverage
JD Power
Not rated
Why Mercury made our list: Mercury offers a range of endorsements to personalize your home insurance, such as home systems protection, service line coverage and identity management services. Mercury also offers a wide variety of discounts, so you might be able to save on your premium by bundling auto and home insurance policies, installing protective devices, belonging to a homeowners association and more. Mercury is not rated in the J.D. Power 2023 U.S. Home Insurance Study, likely because it is a smaller insurer that only writes policies in 11 states.
Why Mercury may be the best for homeowners on the FAIR plan: Due to the county’s high risk of fire damage, an increasing number of San Diego homeowners have found themselves on the FAIR plan. From 2018 to 2022, the number of San Diego homes insured by the FAIR plan tripled. Mercury offers a difference in conditions endorsement, which can help fill in some of the coverage gaps left by the FAIR plan like coverage for theft, water leaks, service line coverage and liability protection.
| Bankrate Score | 4.3 |
| J.D. Power | |
| AM Best score | A |
Bankrate Score
Avg. annual premium
$300K dwelling coverage
JD Power
Not rated
Why AAA made our list: As far as home insurance policies go, Auto Club (AAA) are fairly standard. However, we included it on our list because of its A+ (Superior) financial strength rating from AM Best and because, thus far, the insurer has not taken steps to limit coverage in the state. It also offers a long list of discounts to help homeowners save on their policies, like up to 37 percent savings for homes built within the past nine years.
Why AAA may be the best for AAA members: With coverage options in San Diego limited, knowing that AAA is still actively writing policies in the area can be a major plus for some homeowners. AAA’s home insurance policies cover the basics and some extras, but it may not be worth joining AAA solely for its home insurance. Card-carrying members, though, may want to get a quote.
| Bankrate Score | Not rated |
| J.D. Power | |
| AM Best score |
Bankrate Score
Avg. annual premium
$300K dwelling coverage
Not available
JD Power
Why Liberty Mutual made our list: Liberty Mutual is the fifth-largest home insurance company in California, writing just over 4 percent of all policies in the state. It is an established name in the insurance industry, with over a century of experience. Liberty Mutual writes car, renters, business and pet insurance, which could make it an appealing option for homeowners looking to handle all of their insurance needs with one company.
Why Liberty Mutual may be best for discounts: On its website, Liberty Mutual advertises 11 different discounts for extra savings. Discounts are grouped into three categories: homeowner-based, home-based and policy-based.
| Bankrate Score | Not rated |
| J.D. Power | 789/1,000 |
| AM Best score | A |
Bankrate's trusted insurance industry expertise
Read our full methodologyBankrate knows that finding a reliable San Diego home insurance company can be extra challenging. That’s why our insurance team ensured that the companies we selected as the best are still writing new policies in the states with minimal restrictions. To ensure that our average rate data is as fresh as possible, we update them on a monthly basis.
46
years of industry experience
122
carriers reviewed
34.5K
ZIP codes examined
1.2M
quotes analyzed
The cheapest home insurance companies in San Diego
San Diego was recently named the city with the highest cost of living, beating out other California cities like San Francisco, Santa Barbara and Los Angeles. As such, San Diego homeowners may be looking to spend less on their home insurance. Based on our analysis of average rate data from Quadrant Information Services, the cheapest home insurance companies in San Diego for a $300K dwelling policy are USAA, Armed Forces, Mercury, Auto Club and Nationwide. We’ve also found the companies with the cheapest rates for other dwelling limits in case you need higher coverage limits.
| Company | Average monthly premium* | Average annual premium* |
|---|---|---|
|
$67
|
$802
|
|
|
$98
|
$1,176
|
|
|
Armed Forces
|
$104
|
$1,244
|
|
$125
|
$1,499
|
| Company | Average monthly premium* | Average annual premium* |
|---|---|---|
|
$103
|
$1,230
|
|
|
$151
|
$1,811
|
|
|
Armed Forces
|
$177
|
$2,124
|
|
$205
|
$2,456
|
How much is home insurance in San Diego?
The average cost of home insurance in San Diego is $1,287 per year for a $300K dwelling policy. To compare, the average cost of home insurance in California is $1,453 per year, and the national average is $2,230 per year.
If the average home insurance cost in San Diego seems low given the state’s high earthquake and wildfire risk, there’s a reason for that. California state regulations on insurance pricing currently prevent companies from raising home insurance rates to fully reflect the risk of insuring a home in the state. This, among other factors, has led many major insurance providers to leave the state, leaving homeowners scrambling to find coverage. However, recently passed legislation and insurance reforms could help address these issues and encourage insurers to return to the market.
San Diego rates by home age
The median year of construction for San Diego homes is 1979, according to data from the U.S. Census, and 16 percent of all San Diego homes were built after the year 2000. When your home was built can influence your home insurance costs in San Diego. In most cases, older homes cost more to insure, but that may not be true for every provider. Below, we’ve compiled average rates from the five cheapest home insurance companies in San Diego for a couple of different home ages.
| Company | 1959 | 1982 | 1992 | 2010 | 2020 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
$802
|
$828
|
$809
|
$728
|
$597
|
|
|
Armed Forces
|
$1,142
|
$1,208
|
$1,238
|
$1,092
|
$620
|
|
$1,114
|
$1,225
|
$1,285
|
$1,102
|
$667
|
|
|
Auto Club
|
$1,074
|
$1,113
|
$1,093
|
$1,044
|
$905
|
|
$1,421
|
$1,431
|
$1,448
|
$1,340
|
$888
|
San Diego rates by deductible
A higher home insurance deductible typically results in a lower premium. Your deductible is the amount of financial responsibility you have after you file a claim with your insurance company: The larger the amount of financial responsibility, the lower your rate will be in most cases. You can see rates for different deductible amounts for the five cheap home insurance companies in San Diego in the table below.
| Company | $1,500 Deductible | $2,000 Deductible | $5,000 Deductible |
|---|---|---|---|
|
$613
|
$613
|
$541
|
|
|
Armed Forces
|
$838
|
$724
|
$657
|
|
$823
|
$694
|
$574
|
|
|
Auto Club
|
$1,004
|
$977
|
$923
|
|
$1,032
|
$948
|
$746
|
Frequently asked questions
Methodology
Bankrate utilizes Quadrant Information Services to analyze July 2024 rates for all ZIP codes and carriers in all 50 states and Washington, D.C. Quoted rates are based on married male and female homeowners with a clean claim history, good credit and the following coverage limits:
- Coverage A, Dwelling: $300,000, $350,000, $450,000, $750,000
- Coverage B, Other Structures: $30,000, $35,000, $45,000, $75,000
- Coverage C, Personal Property: $150,000, $175,000, $225,000, $375,000
- Coverage D, Loss of Use: $60,000, $70,000, $90,000, $150,000
- Coverage E, Liability: $500,000
- Coverage F, Medical Payments: $1,000
The homeowners also have a $1,000 deductible, a $500 hail deductible and a 2 percent hurricane deductible (or the next closest deductible amounts that are available) where separate deductibles apply.
These are sample rates and should be used for comparative purposes only. Your quotes will differ.
Year built: Rates were calculated based on the following years built for homes and assigned to our homeowners: “1959, 1982, 1992, 2010, 2016 (base) and 2020.”
Bankrate Score
Our 2024 Bankrate Score considers variables our insurance editorial team determined impacts policyholders’ experiences with an insurance company. These rating factors include a robust assessment of each company’s product availability, financial strength ratings, online capabilities and customer and claims support accessibility. Each factor was added to a category, and these categories were weighted in a tiered approach to analyze how companies perform in key customer-impacting categories.
Each category was assigned a metric to determine performance, and the weighted sum adds up to a company’s total Bankrate Score — out of 5 points. Our scoring model provides a comprehensive view, indicating when companies excel across several key areas and highlight where they fall short.
-
Cost & ratings 50%
-
Coverage & savings 30%
-
Support 20%
- Tier 1 (Cost & ratings): To determine how well auto and home insurance companies satisfy these priorities, 2023 quoted premiums from Quadrant Information Services (if available), as well as any of the latest third-party agency ratings from J.D. Power, AM Best, Demotech and the NAIC, were analyzed.
- Tier 2 (Coverage & savings): We assessed companies’ coverage options and availability to help policyholders find a provider that balances cost with coverage. Additionally, we evaluated each company’s discount options listed on its website.
- Tier 3 (Support): To encompass the many ways a home insurance company can support policyholders, we analyzed avenues of customer accessibility along with community support. This analysis incorporated additional financial strength ratings from S&P and Moody’s and factored a company’s corporate sustainability efforts.
