State Farm vs. Nationwide

State Farm vs. Nationwide comparison

State Farm pros and cons

Nationwide pros and cons

Is State Farm cheaper than Nationwide?

As car insurance companies adjust their proprietary rating systems, it’s important to compare personalized quotes to determine which carrier is cheapest for you. The average rates below, based on the latest premium data available from Quadrant Information Services in November 2024, give a quick snapshot of how State Farm and Nationwide price insurance for several common driver profiles — but these average rates may not align perfectly with your individual risk profile.

State Farm vs. Nationwide: Discounts

In our Nationwide vs. State Farm insurance review, we found that both companies offer extensive ways to save on auto insurance. However, discounts may vary by location and not everyone will qualify for all discounts available. To find out the types of discounts available in your state, you might want to contact local Nationwide and State Farm agents.

Discounts available from both carriers

• Multi-policy discounts: Both State Farm and Nationwide offer discounts to customers who purchase another insurance product, such as home, renter or life insurance, along with their auto policy. Nationwide advertises an average discount of $646 for home and auto bundles, while State Farm says that customers who bundle home and auto save up to $1,073.
• Multi-car discounts: Both carriers have discount policies for customers who insure multiple vehicles.
• Accident-free and safe driving discounts: New State Farm customers with no accidents or violations from the past three years may be eligible for discounts, while Nationwide offers a safe driving discount for drivers who keep a clean record of five years.
• Good student discounts: Full-time college and high school students with a B average or better may be eligible for discounted rates from both providers.
• Defensive driving discounts: Both companies offer a discount to certain drivers, especially those 55 and over, who complete approved defensive driving courses. Eligibility varies by state.
• Anti-theft discounts: If you have an anti-theft device installed in your vehicle, you could qualify for a discount from either State Farm or Nationwide.

State Farm unique discounts

• Safety and passive restraint discounts: State Farm offers a discount for automobiles equipped with approved certain safety equipment and offers savings on medical-related coverage for vehicles that have passive restraint systems, such as airbags.
• Drive Safe & Save: State Farm’s usage-based insurance program offers an enrollment discount plus an opportunity to earn up to an additional 30 percent discount for maintaining good driving habits.
• Steer Clear: In addition to its other safe driving discounts, State Farm offers a safe driving discount program designed specifically for drivers under age 25, which involves learning modules, quizzes, logged practice trips and mentoring by older drivers.
• Student away at school discount: If you have a college student on your policy who attends school at least 100 miles from home without an automobile, you may be eligible for this discount.
• Driver training discount: Drivers under age 21 who complete an approved driver training course could be eligible for discounted rates.

Nationwide unique discounts

• Automatic payments discount: Nationwide offers a one-time discount to policyholders who sign up for automatic payments.
• Paperless discount: Drivers who set up paperless documents could earn a recurring discount on their policy.
• SmartRide: Nationwide’s safe driving telematics program offers up to 40 percent off for drivers who share safe driving data with the insurer, with an automatic 10 to 15 percent participation discount.
• SmartMiles: Nationwide’s mileage-based insurance program features a base rate and cost-per-mile rate, enabling motorists to save on their premiums by reducing their mileage.

State Farm and Nationwide telematics programs

For drivers who consistently maintain safe driving habits, usage-based insurance programs that use telematics to track driving habits may offer savings on car insurance. Nationwide and State Farm both offer safe driving telematics programs, which may provide a discount if you continuously drive safely. However, these programs are not available in all states.

State Farm vs. Nationwide: Customer experience comparison

Both providers offer mobile apps for Android and Apple devices, with State Farm earning slightly higher ratings based on customer reviews. However, in J.D. Power’s 2024 Auto Claims Satisfaction Study, Nationwide ranked higher than State Farm, coming in fourth place with an overall claims satisfaction score of 728 out of 1,000. State Farm ranked just below at sixth place, with an overall claims satisfaction score of 710.

Customer complaints

The NAIC tracks customer complaints for U.S. insurers and compares each company’s rate of complaints to its market share. A carrier’s NAIC complaint index score indicates whether it receives more or fewer complaints than the industry baseline relative to its size. Scores above 1.00 show a high number of complaints, while any score under 1.00 reflects a low rate of complaints.

State Farm auto insurance customer complaints

Nationwide auto insurance customer complaints

Frequently asked questions

Methodology

Bankrate utilizes Quadrant Information Services to analyze November 2024 rates for all ZIP codes and carriers in all 50 states and Washington, D.C. Rates are weighted based on the population density in each geographic region. Quoted rates are based on a single, 40-year-old male and female driver with a clean driving record, good credit and the following full coverage limits:

• $100,000 bodily injury liability per person
• $300,000 bodily injury liability per accident
• $50,000 property damage liability per accident
• $100,000 uninsured motorist bodily injury per person
• $300,000 uninsured motorist bodily injury per accident
• $500 collision deductible
• $500 comprehensive deductible

To determine minimum coverage limits, Bankrate used minimum coverage that meets each state’s requirements. Our base profile drivers own a 2022 Toyota Camry, commute five days a week and drive 12,000 miles annually.

These are sample rates and should only be used for comparative purposes.

Credit-based insurance scores: Rates were calculated based on the following insurance credit tiers assigned to our drivers: “poor, average, good (base) and excellent.” Insurance credit tiers factor in your official credit scores but are not dependent on that variable alone. Four states prohibit or limit the use of credit as a rating factor in determining auto insurance rates: California, Hawaii, Massachusetts and Michigan.

Incidents: Rates were calculated by evaluating our base profile with the following incidents applied: clean record (base), at-fault accident, single speeding ticket, single DUI conviction and lapse in coverage.

Age: Rates were calculated by evaluating our base profile with the ages 25 and 70 (base: 40 years) applied. Depending on age, drivers may be a renter or homeowner. Age is not a contributing rating factor in Hawaii and Massachusetts due to state regulations.

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 highlighting where they fall short.

• Tier 1 (Cost & ratings): To determine how well auto and home insurance companies satisfy these priorities, average 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 an auto 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.