Liberty Mutual vs. State Farm: Which is Best for You?

State Farm excels when it comes to cheap policies, high customer satisfaction, and few customer complaints. Liberty Mutual has the edge in terms of unique coverage options and add-ons. Because rates can vary from state to state, be sure to get quotes from both companies to determine which one is the best fit for you.

State Farm is good for customers who want affordable insurance from a company with great financial stability.

Liberty Mutual is good for customers who want to customize their policy and obtain additional coverage.

Liberty Mutual and State Farm are tied when it comes to affordability. Both insurers offer policies that cost $1,235 per year, on average. Your state has a significant impact on your insurance costs. It’s important to get quotes from both companies to determine the cheapest car insurance option in your area. Other factors like age, driving history and credit score can also affect your rates.

>> More: USE OUR CAR INSURANCE CALCULATOR TO SEE WHICH COMPANY MAY GIVE YOU A LOWER QUOTE

Most major insurers, including State Farm and Liberty Mutual, offer additional discounts for things like care safety features, a history of safe driving, and paying your policy early. Many car insurance companies offer similar discounts; what’s most important is your final quote. The most lucrative deals tend to be policy bundling discounts and usage-based car insurance programs. State Farm has the edge when it comes to bundling, while Liberty Mutual excels at usage-based savings.

State Farm allows drivers to bundle auto insurance policies with other policies like homeowners, renters, condo or life insurance. Customers can save up to 17% by bundling these policies, a discount on par with the average among major insurers. Liberty Mutual’s variable bundling discount can save policyholders up to $842 per year, but MoneyGeek was unable to confirm these rates. Because bundling savings from State Farm are more of a sure bet, the company wins in this category. Learn how State Farm compares with other companies in our analysis of home and auto insurance bundle by company.

Both insurers also offer discounts based on how you drive. Liberty Mutual has two different usage-based programs: their RightTrack program tracks total miles driven, nighttime driving, braking, and acceleration, while their ByMile program adjusts your monthly bill based on how many miles you drive. State Farm has one usage-based discount, Drive Safe & Save. This program uses information about your driving habits to calculate your rate and reward you for driving safely. Liberty Mutual’s diverse program options make it the winner in this category.

MoneyGeek assesses customer service for insurance companies based on customer satisfaction, as measured by J.D. Power, and customer complaints, as tracked by the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC). The best auto insurance companies have few complaints and high customer satisfaction ratings. Based on these ratings, State Farm wins out in both customer satisfaction and customer complaints.

State Farm has a slightly higher customer satisfaction rating than Liberty Mutual. According to J.D. Power, State Farm scored 837 out of 1000, while Liberty Mutual scored 821.

The NAIC measures the volume of customer complaints for insurance companies, comparing them against an average complaint volume of 1. Any company that scores higher than one receives a higher-than-average volume of complaints. State Farm and Liberty Mutual have complaint ratios of 1.28 and 3.56, respectively. These scores mean that while State Farm receives gets complaints than average, it still has far fewer complaints than Liberty Mutual.

All car insurance companies offer standard coverage options, including liability insurance, comprehensive and collision insurance, uninsured motorist insurance and personal injury protection. Many insurers offer other coverage options to their customers.

Liberty Mutual has the advantage when it comes to coverage options, with ten additional options available. In contrast, State Farm only offers three extra coverage options: rental car reimbursement, roadside assistance and rideshare insurance. Some of the notable additional coverage options Liberty Mutual features include accident forgiveness, deductible modification, disability coverage and gap insurance.

Like most major insurance companies, both State Farm and Liberty Mutual are financially stable. Financial stability is important because it indicates your insurer can pay your claim when you file it.

AM Best evaluates insurance companies’ financial strength on a grade scale. While Liberty Mutual received an excellent A rating, State Farm wins out with a superior A++ mark.

Liberty Mutual wins in this category by having one of the most unique tools on the market: Express Estimate. This tool calculates a preliminary estimate of your vehicle damage after an accident, giving you an idea of how much your claim will be.

Both State Farm and Liberty Mutual have great online tools that make it easy to manage your policy online. Liberty Mutual allows you to file claims, pay bills and access your ID cards through their website and app. State Farm’s free mobile app allows you to manage details about your policy, including claims, online payments and more.

Liberty Mutual and State Farm were analyzed by MoneyGeek based on affordability, coverages, service, financial stability and online tools.

Customer satisfaction and complaints data were drawn from J.D. Power surveys and the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC). Financial strength was based on ratings from A.M. Best, an insurance credit rating agency.

The MoneyGeek team compiled data on available coverages and discounts for each insurer. Quotes were compiled from hundreds of ZIP codes across the country for a sample car insurance policy for a 40-year-old male. The policy covers:

• $100,000 on bodily injury liability insurance per person
• $300,000 on bodily injury liability insurance per accident
• $100,000 on property damage liability insurance per person
• Comprehensive and collision insurance with a $1,000 deductible