Updated: June 3, 2026
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Texas drivers pay 10% more for minimum coverage and 21% more for full coverage than the national averages of $726 and $1,493, based on MoneyGeek's 2026 analysis of insurance quotes.
Most of what makes Texas expensive are factors that can't be changed. Your credit score is the one factor that can move your rate by thousands of dollars and is something you can actually change.
The gap between the cheapest and most expensive insurer for the same Texas driver is $1,788 a year. If you haven't compared quotes in the last 12 months, shopping is the fastest fix.
Texas combines more reasons for expensive insurance than almost any other state, and most of them are beyond any one driver's control.
Texas has over 680,000 miles of public roads, which mean more cars on the road and more accidents per year. Insurance companies spread those accident costs across every Texas policy, including yours, even if you've never had an accident.
Houston ranks among the 10 worst U.S. cities for traffic congestion, with drivers spending 70 hours a year in gridlock. Dallas and San Antonio have nearly as much congestion. More time sitting in traffic means more crashes per mile driven, and insurance companies raise rates for everyone to cover the cost.
Texas drivers pay more for comprehensive coverage because the state has one of the highest vehicle theft rates in the country. Texas recorded 32,944 vehicle thefts in just the last three months of 2024. If you own a Chevrolet Silverado 1500 (6,453 thefts in 2024), GMC Sierra 1500 or Hyundai Elantra, you pay more because thieves steal those models more often.
Most Texas insurance companies will lower your bill if you install a certified anti-theft device. Ask your insurer if you qualify before your policy renews.
State Highway 130 between Austin and San Antonio has an 85 mph speed limit, the highest legal speed limit in the Western Hemisphere. Accidents at those speeds cause worse injuries, which means larger payouts by insurance companies. Insurance companies build that cost into two parts of your policy: collision coverage and liability coverage.
Texas weather causes insurance claims in every season. Hurricanes along the coast, hail across northern regions and flooding in major cities are the most frequent. Tornadoes averaged 137 a year, hitting a record 162 in 2025. Wildfires in West Texas add more exposure during dry months.
Insurance companies set your comprehensive rate based on all of those risks together, not just one. That's why your rate stays high even in years without a major hurricane.
The Texas Department of Motor Vehicles reports that about 20% of Texas drivers carry no insurance. When a driver with no insurance causes a crash, you can't collect money from their insurer. If you have uninsured motorist coverage (UM/UIM), your own insurance company pays instead. If you don't, you pay out of your own pocket.
It now costs 41% more to repair a car in Texas than it did in 2020, and shops charge an average of $146 per hour for labor. Insurance companies pay more on every claim now, and they raise everyone's yearly rate to cover it. Drivers who've never filed a claim pay more too.
Texas courts awarded more jury payouts over $10 million than any other state between 2009 and 2023: 207 of them, totaling more than $45 billion, according to the Insurance Council of Texas.
Lawsuits after car accidents are also more common here, and larger payouts get added to what insurance companies charge every Texas driver. The Insurance Council of Texas estimates this lawsuit environment adds $1,725 per person per year in additional costs across goods, services and insurance.
Your rate can go up with a perfect driving record because insurance companies are paying out more in lawsuits statewide and passing that cost to everyone.
Many factors influence car insurance rates in Texas. While you can’t change things like traffic or weather, improving your driving record or credit score can help lower what you pay.
The eight factors above explain why Texas costs more than most states. The six below explain why your rate may differ from your neighbor's. The first three are outside your control, while the last three you can change.
Where you live in Texas can nearly double your insurance bill. Insurance companies look at how many accidents, thefts and weather claims happen in your ZIP code and charge everyone in that area based on those local numbers. Houston ZIP code 77071 averages $259 a month for full coverage. Killeen ZIP code 76542 averages $133, a $1,512 annual difference for the same driver, same car, same coverage.
| Amarillo | 79101 | $66 | $153 |
| Amarillo | 79102 | $67 | $154 |
| Amarillo | 79103 | $67 | $154 |
| Amarillo | 79104 | $87 | $198 |
| Amarillo | 79106 | $66 | $152 |
| Amarillo | 79107 | $87 | $198 |
| Amarillo | 79108 | $66 | $152 |
| Amarillo | 79109 | $66 | $153 |
| Amarillo | 79110 | $66 | $153 |
| Amarillo | 79111 | $66 | $152 |
| Amarillo | 79118 | $63 | $147 |
| Amarillo | 79119 | $63 | $145 |
| Amarillo | 79121 | $64 | $148 |
| Amarillo | 79124 | $65 | $149 |
| Amarillo | 79178 | $70 | $161 |
The cheapest insurer in Texas charges $95 a month for full coverage. The most expensive charges $244. That's $1,788 more per year for the same driver, just choosing a different company. If you haven't compared quotes from at least three insurance companies in the last 12 months, you may be paying that difference without knowing it.
| State Farm | $95 | $1,135 |
| Geico | $113 | $1,358 |
| AAA | $126 | $1,514 |
| Mercury Insurance | $129 | $1,542 |
| Germania Insurance | $137 | $1,650 |
| Progressive | $147 | $1,758 |
| Chubb | $169 | $2,023 |
| Farmers | $200 | $2,401 |
| Allstate | $208 | $2,497 |
| Dairyland | $244 | $2,923 |
Teenage and young adult drivers pay more because insurance companies charge based on how often a group crashes, not just how bad the crashes are. Young drivers crash more often. Young drivers pay an average of $339 a month for full coverage in Texas versus $155 for drivers aged 25 and older. That gap gets smaller as you build a clean record, but having zero tickets or accidents since 21 matters as much as your age alone.
| Adult Drivers | $155 | $1,865 |
| Senior Drivers | $182 | $2,184 |
| Young Drivers | $339 | $4,066 |
If you get a DUI or cause a crash, insurance companies label you a higher-risk driver and charge more. That higher rate stays on your policy for several years. Your insurer looks back at violations every time you renew. A speeding ticket raises full coverage by roughly $22 a month. A DUI raises it by $46. After a ticket or accident, State Farm's Texas rates are consistently lower than most other major insurance companies.
| Drivers With A Speeding Ticket | $78 | $177 |
| Drivers With An Accident | $94 | $208 |
| Drivers With A DUI | $105 | $223 |
Your credit score is the single most powerful factor on this page that you can actually change. A Texas driver with poor credit pays $4,360 a year for full coverage. The same driver with excellent credit pays $1,541, a $2,819 difference that's larger than a full year's premium for a standard adult driver with good credit. Insurance companies use your credit score to predict how likely you are to file a claim. If your score is below "good," raising it before your next renewal will lower your rate by more than switching insurers alone, because nearly every company uses credit to set prices.
| Poor | $363 | $4,360 |
| Below Fair | $258 | $3,102 |
| None | $222 | $2,666 |
| Fair | $204 | $2,443 |
| Good | $155 | $1,865 |
| Excellent | $128 | $1,541 |
High-value vehicles cost more to repair and replace, so insurance companies charge more to cover them. Sports cars crash more often and get stolen more often, so they cost more to insure. Older cars with lower resale values cost less. If your car is destroyed or stolen (called a "total loss"), the insurance company only pays what it was worth, and a $6,000 car can never generate more than a $6,000 payout.
Most of what makes Texas expensive is built into the state and can't be changed. On what can be changed, these six actions can help you lower your premiums:
State Farm charges some Texas drivers $95 a month for full coverage. Progressive charges $155 for the same coverage, a $720 annual gap. Use MoneyGeek's Texas quote tool to see what drivers with your age, car and record are paying. If the cheapest quote is $300 or more per year less than what you pay now, switching is worth the time it takes.
Buy home insurance and car insurance from the same company, and most insurers discount both policies. The size of the discount varies, so compare the bundled total against separate quotes from other companies before you sign anything. The cheapest bundled rate isn't always at the same company as the cheapest standalone auto rate. Top companies for bundling in Texas vary in how much they discount, so compare before you commit.
Stack available discounts. Texas-specific discounts that reduce premiums the most:
Don't drop UM/UIM. With one in five Texas drivers uninsured, the odds you'll need it are real, and it costs $50 to $150 a year to keep. Health insurance pays your medical bills after an uninsured driver hits you, but it does not cover your vehicle repairs, lost wages or pain and suffering. Without UM/UIM, those costs come out of your own pocket. If you've never signed a Texas Uninsured/Underinsured Motorist Coverage Rejection Form, you likely already have this coverage. Confirm the annual cost on your policy before you consider dropping it.
You can drop Personal Injury Protection (PIP) with lower risk. But only do so if your health insurance already covers both medical costs and lost wages in full. Check what your health plan covers for lost wages before you drop PIP.
Your deductible is the amount you pay out of your own pocket before insurance covers the rest. Raising it from $500 to $1,000 lowers your yearly bill by $150 to $300. Only raise it to an amount you could pay from savings right now. If you can't cover the deductible when a claim arrives, you haven't saved anything.
f you're making loan or lease payments on your car, you're required to carry both comprehensive and collision. You can't drop either while you owe money on the car. If you own your car outright, drop collision once your yearly insurance cost for that coverage exceeds 10% of what your car is worth today. Before dropping comprehensive, remember that Texas has frequent hail and floods, and comprehensive is the only coverage that pays for weather damage to your car.
Rates vary by age, driving history and credit score, so the cheapest company changes by driver type. The table below shows the most affordable Texas insurance company for each type of driver.
| Young Drivers | Geico | $150 | $1,797 |
| Adult Drivers | State Farm | $68 | $812 |
| Senior Drivers | State Farm | $76 | $917 |
| Drivers With An Accident | State Farm | $78 | $935 |
| Drivers With A DUI | State Farm | $104 | $1,251 |
| Drivers With A Speeding Ticket | State Farm | $67 | $807 |
| Drivers With Bad Credit | Geico | $132 | $1,588 |
| Drivers With Low Income | Geico | $88 | $1,060 |
| Drivers With Newer Cars | Geico | $90 | $1,080 |
| Drivers With Old Cars | State Farm | $61 | $733 |
State Farm has the lowest rates for 7 of the 9 driver types in the table. GEICO prices its policies lower for young drivers and drivers with bad credit. If a recent accident is the reason your rate is high, State Farm's post-accident rate of $78 a month is $30 to $70 cheaper than most other major Texas companies charge in the same situation.
Rates based on MoneyGeek's analysis of 328,384 quotes from 14 providers across 370 Texas ZIP codes. Your rate will vary based on your age, driving record, credit score, vehicle and ZIP code.
Texas costs more to insure because weather, lawsuits, rising repair costs and a 20% uninsured driver population all cause insurance companies to pay out more on claims at the same time. Those higher payouts get added to every policy in the state, including yours.
What you can change is your credit score (up to $2,819 a year), which company you choose (up to $1,788 a year for the same coverage) and your deductible. Get at least three quotes before your next renewal. If your credit score is below good, improving it before renewal saves more than switching insurers alone. Use the Texas car insurance calculator to see what a driver with your age, record and ZIP code should be paying. If your rate is more than $300 above the cheapest comparable option, that's the insurer, not Texas.
Texas has more reasons for expensive insurance than most states. The 20% uninsured driver rate, severe weather year-round, high vehicle theft, the highest posted speed limit in the Western Hemisphere, a lawsuit environment that adds to claims costs statewide and rising repair costs all hit at the same time. Any one of those alone wouldn't make Texas expensive. Together they do.
Texas weather causes insurance claims for weather damage in every part of the state, year-round. Hail in the north, hurricanes along the coast, winter storms, floods and tornadoes each generate separate streams of claims. Insurance companies set rates based on all of those risks together. Even in a year with no major hurricane, hail and flooding still drove enough claims to keep rates high.
Insurance companies charge based on how many accidents, thefts and weather claims happen in your specific ZIP code. Major cities have more traffic, more accidents and higher crime. The difference between the cheapest and most expensive Texas city ZIP codes is nearly 100% for the same driver. The same person can pay twice as much just by living in a different part of the state.
MoneyGeek's analysis shows $795 annually for minimum coverage and $1,799 for full coverage. Industry-wide averages from other sources using different methods run higher, in the $2,400 to $2,700 range for 2026. The difference comes down to which companies each study included and what type of driver they used. Use the calculator above to see what your specific age, record and ZIP code should cost.
The most likely reasons are credit score below good, a recent at-fault accident or violation, a high-theft vehicle in a high-theft ZIP code, or a situation where your insurer charges your specific combination of age, car and location more than other companies would. Compare three quotes before renewal to find out whether it's a Texas problem or an insurer problem.
We analyzed 328,384 auto insurance quotes across Texas using data from the Texas Department of Insurance and Quadrant Information Services. This dataset covers 14 major insurers in 370 ZIP codes throughout Texas, so our findings reflect the actual market when you shop for coverage.
About Mark Fitzpatrick
Mark Fitzpatrick, a Licensed Property and Casualty (P&C) Insurance Producer in Connecticut, is MoneyGeek's resident insurance expert. He has spent nearly a decade analyzing the market, first at LendingTree and now at MoneyGeek, where he has produced original research on hundreds of carriers and millions of rates across auto, home, renters, health and life insurance.
He covers economics and insurance at MoneyGeek, and his work has been featured in The Washington Post, The New York Times and NPR, among other outlets.
Like all MoneyGeek analysts, he draws on independent cost and consumer experience data, and no insurance company partnership influences his recommendations.
Fitzpatrick earned his degrees from Johns Hopkins University (M.A. Economics and International Relations) and Boston College (B.A.). He began his career in financial risk management at State Street. He's also a five-time “Jeopardy!” champion.
