Who Has Affordable Auto Insurance for Good Students in San Jose?

For student drivers, one of the big things that help determine car insurance rates is where you choose to live in San Jose. Cities with more crime and/or more people are more likely to have higher rates, whereas areas with less congestion have the enjoyment of a little cheaper coverage.

The next table lists the most expensive areas in California for good students in which to buy car insurance. San Jose is ranked #18 with an annual cost of $1,395 for the average insurance policy, which is approximately $116 per month.

How much is auto insurance in San Jose, CA?
Rank City Annual Rate
1 Los Angeles $2,168
2 Glendale $2,142
3 San Francisco $1,763
4 Sacramento $1,720
5 Oakland $1,704
6 San Bernardino $1,596
7 Santa Clarita $1,595
8 Garden Grove $1,570
9 Fontana $1,566
10 Long Beach $1,562
11 Stockton $1,541
12 Riverside $1,527
13 Moreno Valley $1,506
14 Fresno $1,502
15 Santa Ana $1,497
16 Modesto $1,487
17 Anaheim $1,474
18 San Jose $1,395
19 Bakersfield $1,394
20 Fremont $1,389
21 Huntington Beach $1,374
22 Chula Vista $1,350
23 Oxnard $1,344
24 Irvine $1,343
25 San Diego $1,327
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Rates are estimated as specific San Jose zip code can modify premium rates considerably.

The vehicle requiring insurance is one of the largest factors in finding low-priced auto insurance for good students. Vehicles with limited top-end speed, excellent safety ratings, or low incidents of liability claims will cost less to insure than higher performance models. The information below illustrates auto insurance rates for a selection of the most affordable vehicles to buy coverage for.

Cheapest Vehicles to Insure in San Jose, CA
Make and Model Estimated Cost for Full Coverage
Honda CR-V LX 4WD $3,708
Ford Escape XLS 2WD $3,714
Honda Accord EX-L 4-Dr Sedan $3,989
Toyota Prius $4,028
Jeep Wrangler Rubicon 4WD 2-Dr $4,158
Dodge Grand Caravan SE $4,165
Ford Focus S 4-Dr Sedan $4,361
Ford Edge SEL AWD $4,369
Honda Odyssey EX W/Rear Entertainment $4,361
Toyota RAV4 Limited 4WD $4,400
Chevrolet Equinox LS 2WD $4,405
Chevrolet Impala LT $4,400
Dodge Ram 3500 Crew Cab Laramie 2WD $4,438
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Data based on single male driver age 17, no speeding tickets, no at-fault accidents, $1,000 deductibles, and California minimum liability limits. Discounts applied include safe-driver, and claim-free. Information does not factor in specific location information which can raise or lower auto insurance rates substantially.

Looking at the data, we can presume that makes and models like the Honda CR-V, Ford Escape, and Honda Accord will be a few of the more affordable vehicles to insure for student drivers.

Establishing which companies offer the lowest-priced car insurance rates for good students involves a little more sweat in order to find the lowest price quote. Each insurance company uses a little different formula for setting rates, so we will examine the car insurance companies with the most affordable rates in California.

It’s a good idea to know that California car insurance rates are impacted by many factors that may substantially change the cost of having a policy. Simply turning a year older, having a claim, or having an accident can trigger changes in premium resulting in some rates now being cheaper than before.

Best Cheap Insurance Rates for Students

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Cheapest auto insurance in California ranked by cost per year
Rank Company Cost Per Year
1 USAA $1,109
2 CSAA $1,186
3 Century National $1,190
4 Wawanesa $1,192
5 Nationwide $1,250
6 21st Century $1,325
7 Grange $1,433
8 Progressive $1,496
9 Allstate $1,513
10 GEICO $1,513
11 Allied $1,541
12 Mercury $1,548
13 MetLife $1,638
14 The Hartford $1,639
15 State Farm $1,682
16 Esurance $1,688
17 Unitrin $1,699
18 Bristol West $1,777
19 Travelers $1,806
20 Farmers $2,006
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USAA has some of the most affordable car insurance rates in San Jose at around $1,109 annually. CSAA, Century National, Wawanesa, and Nationwide also make the cut as some of the more affordable San Jose, CA insurance companies.

As the rates illustrate above, if you are a policyholder with CSAA and switched to USAA, you might realize an annual premium reduction of in the vicinity of $77. Drivers with Century National may save as much as $81 a year, and Wawanesa policyholders might reduce prices by as much as $83 a year.

If you want to find out if you’re overpaying, click here to start your free quote or quote prices from the following companies.

Bear in mind that those premiums are averages for all drivers and vehicles and do not take into consideration a specific location for good students. So the company that can offer you the lowest price may not even be in the top 24 companies shown above. That’s why you need to quote rates from many companies using your own specific driver and vehicle information.

Insurance rate increases from tickets or accidents

The common sense way to maintain cheap car insurance prices for student drivers is to be a careful driver and avoid accidents and keep your driving record clean. The illustration below highlights how speeding tickets and fender-benders raise insurance costs for different age groups. The premium estimates are based on a single female driver, comp and collision included, $500 deductibles, and no other discounts are factored in.

In the previous chart, the average cost of a car insurance policy in San Jose per year with no accidents and a clean driving record is $2,161. Receive one speeding ticket and the average cost hikes up to $2,450, an increase of $289 each year. Next add one accident along with the one speeding ticket and the yearly cost of car insurance for good students goes up to an average of $3,257. That’s an increase of $1,096, or $91 per month, just for not being attentive to the road!

Best car insurance in San Jose

Selecting the top company can be challenging considering how many companies are available to choose from in California. The company ratings shown below may help you choose which auto insurers you want to consider when comparing insurance rates for good students.

The rankings below only include large insurance companies, so smaller regional companies are not factored into the list. To compare rates from these top-rated insurers and more, just click here.

Best Car Insurance Companies for Good Students in San Jose
Company Value Customer Service Claims Customer Satisfaction A.M Best Rating Overall Score
USAA 98 100 100 94% A++ 98.6
American Family 98 89 100 86% A 95.4
AAA of Southern California 91 94 97 92% A+ 94.1
State Farm 88 93 96 90% A++ 92.4
The Hartford 94 92 90 89% A+ 91.7
AAA Insurance 88 89 95 91% A 91.2
GEICO 84 93 93 89% A++ 90.3
The General 89 91 89 88% A- 90
Titan Insurance 90 87 91 95% A+ 89.6
Progressive 84 91 93 87% A+ 89.5
Mercury Insurance 88 91 90 85% A+ 89.4
Allstate 85 90 92 88% A+ 89.3
Nationwide 87 88 84 90% A+ 88.7
Liberty Mutual 84 87 93 88% A 88.5
21st Century 85 86 87 88% A 86.7
Esurance 85 80 95 87% A+ 85.9
Safeco 85 85 85 86% A 85.8
Travelers 80 87 87 83% A++ 85.2
Farmers Insurance 78 87 88 79% A 84.3
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Data Source: Insure.com Best Car Insurance Companies

The diagram below demonstrates how deductibles can change yearly insurance costs when searching for cheap insurance for good students. The data assumes a single male driver, comprehensive and collision coverage, and no policy discounts are applied.

In the chart above, a 40-year-old driver could pocket $362 a year by changing their physical damage coverage from a $100 deductible up to a $500 deductible, or save $546 by switching to a $1,000 deductible. Younger drivers, such as the 20-year-old example, could reduce their rates $1,190 or more by choosing a higher deductible.

When raising deductibles, it is necessary to have plenty of discretionary funds to enable you to cover the extra out-of-pocket expense, which is the primary disadvantage of high deductibles.