New Jersey Car Insurance Calculators: Cost & Coverage

• MoneyGeek sources rate data from Quadrant Information Services, which pulls data directly from insurer filings with New Jersey state regulators. These are the rates insurers charge, not estimates.
• We track every residential ZIP code in New Jersey and update rates monthly.
• Mark Fitzpatrick, a Licensed Property and Casualty Insurance Producer, wrote this page. Mark Friedlander of the Insurance Information Institute reviewed it for accuracy.
• Our editorial standards keep recommendations free from any influence by carrier relationships. Our rating guidelines apply the same criteria to every insurer we analyze.

Your choice of carrier creates a $166-per-month gap in New Jersey, or $1,992 per year, for identical coverage for the same driver. NJM charges $121 per month, and AIG charges $287 per month for the same policy. NJM and Plymouth Rock ($122 per month) don't appear on national comparison websites because they sell directly to consumers and write policies only in New Jersey. A driver who shops on a national platform and picks GEICO at $174 per month as the cheapest option is paying $53 more per month than NJM charges for the same coverage.

A driver currently with AIG who switches to NJM saves $166 per month, while keeping full coverage. The cheapest carrier also changes based on your situation. After a DUI, Plymouth Rock ($145 per month) and NJM ($146 per month) are the most affordable options. For seniors, Selective is the cheapest at $126 per month. In each case, the best rate comes from a carrier most national comparison sites don't list.

Your ZIP code can add up to $82 per month to your New Jersey car insurance rate. Paterson has the highest minimum coverage rate in the state at $164 per month, while the cheapest ZIP codes in Somerset and Morris counties, such as Basking Ridge and Bernardsville, average $82 per month. Northern New Jersey carries additional rate pressure from documented flood risk. FEMA declared a major disaster in 12 counties after Hurricane Ida's remnants hit in September 2021, and insurers factor that history into rates for those areas.

That $82-per-month difference is smaller than the $166-per-month carrier gap, meaning switching insurers in Paterson saves more than moving to the state's cheapest ZIP code. If you've moved recently and haven't updated the address where your car is parked overnight, you may still be paying the rate for your old ZIP code.

New Jersey's largest age-related rate drop happens at 19, not 25, cutting premiums by $293 per month. The 25th birthday, which most drivers expect to be the turning point, delivers only $44 per month in savings, about seven times less. Young drivers pay $415 per month for full coverage on a family plan, 2.41 times the adult rate of $172 per month on the same plan.

That $293 drop at 19 doesn't apply automatically. It requires getting new quotes. For seniors, rates hit a floor at age 70 and then begin rising. Get new quotes at 19 and again at 70, and each renewal after that.

Your credit history creates a $164-per-month gap in New Jersey between poor and excellent credit, or $1,968 per year. The biggest single jump is between good and excellent. One step up saves $63 per month, nearly as much as dropping from full to minimum coverage, which saves $71 per month but removes collision and comprehensive protection.

Insurers don't automatically update your rate when your credit improves. If you've moved into a better credit level and haven't gotten new quotes, you're still paying the old rate.

Your driving record raises your New Jersey rate from the first incident, including accidents you didn't cause. A not-at-fault accident adds $17 per month, a speeding ticket adds $27, an at-fault accident adds $96 and a DUI adds $154.

Most violations stay on your record for 36 months. At month 37, the incident clears and your rate is recalculated as if the violation never happened. If you had a not-at-fault accident, get new quotes right away. NJM is the only carrier in New Jersey that charges nothing for that incident.

Your coverage level affects your New Jersey rate by $71 per month, the difference between full and minimum coverage. That's the smallest savings gap in this section. The carrier gap is $166 per month, and the credit gap between poor and excellent is $164 per month. A driver who drops coverage to save money without first comparing carriers or improving their credit level has chosen the smallest savings option available.

New Jersey raised its minimum limits on January 1, 2026, to $35,000 per person and $70,000 per crash in bodily injury and $25,000 in property damage. If your car is financed or leased, your lender requires full coverage until the loan is paid off. Dropping coverage without lender approval can trigger force-placed insurance added directly to your loan balance.

Your car's make and model affect your rate mainly through comprehensive and collision coverage. New Jersey has one of the highest vehicle theft rates in the country, and the New Jersey State Police recorded 16,694 stolen vehicles in 2023. Comprehensive coverage is what pays if your car is stolen. Without it, you get nothing from your insurer, regardless of what your car is worth.

On a $10,000 car with a $1,000 deductible, adding both coverages costs $852 per year, and the most you'd collect if the car is totaled or stolen is $9,000. As your car loses value, those numbers get closer together, and at some point, the annual cost outweighs what you'd actually collect on a claim. If your car is financed or leased, your lender requires both coverages regardless, so that decision isn't yours to make until the loan is paid off.

Bodily injury liability pays the medical bills, lost wages and legal costs of people you injure when you're at fault. New Jersey raised the minimum to $35,000 per person and $70,000 per crash on January 1, 2026, under P.L.2022, c.87. In New Jersey's no-fault system, the other driver's personal injury protection coverage pays their medical costs first. Bodily injury covers what you owe when a serious injury qualifies for a lawsuit above the injury threshold. A $35,000 per-person limit doesn't cover a hospitalization and lost wages in a dense urban market. If you have home equity or savings, carry at least $100,000 per person and $300,000 per crash.

Property damage liability pays for damage you cause to other drivers' vehicles and property. New Jersey's minimum increased from $5,000 to $25,000 on January 1, 2026, under P.L.2022, c.87. That $25,000 floor still doesn't cover a totaled newer vehicle or damage in a multi-vehicle crash in a dense urban area.

Uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage pays your medical bills and repair costs when the driver who hit you has no insurance or not enough to cover the damage. New Jersey requires this coverage on every registered vehicle, and you can't opt out. When New Jersey raised its bodily injury minimum on January 1, 2026, the required uninsured motorist minimum rose to match at $35,000 per person and $70,000 per crash. The Insurance Research Council found that more than 14% of New Jersey drivers were uninsured in 2023, up from about 3% in 2019.

Collision pays for damage to your own car from a crash, regardless of fault. Comprehensive pays for non-collision damage, including theft, fire and flooding. New Jersey's flood history and high vehicle theft rates mean the standard break-even calculation for dropping comprehensive insurance understates the real risk for most of the state. If your vehicle is financed, the lender requires both coverages regardless of the vehicle's age or value.

Gap insurance covers the difference between what your insurer pays when your car is totaled and what you still owe on the loan. It applies most during the first three years of financing, when your loan balance is usually higher than your car's market value. Dealers offer it at purchase, but your insurer can usually provide it for less on a used car.

The Limited Right to Sue is not a type of insurance. It's a lawsuit election that determines what claims you can bring after a crash. Under N.J.S.A. 39:6A-8, it's the default on every New Jersey standard policy, and drivers who have never made a written election for the Unlimited option are on the Limited version without knowing it.

Limited Right to Sue bars pain and suffering claims for common injuries like whiplash or soft tissue damage. Only serious injuries qualify for a lawsuit under the Limited option: a displaced fracture, permanent loss of function, significant disfigurement or death. To sue for any injury, you need to elect the Unlimited option in writing, which costs more in premium.

1. Get quotes from NJM, Plymouth Rock and Selective before deciding. These three carriers write only in New Jersey and don't appear on national comparison platforms. NJM prices full coverage at $121 per month, Plymouth Rock at $122 and Selective at $123, all below GEICO at $174 per month. MoneyGeek's rankings of the cheapest car insurance in New Jersey include all three alongside national carriers for a side-by-side comparison.
2. Complete an NJMVC-approved defensive driving course before your next renewal. New Jersey law requires every licensed insurer to offer a 5% to 10% discount on liability, personal injury protection and collision premiums for three years to drivers who complete an approved course, under N.J.S.A. 17:33B-44.1. On a $172-per-month full-coverage policy, a 5% discount saves $103 per year, and a 10% discount saves $206 per year. Courses are available online through the NJMVC.
3. Get new quotes on the 19th birthday, not the 25th. New Jersey's largest single-year rate drop is the 19th birthday at $293 per month. The 25th birthday delivers $44 per month. A family at Progressive with a young driver pays $723 per month for that profile. GEICO and NJM each price the same young driver at $216 per month. Get new quotes at 19 and at each birthday through 25.
4. Get new quotes at month 37 after a violation. New Jersey has no SR-22 requirement. The only deadline that matters is month 37, when the violation clears the standard three-year carrier lookback window. For a DUI, Plymouth Rock and NJM are the cheapest post-DUI carriers in the state, and MoneyGeek's New Jersey DUI insurance page lists what each carrier charges after a conviction. For a not-at-fault accident, get new quotes right away. NJM charges nothing for not-at-fault accidents.