Compare USAA vs. GEICO to Find Out Which Is Best for You
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Verdict
USAA is cheaper for drivers in every category. GEICO is somewhat more expensive but available to any licensed driver. GEICO has a higher J.D. Power rating, but USAA has a better customer complaint ratio.
USAA auto insurance is good for military members and their families.
GEICO auto insurance is good for drivers who don’t have any military affiliation.
Is USAA or GEICO Cheaper Overall?
For drivers concerned about affordability, USAA is cheaper than GEICO.
The average annual premium for USAA is $883, which is $164 cheaper than GEICO, with an average premium of $1,047. However, these rates are based on a national average for a 40-year-old male driver with full coverage and a clean driving record. Your rates could be substantially higher or lower depending on a number of factors.
Because rates are determined, in part, by your age, location and driving history, you will need to compare quotes from both companies to determine which is the most affordable auto insurance company for you. Because local laws and regulations have such a significant impact on insurance prices, the state you live in is one of the largest factors in determining your rates, potentially impacting your premium by thousands of dollars each year. Compare car insurance quotes based on your location to make sure you’re getting the best possible rate.
It is important to note that USAA is only available to active or retired military members, spouses and families. Although they often have the lowest available rates of any insurance company, not everyone is eligible to sign up for a policy through USAA.
Is USAA or GEICO Cheaper in Your State?
USAA is cheaper than GEICO in most states. However, individual rates may vary based on your specific location.
Out of the 46 states MoneyGeek had rates for both companies, GEICO is only cheaper than USAA in eight. Each state has its own laws and rules regarding auto insurance, which means many states have much different rates than the average cost of auto insurance. Your state may have much higher or lower rates than the national average. Both USAA and GEICO write policies in all 50 states and Washington D.C.
The "Not Available" text in this table does not necessarily mean this coverage is unavailable. Instead, it means that our study did not include data for these states. If you'd like to see which company may offer you a lower quote instantly based on you age or driving record, use our car insurance estimator.
Average Cost Per State
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- StateUSAA Annual PremiumGEICO Annual Premium
- Alabama$677$827
- Alaska$619$882
- Arizona$790$770
- Arkansas$663$866
- California$1,171$1,270
- Colorado$695$872
- Connecticut$847$925
- District Of Columbia$672$606
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Is USAA or GEICO Cheaper for Your Age and Driving History?
Many factors greatly influence your car insurance rates, including your age, driving record and credit score. USAA has the lowest rates in every category.
- A driver with a ticket would find less expensive coverage with USAA at $939 annually, compared to $1,265 at GEICO.
- A driver with an at-fault accident would find cheaper coverage with USAA at $1,236 annually, compared to $1,494 at GEICO.
- A driver with a DUI would find more affordable coverage with USAA at $1,816 annually, compared to $2,680 with GEICO.
- A driver with poor credit would find less costly coverage with USAA at $1,398 annually, compared to GEICO at $1,676.
Please note that data for an 18-year-old student with a USAA policy is not available in our study. However, this does not necessarily mean that this coverage is unavailable for purchase.
Average Car Insurance Rates by Driver Profile
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- Driver ProfileUSAA Annual PremiumGEICO Annual Premium
- 18-Year-Old StudentNot Available$3,164
- Driver With a Ticket$939$1,265
- Driver With an Accident$1,236$1,494
- Driver With a DUI$1,816$2,680
- Driver With Poor Credit$1,459$1,681
USAA vs. GEICO: Which Is Better for Discounts?
Many insurance companies offer a wide variety of discounts, often for similar groups such as students, safe drivers and drivers with more than one car. However, how many discounts a company offers is less important than your final quote.
Most insurance companies offer two huge discounts. The first is the home and auto bundle, a discount for carrying both homeowners insurance and car insurance with the same company. The second is a usage-based car insurance program, which only recently became an available discount but has been widely adopted by most insurance companies.
Most insurance companies offer a 17% discount for bundling your home and auto coverage, but this will vary depending on which company you choose. USAA offers a smaller discount of about 8% on bundled insurance. However, their rates are already so much lower than their competitors that they don’t need to provide much of a discount to stay competitive. Learn more in our comprehensive home and auto insurance bundle analysis.
GEICO doesn’t specify how much of a discount they offer for bundling your policies, which means USAA is the better choice in this category. Getting a quote from GEICO can help you find out how their policy bundling discount compares.
USAA offers savings of 10% for enrolling in their safe driving program called SafePilot, with the potential for an additional 30% in savings based on your behavior behind the wheel. GEICO doesn’t put an exact number on the possible savings with its safe driving program, DriveEasy. However, GEICO does say that safe drivers may see a premium reduction, while unsafe drivers may see an increase in premium.
The sizable potential discount available with USAA means that they come out ahead in this category, but keep in mind that USAA is not available to every driver. Getting a quote from GEICO can help you find the lowest rates available to you. GEICO is also unique in that they offer dozens of discounts, including discounts for affiliations with more than 500 groups nationwide.
Available Discount by Company
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- DiscountAvailable With USAA?Available With GEICO?
- Safe driving✔✔
- Defensive driving✔✔
- Driver's education✔✔
- Good student✔✔
- New vehicle✔✔
- Multiple Car✔✔
- Mileage✔
- Vehicle storage✔
USAA vs. GEICO: Which Has Better Customer Service?
MoneyGeek determines customer service experience ratings by reviewing J.D. Power customer rankings and tracking the number of customer complaints lodged with the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC).
The average J.D. Power auto insurance customer service ranking is 835. USAA is not included in the J.D. Power rankings because it’s not available to every customer, but they did give USAA a five-star rating, which is listed as one of the best car insurance companies for consumers. GEICO has a customer satisfaction score of 843 out of 1,000, slightly higher than the industry average. Because USAA does not have a score, the two companies can’t be compared in this category.
The NAIC compliance report has a national median score of 1.00. A company with a score lower than 1.00 has fewer complaints than average, and a company with a score higher than 1.00 has more complaints than average. According to NAIC, USAA scored a 1.00, which means it’s in line with the national median score. GEICO scored a 2.04, which means it has more than double the average amount of complaints. USAA is the clear winner in this category.
Though the companies can’t be compared in customer service rankings, it is clear that USAA is the winner when it comes to customer satisfaction.
USAA vs. GEICO: Customer Satisfaction Rating
USAA does not have a J.D. Power ranking, which means that GEICO has a higher ranking at 843 out of 1,000. They scored highest in the rental experience category.
USAA has a better overall presence on the J.D. Power website with a five-star rating in several categories, including first notice of loss, rental experience and claims servicing. However, because USAA isn’t available to every customer, they were not given a numerical score.
USAA vs. GEICO: Customer Complaint Ratio
Compared to GEICO, USAA has a lower NAIC customer complaint ratio of 1.00. The national median score of 1.00, so USAA received an average number of complaints. GEICO has a score of 2.04, which means they received more than double the average number of complaints.
USAA
GEICO
USAA vs. GEICO: Coverage Options
Each insurance company offers specific coverages meant to meet the needs of their customer base, but there are some types of coverage standard in the auto insurance industry, including:
- Liability insurance
- Comprehensive insurance
- Collision insurance
- Personal injury protection
- Uninsured motorist insurance
Most insurance companies offer additional types of coverage that are unique to that company and designed for their target market.
USAA has four types of additional auto insurance coverage, including:
- Rental reimbursement
- Roadside assistance
- Accident forgiveness
- Rideshare insurance
GEICO has four types of additional auto insurance coverage, including:
- Accident forgiveness
- Mechanical breakdown insurance
- Roadside assistance
- Rental reimbursement (due to a covered accident)
Both companies offer these options to their customers for an additional cost. USAA and GEICO offer the same number of additional coverages, which means they are tied in this category.
Coverage Options by Company
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- CoverageAvailable With USAA?Available With GEICO?
- Rental Car and/or Travel Reimbursement✔✔
- Roadside Assistance✔✔
- Accident Forgiveness✔✔
- Rideshare Insurance✔
- Mechanical Breakdown Insurance✔
USAA vs. GEICO: Which Is More Financially Stable?
An insurance company’s A.M. Best rating shows its financial stability, or its ability to pay claims and expenses in the future. A.M. Best ratings are like a standard report card, with an F rating for failing companies and up to an A++ for highly secure companies.
USAA and GEICO both received an A++ financial rating, the highest available rating from A.M. Best. Most large insurance companies have a robust financial stability rating, but not all companies receive an A++ rating.
Both companies have superior financial ratings, leaving them tied in this category.
USAA vs. GEICO: Online Tools
Unlike USAA, GEICO does not require you to buy a policy to utilize its online tools, making it MoneyGeek's clear winner for online experience.
GEICO sells their product directly to their customers, which means almost all their business is conducted online. GEICO customers can sign up for a policy, file claims and even pay their bills at any time, day or night. One of the company’s unique online features allows their customers to use some online tools, such as online premium payments, without needing to log in, making it simple to maintain a GEICO policy.
USAA also offers online access to your policy, allowing both customers and non-customers to file a claim and monitor its progress through their website. USAA requires you to join the company before you have access to most of their online features.
Methodology
Data on car insurance rates comparing USAA and GEICO are for a 40-year-old male with a full coverage car insurance policy, unless otherwise noted. The policy includes:
- $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
To evaluate available coverages, discounts and online tools, MoneyGeek collected information from insurer websites and quote tools. To score insurance companies on customer satisfaction and customer complaints, MoneyGeek referenced publicly available data from J.D. Power and the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC). Financial stability was measured using financial strength ratings from A.M. Best, a leading insurance credit rating agency.
About Rachael Brennan
sources
- J.D. Power. "2019 U.S. Auto Claims Satisfaction Study." Accessed April 3, 2021.
- GEICO. "DriveEasy." Accessed April 3, 2021.
- GEICO. "Express Services." Accessed April 3, 2021.
- USAA. "File A Claim, Check Status Online." Accessed April 3, 2021.
- USAA. "SafePilot." Accessed April 3, 2021.