+120 more){kind=small}
J.J. Starr is an insurance and personal finance expert who has been writing for Compare.com since 2022. Her work has been published across the web, appearing on sites such as Insurify.
Prior to writing for Compare.com, J.J. was a registered banker and life insurance consultant, holding a Series 6, FINRA, and life insurance license. She also earned a master’s degree in writing from New York University.
J.J. has a passion for helping people save money by explaining complex topics like car insurance in a way that is simple and easy to understand.
){kind=small}
3+ years editing insurance content
10+ years in content creation
Lequita's extensive editorial experience spans insurance, personal finance, higher education, and more.
){kind=small}
Licensed property and casualty insurance agent
10+ years editing insurance content
NPN: 20461358
A licensed agent for more than four years, John reviews and fact-checks articles for Compare.com.
Updated
Insurance comparison websites let you quickly compare quotes and coverage from multiple insurers in one place, which helps you save time and makes it easier to find a better rate.
Compare.com is our best overall comparison site, while Insurify stands out for insurer selection, The Zebra for agent support, and Jerry for mobile users.
Some sites provide real-time quotes, but others primarily connect shoppers with insurance companies or agencies.
If you want the cheapest car insurance options from the best car insurance companies, you’ll want to compare quotes from as many top insurers as possible. Insurance comparison sites help you do this quickly while, usually, keeping your information private.
These sites provide free quotes on a single results page, making it easy to compare options side by side. They also often provide licensed insurance agents to help you with any questions you may have. But there can be drawbacks, and not every comparison site works the same way.
Below, we evaluate comparison sites based on customer reviews, insurer availability, transparency, and user experience to help you uncover cheap auto insurance rates and avoid common problems.
See quotes from top insurance companies.
We evaluated seven of the leading quote comparison websites. Using the same driver profile on the quote-generating sites, we generated 36 real-time quotes: 11 from Compare.com, 11 from Insurify, and 14 from Jerry.
In addition to quotes, we considered customer reviews, quote experience, insurer availability, transparency, and privacy protection. Here’s how the seven sites compare:
Comparison Site | Best For | Partner Insurers | Trustpilot Rating | Real-Time Quotes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Compare.com | Best overall | Progressive, Allstate, Liberty Mutual, USAA, The General, Bristol West, and 120 more | 4.7 | 11 |
| Insurify | Best for insurer selection | More than 120 insurers, including USAA, Liberty Mutual, Progressive, Allstate, The General, and Bristol West | 4.7 | 11 |
| The Zebra | Best for agent support | Over 40, including Allstate, Bristol West, National General, Mercury, Travelers, Liberty Mutual | 4.7 | 0 |
| Policygenius | Best for home and auto shoppers | Liberty Mutual, Progressive, Allstate, Nationwide, Travelers, and Mercury | 4.5 | 0 |
| Nerdwallet | Best for research | Allstate, American Family, GEICO, Liberty Mutual, Progressive, State Farm, and more | 3.5 | 0 |
| Jerry | Best for mobile users | More than 100 insurers, including Liberty Mutual, Bristol West, Mercury, Root, and The General | 4.8 | 14 |
| Quote.com | Best for quick initial intake | Allstate, State Farm, Nationwide, Liberty Mutual, Progressive, and more | 2.8 | 0 |
We ranked car insurance comparison websites based on a range of criteria, including customer reviews, privacy practices, quote accuracy, number of quotes, and ease of use. Our top-ranked platforms delivered real-time quotes, clearly explained coverage options, made it easy to compare options, and refrained from selling personal information.
In short, we evaluated each platform based on how easy and seamless it made the insurance-buying process. This is because when you can easily compare many options, you increase your chances of finding a cheap car insurance policy.
Each comparison site has different strengths, so the right choice for you depends on what you prioritize: number of quotes, range of options, availability of guidance, or functionality of tools.
Here’s a detailed overview of the best platforms.
Our top pick overall, Compare.com offers a high-quality shopping experience for auto, home, renters, and pet insurance. You can also compare bundled car and home insurance policies and use financial planning tools.
It’s a great option for people who want a lot of quotes from top insurance companies quickly, with the option of speaking to an independent agent and saving your profile for later. Compare.com provides straightforward quotes and clearly outlines what each policy covers and doesn’t cover. Results include information icons with detailed explanations of coverage options.
Compare.com also doesn’t sell your personal information to third parties and has a no-spam policy. The site itself provides a rich resource library with information about policies, pricing, and how to shop.
Real quotes shown side by side
Savable profile for future price comparisons
Results vary by driver profile
Insurer availability ranges by location
Insurify works with more than 120 insurers and provides quotes for auto, home, renters, and pet insurance policies (plus the option to compare bundled home and auto). The quoting process is quick, and the results were rich and detailed.
The site provides a phone number to speak with an insurance agent on the home page, but it doesn’t show up on the result page (just an “email us” option). Nevertheless, the process was quick and garnered nearly a dozen quotes in just a few minutes.
Large mix of insurance companies
Access to licensed agents
Not all insurers appear in results
Quote accuracy can vary
Minimum-coverage quotes start as low as $47/mo.
The Zebra advertises a wider range of insurance products than others on this list, including car, home, renters, life, pet, commercial, small business, and more. It’s another smartly designed quoting process that feels very similar to Insurify and Compare.
The Zebra didn’t return real-time quotes for our test profile. Instead, it offered the option to get quotes from three partners — State Farm, Progressive, and Allstate — or to call an agent.
The site prominently displayed information about how to speak with an insurance agent, and it connected us with an agent within three minutes of calling.
Simple quoting process
Agents available fast
No actual quotes returned
May require additional forms to get quotes
Policygenius helps people shop for life, home, auto, and disability insurance. It was the only option on this list that promoted disability policies and put life insurance options first. That could have been a sign: We couldn’t complete a quoting process for an auto policy alone.
The process only allowed for a bundled policy (home and auto) quote, and the bundle quote only gave us the option to transfer to an insurance company to get the full quote. Policygenius gives you the option to save a profile and provides access to licensed insurance agents who can guide you through the process.
Licensed insurance agents available
Offers life and disability policies
Couldn’t get a quote for auto coverage alone
Limited bundle quote results
NerdWallet differs considerably from other options on this list, as it offers a wider range of financial services and products. You can compare credit cards, mortgages, personal loans, banking, student loans, investment options, and insurance policies.
The quoting process was similar to Compare and Insurify, but we only received “see my rate” options that transferred us to insurers such as GEICO, Progressive, Allstate, State Farm, and AAA. It provided more options than some other sites, but side-by-side comparisons weren’t an option.
Abundant resource library
Lots of additional financial products
No real quotes
No side-by-side comparison
Jerry offers a well-designed quoting experience. It gathers the information for a quote in less than two minutes from start to finish. But shoppers who start the journey online must download the Jerry mobile app to receive results.
The mobile app is easy to use and provides a ton of information about coverage options and the insurance companies. The app also includes tools to help users manage their insurance after they buy a policy. But mobile shopping isn’t for everyone. That said, we received more than a dozen quotes using Jerry.
Great mobile app
Easy-to-understand result page
Mobile app required to view results
Requires additional information for accurate quotes
Quote.com has a noticeably clunkier design than others on this list, but the quote process is highly functional and includes a helpful progress bar. That said, the process didn’t return any actual quotes. Instead, it offered to transfer us to Progressive Direct, which the tool claimed offered the lowest premium.
To get an actual quote, we had to fill out a second form that was several pages long. We ultimately received one quote.
Easy-to-use quoting tool
Short intake process
No immediate quote results
Limited guidance
A great insurance comparison site makes it easy to compare your options and buy your policy.
Transparency: Quotes should clearly show premiums for coverage options, limits, deductibles, and applied discounts.
Insurer selection: More participating insurance companies means more chances to find the best rate.
Customer reviews: Recent reviews should provide insight into customers’ experiences with the platform, including shopping for coverage and finding competitive rates.
Privacy protection: The privacy statement should say that it doesn’t sell information to third parties.
Licensed agents: The site should provide independent insurance agents to answer questions and help you choose.
Ease of use: The process should feel effortless, and the results should be easy to read.
Real-time quotes: Look for sites that provide quotes directly on the platform so you can quickly compare rates and coverage side by side.
Compare.com customers save up to $867 annually
)
Insurance comparison websites act as a quote marketplace, allowing you to submit your information once to compare quotes from multiple insurers. They typically ask for details about you, such as your age, location, and driving history. The sites also ask for details like your vehicle’s make and model and insurance coverage preferences, such as limits and deductibles.
The platform then uses that information to generate estimated quotes from participating auto insurance companies and delivers those quotes on a results page in a uniform, easy-to-read manner, often with the cheapest rates at the top of the list.
Lead-generation websites, on the other hand, collect your information and then provide links to partnered insurance agencies and companies without providing estimated coverage costs. Some lead-generation sites may sell or share your information to third parties, which can result in unwanted calls or other solicitations.[1]
Before entering any personal information, review the website and customer feedback for signs that a site could generate spam.
Evaluate the website. A sparse or low-quality website can be a warning sign, but appearance alone doesn’t indicate whether a comparison platform is legitimate. Look for clear information about the company, its insurance partners, and how its comparison service works.
Read customer reviews. Check third-party reviews for complaints about unexpected calls, texts, or emails. If the company engages in spam, customers will usually report it.
Read the privacy statement. The privacy policy will state exactly how, when, and why the site shares or sells your personal information to third parties.
Check how quotes work. Look for sites that display real-time quotes rather than simply sending to another company’s website to get your quote.
If you’re unsure but still want to give the site a try, you can use a secondary email.
A real-time quote platform provides real, estimated quotes from participating insurance companies — usually within minutes of starting the quote process. Lead-generation sites most often connect you with insurers or agencies that contracted with the site to receive leads.
These lead-generation sites may share your information with third parties that follow up by email, text, or phone. Some shoppers may appreciate the opportunity to work with an agent, while others may prefer a fully digital experience.
Feature | Real-Time Quote Platforms | Lead-Generation Sites |
|---|---|---|
| Example websites | Compare.com, Insurify, The Zebra, Jerry | Quote.com, NerdWallet, ValuePenguin |
| How results appear | Quotes displayed on the platform — the same site where you started the quote process | Results delivered after transferring you to a third party |
| Speed | Results delivered within minutes | Results usually require additional forms or phone calls |
| Follow-up | Typically limited to a few follow-up emails that are easy to opt out of | May include calls, texts, or emails from the site or its partners |
Real-time platforms generally provide faster, more reliable results. But experiences vary depending on location and other factors.
Here are a few simple steps for choosing the right insurance comparison site.
Confirm the insurance product: Make sure the site compares quotes for the type of insurance product you want (e.g., auto, home, renters).
Review insurance partners: Look for named insurance partners showing a mix of national and regional insurers.
Check customer reviews: Watch for a high number of reviews calling out spammy practices.
Read the privacy policy: Ensure the privacy policy states that it doesn’t sell your information for marketing purposes (sites will share with insurers when you choose to buy a policy, and the privacy statement will say so).
Compare options: Compare your findings to those from other sites, and choose the best fit.
Insurance comparison platforms can make the insurance shopping process easier, but they show options only from their contracted partners. Since some national and regional insurers sell policies exclusively through agents, the quotes for these companies might not appear on the comparison websites.
Additionally, pricing can change during the buying process. The initial quote is really an estimate. Once an insurer confirms your details, it may adjust pricing.
Quote experiences, especially the number of quotes, will vary by location. And some comparison sites offer more options in a given location than others due to differences in the selection of participating insurance companies and coverage areas.
Lastly, some lead-generation sites may result in unwanted emails, texts, or phone calls.
Comparison platforms can be worth it. We spent five minutes getting the 36 quotes discussed earlier — a huge time savings compared to requesting quotes individually. And platforms allow you to compare policies with the same coverage levels on one page.
The downsides are also manageable. Be selective with the platform to avoid spam, and provide accurate information to get the most accurate quotes. Adding quotes from non-participating insurers doesn’t usually take long, should you want a few more options.
Below, we’ve provided answers to the most common questions people have about insurance comparison platforms.
Compare.com is our top overall choice because it combines a large insurer network, real-time quotes, easy-to-read results, and strong privacy practices. Insurify and Jerry are also good options.
Accuracy varies among car insurance comparison tools and depends on a number of factors, so the most accurate site will vary by user. That said, Compare.com, Insurify, and Jerry provided real-time quotes that appeared accurate in our testing.
Yes. Compare.com is a licensed insurance agency in every U.S. state and jurisdiction. It provides personalized quotes from participating insurers.
No. Comparison sites don’t affect your credit score.[2] Insurers may check your credit when generating a quote, but it’s typically a soft inquiry, which doesn’t affect your credit score.
Compare.com and Insurify each work with more than 120 insurers, but the number of companies you can actually compare depends on your location, driving record, and other factors. The company showing the most options to you may not show the most options to a similar driver in another place.
You can compare car insurance rates through marketplaces, such as Compare.com, Insurify, The Zebra, and Jerry, directly on insurer websites, or through an independent insurance agent.
To compare auto insurance quotes, you’ll typically need your ZIP code, driver details, driving history, vehicle year, make, and model, desired coverage limits, and estimated annual mileage. You’ll need additional information, like your license number and VIN, to purchase your new policy.
Compare quotes at least once a year, ideally around each policy renewal, to ensure you’ve got the right coverage at the right price. You should also shop after moving, buying a new car, adding a driver, or changing coverage.
Data scientists at Compare.com analyzed more than 50 million real-time auto insurance quotes from more than 75 partner insurers in order to compile the rates and statistics seen in this article. Compare.com’s auto insurance data includes coverage analysis and details on drivers’ vehicles, driving records, insurance histories, and demographic information.
All the rates listed in this article have been collected from a combination of real Compare.com quotes and external insurance rate data gathered in collaboration with Quadrant Information Services. Compare.com uses these observations to provide readers with insights into how auto insurance companies determine their premiums.
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
Compare.com's #1 goal is to save you money. We publish resources that are based on hard-hitting data and years of industry experience to help you make more informed decisions with your wallet.
Learn more about us, our team, and what makes us tick.
J.J. Starr is an insurance and personal finance expert who has been writing for Compare.com since 2022. Her work has been published across the web, appearing on sites such as Insurify.
Prior to writing for Compare.com, J.J. was a registered banker and life insurance consultant, holding a Series 6, FINRA, and life insurance license. She also earned a master’s degree in writing from New York University.
J.J. has a passion for helping people save money by explaining complex topics like car insurance in a way that is simple and easy to understand.
3+ years editing insurance content
10+ years in content creation
Lequita's extensive editorial experience spans insurance, personal finance, higher education, and more.
Licensed property and casualty insurance agent
10+ years editing insurance content
NPN: 20461358
A licensed agent for more than four years, John reviews and fact-checks articles for Compare.com.
At Compare.com, it’s our mission to give you the tools to find the best (and most affordable) insurance for your unique needs and budget. We strive to provide information that’s helpful, clear, and unbiased, and we believe that comparing insurance companies should never put you at risk of spam. Our editorial team — which is made up of experienced writers, editors, insurance agents, and data analysts — has spent thousands of hours researching and creating the coverage overviews, side-by-side comparisons, and detailed reviews you see across our site.
While we make money through partnerships with some of the brands we discuss in our articles, our editorial team operates 100% independently, and these partners never influence or affect the topics, reviews, ratings, or recommendations we provide. We never guarantee favorable reviews or mentions in exchange for compensation from any brands or partners, and we uphold strict editorial standards to ensure our content is always independent, truthful, and unbiased.