Cost and Coverage Comparison (2023)

When you compare Farmers Insurance and State Farm auto coverage, each company has its pros and cons. Farmers offers more coverage options, while State Farm typically has lower rates. We at the Guides Auto team will give you an in-depth look at both providers to help you determine which is best for your needs.

We’ll also offer two more recommendations for the best car insurance companies on the market. Always compare car insurance quotes from multiple providers to find the best fit.

We rate Farmers and State Farm by weighing cost data, looking at customer reviews and consumer reports and researching where each insurer’s services are available. We combine these scores to come up with our overall ratings.

Is Farmers Better Than State Farm?

We use the same methodology to rate every insurance provider. Compare our ratings of Farmers and State Farm in the table below:

Here are a few highlights for Farmers:

• Wide array of coverage options
• Many discounts
• Coverage is available throughout the U.S.
• Solid AM Best financial strength rating

Read more: Farmers Insurance review

Here are a few highlights for State Farm:

• Many discounts for young drivers and teen drivers
• Lower-than-average rates for car and home insurance
• Over 19,000 local insurance agents across the country
• Excellent AM Best financial strength rating

Read more: State Farm insurance review

According to the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC), State Farm is the largest car insurance provider in the country. The company held 15.93% of the market share in 2021. Farmers is also a large insurance provider, though its market share was significantly lower than State Farm at 4.76%.

Both companies offer a large variety of insurance coverage options ranging from standard to alternative coverages like classic car insurance, boat insurance and RV insurance.

Compare Farmers and State Farm

The table below lists each company’s years in business, industry ratings, J.D. Power rating and our award, if applicable.

Because both Farmers and State Farm are large insurers, most customers can find the kind of coverage they need from either provider. When it comes to auto insurance options, the two companies tend to offer the same kinds of coverage. State Farm offers usage-based insurance in 47 states compared to 46 for Farmers. It also has a travel expense coverage add-on that Farmers doesn’t offer.

Farmers offers more optional coverage choices than State Farm, however, including accident forgiveness, new car replacement coverage and glass and windshield coverage.

Farmers and State Farm Coverage Comparison

The table below provides information about the insurance options and common add-ons available from Farmers and State Farm. Both offer the six standard types of coverage found in a full-coverage car insurance policy.

Farmers and State Farm Usage-Based Insurance Comparison

Both Farmers and State Farm offer telematics insurance programs. The table below details each company’s usage-based insurance option.

State Farm Drive Safe & Save won’t raise your rates if your driving habits don’t improve, but Farmers Signal can cause your insurance premium to go up.

According to our data from Quadrant Information Services, full-coverage policies from Farmers cost an average of $2,140 per year, while policies from State Farm cost an average of about $1,481 per year. The national average for a full-coverage policy is $1,730 per year. These averages are based on the profile of a married 35-year-old driver with a good credit score and a clean driving record.

State Farm vs. Farmers: Auto Insurance Quote Averages

Policyholders with either provider will usually see higher rates than other customers if their driving history includes traffic violations. We analyzed rate averages from Quadrant Information Services for multiple driver profiles with each company. Each quote is for a full-coverage insurance policy.

¹Data is based on the driving profile of a 35-year-old male.

State Farm vs. Farmers: Discounts

Below is a table comparing car insurance discounts from Farmers and State Farm. Farmers offers more of the discounts that are common in the industry.

²Farmers doesn’t offer these discounts in all states.

Farmers vs. State Farm: Bundling Options

Both Farmers and State Farm offer discounts for bundling insurance products. This means if you have auto insurance from either company and bundle it with that same provider’s homeowners, renters or life insurance, for example, you can save money on all of your coverage.

State Farm ranked the highest among large insurers in the J.D. Power 2022 U.S. Insurance Shopping Study^SM, receiving 885 out 1,000 points. Farmers ranked second in the study, scoring one point below the segment average with 862 points out of 1,000.

Compare State Farm and Farmers: Customer Reviews

The table below shows Farmers’ and State Farm’s average customer review scores from the BBB website and Trustpilot. Keep in mind that while both companies have low scores from customers, these reviews only represent a small fraction of the insurers’ customers. We also included ratings for each company’s mobile app.

Our review team reached out to Farmers and State Farm for comment on these scores but did not receive a response.

After comparing State Farm vs. Farmers, we believe both are reputable companies and solid choices for auto insurance. We give State Farm a higher overall score and stronger recommendation because of these factors:

• Its car insurance rates are much lower than Farmers’ on average.
• It has many local agents around the nation.
• Its usage-based insurance program won’t raise policyholders’ insurance costs.

On the other hand, Farmers offers many more add-on coverage options, making it a good choice for drivers who want to ensure their cars are covered in nearly any scenario.

State Farm vs. Farmers: Top Picks

It’s best to compare quotes from several providers to find the best rates for car insurance. In addition to Farmers and State Farm, we recommend checking out USAA and Geico.

USAA: Low Rates for Military

If you’re an active-duty member of the military, a veteran or their immediate family member, you can get some of the cheapest car insurance available. USAA is known for its low cost and excellent customer service. It’s the fifth-largest auto insurance provider in the U.S. and holds an A++ financial strength rating from AM Best.

Read more: USAA insurance review

Compare providers: USAA vs. State Farm

Geico: Affordable for Most Drivers

Geico has a reputation for affordable rates and great customer service, which has helped it become the country’s second-largest auto insurer. The company holds an A++ financial strength rating from AM Best, meaning it’s well-equipped to pay out insurance claims.

Read more: Geico insurance review

Our Methodology

Because consumers rely on us to provide objective and accurate information, we created a comprehensive rating system to formulate our rankings of the best car insurance companies. We collected data on dozens of auto insurance providers to grade the companies on a wide range of ranking factors. The end result was an overall rating for each provider, with the insurers that scored the most points topping the list.

Here are the factors our ratings take into account:

• Cost: Auto insurance rate estimates generated by Quadrant Information Services and discount opportunities were both taken into consideration.
• Coverage: Companies that offer a variety of choices for insurance coverage are more likely to meet consumer needs.
• Reputation and experience: Our research team considered market share, ratings from industry experts and years in business when giving this score.
• Availability: Auto insurance companies with greater state availability and few eligibility requirements scored highest in this category.
• Customer experience: This score is based on volume of complaints reported by the NAIC and customer satisfaction ratings reported by J.D. Power. We also considered the responsiveness, friendliness and helpfulness of each insurance company’s customer service team based on our own shopper analysis.

Our credentials:

• 800 hours researched
• 45 companies reviewed
• 8,500+ consumers surveyed

³Data accurate at time of publication.