California Auto Insurance: Our pick is Mercury at $143/mo (2026)
The pick: Mercury at $143/mo for California auto (filed 2026-01-15). Across 5 recent carrier filings, this is the lowest baseline. For most California drivers this is the right starting point; your specific quote depends on your ZIP, age, vehicle, and record.
Get your specific California auto quote in 60 seconds →
Why this pick
California’s auto rates ($1,816/yr NAIC 2023) are middle-of-pack despite urban density and litigation costs, because Prop 103 caps how fast carriers can re-rate. Home insurance is the opposite story: the carrier exodus that started after the 2017 wildfire season has reshaped which carriers will write in which ZIPs.
How PolicyChat sources this data
PolicyChat Rate Authority aggregates three public + licensed sources, with per-record provenance. Every rate cited on this page links to its source filing.
- State DOI / SERFF filings — public rate filings, refreshed daily.
- NAIC published averages — annual state aggregates (currently 2023, latest released).
- Licensed partner feeds (EverQuote, LendingTree) — real-time per-profile quotes when a user walks through Sage.
Methodology: /methodology/rate-authority/
Recent California auto filings
| Carrier | Filed Rate | Effective | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mercury | $143/mo | 2026-01-15 | State DOI |
| Geico | $157/mo | 2025-11-01 | State DOI |
| Progressive | $172/mo | 2025-12-01 | State DOI |
| State Farm | $190/mo | 2026-01-01 | State DOI |
| Allstate | $202/mo | 2025-12-15 | State DOI |
Compare actual quotes with Sage →