Is USAA Car Insurance Good? Reviews and Expert Insights

USAA is one of the most affordable car insurers in the country and offers specialized perks tailored specifically for military families that are hard to find elsewhere.

However, eligibility is restricted. You can only buy a USAA policy if you are a current member or veteran of the U.S. armed forces, or if you’re a qualifying family member.¹

You qualify for USAA through your own service, or through a parent or spouse who is or was a USAA member.¹

Eligible groups include:

• Active-duty members of the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps, Coast Guard, Space Force, National Guard, and Reserves.

• Veterans and other separated service members who received an Honorable or General Under Honorable Conditions discharge.³

• Contracted ROTC cadets and midshipmen, qualified officer and warrant officer candidates, and U.S. service academy appointees.

• Actively commissioned officers of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the U.S. Public Health Service.¹

• Spouses of USAA members. Certain widowed and former spouses may also qualify.

• Children of USAA members, including adult children.

Not eligible for USAA? Use Luva to see real, personalized, up-to-the-minute quotes from insurers in your area.

USAA averages $1,480 a year for full coverage, or $123 a month. 

When comparing rates for the same driver profile across insurers in our database, the average annual premium was $2,293. That makes USAA about $813 a year cheaper, or 35% below average.

How much does USAA car insurance cost by driver age?

Like most carriers, USAA charges more for very young drivers. Prices drop sharply between ages 16 and 25, and keep falling through 55. They then rise a little for 65- and 70-year-olds.

But USAA was priced very competitively for members of all ages: For 16-year-olds, USAA’s average annual rate of $6,600 was about 27% below the industry average of $9,090.

What does USAA car insurance cost by state?

How much does a ticket or accident raise a USAA rate?

USAA premium increases are consistent with how other carriers treat riskier drivers. But USAA tends to retain its pricing advantage even for riskier drivers because it typically starts at a lower rate than competing car insurance companies.

USAA also charges much less than other carriers after a single DUI conviction. In fact, the average rate USAA charges a driver with a recent DUI is about the same as the all-carrier average rate for drivers with a single speeding ticket.

If you have a violation, use Luva to compare rates side by side with multiple other leading carriers in your area.

Like all U.S. car insurance carriers, USAA sells the standard lineup: liability, collision, comprehensive, and uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage.⁴

Additionally, USAA offers these four optional types of protection:

• Medical payments and personal injury protection: Pays medical bills for you and your passengers, depending on your state.

• Rental reimbursement: Pays for a rental while your car is repaired.

• Roadside assistance: Towing, jump starts, lockouts, flat tire assistance, and fuel delivery.

• Rideshare endorsement: If you drive for a rideshare company like Uber or Lyft, this optional endorsement covers you while you wait for a ride request, when your rideshare policy and personal policy otherwise wouldn’t.

• Car replacement assistance: If your car is totaled or stolen, USAA’s car replacement assistance feature pays 20% more than its actual cash value, which is your car’s value after accounting for depreciation and wear and tear.⁵

USAA offers a number of discount programs, which can significantly reduce your premiums, even compared to USAA’s already low base premiums.

Here’s a look at six different USAA discounts:

Additionally, USAA offers several other discount programs for:

• 5-year clean driving record

• Completing an approved accident prevention course

• Completing an approved driver’s education program for new drivers

• Multiple vehicles

• Cars under three years old⁶

USAA products are designed especially for military families, who move often and are frequently deployed outside the United States.

Here are some of the most important policy features for service members and their families.

• Vehicle storage discount: Get up to 60% off your premiums while your car is in storage. This is ideal for those on deployments or attending service schools far from home. To qualify, the car must be stored securely.⁷

• On-base garaging discount: Military bases tend to have lower theft and vandalism rates than the rest of the country. That lowers the risk for car insurance companies. USAA gives you a discount of up to 15% when you garage your car on base.³

• Overseas policies: Unlike most U.S. carriers, USAA maintains separate underwriting entities in countries or jurisdictions with a large military presence. USAA provides an easy way to change your auto and property coverage while you’re getting settled in your new duty station.⁸

• Military gear, equipment, and uniforms coverage: USAA renters insurance covers military uniforms and gear with no deductible on a covered loss while you’re on active or reserve duty. A separate valuable personal property policy covers jewelry, instruments, and similar items, also with no deductible.⁸

• Personal Property Plus: In Europe, this policy covers sports equipment, bikes, and other gear you take on deployment, again with no deductible.⁸

TIP: If you’re leaving your car while going on a long deployment or assignment, keep comprehensive coverage active. That way, you have some protection against damage from rodent or insect infestation (common for cars left idle for long periods of time), floods, fires, theft, vandalism, and other hazards.

SafePilot is USAA’s safe-driving telematics mobile app.

Here’s how it works: You sign up, download the USAA DriveSafe app, and it tracks your driving habits automatically.

The app tracks and reports things, including hard braking incidents.⁹ It will also track handling your phone while the vehicle is in motion, and how many hours you drive.¹⁰

Just signing up earns you a discount of up to 15%. And a good DriveSafe record can get you up to 30% off at renewal.⁶

USAA also runs SafePilot Miles, a pay-per-mile plan for drivers who drive 8,000 miles or less per year. SafePilot Miles allows you to generate savings of up to 20% for low mileage and up to 20% for safe driving.

Your car insurance bill changes each month based on the miles you drive. But if you drive less than 8,000 miles per year, it’s usually cheaper than owning a conventional car insurance policy.¹¹

For veterans, active-duty service members, and their qualifying families, USAA typically offers some of the most competitive car insurance rates available.

Here’s how USAA’s average full coverage rates compare:

USAA consistently scores very well in industry customer satisfaction surveys. Here’s a look at the top scores:

J.D. Power generally excludes USAA from its rankings because of its limited membership eligibility, so the score is published for reference rather than as a ranking.

If you qualify for USAA membership, you can get a quote through USAA’s auto insurance page.

Before you get your quotes, you should have some information handy:

• Proof of service or relationship: A DD Form 214 for veterans, military ID or current orders for active duty, or documentation of your relationship to a member.

• Driver information: Name, date of birth, and license number for every driver in the household.

• Vehicle information: The VIN, annual mileage, and where you keep each covered vehicle overnight.

• Your current car insurance declarations page: This is so you can exactly match coverage, limits, and deductibles when you compare.

Luva lets you compare quotes from multiple leading car insurance companies, side-by-side, so you can make an informed decision in just minutes.