Who has the best cheap motorcycle insurance?
Motorcycle insurance starts as low as $15 to $50 per month, with top budget providers offering competitive liability and full-coverage rates.
Top Cheap Motorcycle Insurance Providers
- GEICO Motorcycle Insurance
- Best for: Budget-conscious riders looking for robust discounts.
- Cost & Details: Highly competitive standard rates with an A++ financial strength rating from A.M. Best.
- Discounts: Multi-policy bundling, Motorcycle Safety Foundation (MSF) course completion, and anti-theft device installation.
- Progressive Motorcycle Insurance
- Best for: Overall coverage value and custom parts protection.
- Cost & Details: Plans start as low as $75 per year for basic needs, featuring $3,000 of complimentary custom parts/equipment coverage with comprehensive and collision policies.
- Discounts: Pay-in-full, motorcycle endorsement, and multi-policy bundling.
- Dairyland Insurance
- Best for: High-risk riders or those with less-than-perfect driving records.
- Cost & Details: Basic specialty and standard coverages starting around $15 per month depending on location and riding history.
- Discounts: Multi-cycle, H.O.G. member discounts, home ownership, and rider training courses.
- VOOM Insurance
- Best for: Low-mileage or seasonal riders.
- Cost & Details: Pay-per-mile specialty options with rates starting at $50 per year and potential savings up to 60%.
- Requirements: Activation via mobile app using a simple odometer photo, with no tracking hardware required.
Average Motorcycle Insurance Costs
| Coverage Type | Average Monthly Cost | Average Annual Cost |
|---|---|---|
| Liability-Only | $81 per month | $100 – $500 per year (depending on bike/age) |
| Full Coverage | $179 per month | $1,000 – $3,000 per year (higher for sports bikes/younger riders) |
How to Lower Your Motorcycle Insurance Premium
- Take a Safety Course: Graduating from a Motorcycle Safety Foundation (MSF) or rider training course typically secures a 10% to 15% discount.
- Bundle Policies: Insure your motorcycle with the same company that handles your auto, renters, or home insurance for multi-policy price breaks.
- Pay in Full: Paying your annual premium all at once avoids installment fees and unlocks pay-in-full discounts.
- Choose Your Bike Wisely: Standard cruisers and lower-horsepower bikes are significantly cheaper to insure than high-risk sport bikes.
What is the average cost of motorcycle insurance?
The national average cost of motorcycle insurance ranges from $40 to $125 per month, or about $500 to $1,500 per year.
Cost by Coverage Level
- Liability-only coverage: Costs about $12 to $50 per month ($200 to $500 per year).
- Full coverage (liability, collision, and comprehensive): Costs about $50 to $250 per month ($900 to $1,500+ per year).
Key Cost Factors
- Your age and experience: Riders under 25 or those with less than two years of experience pay much higher rates.
- Type of motorcycle: Sport bikes and high-displacement engines (1000cc+) cost significantly more to insure than standard cruisers or smaller starter bikes.
- Location: Urban areas with heavy traffic and high theft rates have higher rates than rural areas. States like Iowa often have the lowest averages, while states like Michigan tend to be higher.
- Riding record: Clean driving records without tickets or accidents lower your overall price.
You can estimate personalized numbers or look into specific state data using the Riders Share Cost Estimator.
How to get the cheapest motorbike insurance?
To get the cheapest motorbike insurance, compare multiple quotes across comparison platforms and choose fully comprehensive cover, which is often surprisingly cheaper than third-party-only options.
Compare and Pay
- Shop around: Use comparison tools like MoneySuperMarket or GoCompare to check multiple providers instead of auto-renewing. You can also check dedicated brokers via The Bike Insurer. Look for cashback deals on specialized sites before buying.
- Pay annually: Avoid monthly payment plans, which add interest and increase the overall cost.
- Adjust your excess: Raise your voluntary excess (the amount you pay toward a claim) to lower your monthly or annual premium, but ensure you can still afford it if an incident occurs.
Choose the Right Policy and Bike
- Select comprehensive cover: Insurers often view riders requesting basic third-party cover as higher risk, making fully comprehensive policies cheaper on median averages.
- Pick a smaller engine: Lower-capacity bikes (like 50cc or 125cc scooters) sit in lower insurance groups and cost less to repair.
- Avoid modifications: Custom parts raise your bike's value, performance, and repair cost, which drives up your price.
- Be accurate with mileage: Estimate your annual mileage honestly; overestimating or underestimating can cause pricing or claim issues.
Secure Your Ride
- Improve physical security: Store your motorbike in a locked garage overnight and use Thatcham-approved locks, alarms, or tracking devices to deter thieves and lower quotes.
- Build a no-claims bonus: Safe riding without claims reduces your future premiums significantly over time. Opinions on Reddit's r/MotoUK are mixed regarding whether upgrading immediately from a CBT to a full license drops rates right away, but building a clean riding history helps long-term.
Is Progressive or GEICO better for motorcycle insurance?
Neither Progressive nor GEICO is universally "better" for motorcycle insurance, as which one wins depends on your specific bike, riding record, and coverage needs.
Progressive
- Best for: Overall coverage, custom parts, and specialized features.
- Key Advantages: Progressive is widely rated as the best overall motorcycle insurer. It typically includes automatic accessory coverage (usually around $3,000) with collision and comprehensive plans, and offers options like total loss replacement, OEM parts, and coverage for custom equipment.
- Cost Factor: Can be pricier for some clean-record or standard riders, but often competitive or better for high-risk profiles.
GEICO
- Best for: Basic liability and senior riders.
- Key Advantages: GEICO is often noted for cheaper basic liability rates and offers specific perks like mature rider and helmet protection discounts. Many riders with clean driving histories find GEICO's base rates lower.
- Cost Factor: Frequently cheaper for low-risk, standard profiles, but offers fewer specialized add-ons (like full replacement cost) compared to Progressive.
Direct Comparison
- Rates: Rates vary dramatically by location, age, driving record, and the exact model of your motorcycle. Some riders save hundreds by choosing GEICO, while others find Progressive to be half the price.
- Customization: Opinions on Reddit are mixed, but industry reviews (like those from U.S. News and CNBC Select) generally rank Progressive higher for specialized accessory and equipment coverage.
How to get lower motorcycle insurance?
You can lower your motorcycle insurance costs by reviewing options and applying for savings through providers like Progressive or Dairyland.
Adjust Your Coverage and Policy
- Raise your deductible: Choosing a higher deductible lowers your monthly or annual payment.
- Pay in full: Paying your entire annual premium at once helps you avoid installment fees and interest charges.
- Bundle policies: Combine your motorcycle policy with auto, home, or renters insurance for a multi-policy discount.
- Limit your annual mileage: Insure your bike for fewer miles if you only ride occasionally.
Improve Your Riding Profile and Training
- Take a safety course: Complete an approved motorcycle safety or training course to earn an insurer discount.
- Maintain a clean record: Avoid traffic violations, accidents, and claims to keep your rates low.
- Get an endorsement: Ensure you have a valid motorcycle license or proper endorsement on your driver's license.
Choose and Secure Your Bike Wisely
- Ride a smaller bike: Standard, commuter, or lower-displacement motorcycles are cheaper to insure than high-performance sport bikes.
- Park in a secure location: Store your motorcycle in a locked garage or private driveway overnight instead of on the street.
- Install anti-theft devices: Equip your bike with alarms, GPS trackers, or heavy-duty locks and report them to your insurance provider.
Cheap Motorcycle Insurance | 7 Ways To Get The Best Deal
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Who carries the cheapest motorcycle insurance?
Dairyland® insurance and Progressive often provide the cheapest motorcycle insurance rates, with basic plans starting around $15 per month or $75 per year.
Top Budget Providers
- Dairyland® insurance: Known for low-cost specialty coverage with rates starting as low as $15 a month.
- Progressive: Offers broad coverage, automatic custom parts limits, and plans starting around $75 annually for basic needs.
- GEICO: Frequently delivers competitive pricing, especially when you bundle policies or qualify for mature rider discounts.
- VOOM Insurance: Specializes in pay-per-mile options starting at $50 a year, which works well if you ride infrequently.
- Freeway Insurance: Compares multiple carriers to source low liability rates for standard and sport bikes.
Ways to Lower Your Rate
- Bundle Policies: Combine your bike policy with auto, home, or renters insurance.
- Take a Course: Complete a approved safety or rider training course.
- Adjust Deductibles: Choose a higher deductible to reduce your monthly premium.
- Pay in Full: Pay your annual premium upfront instead of monthly installments.
What is the 12 second rule for motorcycles?
The 12-second rule for motorcycles is a defensive riding technique that requires riders to constantly scan the road at least 12 seconds ahead of their current position to spot and react to potential hazards early.
Taught by the Motorcycle Safety Foundation (MSF) as part of the broader 2-4-12 rule, this visual scanning habit helps prevent emergency maneuvers by giving your brain time to process dangers before they become critical.
The 2-4-12 Awareness Zones
- 2-Second Zone: Your immediate reaction zone covering the road surface and traffic directly in front of you.
- 4-Second Zone: Your immediate path awareness where you spot emerging obstacles, lane changes, or debris.
- 12-Second Zone: Your long-range scan (roughly 528 feet at 30 mph or over 1,000 feet at 60 mph) used to anticipate upcoming intersections, brake lights, and merging traffic.
How to Practice the 12-Second Rule
- Pick a landmark: Choose a fixed object or sign ahead on a familiar road and count "one thousand one, one thousand two..." up to 12. If you reach the object before 12 seconds, you are looking too close to your front tire.
- Cycle your gaze: Move your eyes in layers—look out at the 12-second mark, check the 4-second zone, glance at the 2-second surface area, and return your focus back to the long-range 12-second horizon.
- React early: Spotting trouble early lets you smoothly roll off the throttle, cover your brakes, or change lane position long before an emergency happens.
Which company is best for bike insurance?
Progressive is the best overall company for motorcycle insurance because it offers customizable policies, high accessory coverage limits, and accident forgiveness.
Because "bike" can mean a motorized motorcycle or a pedal bicycle/e-bike, the best insurance provider depends on what you ride.
Top Motorcycle Insurance Companies
- Progressive: Best overall for motorcycles. It includes automatic accessory coverage and handles high-risk riders well.
- State Farm: Best for different types of motorcycles and predictable rate-setting based on engine size rather than model claim history.
- Geico: Best for senior riders and low average rates.
- Harley-Davidson: Best for specialized discounts and new riders.
- Dairyland: Best for basic, highly affordable liability coverage.
Top Bicycle and E-Bike Insurance Companies
- BikeInsure: Best standalone coverage for bicycles and e-bikes. It is the official partner of USA Cycling and covers riding accidents, transit, and theft.
- Velosurance: Best comprehensive multi-risk bicycle policy. It covers crash damage, theft, and adds cyclist liability and medical gap protection.
What are tricks to get cheaper insurance?
The quickest way to get cheaper insurance is to shop around and compare quotes from at least three different companies, as switching providers saves a median of $461 per year.
Adjust Your Policy and Coverage
- Raise your deductible: Increasing your deductible from $200 to $500 or $1,000 can lower your collision and comprehensive costs by 15% to 40%.
- Drop unnecessary coverage: Remove collision and comprehensive coverage on older cars if the annual premium is more than 10% of the car's actual cash value.
- Avoid filing minor claims: Pay out-of-pocket for small, single-car fender benders to keep your driving record clean and prevent rate hikes.
Maximize Discounts
- Bundle your policies: Combine your auto insurance with a homeowners or renters policy for savings up to 30%.
- Opt for digital perks: Sign up for paperless billing and automatic monthly payments to shave a few percentage points off your bill.
- Take a safety course: Complete an approved defensive driving course to earn a recurring 5% to 15% discount.
- Enroll in telematics: Use safe-driving monitoring apps or plug-in devices if you are a low-mileage or cautious driver.
Optimize Timing and Driver Profile
- Shop in advance: Request new quotes 24 to 28 days before your current policy expires; waiting until the last minute can significantly increase your rates.
- Update your mileage: Report lower annual mileage if you drive less than 10,000 miles a year.
- Improve your credit score: Pay down debts and monitor your credit report, as most insurers use credit-based scores to determine pricing.
For more detailed strategies, read the Consumer Reports Guide on Saving on Car Insurance or explore tips directly from Progressive.
Why is motorcycle insurance so low?
Motorcycle insurance is often cheaper than car insurance because motorcycles cause less potential damage to other vehicles and property.
Most users on Reddit agree that liability coverage is inexpensive because a lightweight bike poses a much lower risk to others on the road compared to a heavy car.
Key Reasons for Lower Costs
- Less Damage to Others: Motorcycles weigh much less than cars. If an accident happens, they are far less likely to total another vehicle or smash into a building.
- Lower Repair Costs: Bikes have fewer parts, simpler systems, and take less labor to fix or replace than modern automobiles.
- Fewer Miles Driven: People generally ride motorcycles less often and rack up fewer total miles each year than they do in a standard car.
- Seasonal Use: Most riders store their bikes during bad weather, such as snow, ice, or heavy rain, which cuts down the months they are exposed to road risks.
- Limited Personal Injury Protection: Much of the cost of car insurance goes toward medical and injury claims for passengers. On a motorcycle, the rider has little protection, meaning severe accidents often result in payouts that rely heavily on the rider's own health insurance rather than costly third-party liability.
Note: Insurance is only cheap for basic liability or standard cruisers. High-performance sport bikes, young or inexperienced riders, and comprehensive collision coverages can still make motorcycle policies very expensive.