Jerry SummaryMercury offers the cheapest car insurance in New Jersey at $115 per month, according to Jerry’s August 2025 data analysis. The average cost of car insurance in New Jersey is $372 per month. The best way to find cheap car insurance in New Jersey is to compare quotes from multiple providers and check for discounts when you shop.
From the bustling streets of Newark to the scenic shores of Cape May, New Jersey drivers face unique challenges on the road. Whether you’re navigating the Parkway during summer beach traffic or dealing with winter weather in North Jersey, having the right car insurance is essential.
Insurance rates can vary dramatically between regions of the Garden State. What someone pays in Trenton might be vastly different from rates in Lakewood. With dense urban areas, busy highways like Interstate 95 and the Turnpike, and seasonal weather challenges, New Jersey drivers need robust coverage that won’t break the bank.
The best way to find cheap car insurance in New Jersey is to compare quotes from multiple insurers and understand what factors influence your rates the most.
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Where to get the cheapest car insurance in New Jersey
New Jerseyans pay $115 per month for the cheapest full coverage car insurance, according to Jerry’s analysis of real customer quotes. Mercury offers the best price.
The majority of drivers choose full coverage policies because it includes the state’s required car insurance, which primarily pays for other drivers’ injuries and car damage, as well as comprehensive and collision insurance, which cover your car.
Full coverage is useful if you have a newer or high-value car that would be expensive to repair if damaged. With collision insurance, your provider pays for damage to your car after an accident, regardless of fault. With comprehensive, your wallet is protected if your car is vandalized or dented by a sudden hailstorm.
If you have a loan or lease on your vehicle, the lender will require
These insurers offer the cheapest full coverage car insurance in New Jersey.
|
Insurance Company
|
Avg Monthly Quote
|
|---|---|
| Mercury | $115 |
| Aspire Advantage | $127 |
| Anchor General | $155 |
| Commonwealth Insurance | $161 |
| AAA | $172 |
| National General | $256 |
| Geico | $276 |
| ROOT | $319 |
| Gainsco | $325 |
| Electric | $331 |
More: Compare cheap full coverage car insurance
Cheap minimum coverage car insurance in New Jersey
Commonwealth Insurance offers the cheapest minimum coverage car insurance in New Jersey at $44 per month, according to Jerry’s analysis.
Minimum coverage is the least insurance you can buy to legally drive in the state. Unlike other states, New Jersey has two types of minimum coverage, standard and basic, but most drivers choose the standard coverage.
These insurers offer the cheapest coverage to New Jersey drivers who buy the standard minimum coverage.
|
Insurance Company
|
Avg Monthly Quote
|
|---|---|
| Commonwealth Insurance | $44 |
| AAA | $73 |
| Trexis | $98 |
| Dairyland | $117 |
| Gainsco | $121 |
| Safeco | $159 |
| Progressive | $172 |
| Geico | $176 |
| National General | $178 |
| ROOT | $190 |
More: Get cheap car insurance the smart way, today
New Jersey requires drivers to carry the following minimum coverage, which the state refers to as a “basic” policy:
- $5,000 in property damage liability.
- $15,000 in personal injury protection, or PIP, per person per accident.
Drivers can purchase a “standard” policy for additional coverage, but it’s not required. This policy includes:
- $25,000 in bodily injury liability per person.
- $50,000 in bodily injury liability per accident.
- $25,000 in property damage liability per accident.
- $15,000 in PIP per person per accident.
Estimate car insurance costs
Enter your ZIP code to see what Jerry customers have been quoted for full coverage, on average.
Average monthly quote:Methodology
Jerry's editorial team analyzed Jerry customer quotes to find the median full coverage quote, by ZIP code. We looked at customers driving popular vehicles, including the Ford-150, Honda Accord, Nissan Altima, RAM 1500, Toyota Camry and Toyota RAV4 . We also used the following base driver profile:
- 35-45 years old.
- Clean driving record.
- $50,000 in bodily injury liability, per person.
- $100,000 in bodily injury liability, per accident.
- $1,000 deductible for comprehensive and collision insurance.
Cheapest New Jersey car insurance by age
When you first start driving, your age significantly affects your premium costs — young New Jersey drivers will pay higher rates than more experienced drivers. This is especially true in densely populated areas like North Jersey, where accident rates tend to be higher.
Once you reach your 30s, rates don't vary as much due to age alone. However, life events like getting married, buying a home or adding family members to your policy can affect your premium.
Any number of things could cause your rate to rise or fall over time. The best way to ensure you aren’t leaving money on the table is to make a point to check for better rates each year.
Cheap car insurance for New Jerseyans between 18 and 29 years old
Commonwealth Insurance offers the cheapest car insurance for New Jerseyans under 30 years old seeking full coverage at $161 per month, according to Jerry's quote analysis.
New Jerseyans in their teens and early 20s are still new to driving in the eyes of an insurer, which means they may not have developed the skills to successfully navigate difficult situations, like aggressive drivers or icy roads.
That shows up on young drivers’ car insurance premiums — they just pay more than other drivers. It’s true across the country, not just in New Jersey, and it means you may have to work harder during these years to find cheap insurance.
Here are the insurers offering the cheapest full coverage policies to young drivers.
|
Insurance Company
|
Avg Monthly Quote
|
|---|---|
| Commonwealth Insurance | $161 |
| AAA | $214 |
| Assurance America | $239 |
| National General | $246 |
| ROOT | $270 |
| Geico | $316 |
| Gainsco | $324 |
| Embark General | $340 |
| The General | $361 |
| First Acceptance | $384 |
More: Cheap car insurance for teens
Commonwealth Insurance offers the cheapest car insurance for young New Jerseyans seeking minimum coverage at $44 per month, according to Jerry's quote analysis.
These are the lowest-cost insurers for drivers under 30 seeking minimum coverage in New Jersey.
|
Insurance Company
|
Avg Monthly Quote
|
|---|---|
| Commonwealth Insurance | $44 |
| Gainsco | $85 |
| AAA | $112 |
| Dairyland | $117 |
| National General | $117 |
| ROOT | $135 |
| Trexis | $148 |
| Geico | $180 |
| Clearcover | $194 |
| Progressive | $219 |
Minimum coverage presents a tempting offer: Low premium costs without breaking the law. However, the same reason you may want minimum coverage — the price tag — could be the very reason you set the bar a little higher. For many of us, our 20s aren’t the time when we have a bunch of extra cash to pay for a car accident or buy ourselves a new car.
If you’re confident that full coverage isn’t for you, consider getting a policy with above-minimum liability limits. Many drivers choose limits of $100k/$300k/$100k ($100,000 of bodily injury liability (BI) per person, $300,000 of BI per accident and $100,000 of property damage liability per accident). These limits keep you on the road legally and may not cost much more than the absolute minimum.
Cheap car insurance for New Jerseyans age 30 to 64
New Jersey drivers between 30 and 64 years old get the cheapest full coverage car insurance from Mercury, which charges $115 per month, according to Jerry's data.
Relief should come in your 30s and 40s as you log time behind the wheel and are seen as a more experienced driver to insurers. If you keep a clean driving record, your rate should lower and remain stable during this time, but other life changes can have more of an influence.
For example, if you take a remote job and no longer commute to the city, your rate could lower. If you move in with a partner and insure multiple vehicles, have a child who grows up to drive or add an RV or boat to your policy for weekend fun, you could pay less on auto insurance.
This is a period of life when insurers want your business, so it’s in your best interest to frequently compare quotes and find out what they can offer you.
|
Insurance Company
|
Avg Monthly Quote
|
|---|---|
| Mercury | $115 |
| Aspire Advantage | $127 |
| Anchor General | $155 |
| AAA | $168 |
| Trexis | $186 |
| Geico | $259 |
| National General | $264 |
| Progressive | $288 |
| Gainsco | $327 |
| Electric | $331 |
Cheap car insurance rates for New Jersey drivers aged 65 and older
The cheapest full coverage car insurance for New Jerseyans age 65 and older costs $172 per month and is offered by AAA, according to Jerry's quote analysis.
Once you reach your mid- to late 60s, insurers start to account for the chance that your vision and reaction time may be slower on the roads. Especially if you live in a densely populated area where on-the-road aggression abounds, insurers may start to raise your rates during this period.
As you see your rate start to climb, check regularly for better quotes from other insurers.
These are the cheapest car insurance companies for drivers aged 65 and older in New Jersey.
|
Insurance Company
|
Avg Monthly Quote
|
|---|---|
| AAA | $172 |
| Geico | $228 |
| Progressive | $230 |
| Bristol West | $315 |
More: Best car insurance for seniors
You’re never too old to grab a slice at TJ’s and stroll along the shore, but if you find yourself leaving your neighborhood less, it may be time to consider less coverage.
For example, drivers with older cars who don’t intend to repair them after an accident may not need a robust full coverage policy. Perhaps you’ve accepted that you’ll be the car’s last owner, and it doesn’t make financial sense to spend thousands of dollars on insurance.
However, it’s unwise to drop down to minimum coverage at this age because if you cause a severe wreck, your life savings could be at risk. A common approach to choosing liability limits is to calculate your net worth (assets minus debts) and buy a policy that offers at least that amount of liability insurance.
Here are the insurers offering the lowest-cost minimum coverage policies to drivers aged 65 and up in New Jersey.
|
Insurance Company
|
Avg Monthly Quote
|
|---|---|
| AAA | $72 |
| Progressive | $128 |
| Geico | $151 |
| Bristol West | $168 |
More: How much car insurance do I need?
Cheap car insurance for drivers with poor credit in New Jersey
The cheapest full coverage car insurance for drivers with poor credit in New Jersey comes from National General at $154 per month, according to Jerry's quoting data.
|
Insurance Company
|
Avg Monthly Quote
|
|---|---|
| National General | $154 |
| Gainsco | $341 |
| Progressive | $388 |
| AAA | $494 |
| Bristol West | $542 |
Like most states, New Jersey allows insurers to use their credit history to help set auto insurance rates. Typically, drivers with low credit scores pay higher rates than those with good or excellent credit.
Here are a few things to know about credit and car insurance in New Jersey.
- It’s correlated with the likelihood of claims. Some data suggests that drivers with poor credit are more likely to file claims, which is why drivers who have bad credit but no history of claims could still pay more.
- For married couples, both credit histories may not be considered. If your partner has better credit, you may have a better chance at a low rate if they submit the application. According to a fact sheet from the New Jersey Department of Banking and Insurance, companies usually consider the applicant’s credit.
- No credit history may not work against you. In order to raise your rate due to a lack of credit history, an insurer must specifically justify the increase, according to the DBOI. This means if having no credit is a factor in your premium, you have a right to know why.
- It’s not always a significant factor. Some insurers don’t weigh credit as heavily as others when determining your rate. So, when you get a quote that seems high, compare it to a few others to determine whether you can get a lower rate.
If you have a low score, improving it could get you cheaper insurance. This can involve keeping a steady history of on-time bill payments, using less than 30% of your available credit on a credit card and keeping older credit accounts open.
More: Learn about credit-based insurance scores
Cheapest car insurance for New Jerseyans with an at-fault accident
The cheapest full coverage car insurance for New Jerseyans with an at-fault accident on their record is from Trexis at $239 per month, according to Jerry’s quoting data.
There are about 250,000 to 300,000 car accidents per year, according to the New Jersey Department of Transportation, and it’s not impossible to imagine that you could be in one at some point. While being the at-fault driver will almost certainly raise your rates, the amount of the increase may depend on the crash severity.
For example, if you cause a scrape during a bumper-to-bumper situation on Route 80, it may not cause rates to skyrocket. However, if you slide on black ice and total a new car, your premium will probably reflect the large payout your insurer had to make because of it.
Here are the insurers offering the cheapest coverage for New Jerseyans with an at-fault accident on their record.
|
Insurance Company
|
Avg Monthly Quote
|
|---|---|
| Trexis | $239 |
| Gainsco | $297 |
| Clearcover | $421 |
| Progressive | $462 |
| National General | $464 |
New Jersey’s fault laws
Unlike many other states, drivers in New Jersey can be assigned a percentage of blame in the accident, which can lead to a lower payout from insurers.
This means if you were found to be 70% at fault for the accident and the other driver was 30% at fault, the other driver may only see 70% of their expenses covered, according to the DBOI. And if your insurer only has to pay 70% of the total damages, it may soften the rate increase.
Cheap car insurance for New Jerseyans with a low-level speeding ticket
The State of New Jersey uses a points system to track violations. The system assigns points to drivers’ licenses according to the seriousness of the citation. Here’s what that looks like for speeding.
| Speed over the limit | Points |
| 1 to 14 mph | 2 |
| 15 to 29 mph | 4 |
| 30 or more | 5 |
Driving too slowly and blocking traffic will earn you two points.
Insurers consider speeding tickets similarly — a higher speed will get you a higher rate. But being cited for speeding by less than 15 mph may not cause your insurer to raise your rate as much.
New Jerseyans with a speeding ticket of less than 15 mph over the limit on their record can find the cheapest full coverage with Assurance America, which charges $299 on average, according to Jerry’s quote data.
These are the insurers offering the lowest full coverage rates for New Jersey drivers with a speeding ticket for traveling less than 15 mph over the limit.
|
Insurance Company
|
Avg Monthly Quote
|
|---|---|
| Assurance America | $299 |
| Progressive | $311 |
| Bristol West | $546 |
| The General | $1,064 |
| Trexis | $1,146 |
Cheapest car insurance for New Jersey drivers with other violations
New Jersey tracks all sorts of moving violations through its point system, and insurers weigh these violations differently. So, if you were cited for driving without a seatbelt and your insurer raises your rate, compare that price to other providers’ estimates.
Here are some common moving violations, and the average rate New Jerseyans pay for insurance after getting one.
|
Violation Summary
|
Avg Monthly Quote
|
|---|---|
| Seat Belt | $227 |
| Wrong Way/Wrong Lane | $269 |
| Driving on Sus. License | $292 |
| Open Container | $373 |
| Careless Driving | $382 |
More: The average cost of car insurance
3 steps to get cheap car insurance in New Jersey
It’s worth your time to regularly shop for car insurance because what seemed like a great deal six months ago may be much higher than you could pay now. Here are three steps to find the cheapest car insurance in New Jersey.
- Determine appropriate coverage levels. Consider what liability limits would best protect your wallet. New Jersey's minimum requirements may not provide adequate protection if you cause a severe crash, but if you’re an infrequent driver that may be a risk you’re willing to take. Then, decide whether you need full coverage based on your vehicle's value and your financial situation. Gap insurance can be helpful for drivers with leased or financed cars, and roadside assistance may be a good fit for those who make long trips out of the state.
- Compare quotes from multiple insurers. Get quotes from at least three to five companies, including both national carriers and regional options like NJM Insurance. Ensure all quotes include the same coverage limits and deductibles for accurate comparison. And keep in mind that the more accurate information you provide, the more accurate your quote will be.
- Maximize available discounts. Common car insurance discounts include multi-policy bundling, multi-vehicle coverage, good student discounts and defensive driving course completion. Be cautious of promotional "new customer" discounts that may expire after six months and potentially send your rate soaring at renewal.
Factors affecting car insurance rates in New Jersey
New Jersey is No. 6 on the list of states with the highest car insurance expenses, according to a 2023 report from the Insurance Information Institute. There are many factors that help drive rates up, which means it’s that much more important to keep a consistent habit of collecting quotes.
- High population density: New Jersey is the most densely populated state in the union, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. With high density comes a high risk of theft, vandalism and accidents, all of which can lead to higher statewide insurance rates.
- Weather events: Weather comes at New Jersey from all angles. You have nor'easters, winter storms and coastal flooding, all of which can cause significant vehicle damage. Insurers consider the likelihood of weather-induced accidents, like dangerous floods and blizzards, and for New Jersey that spells high rates.
- No-fault insurance system: New Jersey's no-fault system requires all drivers to carry personal injury protection insurance, while some of the states with the cheapest insurance only require liability coverage. This means that drivers carrying the minimum in New Jersey are still carrying more than drivers in other states.
- High living expenses: It’s no New York, but New Jersey’s cost of living is on the high side compared to states in the South and Midwest. The cost of living in an area affects the cost of things like car parts and medical equipment, meaning an insurer would have to pay more for the same repair in New Jersey than they would in Iowa.
Methodology
Data included in this analysis comes from policies that Jerry has quoted within the last 6 months for drivers with a clean record and that have full coverage, unless stated otherwise. Data related to violations, accidents or credit scores pull from quote data from the last 18 months. Jerry services 48 states and offers a range of insurance companies to choose from.
Annie is a writer and editor at Jerry with more than a decade of experience writing and editing digital content. Before joining Jerry, she was an assistant assigning editor at NerdWallet. Her past work has appeared in the Associated Press, USA Today and The Washington Post. Her work has been cited by NorthWestern University and Harvard Kennedy School. Annie served as a spokesperson for NerdWallet during her time at NerdWallet and has been featured in New York Magazine, MarketWatch and on local television and radio stations.
Previously, she worked at USAA and newspapers in Minnesota, North Dakota, California and Texas. She has a bachelor’s degree in journalism from the University of Minnesota.
Lacie Glover is a Lead Writer and Editor with sixteen years’ experience in the insurance category. Prior to Jerry, she spent more than a decade on NerdWallet’s content team writing, editing and then overseeing the auto insurance category, as well as dabbling in other insurance and automotive topics. Prior to her career in the online personal finance content space, Lacie spent time in the hard sciences, in clinical research and chemistry labs. She has a bachelor’s degree from Colorado State University.
