Farmers vs. Geico: Compare insurance companies in 2024

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Our recommendation: Farmers vs. Geico: Which is better?

Geico advertises as the place to save on car insurance, and it does offer lower rates to drivers than Farmers. In addition to cheap rates, Geico offers a streamlined digital experience. If you want to handle your auto insurance policy entirely online, Geico is a good choice.

In contrast, Farmers is known for the personalized touch of an agent. Although Farmers offers many online services, you’ll have to connect with an agent to finalize the purchase of your insurance policy. If you are seeking the extra level of support offered by an agent, you’ll find it with Farmers. 

Rating comparison for Farmers vs. Geico car insurance

Drivers looking for a smooth digital experience and cheaper rates might find what they are looking for with Geico. Geico also has the top available financial strength score from AM Best. But if you want a personalized touch, Farmers could be the right route. 

The table below offers more insight into how these two insurance companies stack up against each other. Please note that numerical ratings are on a scale of 0-5 with 5 being the highest possible score.

Farmers vs. Geico: Pros and cons

Every insurance company has advantages and disadvantages. Below is a closer look at the pros and cons to consider with Farmers and Geico. 

Farmers vs. Geico: Which provides the cheapest car insurance rates?

Geico generally has cheaper rates than Farmers. For example, the average annual cost of a liability-only policy with limits of 50/100/50 with Geico is $560. But with Farmers, the average cost is $991 for the same policy – quite a bit more expensive. 

The table below highlights the average costs of different policy levels for each company. Liability only indicates higher than state minimum coverage limits of 50/100/50.

Farmers vs. Geico: Car insurance rates by age and gender

Geico offers much cheaper rates for drivers of all ages. But the difference between the two companies is most stark for teen drivers. On average, teen male drivers pay an average annual rate of $5,315 with Geico. But with Farmers, teen males pay a significantly higher average rate of $8,668. 

In general, women have lower car insurance rates than men across all age groups. But the gap shrinks as you age. The table below illustrates how different age groups can expect different rates across both companies. 

Farmers vs. Geico: Rates by credit score

Drivers with good credit scores often pay less for insurance than drivers with poor credit scores. That trend holds true with both Farmers and Geico. 

The difference is most noticeable for drivers with poor credit. For example, drivers with Geico who have poor credit pay an average annual rate of $3,039. In contrast, those same drivers with Farmers pay an annual average of $4,790 – more than twice the rate for drivers with good credit. 

The table below highlights how average rates vary by credit score at Farmers and Geico. 

Farmers vs. Geico: Rates for different violations

When it comes to getting a good car insurance rate, maintaining a clean driving record is critical. If you receive a moving violation, it will drive your car insurance costs higher. 

“High-risk behaviors such as speeding, driving under the influence (DUI/DWI) and at-fault accidents typically lead to higher premiums,” says John Crist, founder of Prestizia Insurance. 

The table below shows how a violation can raise average rates at each insurer. However, the impact of a violation varies by insurer. 

Farmers vs. Geico: Customer satisfaction comparison

Although you’ll find different rates and experiences with these two companies, customers seem to enjoy working with either option. Farmers scored nine points higher on the customer satisfaction metric than Geico, according to the 1,750 insurance consumers surveyed in the fall of 2023. 

Farmers vs. Geico: Car insurance discount availability comparison

Drivers looking to save more can find a range of discounts available through both Geico and Farmers. As you shop around, don’t forget to see if you qualify for a discount. 

The table below highlights the different discounts you can expect to find with each company. 

Farmers vs. Geico: Additional insurance availability comparison

As major insurance companies, Geico and Farmers each offer additional insurance policies. Some insurance products offered by both companies include homeowners insurance and boat insurance. If you buy multiple policies through the same company, you might qualify for a bundling discount. 

You can find a breakdown of which other policy types this company offers in the table below. 

Resources & Methodology

Methodology

Insure.com in the fall of 2023 surveyed more than 1,750 insurance consumers (1,459 people with auto insurance). Online market research company Slice MR conducted the survey. Respondents were asked to name their auto insurer and then grade it in the following categories – customer satisfaction, ease of service and policy offerings. The percentage of respondents who said they were satisfied or very satisfied with their insurer is presented in the results.

Respondents were then asked to pick their insurer’s top three attributes out of more than a dozen presented – trustworthiness, claims satisfaction, digital experience, discounts and best for auto/home bundling. The responses for each attribute were totaled and then divided by the number of each company’s customers who responded to that survey question to create a percentage. 

Respondents were then asked if they would recommend their auto insurer to someone else and whether they would renew with their company. The percentage who said yes is presented in the results.

Finally, respondents were given the statement “I trust my insurance company” and asked if they strongly agreed, agreed, disagreed or strongly disagreed with the statement. The percentage of those who said they agreed or strongly agreed is presented in the results.

The editors compiled the survey results and then selected – based on the number of survey responses – the top companies for further evaluation. 

They then collected AM Best data, which measures financial strength, and National Association of Insurance Commissioners’ complaint data, which ranks a company by the number of customer complaints it receives. The Insure.com team identified the NAIC company code or codes that were the primary underwriting companies for each carrier and line of business using total annual premiums. The associated NAIC complaint index score was used in the calculations. If more than one underwriting company was identified for a line, the editors used a weighted average of the NAIC complaint index scores.

In addition, we also created star rankings for each company. Respondents were asked to pick their insurer’s top three attributes out of the more than the dozen presented, again including customer satisfaction and policy offerings. The number of responses for each attribute was totaled and then divided by the number of each company’s customers who responded to that survey question to create the star ranking. 

The editors also collected insurance rate data from Quadrant Information Services.

With the help of Prof. David Marlett, Ph.D., Managing Director of the Brantley Risk and Insurance Center at Appalachian State University, the editors created a rating system to determine which insurance companies were best in each sector. For auto insurers, we took the following and gave each a weight.

• Survey: 40% of the total score (10% customer satisfaction, 10% recommended, 10% renewal rate and 10% claims handling)
• Annual premium: 20% of the total score
• AM Best: 25% of the total score
• NAIC: 15% of the total score

Each insurer was awarded from half a star to 5 stars. No insurer in our star ranking received less than half a star and 5 stars was the most any insurer could receive.

Sarah Sharkey

Contributing Researcher

 

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Sarah Sharkey is a personal finance writer with a master’s degree in management from the Hough School of Business at the University of Florida. She enjoys helping readers find money solutions that work. She has written for numerous personal-finance publications including Money Under 30 and The College Investor.