Cheapest Car Insurance in Maryland (2026)

Summary

• Allstate is the cheapest car insurance company in Maryland for liability-only at $116/month, and USAA the cheapest for full coverage at $178, per Insurify rate data updated September 14, 2026. Direct Auto ($136) and State Farm ($152/$229) follow.
• Maryland is the second-most-expensive state in the country: liability averages $192/month against the national $98, full coverage $303 against $187 — about $3,638 a year, the highest annual figure in our library.
• Rates fell 9% in 2025 and have crept back 1.5% since December; every month since March has been higher than the last. The mid-year forecast expected a slight decline for 2026; the monthly series says otherwise.
• The minimum package is heavy: 30/60/15 liability plus mandatory UM/UIM in the same amounts, and Maryland uses the FR-19, not the SR-22.
• Geography is the whole story: Baltimore drivers average $411/month; Frederick drivers average $189. The city is a different market from the state.
• The carrier spread on the same liability profile runs $116 to $241, so see where your own quote lands before your renewal reprices you.

Cheapest Car Insurance Companies in Maryland

Maryland splits its crown: Allstate for liability, USAA for full coverage, with USAA a close second on liability at $118. That's rare — Allstate is mid-table in most states we cover — and it's a Maryland-specific result: Allstate leads every high-risk category in the state as well. State Farm, which leads or places in nearly every other state in our library, is fourth here.

Source: Insurify Maryland rate data, current as of August 31, 2026 (page updated September 14). Full-coverage figures reflect 50/100/50 liability limits with $1,000 collision and comprehensive deductibles. CSAA posts a $215 full-coverage rate but no liability-only figure. Actual quotes vary by driver profile.

Two things in the table are worth a second look. Allstate's full-coverage rate is $244 — the same as GEICO and Progressive — so its lead is a liability-only lead; a Maryland driver with a car loan should quote USAA (if eligible), State Farm, and Elephant first. And the national brands that lead elsewhere don't here: Travelers, the cheapest full-coverage insurer in the country on our national cheapest-companies page, is $206/$309 in Maryland, and Liberty Mutual is the most expensive carrier in the state for liability at more than double Allstate.

How Much Is Car Insurance in Maryland?

Maryland averages $192/month for liability-only and $303/month for full coverage — 96% and 62% above the national averages, and second only to one other state nationally.

The trend has turned since this guide's August version. Full coverage cost about $3,586 a year in December 2025 and $3,638 in August 2026, a 1.5% rise in eight months, with every month since March higher than the one before. That follows a 9% decline across 2025 from a peak near $3,951 in May 2025 — Maryland gave back a lot of ground last year and is now taking some of it back. The mid-year forecast expected the state to finish 2026 down 0.2%; the monthly series is running the other way, and this guide uses the series as the fresher figure. Maryland is now the most expensive state in the Data Center's monthly series, ahead of Rhode Island. Our Maryland rate-shock analysis covers how the state got here — full coverage cost about $2,096 a year in August 2021 — and our September rate report has the national picture.

The pressures are structural: the Baltimore–Washington corridor's congestion, a crash rate that produced more than 500,000 accidents between 2019 and 2023, vehicle theft concentrated in Baltimore, expensive repairs and medical care, and a minimum policy that already carries uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage most states make optional.

City spread, per Insurify:

Baltimore is the whole gap. At $411 a month overall, the city runs more than double Frederick and 60% above the state's own inflated average; theft, congestion, and litigation stack in the same ZIP codes. The Washington suburbs — Silver Spring, Columbia — and the Anne Arundel commuter belt sit in between, expensive by national standards but half of Baltimore. If you garage a car inside the Beltway around Baltimore, the carrier comparison is worth more to you than to almost anyone else in the country: the Allstate-to-Liberty Mutual spread on a $411 base is a four-figure annual number.

Maryland Car Insurance Requirements

Maryland's minimum package is heavier than most states' full coverage:

Maryland is an at-fault (tort) state: the driver who causes the crash pays. The mandatory UM/UIM package is a big reason the state's liability average is $192 when the national figure is $98 — the "minimum" policy here already carries what would be optional coverage in most states. Since July 2024 Maryland has also required insurers to offer enhanced underinsured motorist coverage, which stacks on top of the at-fault driver's limits rather than subtracting them.

Maryland doesn't use SR-22 certificates. Its equivalent is the FR-19, a Vehicle Insurance Certification the MVA requires when it's notified your policy was canceled or non-renewed. It's a lighter instrument than an SR-22 — no court order, no fixed three-year term — but insurers treat FR-19 filers as higher risk, and the average FR-19 driver pays about $232 a month for liability, with Allstate cheapest at about $140. Our SR-22 vs. FR-44 explainer covers what the certificate family does across state lines; our coverage-lapse guide covers the cancellation that triggers an FR-19 in the first place.

High-Risk Drivers in Maryland

Maryland surcharges violations on top of the second-highest base in the country. Drivers with a speeding ticket average $227/month for liability, about 18% above the $192 clean-record average; an at-fault accident averages $235; a DUI averages $309, 61% more. About 4% of Maryland drivers carry a ticket.

Allstate leads every high-risk row — $137 with a ticket, $142 after an accident, $187 with a DUI (USAA edges it at $179 for eligible drivers) — and the spread below it is where the money is. The same DUI is $231 at State Farm, $277 at Progressive, and $367 at Liberty Mutual: a $180-a-month gap between carriers for the same driver. A first-offense DUI in Maryland also carries a fine of up to $1,000, a six-month suspension, and up to a year in jail. Our post-accident rate guide and not-at-fault accident explainer cover what actually moves after a claim.

Credit is restricted in Maryland. Insurers can't cancel, refuse, or non-renew a policy because of your credit history, and the state limits how credit-based scores are used in pricing — but the effect isn't zero: drivers with bad credit pay about $145 a month for liability at Allstate against $116 for good credit. The credit-score playbook applies, with a narrower range than in most states.

Teens are the most expensive band in the state: $287/month for liability on average, $173 at Allstate. Our teen safe-car guide covers the vehicle side. Seniors do best: $97/month at USAA and $103 at Allstate, the lowest figures on the page.

How to Save on Car Insurance in Maryland

1. Quote Allstate and USAA first, then Direct Auto and State Farm. Allstate for liability, USAA for full coverage, and a $20-to-$36 gap to the next carrier either way.
2. Match the carrier to the policy. Allstate's lead is liability-only; its full coverage is mid-table. A driver with a loan should run USAA, State Farm, and Elephant against it.
3. If you're in Baltimore, shop twice as hard. The city's $411 average is the widest carrier spread in our library in dollar terms; the gap between cheapest and most expensive is four figures a year.
4. Don't waive the PIP without pricing it. $2,500 in no-fault medical coverage is cheap in a state with Maryland's crash rate.
5. Bundle if you own a home. Maryland's homeowners premiums are high enough that the multi-policy discount on the auto side is worth more here than in most states. Our discounts guide covers the list.
6. Use telematics if your record is the problem. Allstate's Drivewise can raise rates; State Farm's Drive Safe & Save can't. Our telematics comparison covers which programs do what.
7. Compare before renewal, not after. With the series climbing again, the renewal notice is where the increase lands — pull fresh quotes a month out, check the national standings, and price your own profile against the tables above.

Rate data from Insurify's Maryland car insurance analysis, updated September 14, 2026, with table rates current as of August 31, 2026, based on real-time quotes from 500+ partner insurers for drivers ages 20–70 with clean records and average or better credit unless noted. Annual trend figures from the same source's monthly Maryland series (August 2021–August 2026); its 2026 Mid-Year Auto Report projected a 0.2% decline for 2026, which the series contradicts — this guide uses the series as the fresher figure. State requirements and credit rules per the Maryland Insurance Administration; DUI penalties per the Maryland MVA; crash figures per the Maryland Highway Safety Office, all as cited in the same analysis. Actual quotes vary by driver profile.