If you own a Dodge Ram Pickup, it'll cost you an annual average of $650 to insure it in Seattle. Just don't move to Detroit — then it'll cost you around $5,332 per year to insure that same truck.
Yes, that's right: there's a difference of $4,682 to insure the same truck based on the city you live in, according to NerdWallet's latest study titled "Car Insurance for Popular Cars: Most and Least Expensive Vehicles in Big Cities."
In the report, NerdWallet analyzed the average cost to insure the three best-selling sedans, SUVs or crossovers and pickup trucks of 2014 (taken from Bloomberg, with MotorIntelligence data provided by AutoData, and hybridcars.com) in the 25 most populous cities in the U.S. NerdWallet chose six ZIP codes in each of the 25 most populous U.S. cities, using a stratified sampling method, and ran car insurance quotes for 36 driver profiles: 27-year-old single men and women and 41-year-old married men and women each driving a Ford F-150, Chevrolet Silverado, Dodge Ram Pickup, Toyota Camry, Honda Accord, Toyota Corolla, Honda CR-V, Toyota RAV4 and Ford Escape.
The 27-year-old drivers were quoted the minimum level of liability and uninsured motorist coverage required by the state. The 41-year-old drivers were quoted 100/300/100 liability coverage limits and the same amount of uninsured motorist coverage. All profiles have a comprehensive and collision deductible of $500. NerdWallet averaged the three cheapest quotes for each driver profile.
Findings show that premiums vary by location for various reasons. According to NerdWallet, crash frequency is higher in some areas. So when an auto insurer uses the likelihood that you'll file a claim to determine your rate, the area you live in will come into play. Even the best drivers can be charged higher rates if they live in areas with high accident rates.
Theft also increases rates, so if you live in a high-crime area, you may be out of luck. Different areas also have higher rates of thefts of certain cars, which insurers will also take into account.
Weather can also affect insurance rates. Areas with heavy snow and rain will raise premiums for sedans, whereas SUVs or crossovers and pickups may be less expensive to insure.
Click "next" to see average rates for the selected vehicles for 13 of the 25 most populous U.S. cities. To see the full list from NerdWallet, review the car insurance cost breakdown by city.
Toyota Camry
(Teddy Leung/Shutterstock.com)
Austin: $1,552
Boston: $1,517
Chicago: $1,440
Dallas: $1,742
Denver: $1,556
Detroit: $6,060
Jacksonville: $1,672
Los Angeles: $1,694
New York: $2,292
Philadelphia: $1,603
San Diego: $1,114
Seattle: $1,135
Washington D.C.: $1,592
Honda Accord
(Zoran Karapancev/Shutterstock.com)
Austin: $1,381
Boston: $1,210
Chicago: $1,277
Dallas: $1,555
Denver: $1,391
Detroit: $$5,131
Jacksonville: $1,581
Los Angeles: $1,526
New York: $2,090
Philadelphia: $1,483
San Diego: $999
Seattle: $1,007
Washington D.C.: $1,413
Toyota Corolla
(Vucicevic Milos/Shutterstock.com)
Austin: $1,475
Boston: $1,522
Chicago: $1,413
Dallas: $1,656
Denver: $1,473
Detroit: $6,248
Jacksonville: $1,643
Los Angeles: $1,689
New York: $2,305
Philadelphia: $1,607
San Diego: $1,110
Seattle: $1,116
Washington D.C.: $1,413
Honda CR-V
(Ovu0ng/Shutterstock.com)
Austin: $1,306
Boston: $1,133
Chicago: $1,202
Dallas: $1,464
Denver: $1,276
Detroit: $4,844
Jacksonville: $1,454
Los Angeles: $1,396
New York: $2,056
Philadelphia: $1,405
San Diego: $933
Seattle: $930
Washington D.C.: $1,370
Toyota RAV4
(Teddy Leung/Shutterstock.com)
Austin: $1,485
Boston: $1,460
Chicago: $1,406
Dallas: $1,655
Denver: $1,504
Detroit: $5,787
Jacksonville: $1,568
Los Angeles: $1,520
New York: $2,321
Philadelphia: $1,567
San Diego: $1,018
Seattle: $1,089
Washington D.C.: $1,584
Ford Escape
(Ed Aldridge/Shutterstock.com)
Austin: $1,331
Boston: $1,198
Chicago: $1,248
Dallas: $1,485
Denver: $1,302
Detroit: $5,027
Jacksonville: $1,417
Los Angeles: $1,454
New York: $2,024
Philadelphia: $1,383
San Diego: $974
Seattle: $969
Washington D.C.: $1,379
Ford F-150
(Darren Brode/Shutterstock.com)
Austin: $1,490
Boston: $1,181
Chicago: $1,342
Dallas: $1,681
Denver: $1,458
Detroit: $4,826
Jacksonville: $1,534
Los Angeles: $1,494
New York: $2,085
Philadelphia: $1,563
San Diego: $981
Seattle: $1,062
Washington D.C.: $1,477
Chevrolet Silverado
(JuliusKielaitas/Shutterstock.com)
Austin: $1,460
Boston: $1,414
Chicago: $1,238
Dallas: $1,629
Denver: $1,430
Detroit: $5,561
Jacksonville: $1,431
Los Angeles: $1,578
New York: $1,844
Philadelphia: $1,423
San Diego: $1,061
Seattle: $979
Washington D.C.: $1,483
Dodge Ram Pickup
(betto rodrigues/Shutterstock.com)
Austin: $1,422
Boston: $1,376
Chicago: $859
Dallas: $1,519
Denver: $1,375
Detroit: $5,332
Jacksonville: $1,068
Los Angeles: $1,406
New York: $1,415
Philadelphia: $1,226
San Diego: $963
Seattle: $650
Washington D.C.: $1,309
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