Car Insurance for a 17-Year-Old: Safe and Cheap Cars to Insure

How much is car insurance for a 17-year-old? If you're a parent, a safe vehicle should be the top priority, but at the same time, you also want to have affordable insurance rates.

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  • Car insurance for a 17-year-old male averages $6,068 per year and a 17-year-old female averages $5,392 per year.
  • Insurance rates on popular vehicles average from $4,638 to $6,704 for male drivers and $4,120 to $5,996 for females.
  • Our top three recommendations for safe vehicles with affordable car insurance for 17-year-old drivers are the 2017 Honda CR-V, 2018 Subaru Crosstrek, and 2015 Subaru Legacy.

If you’re the parent of a teenager, you know that their taste in a car is probably not the same as yours. They want the cool Chevy Camaro, Ford Mustang, or Dodge Challenger, while you want them in a safe minivan, four-door sedan, or full-size SUV.

The key to keeping a teenager happy is to find the balance between the car THEY want and the car YOU want as a parent. It’s often a combination of vehicle reliability, insurance cost, and purchase price.

We assembled the list of vehicles below using both IIHS and NHTSA safety ratings, Consumer Reports reliability ratings, and Kelley Blue Book used car values.

These are not necessarily the cheapest cars to insure for 17-year-old drivers, as we cover those later in the article, but rather the cars with the best balance of safety ratings, reliability scores, and affordable car insurance prices.

Insurance rates are per year, with full coverage (comprehensive and collision) having $500 deductibles. Liability split limits are $100,000 of bodily injury coverage per person, $300,000 of bodily injury coverage per accident, and $100,000 of property damage liability coverage.

The table is sorted from the cheapest full coverage insurance cost to the most expensive.

Safe and Cheap Cars to Insure for 17-Year-Old Drivers
Year and ModelBlue Book ValueFull Coverage InsuranceLiability Insurance
2017 Honda CR-V$19,100$3,932$1,730
2018 Subaru Crosstrek$16,600$4,066$1,724
2015 Subaru Legacy$12,700$4,086$1,744
2017 Chevrolet Equinox$13,700$4,166$2,102
2018 Hyundai Kona$15,400$4,176$2,094
2016 Subaru Outback$16,700$4,200$1,738
2019 Toyota Corolla$16,300$4,240$2,086
2019 Mazda CX-3$15,800$4,266$2,086
2016 Mazda CX-5$14,900$4,292$2,110
2015 Mazda 3$9,400$4,330$2,494
2020 Ford Edge$19,200$4,546$1,340
2019 Honda Insight$14,800$4,584$2,086
2017 Nissan Murano$16,800$4,694$2,102
2016 Toyota Avalon$17,300$4,848$2,016
2017 GMC Terrain$14,200$4,894$2,474
2015 Mazda 6$14,200$5,004$2,868
2017 Volkswagen Passat$14,900$5,258$2,474
2016 Toyota Highlander$23,100$5,338$2,546
2018 Volvo S60$16,500$5,358$2,464
2018 Hyundai Santa Fe$19,200$5,902$2,834

Some additional vehicles that are good choices for teen drivers, just not quite as good as the ones in the table above include:

  • Honda Civic – 2012-15 or 2019 and newer
  • Toyota Prius – 2011 and newer
  • Toyota Camry – 2012 and newer
  • Honda Accord – 2013 and newer
  • Nissan Altima – 2017, 2020
  • Nissan Rogue – 2014-2020

Now that we’ve covered our picks for the best cars to insure for 17-year-old drivers, next we will detail average insurance rates for 17-year-olds in every U.S. state.

If you’re just looking for the cheapest rates possible, we then break out the 25 cheapest cars to insure for 17-year-olds, regardless of safety or reliability.

And lastly, we show the average cost to insure popular models that don’t necessarily fit into other comparisons like the Ford F-150, Chevy Silverado, and Ford Mustang.

If you’re adding your teenager to your policy and they have great grades, be sure to check with your car insurance company to see if they offer a good student discount!

How much does car insurance cost for a 17-year-old male?

The average cost of car insurance for an 17-year-old male driver is $6,068 per year or $506 per month. Car insurance rates range from $3,682 to $8,162 depending on where you live in the U.S.

Car insurance rates for 17-year-old males for some popular models include the Ford Mustang at $6,536 per year, the Chevy Camaro at $7,952, the Nissan 370Z at $6,370, and the Subaru WRX at $6,766 per year.

The table below shows average rates for 17-year-old male drivers broken out by annual and monthly cost. The table is ordered alphabetically by state name.

Average Car Insurance Cost for 17-Year-Old Male Drivers
U.S. StatePer YearPer Month
Alabama$5,444$454
Alaska$4,604$384
Arizona$5,542$462
Arkansas$6,314$526
California$7,274$606
Colorado$6,466$539
Connecticut$6,712$559
Delaware$6,852$571
Florida$7,460$622
Georgia$6,168$514
Hawaii$4,158$347
Idaho$4,340$362
Illinois$5,310$443
Indiana$4,540$378
Iowa$4,080$340
Kansas$5,948$496
Kentucky$6,458$538
Louisiana$7,136$595
Maine$3,682$307
Maryland$5,616$468
Massachusetts$6,568$547
Michigan$8,162$680
Minnesota$5,196$433
Mississippi$5,890$491
Missouri$6,794$566
Montana$5,552$463
Nebraska$5,066$422
Nevada$7,198$600
New Hampshire$4,082$340
New Jersey$7,288$607
New Mexico$4,986$416
New York$6,976$581
North Carolina$3,822$319
North Dakota$5,022$419
Ohio$4,248$354
Oklahoma$6,648$554
Oregon$5,646$471
Pennsylvania$5,802$484
Rhode Island$7,452$621
South Carolina$5,082$424
South Dakota$6,198$517
Tennessee$5,750$479
Texas$5,616$468
Utah$5,304$442
Vermont$4,424$369
Virginia$4,056$338
Washington$5,460$455
West Virginia$5,396$450
Wisconsin$4,348$362
Wyoming$5,378$448

How much does car insurance cost for a 17-year-old female?

The average car insurance cost for a 17-year-old female driver is $5,392 per year or $449 per month. Depending on the state you live in, you could pay anywhere from $3,276 to $7,252 per year, which is $273 to $604 per month.

Average car insurance rates for 17-year-old females for some popular models include the Kia Rio at $5,266 per year, the Toyota Corolla at $5,060, the Nissan Versa at $6,056, and the Honda Civic at $5,278 per year.

The table below shows average yearly and monthly car insurance cost for 17-year-old female drivers. Rates are ordered alphabetically by state name.

Average Car Insurance Cost for 17-Year-Old Female Drivers
U.S. StatePer YearPer Month
Alabama$4,838$403
Alaska$4,090$341
Arizona$4,926$411
Arkansas$5,612$468
California$6,468$539
Colorado$5,746$479
Connecticut$5,962$497
Delaware$6,090$508
Florida$6,630$553
Georgia$5,478$457
Hawaii$3,698$308
Idaho$3,858$322
Illinois$4,718$393
Indiana$4,034$336
Iowa$3,626$302
Kansas$5,286$441
Kentucky$5,742$479
Louisiana$6,340$528
Maine$3,276$273
Maryland$4,992$416
Massachusetts$5,838$487
Michigan$7,252$604
Minnesota$4,620$385
Mississippi$5,236$436
Missouri$6,040$503
Montana$4,934$411
Nebraska$4,500$375
Nevada$6,396$533
New Hampshire$3,630$303
New Jersey$6,476$540
New Mexico$4,432$369
New York$6,196$516
North Carolina$3,398$283
North Dakota$4,462$372
Ohio$3,776$315
Oklahoma$5,906$492
Oregon$5,018$418
Pennsylvania$5,156$430
Rhode Island$6,624$552
South Carolina$4,514$376
South Dakota$5,512$459
Tennessee$5,110$426
Texas$4,990$416
Utah$4,712$393
Vermont$3,934$328
Virginia$3,604$300
Washington$4,854$405
West Virginia$4,796$400
Wisconsin$3,864$322
Wyoming$4,780$398

What are the cheapest cars to insure for 17-year-olds?

Small SUVs like the Honda Passport, Mazda CX-5, and Nissan Kicks tend to have the cheapest car insurance rates for 17-year-old drivers. Rates for full-coverage start at around $4,524 for males and $3,996 per year for females.

Other vehicles that rank well for cheap auto insurance for teens are the Subaru Crosstrek at $4,638 per year, the Buick Envision at $4,642, and the Chevrolet Trailblazer at $4,648.

Average rates on older vehicles or liability-only coverage will cost less than insuring a new vehicle with full coverage.

The list below shows the 25 vehicles with the cheapest car insurance rates for 17-year-old drivers. Rates are shown for both male and female drivers. Click on any model to view detailed car insurance rate information.

Top 25 Cheapest Vehicles to Insure for 17-year-old Drivers
RankMake/ModelAge 16 MaleAge 16 Female
1Honda Passport$4,524$3,996
2Mazda CX-5$4,572$4,038
3Nissan Kicks$4,620$4,118
4Subaru Crosstrek$4,638$4,120
5Buick Envision$4,642$4,118
6Chevrolet Trailblazer$4,648$4,144
7Nissan Rogue Sport$4,778$4,256
8Subaru Ascent$4,810$4,248
9Buick Encore$4,846$4,314
10Kia Seltos$4,948$4,404
11Chevrolet Colorado$4,966$4,424
12Ford Explorer$4,970$4,388
13Acura RDX$4,978$4,412
14Hyundai Venue$5,020$4,486
15Ford Edge$5,038$4,466
16Subaru Impreza$5,042$4,482
17Hyundai Kona$5,054$4,492
18Ford Maverick$5,072$4,530
19Volkswagen Atlas$5,086$4,506
20Subaru Forester$5,098$4,498
21Honda HR-V$5,112$4,586
22Nissan Murano$5,136$4,566
23Mazda CX-30$5,154$4,586
24Lexus RX 350$5,186$4,570
25Honda CR-V$5,212$4,636

Not every popular vehicle falls into the cheapest insurance category. In fact, out of the 20 popular vehicles in the charts below, only the Subaru Crosstrek, Ford Explorer, Subaru Impreza, and Honda CR-V made it into the top 25 cheapest vehicles to insure list shown above.

The two charts below show 20 of the most popular vehicles driven by teens in America and the average cost of car insurance when rated for both 17-year-old male and female drivers.

Get Rates in Your AreaWhy is this important?

Chart Data Details: Average no car insurance cost is based on 2023 model year vehicles with safe driver and claim-free discounts applied. Physical damage deductibles are $500 and rates are averaged for all Zip Codes.Data last updated on August 11, 2023
Average Car Insurance Cost for 17-year-old Males
Average Car Insurance Cost for 17-year-old Males
Make/Model Annual Rate Monthly Rate
Subaru Crosstrek$4,638$387
Ford Explorer$4,970$414
Subaru Impreza$5,042$420
Honda CR-V$5,212$434
Toyota RAV4$5,598$467
Nissan Rogue$5,630$469
Nissan Sentra$5,630$469
Toyota Prius$5,664$472
Toyota Corolla$5,682$474
Toyota Camry$5,732$478
Mazda 3$5,852$488
Honda Civic$5,930$494
Kia Forte$5,980$498
Ford F150$6,102$509
Honda Accord$6,156$513
Ford Mustang$6,536$545
Ram Truck$6,654$555
Hyundai Elantra$6,704$559
Hyundai Sonata$6,792$566
Chevrolet Silverado$6,810$568

Get Rates in Your AreaWhy is this important?

Chart Data Details: Average no car insurance cost is based on 2023 model year vehicles with safe driver and claim-free discounts applied. Physical damage deductibles are $500 and rates are averaged for all Zip Codes.Data last updated on August 12, 2023
Average Car Insurance Cost for 17-year-old Females
Average Car Insurance Cost for 17-year-old Females
Make/Model Annual Rate Monthly Rate
Subaru Crosstrek$4,120$343
Ford Explorer$4,388$366
Subaru Impreza$4,482$374
Honda CR-V$4,636$386
Toyota RAV4$4,966$414
Nissan Rogue$5,016$418
Toyota Prius$5,022$419
Nissan Sentra$5,034$420
Toyota Corolla$5,060$422
Toyota Camry$5,094$425
Mazda 3$5,228$436
Honda Civic$5,278$440
Kia Forte$5,340$445
Ford F150$5,422$452
Honda Accord$5,466$456
Ford Mustang$5,816$485
Ram Truck$5,920$493
Hyundai Elantra$5,996$500
Hyundai Sonata$6,052$504
Chevrolet Silverado$6,072$506