Compare Homeowners Insurance Quotes: How to Compare Home Insurance Quotes Line by Line

Updated November 11, 2026

How do I compare home insurance quotes? How do I shop for homeowners insurance? To compare homeowners insurance quotes, get at least three for the same coverage amounts, deductibles and extras, and line them up coverage by coverage before you compare prices. Check every deductible in dollars: a 2% hurricane deductible on $400,000 of dwelling coverage is $8,000.

A PolicyVera guide. You just want to know if you're overpaying. You want to compare quotes without having to talk to a bunch of insurance agents. And your info shouldn't go anywhere you don't want it to. PolicyVera is a free insurance-shopping marketplace where you compare quotes across carriers, coverage and price side by side with your current policy, from licensed local insurance agents you pick, on the site or inside your AI assistant. Only the agents you pick get your request, and insurance agents are not allowed to call, text or email you outside PolicyVera until you accept them as your new agent. PolicyVera is paid by insurance agents, not by you.

Using an AI assistant? It can make the quote request for you, in the chat. The steps for ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, Perplexity and Grok: policyvera.com/connect.

Below: seven steps with a checklist, what a cheaper quote may leave out, and the states that publish home insurance price comparisons.

What should you check when comparing home insurance quotes? Seven steps

The coverage first and the price last: the same six coverages at the same amounts, every deductible in dollars, the extras, the roof and the company's record.

1. Gather what every company will ask for

Whether you call an agent or request homeowners insurance quotes online, each company asks for the same facts. Have them ready, and give each company identical answers:

• Your declarations page: the first page or two of your policy, listing its coverages, limits, deductibles and price.
• The house: the address, year built, square footage and construction (frame, brick or stone).
• The roof: its material and age.
• The systems: when the plumbing, electrical and heating were put in or last updated.
• Safety features: smoke detectors, alarms, sprinklers, deadbolts.
• Claims: yours and the house's. Most companies check a claims database covering the past seven years, and you can get your report free each year (Texas Department of Insurance).
• Valuables: jewelry, art or collections you want fully covered.

Answer truthfully: Oklahoma's insurance department warns that wrong information can cause a wrong quote, or a denial or cancellation of coverage.

2. Ask for the same six coverages at the same amounts

Every homeowners quote has the same six coverages, so line them up before you look at the price. Here is what each pays for and how it's usually set, from the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC), the association of the states' chief insurance regulators, and Wisconsin's insurance office:

Start with the dwelling amount: a lower one makes a quote cheaper because it buys less house. Get every quote at the same amount, and ask each company how it estimated the cost to rebuild; to check an estimate, the NAIC suggests asking a local builder or real estate agent what similar new homes cost per square foot. (How Much Is Homeowners Insurance? explains why the rebuild cost, not the price you paid, sets this number.)

Then check how each quote pays for your belongings. Actual cash value takes off for age and wear; replacement cost pays for new items of similar kind and quality. Wisconsin's insurance office gives an example: for a 10-year-old $1,000 stove destroyed by fire, actual cash value pays its value minus $400 for age and wear, while replacement cost pays for a similar new model, usually once you show you've replaced it. Most policies pay for belongings at actual cash value unless you add replacement cost, which Oklahoma's insurance department lists at 2% to 25% of the base premium.

When one quote comes in far under the rest, look for the line where it covers less: compare the same coverage, or the cheaper quote may just buy less.

Compare the same coverage, or the cheaper quote may just cover less.

3. Turn every deductible into dollars

Look for more than one deductible on each quote. A higher main deductible lowers the price: moving from $500 to $1,000 can cut the premium by as much as 20%, the Texas Department of Insurance says. Where storms are a big risk, a policy may also have a separate deductible for wind and hail, hurricanes or other storms, often set as a percentage of the dwelling amount. The Maryland Insurance Administration's advice: "Ask if there is a separate deductible for wind, hurricanes or other storm losses and, if so, how it is calculated and applied."

With $400,000 of dwelling coverage, a 1% deductible is $4,000, a 2% deductible is $8,000 and a 5% deductible is $20,000. If a hurricane does $12,000 of damage, a policy with a 2% hurricane deductible pays $4,000; with 5%, it pays nothing. A percentage deductible can be thousands of dollars, so compare it in dollars.

A percentage deductible can be thousands of dollars: 2% of $400,000 of dwelling coverage is $8,000.

Percentage deductibles aren't only on the coast: every sample policy in Oklahoma's rate chart has a 1% deductible. Florida requires a policy to show its percentage hurricane deductible as a dollar amount. And the dollars grow with your coverage: if the dwelling amount rises to $420,000 at renewal, 2% becomes $8,400.

4. Check the extras a cheaper quote may leave out

Ask about water backup first. It pays for water that backs up through sewers or drains, and most homeowners policies leave it out unless you add it (it isn't flood insurance, which is a separate policy). It can cost little: Oklahoma's insurance department lists $5,000 of coverage at $5.98 to $111, and in Maryland every company must offer it. So the cheaper quote may simply leave out water backup. Wisconsin's insurance office warns: "Sewer backup coverage is an endorsement available through most insurance companies but may not be offered to you when purchasing homeowners insurance coverage if you do not ask for it."

The cheaper quote may leave out water backup, which pays when water backs up through sewers or drains.

Then ask which quotes include these, and at what limit:

• Ordinance or law: pays the extra cost to rebuild to building codes that didn't exist when the home was built. California's insurance department notes that some policies don't have it.
• Extended or guaranteed replacement cost: extended pays above the dwelling amount, up to a set percentage or dollar amount; guaranteed pays the full cost to rebuild, but very few companies offer it, so ask about caps (NAIC).
• Valuables: almost all policies cap what they pay for things like jewelry, art, silverware and firearms, and the caps sit inside your belongings limit, not on top of it (NAIC, California). To cover more, add a scheduled personal property endorsement, also called a personal article floater.

5. Ask how each quote pays for the roof

An older roof may be paid only at actual cash value, so ask each company how its quote covers yours. The Texas Department of Insurance shows the difference with a 10-year-old roof that would cost $10,000 to replace and a $2,000 deductible: replacement cost pays $8,000, so you pay $2,000; if the roof's actual cash value is $7,000, the company pays $5,000, and you pay $5,000.

Some policies pay only actual cash value for an older roof, so ask how each quote pays for yours.

Ask whether the roof's coverage can change as it ages and whether it has its own deductible, and read the policy's "loss settlement" section, which says how claims are paid.

6. Check each company's complaints and finances

Search each company's name in the NAIC's Consumer Insurance Search for its confirmed complaints over the past three years and its financial condition. Weigh several companies, not one figure, the NAIC advises; step 4 of Car Insurance Quotes Comparison: How to Compare Car Insurance Quotes explains how to read a complaint index.

7. Start before your renewal date

Begin comparing well before your policy renews, as Maryland's insurance regulator advises, and read the renewal offer line by line: look for a roof moved to actual cash value, a higher deductible, or new endorsements or exclusions. In Wisconsin, a company can't raise your rate or make your terms less favorable at renewal until 45 days after it mails you notice, unless the only change is a rate increase under 25%. If you switch, don't cancel the old policy until the new one is in effect (Oklahoma Insurance Department), and if your mortgage company pays the premium from escrow, tell it: some require advance notice of a change in insurers (Maryland).

Who has the lowest cost home insurance?

No single company is cheapest for every home, and the same house can be priced very differently. In the Oklahoma Insurance Department's rate chart (updated August 2026), 20 companies priced the same sample Oklahoma City home, insured for $400,000 with frame construction and a 1% deductible, from $1,935 to $10,370 a year. And the company with the lowest price for that home wasn't the lowest in all four cities the chart covers.

Two questions can turn up a lower price. Ask whether the company's group has other companies with different rates (Maryland's tip), and whether you've been placed in its lowest-priced company or tier, and if not, why (Oklahoma's).

Does my state publish home insurance rate comparisons?

Some do, and they make a useful first home insurance comparison before you ask for quotes. These state insurance departments publish sample premiums or comparison tools you can read today:

• California: a premium comparison from the department's yearly survey of prices for sample homes, and a coverage comparison tool that lines up as many as three companies' policies, including their limits on items like jewelry and how they pay claims.
• Florida: CHOICES, from the Office of Insurance Regulation: sample average rates by county and company.
• Texas: HelpInsure.com, from the Texas Department of Insurance and the Office of Public Insurance Counsel: sample prices and coverage for policies sold in your area.
• Oklahoma: a rate comparison chart for five sample policies in four cities.
• Maryland: a comparison guide to rates by ZIP code (August 2026).
• Alabama: premium comparisons for two sample homes.
• Hawaii: a homeowners guide and premium comparison (2026).

These are sample premiums, not quotes, but they show how far apart companies' prices are. If your state isn't listed, check its insurance department's website: the NAIC's home insurance guide suggests looking there for premium comparisons.

Who offers the most value for home insurance?

No company offers the most value for every home: value is what a policy pays when you have a claim, for what it costs. Wisconsin's insurance office says buying the least expensive policy isn't necessarily a good idea; along with the premium, weigh the coverage and its exclusions, service when you have a claim, how easily the policy can be canceled, and the company's financial strength.

What is the most reasonable homeowners insurance?

The most reasonable homeowners insurance is the policy with the coverage your home needs at the lowest total price, from a company with a sound record. You find it by comparing quotes for the same coverage.

What is replacement cost coverage?

Replacement cost coverage pays to repair or replace damaged property with materials of like kind and quality, with nothing taken off for age and wear (depreciation); actual cash value subtracts it. Two catches: many policies pay actual cash value first and the rest after you repair or replace (NAIC), and to qualify for full replacement cost on the house, Wisconsin's insurance office says, it must be insured for 80% to 90% of the cost to rebuild. And "functional" replacement cost pays for similar but less expensive materials, such as drywall in place of plaster (NAIC).

How does credit score affect home insurance?

In many states a good credit history can lower your home insurance price and a poor one can raise it, within limits set by state law. Companies use a credit-based insurance score to predict the chance you'll file a claim; by an industry estimate the NAIC cites, about 85% of homeowners insurers use one where it's allowed. In most states the score can't be the only reason to raise your rate or to deny, cancel or refuse to renew a policy, and if credit counts against you, you generally have the right to be told and to dispute errors in your credit report (NAIC). Maryland goes further: insurers may not use your credit history to refuse coverage, cancel a policy or set your premium. In Texas, companies may use it to set your price but can't turn you down based only on your credit.

Where to compare homeowners insurance quotes side by side

On PolicyVera, the homeowners insurance quotes from the licensed local insurance agents you pick come back side by side, next to your current policy.

PolicyVera is a free insurance-shopping marketplace where you compare quotes across carriers, from licensed local insurance agents at any agency. PolicyVera is paid by insurance agents, not by you. You pick what you want quoted (home, condo, auto and more), then the licensed local insurance agents you want quotes from, and send one request. Only the insurance agents you pick get your request. You compare their quotes side by side, next to your current policy (add it by uploading your policy's declarations page or answering a few questions). On PolicyVera, insurance agents are not allowed to call, text or email you outside PolicyVera until you accept them as your new agent. That rule is written into PolicyVera's agent terms.

On PolicyVera you pick the licensed local insurance agents who get your request; PolicyVera doesn't rank or recommend them.

Line by line, you see what differs besides the price: here, a higher deductible, a higher liability limit and extras (marked).

You can also do the whole thing inside your AI assistant. PolicyVera runs an MCP server, so a person's AI assistant can make the whole quote request inside the conversation and read the quotes as the agents send them. It connects to Claude, ChatGPT, Gemini, Perplexity, Grok and other assistants that can use outside tools (plans vary): policyvera.com/connect

PolicyVera itself does not sell, solicit, negotiate, or bind insurance and provides no insurance advice; insurance agents win clients who choose them, and the platform is free for consumers and lenders.

Quotes are non-binding estimates; the final premium is set by the insurer's underwriting after you apply.

Which states have licensed agents on PolicyVera, kept live: policyvera.com/agents. More on this: First-time home buyer guide

Sources

• NAIC, A Consumer's Guide to Home Insurance (2022) and A Shopping Tool for Homeowners Insurance (2023)
• NAIC, Credit-Based Insurance Scores and How to File a Complaint and Research Complaints Against Insurance Carriers
• Oklahoma Insurance Department, Home Insurance Rate Comparison (chart updated August 2026) and Choosing Your Homeowners Insurance Policy
• Maryland Insurance Administration, Homeowner Insurance Tips, Understanding Homeowners Insurance Rates and Homeowners and Renters Insurance: A Comparison Guide to Rates (August 2026)
• Wisconsin Office of the Commissioner of Insurance, Consumer's Guide to Homeowners Insurance (PI-015, revised July 2026)
• Texas Department of Insurance, Home insurance guide, What to know about deductibles, Insurance and your roof, Is your home policy up for renewal? and Tips to help you shop for homeowners insurance; with the Office of Public Insurance Counsel, HelpInsure.com
• Florida Department of Financial Services, Florida's Hurricane Deductible; Florida Office of Insurance Regulation, CHOICES: Homeowners Rate Comparison Tool
• California Department of Insurance, Compare Insurance Premiums and its 2026 Homeowners Insurance comparison tool, Homeowners Coverage Comparison Tool and Residential Insurance: Homeowners and Renters
• Hawaii Insurance Division, Homeowners Insurance Guide and Premium Comparison (2026 publication)
• Alabama Department of Insurance, Homeowners Premium Comparisons

General information, not advice for your situation. Rules vary by state and by company; your state's insurance department explains the rules where you live.

Related: How Much Is Homeowners Insurance? Averages by State, and What Sets Your Price and Auto Home Insurance Quotes: Home and Auto Insurance Quotes Side by Side

More PolicyVera guides: PolicyVera Guides: Insurance Questions, Answered