Insuring a Tesla generally costs more than insuring the average new vehicle, and more than insuring the average electric vehicle from another brand. How much more depends heavily on which model you drive, where you live, and your own driving record — but a few data points can help you set expectations before you start shopping for quotes.
As of June 2026, Insurance.com put full-coverage premiums at roughly $3,871 a year ($323/month) for a Tesla Model 3 and $3,836 a year ($320/month) for a Model Y. A separate analysis from Insurify, last updated July 2, 2026 and based on real-time quotes across its network of insurance partners, put the average across all Tesla models closer to $268/month for full coverage — a reminder that quoted averages vary by data source, driver profile, and methodology, so treat any single number as a ballpark rather than a quote. A third estimate from ValuePenguin, using a hypothetical 30-year-old driver with good credit in Texas as of June 30, 2026, priced the Model Y around $255/month and the Model 3 around $282/month full coverage.
Whichever source you check, Teslas tend to cost more to insure than the typical new car. Insurance.com’s data put the overall Tesla average at about $4,512 a year, roughly 48% above its cited national average of $3,037 a year across all vehicles. That gap isn’t unique to Tesla: a broader Insurify report found electric vehicles overall cost about 42% more to insure than gas-powered cars ($3,159 vs. $2,218 a year), though that gap narrows to roughly 18% when comparing only 2024-model-year-or-newer vehicles, as safety tech becomes more standardized across the industry.
A few factors specifically push Tesla premiums higher. Repair costs are a big one: collision-repair estimates cited by Insurance.com, drawing on Southern California body-shop data, averaged $3,914 for a Tesla versus $1,629 for a Honda. Insurers point to a few reasons for this: Tesla’s aluminum unibody construction often requires replacing larger panels rather than patching them, driver-assist sensors need recalibration after even minor collisions, and parts sourcing can be limited compared with higher-volume brands. Vehicle price also matters — a higher sticker price generally means a higher cost to replace or repair the car, which insurers factor into premiums. Your own driver profile (age, driving record, credit-based insurance score where allowed, and location) still plays the largest role in what you personally pay, the same as it would for any other vehicle.
Tesla also sells its own policy, Tesla Insurance, directly through the Tesla app in 15 states: Arizona, California, Colorado, Florida, Illinois, Indiana, Maryland, Minnesota, Nevada, Ohio, Oregon, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, and Virginia. Outside California, Tesla’s Real-Time Insurance product prices coverage using your car’s own data rather than a separate tracking device. Drivers start with an assumed Safety Score of 90, which is recalculated monthly from the prior 30 days of driving and factors in behaviors like hard braking, speeding, and following distance, along with how much of your driving uses FSD (Supervised). Tesla states that premiums can adjust immediately when you change coverage, address, or drivers; monthly as your Safety Score, mileage, or FSD usage changes; and at renewal. California policyholders get a different Tesla Insurance product that doesn’t use Safety Score to set price, though they can opt in to see their score for informational purposes.
Because quotes vary so much by insurer, state, and driver history, the practical step is to compare quotes from several carriers — including Tesla’s own program if it’s offered where you live — rather than relying on any published average as your expected price. Ask each insurer specifically how they treat EV repair costs and driver-assistance features, since that’s often where Tesla quotes diverge most from insurer to insurer.
Photo by Mikhail Nilov.