The Best and Cheapest Home Insurance Companies in Illinois

That's 49% less than the statewide average of $1,856 per year. Other insurers with competitive rates include Farmers and Nationwide.

A high-quality home insurance company will have a combination of low rates, useful coverage options and highly rated customer service. We've collected thousands of home insurance quotes and critiqued the top home insurance companies in Illinois in order to find the best choice for a variety of homeowners.

Best cheap home insurance in Illinois

What are the cheapest options for homeowners insurance in Illinois?

That makes State Farm 49% less expensive than the average cost of homeowners insurance in Illinois, $1,856.

The absolute cheapest companies in Illinois are Chubb and USAA. However, Chubb only covers very high-value homes, and USAA is exclusively available to people affiliated with the military.

Best for most people: State Farm

Tthe best homeowners insurance company in Illinois for most people is State Farm. The nation's largest insurer is also the least expensive for Illinois homeowners, with an average price of just $953 per year. That's about half as much as the state average and $128 less than the second-cheapest option, Farmers Insurance.

State Farm also has very dependable service. In Illinois, it scored 4.5 out of 5 stars in our homeowners insurance customer service rating. That's second only to USAA, which isn't available unless you're affiliated with the military. Customers were generally satisfied with the level of service they received, especially when it comes to filing and receiving payment for an insurance claim.

However, State Farm doesn't offer many add-ons for homeowners to customize a policy, including popular options like personal property replacement cost.

Best customer service: Country Financial

For Illinois homeowners who want a steadfast insurer they can rely on, we recommend Country Financial. It has top-rated service, especially when it comes to handling claims.

In particular, Country Financial scores very well among competitors on the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC) complaint index. According to the index, Country receives about a quarter of the complaints that homeowners insurers of its size typically do. This suggests Country's customers are generally happy with the company's service.

The downside of Country Financial is that it has more expensive rates than many of its competitors. While its average price of $1,782 per year is less than the average rate overall, it's $829 more expensive than our top pick, State Farm.

However, you may be able to lower your rate by taking advantage of Country's wide variety of discounts. These include things like bundling your homeowners insurance policy with another policy or having updated wiring.

Best for bundling: Allstate

One key way for homeowners to save on insurance is to bundle their home and auto insurance policies together, and Allstate has one of the best discounts available — up to 25%, in some cases.

Allstate also offers better-than-average prices for homeowners insurance, even without a bundle discount. Its average rate of $1,200 per year is 35% less than the average price statewide.

However, Allstate's home insurance service is merely passable. It fared about average in J.D. Power's national home insurance satisfaction survey, and it scored a 1.01 in the NAIC complaint index — meaning it received 1% more complaints than a typical company, when controlling for size.

Best for military families: USAA

USAA is a well-rated option for homeowners who are affiliated with the military. USAA is consistently ranked as one of the most dependable home insurers in the nation. In Illinois, its rate is cheaper than average at $1,333 per year, but not the best. That's $523 less than the average overall.

USAA's homeowners insurance comes with replacement cost coverage at no extra cost. With replacement cost coverage, you'll be reimbursed for the full cost to replace damaged or destroyed property, without factoring in depreciation. Usually, you'd have to pay extra to upgrade to this coverage with other providers. It also offers some extras that appeal to people in the armed forces, such as a $0 deductible on your uniform while you're on active duty.

However, USAA is only available to active-duty or retired service members, and anyone whose parent or spouse has held a USAA insurance policy.

Illinois insurance rates: City-by-city

Meanwhile, the cheapest city is Clarendon Hills, where a typical resident pays just $1,467 — 46% less than in Olive Branch.

The cost of homeowners insurance varies depending on where you live. You might see a high cost to insure your home if you live in a rural area with no nearby fire department or if break-ins are common.

Best homeowners insurance companies in Illinois

The best-rated homeowners insurance company in Illinois is USAA, which received a perfect score in our home insurance satisfaction rankings. Homeowners tend to be very happy with the service they receive from USAA, especially when making a claim.

However, USAA is only available to people who have served in the U.S. military or who have had a spouse or parent with USAA insurance. Five other Illinois insurers received excellent scores of 4.5 stars, making them great choices for the general public, including State Farm and Erie.

Most common homeowners insurance perils in Illinois

The most common perils — causes of physical damage to your home — in Illinois are flooding and tornadoes. Homeowners in Illinois may have to purchase flood insurance on its own to protect their homes against the damage of rising waters. Typically, home insurance won't cover any damage from floods. Instead, you must purchase a policy, either through the National Flood Insurance Program or a private insurer. Although it's not required by law, you should consider buying flood insurance if your home is in an area that's near a potentially dangerous body of water — like the shore of the Mississippi River or the edge of Lake Michigan.

Tornadoes are also common in Illinois. The western part of the state is on the edge of Tornado Alley, a part of the United States that experiences an above-average number of tornadoes. Your homeowners insurance protects you from a tornado's damaging winds, but you could be underprotected if you wouldn't be able to fully rebuild your home if it were destroyed. Consider purchasing guaranteed replacement cost coverage if you're underinsured — and remember that after a large-scale disaster like a tornado, costs can increase because labor and building materials will be in high demand.

Illinois homeowners could also face damage from underground mining tunnels, but fortunately, insurance providers are required to offer coverage for mine subsidence — when a mine partially or completely collapses. Due to Illinois' history of mining, the Illinois State Geological Survey estimates that there are about 330,000 homes that have a potentially dangerous proximity to defunct underground mines. Since your homeowners insurance doesn't typically cover damage from earth movement (including mine subsidence), you should check about mine subsidence insurance in your area, especially if you believe your property is undermined.

Methodology

For our study, we gathered quotes from each of Illinois' ZIP codes. We used a sample property that was built in 1968 and measured 2,100 square feet. The home was insured to Illinois' median cost of a home, $194,500.

We retrieved quotes from 11 of the largest providers in Illinois: AAA, Allstate, American Family, Auto-Owners, Chubb, Country Financial, Erie, Farmers, Nationwide, State Farm and Travelers. ValuePenguin's analysis used insurance rate data from Quadrant Information Services. These rates were publicly sourced from insurer filings and should be used for comparative purposes only — your own quotes may be different.

To determine the best home insurance companies in Illinois, we considered data from J.D. Power, the National Association of Insurance Commissioners and AM Best, in addition to our own analysis.