Homeowners insurance in Montana
The cost of homeowners insurance in Montana is $1,397 a year for the average amount of coverage. Montana residents can compare rates from multiple companies with Policygenius.
Published September 17, 2020
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Editorial DisclosureHomeowners insurance is designed to protect your home, personal belongings, and assets in the event your house is damaged, burglarized, or you’re held liable for an accident. Montana may not experience volatile weather or natural hazards to the same degree as some of its western neighbors, but the state is still prone to severe thunderstorms, wildfires, and freezing cold temperatures.
The statewide average cost of homeowners insurance in Montana is $1,397, but policy premiums can vary considerably based on specific factors related to your home and insurance policy. Your policy cost will be directly impacted by things like your home’s construction type and the age of its roof, your credit and claims history, and the policy deductible amount you choose. Rates for your home may also differ from company to company for the same levels of coverage, which is why it’s so important to compare policies from different companies — that’s where we come in.
To help simplify your shopping experience, Policygenius reviewed the five best homeowners insurance companies in Montana offered through our website. We also calculated the cheapest and most expensive cities in Montana for home insurance based on hundreds of submitted quotes.
KEY TAKEAWAYS
The average cost of homeowners insurance in Montana is $1,397 for $100,000–500,000 in coverage
The most affordable insurance company in Montana is Stillwater, according to Policygenius quote data
When deciding on policy coverage, Montana residents should consider the state’s frequent wildfires and hailstorms
The 5 best homeowners insurance companies in Montana
Before deciding on a homeowners insurance policy, consider doing a little research on the company that will be insuring your house and all of your assets. A great homeowners insurance company is financially stable, has a good track record handling claims, affordable coverage, flexible policy options, and high quality discounts.
Using that criteria, we determined the following five companies were the best homeowners insurance companies in Montana. Read about our methodology here.
Best company for a cheap quote: Stillwater
Stillwater provides the cheapest Montana home insurance quote of any Policygenius partner carrier. The average quote with Stillwater is $1,013 for $100,000–500,000 in coverage, that’s nearly $400 cheaper than the statewide average cost of $1,397. Montana residents looking for great coverage on a budget should consider homeowners insurance with Stillwater.
Read our full review of Stillwater here
Best company for high-value homes: AIG
Montana residents with high-value homes should consider a homeowners insurance policy with AIG. This luxury insurance provider offers guaranteed replacement cost dwelling coverage, replacement cost coverage on all personal property, and additional services like appraisals and risk protection consultations. Keep in mind that AIG only covers homes with an insured value of more than $750k and doesn’t provide monoline home insurance coverage, meaning you’d need to insure your car or boat with AIG as well in order to get a policy.
Read our full review of AIG here
Best company for policy discounts: Nationwide
In terms of discounts, few Montana insurance companies compare to Nationwide. Nationwide offers a generous multi-policy discount if you bundle your home insurance policy with their auto insurance or another type of property insurance. Nationwide also offers discounts for securing and strengthening your home and roof from break-ins and bad weather. If you haven’t filed a claim in three years or if you recently purchased your home, that can also land you a discount with Nationwide.
Read our full review of Nationwide here
Best company for superior coverage: Safeco
Montana residents looking to maximize coverage for their home and personal property against volatile weather should consider Safeco’s excellent replacement cost coverage options. Safeco has four comprehensive tiers of coverage, and all include the option to add extended replacement cost, a policy add-on that increases your home’s coverage limits an additional 25% or 50% if rebuild costs exceed your dwelling coverage amount. Safeco’s “Premier Plan”, its highest level of coverage, includes guaranteed replacement cost, which pays for a rebuild of your home regardless of the price.
Read our full review of Safeco here
Best financial ratings: Travelers
One important indicator of an insurance company’s ability to pay out claims in an effective and timely manner is its financial stability, and Travelers is among the highest-rated insurers in that area. With an A+ rating with A.M. Best, Travelers has the second highest score a company can receive with the insurance company credit rating agency. Travelers also has high marks with Standard & Poors, which measures long-term financial stability, as well as Moody’s, which measures what the expected losses would be if a company were to go into default.
Read our full review of Travelers here
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Average cost of homeowners insurance in Montana by company
When comparing insurance companies, Montana residents may find that rates differ greatly from company to company for the same level of coverage. Higher-priced policies may include coverage add-ons or higher limits than other plans, or it may cost more simply because that insurer charges more for coverage in that particular location.
After reviewing hundreds of quotes submitted with Policygenius, we found that Stillwater is the cheapest insurance company in Montana with a $1,469 average annual premium for $100,000–500,000 in coverage. Safeco is the most expensive with a $1,720 average annual premium.
| Company | Average Cost |
|---|---|
| ASI | $ 1,245 |
| MetLife | $ 1,550 |
| Nationwide | $ 1,369 |
| Progressive | $ 1,304 |
| Safeco | $ 1,720 |
| Stillwater | $ 1,013 |
| Travelers | $ 1,341 |
Average cost of home insurance in Montana by coverage amount
The average cost of homeowners insurance in Montana will also differ considerably based on the amount of insurance you have for your home. Below is the average homeowners insurance quote for five different levels of coverage.
| Coverage Amount | Average Cost |
|---|---|
| $100,000-$200,000 | $ 1,050 |
| $200,000-$300,000 | $ 1,384 |
| $300,000-$400,000 | $ 1,606 |
| $400,000-$500,000 | $ 2,556 |
| Greater than $500,000 | $ 3,221 |
Average cost of home insurance in Montana by city
Insurance companies will also price policies differently based on where you live. We found that Stanford has the highest rates in the state with a $3,512 average annual premium for $100,000-500,000 in coverage. The city with the cheapest rates is Whitefish, with an average annual premium of $559 for the same amount of coverage.
| City | Average Cost |
|---|---|
| Belgrade | $ 940 |
| Billings | $ 2,142 |
| Bozeman | $ 1,287 |
| Butte | $ 1,066 |
| Colstrip | $ 2,005 |
| Deer Lodge | $ 954 |
| Great Falls | $ 1,477 |
| Hamilton | $ 1,026 |
| Helena | $ 1,220 |
| Joliet | $ 1,891 |
| Kalispell | $ 995 |
| Lincoln | $ 1,811 |
| Miles City | $ 2,460 |
| Missoula | $ 865 |
| Pompey Pillar | $ 2,455 |
| Sidney | $ 1,970 |
| Stanford | $ 3,512 |
| Three Forks | $ 2,394 |
| Whitefish | $ 559 |
| Winston | $ 2,507 |
We selected the 20 largest cities in Montana by population where customers have submitted quotes with Policygenius. Quotes are based on a coverage amount between $100,000 and 500,000.
The cheapest cities for homeowners insurance in Montana
The most expensive cities for homeowners insurance in Montana
Guide to homeowners insurance in Montana
Common causes of home insurance loss in Montana
Montana experiences mostly mild weather throughout the year, but Big Sky Country is no stranger to severe storms either, with thunderstorms and lightning causing around $6 million in annualized property loss from 1996–2014, according to the U.S. Department of Energy.
Much of that property damage can likely be attributed to hail. Montana saw around 200 hail storms in 2019 which was the ninth most in the country, according to the National Weather Service. Homeowners insurance does cover wind and hail damage to your roof and foundation, but Montana residents may want to consider preventative measures like fortified roof shingles to limit claims and keep their rates low. Strengthening your home from storm damage and theft may also land you a nice policy discount from your insurance company.
Does homeowners insurance cover flooding in Montana?
Homeowners insurance does not cover flood damage in Montana or any of the other 49 states. Montana residents can supplement that gap in coverage by purchasing a flood insurance policy. Flood insurance can typically be provided through the same insurance company that insures your home.
Most flood policies are sold by private companies but administered by the federal government’s National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP). An NFIP flood policy can cover up to $250,00 for the structure of your home and up to $100,000 for personal belongings.
Montana Commissioner of Securities and Insurance
The Montana Commissioner of Securities and Insurance is a valuable resource both for Montana homeowners purchasing coverage for the first time or those who are already insured. The CSI website includes a shopping guide, carrier rate comparisons in each city, information about how to prepare your home for bad weather and file a claim, and much more.
What if I can’t get homeowners insurance?
Homeowners insurance companies can cancel your insurance for a number of reasons — maybe you filed too many claims in a short period of time, maybe the insurance company no longer offers coverage where you live, or maybe they determined your home was too risky to insure after a recent inspection.
If you’re unable to get homeowners insurance with a standard carrier, look into coverage with a surplus or excess lines insurer. Surplus carriers specialize in risks that are typically rejected by traditional insurance companies. A couple of downsides to getting coverage through a surplus carrier are that it’s typically expensive and the companies aren’t admitted with the state, meaning they aren’t subject to the same rules and regulations as traditional insurance companies. But surplus lines coverage is a solid option if you’re a Montana resident looking for last minute coverage.
Not where you live? We've got you covered, check out our guide to homeowners insurance in your state
Pat Howard
Homeowners Insurance Expert
Expertise
Pat Howard is a homeowners insurance editor at Policygenius in New York City. He has written extensively about home insurance cost, coverage, and companies since 2018, and his insights have been featured on Investopedia, Lifehacker, MSN, Zola, HerMoney, and Property Casualty 360.
Education
Pat has a B.A. in journalism from Michigan State University.
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