BENCHMARK TOOL
Home Cover Benchmark
Pick a state, a home-value band, a roof age, and a deductible. We start from the published state average we cite, apply simple adjustment factors printed below, and show a benchmark range. Labelled clearly: this is a benchmark range from published averages, not a quote for your home.
Disclaimer: Published averages and ranges, not a quote. This page is not insurance advice. Your premium will differ based on your home, location, claims history, and insurer.
Assumptions, printed
- Base: the published state average from our data file, $300,000 dwelling basis, source and verified date shown inside the tool result. National context: $2,470 per year.
- Dwelling band factors: $300k at 1.0, $500k at 1.35, $750k at 1.7. Premium does not scale one-for-one with dwelling limit because liability and other elements are partly fixed, which is why the factors rise more slowly than the limits.
- Roof factors: 0-10 years at 0.95, 10-20 years at 1.0, 20+ years at 1.2, unknown or older material at 1.35. The roof is the first defence against water claims, and insurers price it accordingly.
- Deductible factors: $1,000 flat at 1.0, $2,500 flat at 0.93, 1% of dwelling at 0.97, 2% of dwelling at 0.9. A higher deductible moves first-loss cost to you; it does not remove the risk.
- Range: 80% to 125% of the adjusted centre, reflecting how widely real premiums scatter around any state average. No personal data is collected; your selections stay in your browser.
Worked example: the default view
The tool opens on California, a $300,000 dwelling band, a roof aged 10-20 years and a $1,000 flat deductible. Every factor is 1.0, so the centre is simply the published California average of $1,633 per year, and the range renders as $1,306 to $2,041. Two lessons live in that plain example. First, even with every factor neutral, the honest answer is a range more than $700 wide, because real premiums scatter. Second, the range only becomes useful when you change the inputs to match your home: move the dwelling band to $500,000 and the centre rises by the 1.35 factor to about $2,205 before roof and deductible are even considered. Run your own combination, then compare the result with the state table and your state page before you judge any real quote.
What the benchmark cannot do
It cannot see your street, your exact rebuild cost, your claims history, or whether insurers are competing hard or quietly leaving your area. It will not tell you a quote is too high, only whether it sits inside or outside a published-average range for homes roughly like yours. If a real quote lands far outside the range, the useful question is which factor explains the distance, and our guides on roof age and material, deductible choice and lowering a premium without underinsuring take those factors in turn.
Common questions
Is the benchmark range a quote?
No. It is your state published average adjusted only by the simple factors printed on this page, widened into a range. It cannot see your address, your roof in person, your claims history or any insurer’s current appetite. Only an insurer or licensed agent can quote your home.
Where does the base figure come from?
Each state base is the published average in our checked-in data, for example California at $1,633 per year on a $300,000 dwelling basis (Bankrate True Cost of Home Insurance 2025 state table (as reproduced by The Hartford, citing Bankrate); median home value from Ruby Home 2023 median home price summary, 2025, verified 2026-10-04). The national average in the same report family is $2,470.
What do the adjustment factors assume?
Dwelling band: $300k at 1.0, $500k at 1.35, $750k at 1.7. Roof age: 0-10 years at 0.95, 10-20 at 1.0, 20+ at 1.2, unknown or older material at 1.35. Deductible: $1,000 flat at 1.0, $2,500 at 0.93, 1% of dwelling at 0.97, 2% at 0.9. The range shown is 80% to 125% of the adjusted centre. These are simple published modelling factors for a benchmark, not an insurer rate filing.
Why does the range exclude flood?
Because flood insurance is a separate policy and a separate price. Including it silently would flatter the comparison for homes that need it and inflate it for homes that do not. See our guide on why flood insurance is separate.
Sources and verification
State averages: Bankrate True Cost of Home Insurance 2025 state table (as reproduced by The Hartford, citing Bankrate), $300,000 dwelling basis, verified 2026-10-04. National average: Bankrate True Cost of Home Insurance report (press release, August 25, 2025), 2025. Adjustment factors are this site’s simple published benchmark model, printed above. Full method: Methodology. Limits of any benchmark: Disclaimer.