8 Best Homeowners Insurance Companies in Washington of 2023

Purchasing a home is a serious investment and is perhaps the most expensive thing you’ll ever buy.

So, you should protect it by buying homeowners insurance.

If you live in Washington State, homeowners insurance will pay if your house is destroyed by fire. It will also pay to replace your personal belongings due to theft, burglary, or natural disaster.

What would you do in the event of a fire and don’t have homeowners insurance? Could you afford to rebuild your house or replace all your personal belongings out of pocket?

Luckily, with a homeowners insurance policy, you don’t have to.

The average cost of homeowners insurance in Washington is $75 per month or $900 per year.

Not all homeowners insurance companies are the same. They can differ in price, coverage, and add-on options, to name a few.

That said, choosing the best home insurance company for you may be daunting. There are so many insurers out there that cover Washington.

How can you find a policy that provides you with financial peace of mind and also fits your budget?

Luckily, PropertyNest found homeowners insurance policies that were affordable or comprehensive to give you an idea of what different insurers have to offer.

We’ve also included a guide on what you need to know about homeowners insurance and how it works to help you prepare if the unexpected happens.

Liberty Mutual: Best Homeowners Insurance with the Most Discounts

Liberty Mutual is an insurance carrier with more than a century of experience, and as such, it is highly regarded for its financial strength and service.

The insurer offers more discounts than any other homeowners insurance company on our list, which is why we recommend them as an option for Washington residents.

These discounts will lower your premium. Taken together, you may get a lower rate than comparable insurance companies.

Read a full Liberty Mutual home insurance review.

Allstate: Best Homeowners Insurance for Claims-Free Policy Features

Allstate is the leader when it comes to insurance products. Its large size means your claims will be processed faster and that you’ll get reimbursed promptly.

Allstate also has policy features that can save you money based on whether you make a claim.

These include:

• Claim RateGuard: Your homeowners insurance rate won’t go up after you filed a claim with this feature.
• Claim-Free Rewards: If you switch to Allstate from another insurer and had not made any recent claims with that insurer, you’ll save on your premium.
• Claim-Free Bonus: You'll get 5% back on your renewal every year you don't have a claim.
• Deductible Rewards: Get $100 off your deductible when you sign up with Allstate, and an additional $100 off each year you stay claim-free, up to $500.

Read a full Allstate homeowners insurance review.

Chubb: Best High-End Homeowners Insurance for Replacement Cost

Chubb insurance caters to the wealthy. If you have an expensive house that costs millions of dollars, Chubb’s white glove services will help protect your home in the best possible ways.

One feature that stands out is that Chubb offers replacement cost coverage without additional fees, which is unlike other insurers.

If your home was damaged or declared a total loss due to a covered peril, your home’s coverage amount is based on its replacement cost. The insurer will pay to have your house repaired to its original condition. That goes into effect even if the cost of the repairs exceeds your policy’s limit.

Replacement costs also cover your personal property and what’s inside your house if damaged. With replacement cost, your items are covered for the amount it costs to replace them today with brand new ones and without depreciation.

For example, if your refrigerator is damaged, Chubb will replace this and any other appliance based on the exact or latest available model.

And if you don’t want your belongings replaced, Chubb will offer you a cash settlement instead. The company will also do that if you want to walk away from your home.

Amica: Best Homeowners Insurance for All-in-One Coverage Package

Amica has the most insurance policies compared to similar insurers. These include auto, home, life, renters, condos, boat, and motorcycle insurance.

But it's difficult for homeowners insurance to combine all the coverages you need. Do you need coverage if you work at home? What about coverage for all your tech gear?

Amica’s Platinum Choice program simplifies the process by choosing the best coverages you need without you having to find them individually.

Under one plan, this is the coverage offered if you choose to go with Platinum Choice.

• Dwelling replacement cost coverage: Increase dwelling coverage by up to 30%.
• Personal property replacement coverage: Your damaged personal property will be paid using today’s prices rather than its depreciated cost.
• Valuable items coverage: Pricey items like jewelry get additional protection.
• Home business coverage: If you run a business from home or work from home, your business-related personal property, such as your laptop, printer, and smartphone, will be protected.
• Water backup/sump overflow: This covers repairs following a septic system backup or sump pump failure that is not covered by a standard policy.

Travelers: Best Homeowners Insurance With the Lowest Rates

Travelers is a reputable, well-established insurance company that offers homeowners insurance for a very affordable rate.

Travelers, generally known to offer some of the lowest rates, comes in at only $65 per month or $780 per year.

But that rate will change or differ based on certain factors like the age of your home, your claims history, your ZIP code, and your credit score.

In addition, Travelers has the best add-ons that you can purchase separately.

For example, you can get add-ons like:

• Increasing your coverage.
• Getting Replacement Cost Value (RCV).
• Purchasing identity fraud protection.
• Getting more funds so your damaged home can be paid in full.

Farmers: Best Homeowners Insurance for Choosing Your Own Policy

Farmers is one of the best-known home insurance names in the country. The insurer offers three different types of home insurance coverages, standard, enhanced, and premier.

These are called three tiers, and each caters to your budget since you are only purchasing homeowners insurance policies that you need.

• The Basic Policy: This offers insurance that comes standard in a basic policy, and because of its affordable rate, it is best suited for new homeowners.
• Enhanced Package: Offers higher policy limits and includes several extra features. One feature is that enhanced covers the cost of replacing your roof. Another feature is what homeowners most need, replacement cost for their damaged belongings due to a covered peril.
• Premier Package: Offers even higher limits on property coverage than the enhanced policy. In some states, this package has guaranteed replacement cost coverage which will fully reimburse you for the cost to rebuild your home regardless of your policy limit.

In essence, these packages allow for flexibility. You can add or change your coverage, and you can lower or raise your limits with every type of coverage.

Read a full Farmers homeowners insurance review.

State Farm: Best Homeowners Insurance for Unique Add-Ons

With State Farm, one of the largest insurance companies in the US, you can customize your standard homeowners insurance policy with numerous add-ons.

Many insurers offer add-ons, but with State Farm, you get the most unique ones those other insurers don’t have.

• Cyber extortion and cyber attacks.
• Liability coverage for those providing in-home child or adult care, and for those working as nurses.
• Earthquake coverage.
• Coverage of home if it’s rented out more than 30 nights.
• Coverage for theft or vandalism if home is left vacant for more than 30 days.
• Replacing a damaged water heater, air conditioner, or heating unit with a more energy-efficient model.
• Reimbursement for certain costs related to building codes or zoning laws.
• Covers theft of building materials while home is being rebuilt.
• Home system breakdown like a furnace.
• Coverage for your portion of a loss that affects all members of a homeowners association.
• Liability coverage for damage to other people’s property due to a waterbed.

Read a full State Farm homeowners insurance review.

Nationwide: Best Homeowners Insurance for Endorsements

Nationwide offers all industry-standard coverage in its basic policy and offers a range of endorsements or riders to help you get additional coverage.

Each rider comes at a cost and may raise your rates. But what riders offer is broader coverage and personalization to help customize your policy.

Here are the endorsements that Nationwide has:

• Brand New Belongings: Covers the cost to repair or replace your personal items. Kind of like replacement cost Nationwide provides you money for the depreciated value, and after you send the insurer your receipt, the insurer will pay the difference.
• Better Roof Replacement: If your roof is damaged after a covered peril, this endorsement will cover the cost of a new roof that uses safer roofing material.
• Valuable Plus: This is the endorsement you need if you have expensive property. It provides extra cost coverage for jewelry, fine art, musical instruments, and more.
• Replacement Cost Plus: If your home needs to be rebuilt, this will pay up to an additional 20% of your property coverage limit.
• Identity Theft: Pays if your identity is stolen, including fraudulent checks, unauthorized use of your credit cards, and cybercrimes.
• Flood: Protects homes from flood damage if you purchase a flood insurance policy on top of your standard homeowners insurance.
• Water Backup: Covers damage as a result of water backing up from drains or sewers as well as sump pump failures.

How We Picked the Best Homeowners Insurance in Washington

To determine the best companies that provided homeowners insurance, we looked at several factors, including pricing, coverage options, and discounts.

Discounts

We narrowed down our focus to those insurers that had the most discounts. If you qualify for many discounts, your premium will drop.

Coverage

We looked at homeowners insurance policies based on how much coverage they offered.

A range of coverages is important for you to have because the coverages can customize a policy or tailor it to a customer’s need. Coverage can also offset policy limits so that you will be reimbursed in full when you make a claim.

Technology

If a company’s website and the app allowed you to manage most of your insurance needs electronically or if both were easy to use and navigate, then that’s a company we considered.

If you couldn’t purchase a policy online and had to talk to an agent instead, then that’s an insurer we stayed away from. We also examined whether a company’s website can file a claim and track it.

Customer Reviews

We also looked at many homeowners insurance sites that offered verified customer reviews to narrow down our options. The ones with the most positive reviews were put on our list.

Price

A homeowners insurance policy shouldn’t break the bank. Pricing should be fair and transparent, and an insurer should have enough discounts to make a policy affordable to most people.

So, we only looked at companies that had affordable premiums. If the insurer had a rate below the national average or below the state average, we put that company on our list.

Do I Need Homeowners Insurance if I Live in Washington?

Homeowners insurance coverage is not required by law.

However, if you have a mortgage, the lender will most likely require you to insure your home to protect its investment.

But even if you don’t have a mortgage, it’s best to get a policy so that your damaged house can be rebuilt, or your personal property can be replaced.

What Does a Basic Homeowners Insurance Cover in Washington?

Dwelling

This covers damage to your house. So, if your home is destroyed due to a fire or other covered event or peril, your insurer will cover the cost to rebuild your home.

Medical Payments

Pays if someone is injured on your property and needs medical treatment, regardless of who’s at fault. Also pays if you, a family member, or a pet like a dog injures someone elsewhere.

Personal Liability

This pays for medical bills, repair, or replacement costs if you are held responsible for physically hurting someone or damaging his or her personal belongings. Personal liability also handles legal fees if someone sues you.

Other Structures

Covers outdoor stand-alone structures like fences, sheds, and detached garages on your property.

Personal Property

Covers the cost to replace your personal belongings if your house was robbed or burned down.

Loss of Use

If a covered event destroys your property to the point that it is uninhabitable, loss of use will pay for your temporary living expenses, including hotel stays and meals.

What is a Covered Peril?

A covered peril is an event your insurer agrees to reimburse you if you file a claim.

Covered perils include:

• Fire, wildfire, and smoke damage.
• Weather conditions like lightning, hurricanes, windstorms, hail, and the weight of ice, snow, or sleet.
• Explosions.
• Theft, vandalism, and malicious mischief.
• Damage from an aircraft or a car or another type of vehicle.
• Water damage unrelated to natural floods.

What Natural Disaster Occur in Washington?

Washington's most common natural disasters include wildfires, floods, earthquakes, severe storms, landslides, tsunamis, and droughts.

Earthquakes

The most frequent natural disaster is earthquakes. Earthquakes occur nearly every day in Washington, although most times, earthquakes are too small to be felt.

Wildfires

The second most frequent disaster is wildfires.

So, if you live on a fault line or if a wildfire breaks out, your insurer will consider your house an at-risk zone and give you a high premium.

What are Natural Disasters Not Covered in a Standard Homeowners Insurance Policy?

All homeowners insurance policies exclude floods and earthquakes, and other natural movements of the earth.

While your basic policy covers wildfires, earthquakes are not.

Since earthquakes can decimate multiple properties at once, Washington residents should consider buying supplemental insurance for earthquake coverage. This is an add-on or a separate policy on top of your standard insurance.

Note that a separate earthquake policy is high in cost because the damage from an earthquake tends to be catastrophic, making it a higher risk for insurers. To cover costs, an insurance company needs to make your deductibles high.

In short, supplementary insurance is needed for natural disasters like earthquakes where damage or loss is likely to be too expensive to cover out-of-pocket.

What Factors Determine My Premium?

Your home and your personal information are how insurers assess your premium.

Location

If you live in a safe neighborhood that has a low crime rate, and your home is close to a fire hydrant or a fire station and is not prone to constant natural disasters, you’ll pay less.

Age of Home 

Older homes are more likely to need improvements. You’ll pay a higher rate if your systems and appliances and plumbing systems are out of date. To lower your premium, you should replace these critical systems.

Deductible

Your deductible is the amount you agree to pay out of pocket if you file a claim. If you choose a higher deductible, this will decrease your premium.

Doing so means that your insurer will pay less if you file a claim, which can lead to a lower premium.

Coverage Options

Add-ons, endorsements, and increasing personal property limits can help if your precious artwork was stolen during a burglary. However, every coverage you add to your standard policy will cause your rate to rise.

Credit Score

If you have a high credit score, the insurer will assume that you are more likely to pay your premium on time each month and that you won’t file a claim. A poor credit score will see your rates increase.

Claims

If you file a claim, the insurer will believe you are more likely to make another claim and will increase your rates to keep costs down.

What Are the Types of Homeowners Insurance?

There are two policies you can choose: actual cash value (ACV) or replacement cost value (RCV)

Replacement cost value (RCV) gives you full coverage. ACV will pay you a depreciated cost.

If your laptop gets damaged, for example, RCV will replace it in full using today’s prices.

In addition, RCV is not just for personal property. It will pay the actual cost of rebuilding your home after it is damaged and even if there are increases in labor and building materials.

For actual cost value, if your possessions are stolen or destroyed, this insurance will not replace them at their full cost but rather at their depreciated value.

Should I Purchase Additional Coverage?

Homeowners insurance protects us from many emergencies that we couldn’t have predicted.

However, homeowners insurance only pays up to the policy limit when it comes to insuring your personal effects.

So, the basic policy will most likely not cover the full value of your belongings.

For example, if you have $500 in property coverage and you make a claim for a diamond ring that costs $700, you’ll have to pay the difference.

That’s why you should schedule your items or purchase add-ons so that your valuables will be covered in full.

These are the two most common ways to protect your personal property in full.

What Is an Add-On?

With add-ons, homeowners can include benefits to their coverage that were previously excluded from the standard policy.

Add-ons—also referred to as riders or endorsements—are changes and additions you can make to your homeowners insurance to fill those potential coverage gaps.

They allow you to expand existing coverage where homeowners need it most.

In addition, an add-on allows homeowners to expand the list of covered perils in their coverage.

For example, if your diamond ring costs $10,000, you can set your rider with a limit of at least the same amount to ensure you will be paid in full if your ring gets damaged, destroyed, or stolen.

Keep in mind that it is wise to select coverage limits that are high enough to protect your belongings in full.

What is Scheduling?

A standard homeowners insurance policy covers personal items up to a specific dollar limit, beyond which an insurance company won't compensate you in the event of a loss.

Scheduled personal property is a supplemental insurance policy that you add to your insurance to extend coverage for your expensive items.

Scheduling will raise your payout limits and reduce or even eliminate the deductible.

If you buy a scheduled personal property policy, homeowners can ensure that their pricey possessions will be covered in full.

These include artwork, jewelry, musical instruments, and collectibles to name a few.

So, if you want complete protection from anything that could happen to your high-priced items, then purchasing a rider or scheduling your pricey items is a must for you.

How Can I Lower My Homeowners Insurance Premium?

The two most popular ways to lower your premium are to get quotes from different insurers and apply for discounts.

Shop Around

Get quotes from as many insurers as you can.

A quote is an estimate of your premium cost. If you compare multiple quotes for the same coverage from different companies, you’ll arrive at the most affordable policies that will fit your needs or budget.

But different companies apply different factors to assess your premium.

This can result in you getting very different rates for the same coverage.

That's why comparing quotes from multiple companies is important to avoid paying more for the same, cheaper coverage elsewhere.

Discounts

If you want to reduce the cost of a policy, you should ask your insurer for any discounts that may apply to you.

Discounts are things offered by an insurance company that will lower your premium.

Some discounts that many insurers offer include:

• Multi-Policy
• Safety features in your home to prevent break-ins or to alert you of fire or smoke.
• Staying with the same insurer for years will get you a loyalty discount.
• Upgrading your roof.
• Buying new appliances such as a refrigerator or stove.
• Getting new plumbing, heating, and cooling systems.

How Much is Homeowners Insurance in Washington?

The average annual premium for homeowners insurance in the United States is $1,250 per year or $104 per month, according to the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC) report.

The average cost of homeowners insurance in Washington is $865 per year or $72 per month.

So, Washington has more affordable rates compared to the national average.