While both Geico and USAA offer dwelling, other structures, loss of use, personal liability, medical payments to others, and personal property coverage to homeowners, the companies vary in terms of customer service, eligibility, endorsements, discounts, and pricing.
To help you determine the best homeowners insurance company for you, read our in-depth Geico vs. USAA home insurance comparison to learn what makes each company unique. For free home insurance quotes in your area, call 855-948-5219 or enter your zip code in our free quote tool:
TOH Geico vs. USAA Home Insurance Comparison
| Provider | Geico | USAA |
|---|---|---|
| Other structures coverage limits | 10% of dwelling | 10% of dwelling |
| Personal property coverage limits | 70% of dwelling | 50% or 70% of dwelling |
| Liability coverage limits | $100,000, $200,000, $300,000, $500,000, or $1 million | $100,000, $300,000, $500,000, or $1 million |
| Monthly price* | $116 | $151 |
| Discounts available | 3 | 5 |
| Unique add-ons | Valuable collections, rebuilding | Flood |
| Customer service | 24/7 | 24/7 for claims; limited for sales and service |
| BBB rating | A+ | A- |
*Based on quotes from Raleigh, North Carolina
Geico vs. USAA Home Insurance Coverage Comparison
Geico and USAA both offer six main types of home insurance coverage in their policies—dwelling, other structures, personal property, loss of use, liability, and medical payments to others. The two differ in terms of coverage options and endorsements.
Geico Coverage
Geico uses the cost to rebuild your home as dwelling coverage, which is determined by asking you questions about your home during the quote process. Other structures, personal property, and loss of use coverage come from a percentage of dwelling coverage, and you get to choose liability, medical payments, and deductible amounts from the options below.
| Type of Coverage | Coverage Options |
|---|---|
| Other structures | 10% of dwelling |
| Personal property | 70% of dwelling |
| Loss of use | 20% of dwelling |
| Liability | $100,000, $200,000, $300,000, $500,000, or $1 million |
| Medical payments to others | $1,000, $2,000, $3,000, $4,000, or $5,000 |
| Deductible | $250, $500, $1,000, or $2,500 |
If you want more protection for your home, you can add these endorsements to your policy at an additional cost:
- Water backup and sump overflow
- Identity theft protection
- Business pursuit
- Loss assessment coverage
- Earthquake coverage
- Blanket jewelry coverage
USAA Coverage
Like Geico, USAA uses your home’s rebuilding cost to determine dwelling, other structures, personal property, and loss of use coverage and allows you to choose liability, medical payments, and deductible amounts.
However, USAA’s base policy includes coverage for credit card and forgery, supplemental loss assessment, and business property. Additionally, USAA will split up your deductible based on peril depending on where you live. Take a look at your USAA coverage options below.
| Type of Coverage | Coverage Options |
|---|---|
| Dwelling | 80%–150% of rebuilding cost |
| Other structures | 10% of dwelling |
| Personal property | 50% or 70% of dwelling |
| Loss of use | 20% of dwelling |
| Liability | $100,000, $300,000, $500,000, or $1 million |
| Medical payments to others | $5,000 |
| Credit card and forgery | $500, $1,000, $2,500, or $5,000 |
| Supplemental loss assessment | $1,000, $6,000, $11,000, $16,000, $21,000, $26,000, $31,000, $36,000, $41,000, $46,000, or $51,000 |
| Business property | $2,500, $5,000, $7,500, or $10,000 |
| Deductible (all other perils/wind and hail) | $500/1% of dwelling, $500/2% of dwelling, $500/5% of dwelling, $500/$1,000, $500/$2,000, $500/$5,000, $1,000/1% of dwelling, $1,000/2% of dwelling, $1,000/5% of dwelling, $1,000/$1,000, $1,000/$2,000, $1,000/$5,000, $2,500/1% of dwelling, $2,500/2% of dwelling, $2,500/5% of dwelling, $2,500/$2,500, or $2,500/$5,000 |
USAA offers similar endorsements to Geico:
- Limited water backup and sump discharge or overflow
- Earthquake
- Increased building ordinance or law
- Flood
- Valuable personal property
Geico vs. USAA Home Insurance Cost Comparison
The average cost of homeowners insurance in 2017 was about $101 per month, according to the Insurance Information Institute. However, this amount will vary by state, person, and home. To give you an idea of the insurance rates from Geico and USAA, we requested quotes from both companies using information for a one-story home in Raleigh, North Carolina, with four bedrooms and 3.5 bathrooms.
Geico Cost
After our team answered questions about the condition of the home and the materials used to build it, Geico estimated the rebuilding cost to be $239,100. That number was used to determine dwelling, other structures, personal property, and loss of use coverage. The remaining amounts were chosen by our team.
| Type of Coverage | Amount of Coverage |
|---|---|
| Dwelling | $239,100 |
| Other structures | $23,910 |
| Personal property | $167,370 |
| Loss of use | $47,820 |
| Liability | $300,000 |
| Medical payments to others | $1,000 per person |
| Deductible | $1,000 |
| Monthly cost | $116.16 |
Geigo offers three discounts to help you save money on your monthly premium:
- Bundling insurance policies
- Having smoke detectors and fire extinguishers in your home
- Installing home security systems
USAA Cost
USAA estimated the same home to cost $329,000 to rebuild. We used that number for dwelling coverage, which helped determine other structures, personal property, and loss of use amounts. We chose $300,000 for liability and $1,000 for our deductible since those are standard amounts, and we chose the lowest coverage options for the remaining areas of protection.
| Type of Coverage | Amount of Coverage |
|---|---|
| Dwelling | $329,000 |
| Other structures | $32,900 |
| Personal property | $164,500 |
| Loss of use | $65,800 |
| Liability | $300,000 |
| Medical payments to others | $5,000 |
| Credit card and forgery | $500 |
| Supplemental loss assessment | $1,000 |
| Business property | $2,500 |
| Deductible (all other perils/wind and hail) | $1,000/$1,000 |
| Monthly cost | $151.17 |
Here are the USAA discounts that can help lower your policy amount:
- Bundling insurance policies
- Being claims-free
- Having home security systems
- Insuring your home for the full amount of the rebuilding cost
- Having a new home
Our Conclusion
We recommend Geico to homeowners who are looking for an affordable policy and USAA to homeowners who want expanded coverage for areas that aren’t typically included in a base policy.
We received a quote from Geico for $116 per month, which is close to the national average of $101 per month. This gets you standard coverage for the structure of your home, your personal belongings, and liability. You also have the choice of adding six endorsements to your plan, and you have access to Geico’s 24/7 customer service line.
The biggest downside to Geico home insurance is that the company doesn’t write its own policies. Geico uses underwriting companies, which means you may have to communicate with the underwriting company instead of Geico. This also means that your coverage amounts, endorsements, and discounts may look different by state because Geico may use a different underwriter for your location.
While a USAA policy costs more than a Geico policy, you get more protection with coverage for credit card forgery, business property, and supplemental loss assessment. USAA also provides more dwelling, personal property, deductible, and discount options than Geico.
However, USAA does have a larger volume of negative complaints relating to its customer service, which explains its B+ rating from the Better Business Bureau (BBB). The company also has limited customer service compared to Geico. While you can use the USAA online portal, mobile app, online chat, or claims line at any time, questions relating to your policy, sales, and billing can only be answered during regular business hours.
Before deciding which company best suits your home protection needs, get quotes from both home insurance providers by calling 855-948-5219 or using the tool below.
Frequently Asked Questions
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