Best Car Insurance Australia

Customer service

FINDER AWARD

Youi Comprehensive

Youi Comprehensive

Our most recommened car insurer

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Value

FINDER AWARD

Budget Direct Comprehensive

Budget Direct Comprehensive

2026 Finder Award winner

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Bonuses

Qantas Comprehensive

Qantas Comprehensive

Earn bonus Qantas Points

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Price

Bingle Comprehensive

Bingle Comprehensive

One of the cheapest providers in our database

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How to find which car insurance is best in Australia?

The best car insurance fits your needs and budget, helps you in your time of need and pays out if the time comes.

Older or cheaper cars may need basic coverage, while others benefit from comprehensive policies with extras like roadside assistance and hire cars. Policy prices have risen in the last few days, so you've come to the right place to look for a better deal.

Here's a few terms to know before you get started:

• Accidental damage is when someone else damages your car.
• Agreed value is the payout you'll get if your car is totalled and can't be repaired. It's a predetermined amount set when purchasing the policy. Ideal for expensive or modified cars.
• Market value is the payout for a totalled car, based on its pre-accident market price. This is riskier, since value changes daily. Best for cheaper cars or those who can afford to chip in savings for a new car, if the market value falls short of your expectations.
• Legal liability refers to the amount you're covered for if you damage someone else's property. It starts at $20 million as standard.
• Roadside assistance helps with breakdowns like flat tyres or dead batteries. Ideal for frequent travellers without nearby help.

• Best for customer satisfaction: Youi Comprehensive
• Best for value: Budget Direct Comprehensive
• Best for bonuses: Qantas Comprehensive
• Best for price: Bingle Comprehensive
• Best for features: Coles Comprehensive Insurance

Finder Score	Roadside Assistance	Accidental damage	Agreed or market value
Best for customer satisfaction
Finder Score 9.4 Excellent Youi Comprehensive Finder Award	Finder Score 9.4 Excellent			Agreed or Market	Get Quote View details Compare product selection Compare	loading	Why we like it Youi received multiple national 2025 Finder Customer Satisfaction Awards across the Top Value, Customer Service, Easiest Claims and Most Recommended categories, proving highly favourable for many Australians. Pros & cons Pros It has an Australia-based customer service team, which is great for those who value a local presence. The team is friendly and approachable. They're great at helping you understand parts of the policy you may not understand. Cons The quote process starts online but then a Youi representative calls you. This is frustrating for many who prefer to complete the quote online. This can only be avoided if you get a quote on Sundays or outside of their sales team hours (after 10:30pm on weekdays and 8:30pm on Saturdays). If you're not willing to ask for a price reduction, the original quote can be more expensive than other popular insurers.
Best for value
Finder Score 9.9 Excellent Budget Direct Comprehensive Finder Award	Finder Score 9.9 Excellent	Standalone		Agreed or Market	Discount: Receive 15% off your first year's premium when you purchase cover online. T&Cs apply.	Get Quote View details Compare product selection Compare	loading	Why we like it Budget Direct remains one of the best-value car insurers on the market, taking home the 2026 Finder Award for Best Value. Pros & cons Pros It has a broad range of coverage options, allowing you to tailor your coverage as you need. This gives you more control over the overall cost of your premium. New customers can get 15% off their comprehensive car insurance when they sign up online. Cons If price is your primary concern, there are cheaper policies available.
Best for bonuses
Finder Score 9.8 Excellent Qantas Comprehensive	Finder Score 9.8 Excellent	Optional		Agreed or Market	Points: Earn up to 40,000 Qantas Points with every car insurance policy. Ends 27 May 2026. Plus save 15% on your 1st year’s premium when you purchase online. T&Cs apply.	Get Quote View details Compare product selection Compare	loading	Why we like it We picked Qantas car insurance for the points lovers category because it regularly runs promotions where points are up for grabs. With many loving to travel but struggling for the funds, the ability to earn points while spending on mundane insurance items is appealing. Pros & cons Pros Qantas's comprehensive policy offers a similar level of coverage to more expensive insurers, yet remains comparatively cheap. It includes higher coverage limits than others like up to $1,500 for key replacement (others offer up to $1,000). You can save 15% on your first year's premium when you purchase online. T&Cs apply. Cons If you choose to cancel your policy early, you may be charged a fee of $40. Some other policies don't charge you to cancel early. If points aren't important to you then there are other, more well-known brands available for cheaper. Its product disclosure statement (PDS) is split over 2 documents, creating unnecessary admin.
Best for price
Finder Score 8.5 Great Bingle Comprehensive	Finder Score 8.5 Great			Market	Get Quote View details Compare product selection Compare	loading	Why we like it We picked Bingle Comprehensive as our top pick for the best price because it won a 2026 Highly Commended Finder award for Best Low Cost Car Insurance. It won this award because of all the quotes we gathered across 40+ car insurers in Australia, Bingle was among the cheapest. Pros & cons Pros Ideal for someone looking for a policy that only covers essentials, including accidental damage to their own car and others', cover against fires, theft and storm damage and other handy features. Option to add-on various extras like access to a hire car after an accident (will cost extra). Cons It will cost you extra to pay monthly instead of annually, which can be tricky for those who can't afford the annual premium upfront. Everything is online-only. There is no customer support centre to call. This can be difficult for those who prefer a phone call or physical store.
Best for features
Finder Score 9.8 Excellent Coles Comprehensive Insurance	Finder Score 9.8 Excellent	Optional		Agreed or Market	Discount: Save 15% off your first year’s premium when you take out a new policy online. T&Cs apply.	View details Compare product selection Compare	loading	Why we like it 2026 Highly Commended Finder Award winner for Best Features, thanks to its unique cover benefits, including grocery replacement. Pros & cons Pros You can save 15% on your first year's premium when you buy a policy online. T&Cs apply. Cons It will cost you extra to pay your premium monthly or fortnightly, rather than one annual lump sum. Other insurers let you pay monthly at no extra cost. If you want to cancel your policy early, it'll cost you $40. Other insurers don't charge a fee for this.

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How to negotiate a better deal on your car insurance

The best car insurance is often about finding a balance between a policy that covers all you need at a price you can afford.
The thing about insurers is, they don't expect you to negotiate or to even know that this is an option. The reality is, a lot of insurers are willing to negotiate on price, if you just ask the question. So, if you find a policy you like but it's a bit outside the budget, here's a script you can follow.

You: "Hi, I was looking at my car insurance premium and it's more expensive than I was expecting. I was wondering if there's any flexibility around that price? I've gotten a few other quotes elsewhere that are coming in cheaper."

Them: "Hello. No worries, let me see what we can do for you."

At this point, they'll typically transfer you to someone in sales.

Sales team: "Hi, I can see here that you'd like to see if we can do a better price for you on your car insurance premium. We can reduce this by around 7%. How does that sound?"

You: "That's excellent, thank you!"

Alternatively, if they're unwilling to budge on price then it's time to compare and switch. You can simply say: "That still doesn't fit within my budget, thank you for your time anyway".

Tried and tested tips

"Look around for insurers who offer sign-up discounts – this can be a great way to save! Often, the sign-up discounts will only be available if you're a new customer but that's typically no problem if you're looking at switching providers. Some offer up to 15% off which can help you save around $100 in some cases."

Tim Bennett

Insurance expert

"If you like the look of a specific policy but it's too expensive for you, check who the underwriter is. Brands with shared underwriters have identical policies but some brands are cheaper than others. This means you can enjoy the same policy at a more affordable price point. You can find a policy's underwriter with a simple Google search or look at the product disclosure statement."

Peta Taylor

Publisher of Insurance

"Good to know – if your windscreen is broken and that's the only thing that's been damaged, it's not always worth making an insurance claim. This is because your excess is usually more than the cost of the repairs. To avoid this, lots of insurers let you upgrade your cover to include no-excess windscreen cover. It'll usually cost you a couple more bucks a month which is substantially cheaper than paying for the repairs yourself."

Gary Ross Hunter

Journalist

What to avoid when getting car insurance

Here's what I've learnt, as someone who compares policies for a living.

• Don't assume being well-known = a good policy. Oftentimes, it's the smaller, lesser known brands that offer a great value policy. They charge less because they can't lean on their brand so much to get business, but they often cover more features.
• Don't pay monthly without checking for fees. Some providers charge up to 15% more for you to pay monthly and by the end of the year, you end up dishing out hundreds more.
• Don't overinsure your car. Comprehensive insurance is not mandatory and it's very expensive to hold, especially if you're paying more in insurance than your car is worth! Think about what you actually need based on the value and use of your car, and you ability to buy another .
  • Third party property damage: Does not cover damage to your own car so it's best for people with really old cars that aren't worth much and don't care if it gets damaged.
  • Third party fire and theft: Only covers your car from damage that arises from a fire or theft - you can be covered for up to around $10,000. So it's best for people with a vehicle under the value of $10,000.
  • Comprehensive: Covers your car for damage that arises due to accidents, fire, theft, storms and more. Great for those with higher value cars or those who couldn't afford to replace their car in the event of an accident.

Frequently asked questions

• What company is the best for car insurance?

  There is no single best insurer or best policy, as fifferent policies will suit different people. It's more about comparing your options so you can find one which is right for you, at a price you can afford. Our 2026 Finder Awards for car insurance can help take some of the guesswork out of this for you.

• What's the best comprehensive car insurance?

  According to the 2025 Finder Awards, ALDI Comprehensive Insurance offers the best value car insurance and Coles Comprehensive Insurance offers the best insurance for features. However, it's important to note that the criteria used to determine our award winners may be different to your own circumstances, Always read the PDS to understand if the price and features offered are best for your needs.

• What's the cheapest car insurance?

  That'll depend on your personal details, but if you're looking for cheap car insurance options, Bingle car insurance won the 2025 Finder car insurance award for low cost.

• Can I get a discount on car insurance?

  Yes, there are often deals and discounts available for car insurance. Typically, discounts are offered to new or switching customers.

• Who are the Big 4 insurers in Australia?

  The Big 4 insurance providers in Australia are IAG, Suncorp, QBE and Allianz. Collectively, according to Parliamentary of Australia data, these larger insurers make up approximately 74 per cent of the market.

To make sure you get accurate and helpful information, this guide has been edited by Jason Loewenthal as part of our fact-checking process.

Written by

Gary Ross Hunter

Journalist

Gary Ross Hunter has over 6 years of expertise writing about insurance, including life, health, home, and car insurance. Having reviewed hundreds of product disclosure statements and published over 800 articles, he loves simplifying complex insurance topics for everyday readers. Gary has contributed to major outlets like Yahoo Finance, The Sydney Morning Herald, and news.com.au, and holds a Bachelor of Arts (Honours) in English Literature from the University of Glasgow, along with a Tier 2 General Advice certification, ensuring his work adheres to ASIC’s RG146 standards. See full bio

Gary Ross's expertise

Gary Ross has written 573 Finder guides across topics including:

• Health, home, life, car, pet and travel insurance
• Managing the cost of living

Co-written by

Peta Taylor

Publisher of Insurance

Peta Taylor is a publisher at Finder, working across all of insurance. She's been analysing product disclosure statements and publishing articles for over 2 years. Peta is passionate about demystifying complex insurance products to help users make well educated decisions with confidence. Peta is part of Finder's insurance awards team and works alongside editorial and insights experts to bring users the best insurance products every year. See full bio