Do You Know How Much You Pay to Keep Your Car on the Road (Excluding Your Car Payment)?

Even with the title in a drawer and nothing owed, the average American driver spends $5,851 a year just to keep a vehicle on the road, according to an Insurify analysis.

In addition, insurers count on you being too busy to shop around. But Insurify has fixed that. Unlike other sites that sell your data, Insurify lets you compare real-time quotes side by side without the spam. It’s fast, secure, and rated 4.7 stars on Trustpilot. You could save $1,100 on your car insurance. It takes minutes to check, and it costs you nothing.

Where do these numbers come from?

Insurance is the highest single cost, at $2,237 a year for full coverage. Gas runs a close second at $2,126. Maintenance and repairs account for the remaining $1,488. Together they take 7.2% of the median household income, and none of it appears on a loan statement.

The study drew insurance prices from Insurify’s quote database and used AAA estimates for gas and maintenance. It excluded car payments, depreciation, sales tax and registration.

Drivers still making payments carry more. New-car loans averaged $765 a month and used-car loans $542 in the second quarter, according to Experian. Those ownership costs come on top of the loan payment.

Gas and maintenance costs

The national average for regular gas sat at about $4.31 a gallon in mid-September, with AAA pointing to rising crude oil prices. Driving less, combining errands and keeping tires properly inflated can trim fuel costs at the edges. Following the service schedule in the owner’s manual rather than the dealer’s upsell, and handling simple jobs like air filters yourself, can also keep car costs from drifting higher.

Where you live can move the number substantially. Georgia drivers pay the most, at $7,648 a year, nearly double the $4,063 that drivers in New Hampshire pay. Insurance accounts for much of the gap, though high-mileage rural states tend to spend more on gas instead.

Insurance premiums

Insurance may offer the most room to shop around. Full-coverage premiums have risen 44% over five years, Insurify found. Insurers can quote materially different prices to the same driver for similar coverage.

The renewal notice is the natural moment to check. Comparing several carriers on identical coverage limits shows whether the price you are paying is still competitive. Check again when the policy comes up for renewal. Stop overpaying today.

Look beyond the sticker price

When you buy a new or used car, the sticker price and monthly payment are only part of the cost. A fuel-hungry model, expensive repairs or high insurance premiums can add thousands of dollars a year after you drive it home. Check all three before you buy.