Cheapest cars to insure in the UK

Several factors play a big role in determining the cost of your car insurance. These include your age and where you live, your occupation and your driving history. But one of the most important factors is the make and model of the car you drive,

If you haven’t bought a car yet, or are thinking of changing yours, consider getting one that’s in a low car insurance group. There are 50 groups in total. Insurers band cars based on the likely costs to them if there’s a claim, and the likelihood of a claim. Large powerful cars with expensive parts will be at the higher end of the spectrum (groups 40-50), while less powerful cars that are cheaper to repair will be towards the bottom (groups 1-10).

To show you which cars are likely to cost you less to insure, our researchers crunched comprehensive car insurance data to produce top 10 league tables for different types of driver.

Cheapest cars to insure in the UK (Overall)

The overall cheapest cars to insure all share similar attributes. In general, they’re small, reliable, relatively easy to repair and have a small engine.

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• Table

Top list	Model	Average cost:	-
Volkswagen Polo	1.1L Zetec Ti-VCT 5dr	£522	Get Quote
Hyundai i10	1.0 TSI XCELLENCE 5dr	£540	Get Quote
Skoda Fabia	1.0 Se 5dr Hatchback	£559	Get Quote
Dacia Sandero	1.2 S 5d	£577	Get Quote
Ford Fiesta	1.0 VVT-i X-Press 5dr	£597	Get Quote
Vauxhall Corsa	1.2 PureTech Allure 5dr Petrol Hatchback	£615	Get Quote
Nissan Micra	1.2 PureTech Flair 5dr	£634	Get Quote
Toyota Yaris	1.0 MPI 75 Colour Edition 5dr	£651	Get Quote
Toyota Aygo	1.0 SCe Ambiance 5dr	£651	Get Quote
Fiat 500	1.4i ecoTEC Design 5dr	£651	Get Quote
SEAT Ibiza	1.5L Icon Tech VVT-h 5dr	£667	Get Quote
Peugeot 108	1.5 dCi Acenta 5dr Hatchback	£696	Get Quote
Citroen C1	1.5 Tech Edition 5dr	£696	Get Quote
Ford Focus	1.2 Lounge 3dr	£708	Get Quote
Ford Puma	1.3 A200 AMG Line 7G-DCT (s/s) 5dr	£719	Get Quote
Mazda 2	1.5 dCi Acenta 5dr Hatchback	£740	Get Quote
Nissan Qashqai	1.5 Cooper (s/s) 3dr	£760	Get Quote
Mini Hatch	1.0 EcoBoost 125 ST-Line 5dr	£769	Get Quote
Mercedes A-Class	1.0 EcoBoost Hybrid mHEV ST-Line X First Ed 5dr	£812	Get Quote
Volvo XC40	T4 AWD Momentum Pro Automatic 2.0 5dr	£829	Get Quote

Cheapest cars to insure for young drivers

Car insurance for younger drivers is notoriously expensive (with good reason). Statistically, a younger driver is more likely to be involved in a road accident and make a claim. Insurers typically charge more for premiums to cover this risk.

With this in mind, choosing a vehicle that costs less to insure is a good way of reducing the overall costs associated with driving when you’re aged 25 or under. We checked a range of cars popular with younger drivers and ranked them by insurance cost.

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• Top 10
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1. Volkswagen Polo
2. Hyundai i10
3. Ford KA
4. Skoda Fabia
5. Dacia Sandero
6. Volkswagen UP
7. Ford Fiesta
8. Vauxhall Corsa
9. Citroen C1
10. Kia Rio

Make	17yrs	18yrs	19yrs	20yrs	21yrs	22yrs	23yrs	24yrs	25yrs	Average	-
Peugeot 108	£2390	£2234	£1974	£1873	£1807	£1710	£1616	£1540	£1468	£1846	Get Quote
Citroen C1	£2390	£1984	£1974	£1873	£1807	£1710	£1616	£1540	£1468	£1818	Get Quote
Vauxhall Adam	£2343	£2190	£1935	£1837	£1771	£1676	£1584	£1510	£1440	£1810	Get Quote
SEAT Ibiza	£2292	£2142	£1893	£1797	£1733	£1640	£1550	£1476	£1408	£1770	Get Quote
Kia Rio	£2236	£2090	£1847	£1753	£1690	£1600	£1512	£1440	£1374	£1727	Get Quote
Renault Twingo	£2236	£2090	£1847	£1753	£1690	£1600	£1512	£1440	£1374	£1727	Get Quote
Toyota Aygo	£2236	£2090	£1847	£1753	£1690	£1600	£1512	£1440	£1374	£1727	Get Quote
Ford KA	£1976	£1794	£1745	£1657	£1597	£1512	£1428	£1360	£1297	£1596	Get Quote
Vauxhall Corsa	£2113	£1976	£1745	£1657	£1598	£1512	£1429	£1361	£1298	£1632	Get Quote
Volkswagen UP	£2049	£1915	£1692	£1605	£1549	£1466	£1385	£1320	£1259	£1582	Get Quote
Ford Fiesta	£2049	£1915	£1692	£1606	£1549	£1466	£1385	£1320	£1259	£1584	Get Quote
Dacia Sandero	£1919	£1854	£1638	£1555	£1500	£1419	£1341	£1278	£1219	£1525	Get Quote
Skoda Fabia	£1919	£1794	£1584	£1504	£1450	£1373	£1297	£1236	£1179	£1482	Get Quote
Hyundai i10	£1855	£1734	£1532	£1454	£1402	£1327	£1254	£1195	£1140	£1433	Get Quote
Volkswagen Polo	£1793	£1676	£1481	£1406	£1355	£1283	£1212	£1155	£1102	£1385	Get Quote

Cheapest cars to insure for over-50s

Older and more experienced drivers typically benefit from cheaper car insurance rates (although rates climb again late in life). In general, there’s less risk associated with drivers aged over 50 and so premiums tend to be lower. To help you benefit from further cost reductions, we’ve run the data on models that are popular with drivers aged over 50, to find out which ones are cheapest to insure.

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• Top 10
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1. MG 3
2. Ford Fiesta
3. Vauxhall Viva
4. Vauxhall Astra
5. Nissan Micra
6. Vauxhall Meriva
7. Kia Venga
8. Hyundai Kona
9. Ford B-Max
10. Honda Jazz

Make	Model	50yrs	60yrs	70yrs	80yrs	Average	-
MG 3	1.5 VTi-TECH 3Style+ (s/s) 5dr	£391	£324	£308	£397	£355	Get Quote
Ford Fiesta	1.1L Zetec Ti-VCT 5dr	£404	£335	£318	£426	£370	Get Quote
Vauxhall Viva	1.0 Rocks 5dr	£404	£335	£318	£426	£371	Get Quote
Vauxhall Astra	1.4i 16V SRi 5dr	£416	£346	£328	£440	£382	Get Quote
Nissan Micra	1.5 dCi Acenta 5dr Hatchback	£429	£356	£338	£453	£394	Get Quote
Vauxhall Meriva	1.4 i 16v Tech Line 5dr	£440	£366	£347	£465	£404	Get Quote
Kia Venga	1.4 2 (s/s) 5dr	£451	£375	£356	£477	£415	Get Quote
Hyundai Kona	SUV 1.0 T-GDi (120ps) Premium 2WD 5dr	£462	£383	£364	£488	£424	Get Quote
Ford B-Max	ZETEC NAVIGATOR 1.0 5dr	£479	£398	£378	£506	£440	Get Quote
Honda Jazz	1.3 SE 5dr	£487	£404	£384	£514	£447	Get Quote
Toyota Prius	1.8 VVT-h 120 Active CVT 5dr	£494	£410	£389	£522	£454	Get Quote
Skoda Rapid	1.6 TDI CR S (s/s) 5dr	£514	£427	£405	£543	£472	Get Quote
Honda HR-V	1.5 i-VTEC SE CVT (s/s) 5dr	£533	£443	£421	£543	£485	Get Quote
Honda Civic	1.5 VTEC Turbo GPF Sport CVT (s/s) 5dr	£545	£453	£430	£575	£501	Get Quote
Volvo XC40	D3 INSCRIPTION 2.0 5dr	£550	£456	£433	£580	£505	Get Quote

What makes a car cheaper to insure?

In the UK, every car that is registered is rated and grouped within one of 50 insurance categories. Category 1 is the cheapest and 50 is the most expensive. Cars in lower insurance groups generally cost less to buy, maintain and repair. This means that insurers will have to pay out less if a car needs to be repaired or replaced, so they’ll typically charge less to insure it. There are other nuances too, though, that might put two similarly priced cars, with similarly expensive parts, into different insurance groups.

Attributes that are likely to bring down the costs of insuring a car include:

• A low purchase cost. High-end luxury cars are are more expensive to repair and replace after they’ve been in an accident, causing higher premiums. Therefore, owning a vehicle that is cheaper to repair or replace should cost you less to insure. Insurance companies will also look at the likelihood of your car being stolen.
• Smaller engine size. The less powerful the engine (ie, the lower the horsepower) the less you’ll pay for your car insurance. That’s partly down to repair costs, and partly down to the fact that pushing a low-powered car to its modest limits is less likely to result in an incident than a turbo-charged monster. Petrol engines also cost less to repair, so insuring a petrol vehicle may be cheaper.
• Low car crash statistics. Insurance companies look at crash statistics and consider the level of risk before they insure any car. If your chosen vehicle is statistically less likely to be involved in road accidents, you may get a cheaper insurance rate.
• Good safety features. Cars that insurers consider safe tend to cost less to insure, primarily because they hold up well in an accident, thus decreasing claims. In some cases modern safety features may even help prevent accidents – such as Autonomous Emergency Braking. This uses a sensors and cameras to monitor the road ahead, alert the driver of an impending collision, and even perform an emergency brake if necessary.
• Car security features. Cars equipped with security features such as alarms or high security door locks could be rewarded with a lower insurance group rating.
• Easy to repair or replace. Cars that cost less to repair after an accident present a lower risk to insurers. Owning a vehicle that is easier to repair will result in lower premiums.

Why are some cars more expensive to insure?

In contrast, cars that fall within higher insurance groups will typically be more valuable, possess more powerful engines, and be more expensive to repair. All of these will push up the cost of insurance.

Here’s a list of some other factors that can bump up premiums.

• Sports cars and high performance vehicles. This is a red flag for insurers, as they assume such cars will typically be driven faster than a standard car. They’ll therefore face a higher risk of being more severely damaged.
• Soft tops or convertibles. Vehicles with soft tops are easier to break into than conventional cars, and they tend to need repairs at some point, so they represent a substantial risk to the insurer.
• Modified cars. Cars that have added features such as more horsepower or tinted windows are generally more expensive to cover, because they’ll cost more to repair.
• The age of your car. Spare parts can be much harder to track down for very old cars, in particular classics.
• Diesel cars. Diesel cars often cost more to repair than cars that need petrol.
• High-theft vehicles. Some types of cars are targeted more often by thieves, because they’re relatively easy to steal or strip for parts. Based on statistics alone, this could slightly elevate your rates.

Are electric cars cheaper to insure?

While costs are coming down as they become more popular, electric cars tend to be more expensive to insure than petrol or diesel cars. A 2023 report by specialist automotive research firm Thatcham Research found that insurance for electric cars costs about 25% more than their traditionally-fuelled equivalents. There are a few reasons behind this:

• Electric cars cost more to buy than their petrol or diesel equivalents. As with insurance, purchase prices are coming down, but there’s still a noticeable price gap. That’ll make it more expensive for an insurer to replace an electric car that’s stolen or written off.
• Electric cars are pricier to repair. They have unique parts compared with standard cars, and these parts can be expensive. Electric cars can also take longer to repair, and may need specialist mechanics to work on them.
• Electric require extra elements of insurance. As well as the car itself, an electric car insurance policy needs to cover charging equipment, for example.

However, provided you can mainly charge up at home, electric cars are generally cheaper to run overall than petrol and diesel cars.

How can I keep insurance costs down if I can’t change my car?

Opting for a car in a lower insurance group isn’t always realistic (or, in some cases, desirable). Regardless of the car you drive, there are tactics you can use to keep costs down. These include:

• Increase your voluntary excess. Your excess is the amount you need to pay towards any claim. Opting for a higher voluntary excess can cut your premium. Just don’t set it so high that you can’t afford to pay it if you need to claim
• Avoid paying in monthly instalments if possible. If you pay monthly, your insurer will apply interest. As a result, you’ll end up paying more overall than if you paid the full annual premium up front.
• Consider adding a named driver. Adding a lower-risk, experienced named driver to your policy could lower your premiums, especially if you’re young and new to driving.
• Drive safely. Not only will this reduce your risk of having an accident, but every year that you drive safely and avoid needing to claim will increase the no-claims bonus on the following year’s premiums.
• Avoid inessential modifications. Cosmetic or performance enhancements, such as a bespoke paint job or a pumped up engine, are likely to drive premiums up.
• Consider telematics insurance. This uses a small device – a “black box” – installed in your car to track your driving habits. Careful driving is rewarded with lower premiums.
• Tweak your job title. You can’t lie about your job. But, surprisingly, making small adjustments in how you describe your profession can change how much you pay for insurance.
• Shop around every year. Always compare car insurance prices rather than just renewing with the same insurer. The best-value insurer last year may not be the best value when renewal rolls around.

Bottom line

While picking a cheaper car to insure is a sure-fire way to save on your premiums, there are lots of other variables that determine your insurance rates. Some of them are within in your control. You can help push down your premiums by lowering your mileage, driving carefully, shopping around and paying upfront for the whole year.

Browse through our make and models hub to find out which insurance group your car is in, and how much it costs to insure based on your age and location.

Frequently asked questions

• Is it cheaper to insure an older car?

  Unfortunately, there is no clear answer on this as there are numerous factors in play. Owning an older car will usually mean that the value of the vehicle will be less. This could potentially result in a lower premium. However, older vehicles often lack advanced safety and security features This can push up the cost of your insurance.

• What is the most economical small car?

  There are several smaller, fuel efficient cars that cost less to insure, including:

  • Ford KA
  • Hyundai i10
  • Nissan Micra
  • Skoda Fabia
  • Volkswagen Polo

• What cars are exempt from road tax?

  Zero-emission cars (such as electric vehicles) are exempt from car tax until 2025. From 2025, though, this exemption will be removed and zero-emission cars will be subject to road tax. There are also a few other circumstances where you would be exempt from paying tax, such as for vehicles used by a disabled person.

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Written by

Danny Butler

Publisher

Danny is a publisher at Finder specialising in insurance and investing. He previously worked at the global insurer Aon and has appeared in national media giving advice on insurance. Danny holds a BA in International Business from the University of Plymouth and has undying loyalty to his average-poor football team, Portsmouth FC. See full bio

Danny's expertise

Danny has written 335 Finder guides across topics including:

• Car, home and business insurance
• Helping people save money on their insurance
• Project management
• Giving valuable insights to website visitors

Co-written by

Ceri Stanaway

Writer

Ceri Stanaway is a researcher, writer and editor with more than 15 years’ experience, including a long stint at independent publisher Which?. She’s helped people find the best products and services, and avoid the pitfalls, across topics ranging from broadband to insurance. Outside of work, you can often find her sampling the fares in local cafes. See full bio