Esurance vs. Allstate: Which is best for car insurance?

If you’re in the market for a new car insurance policy and thinking of comparing Esurance to Allstate, you may be disappointed to learn that Esurance no longer sells new policies.

Allstate, on the other hand, is going strong. The company is one of the country’s largest car insurers, and sells policies for homes, motorcycles, boats and businesses.

Knowing that some current Esurance customers still have a choice to stick with their current policy or move on, let’s take a look at how these two companies compare. And because the Esurance business situation might still be somewhat fluid, please verify any of the information we share in this article before deciding.

The verdict: Allstate

‌Allstate sweeps all of our categories, coming out on top for policy options, service, pricing and more. The fact is, Esurance is being transitioned out of business by its parent company, Allstate. It seems possible that remaining Esurance customers will eventually be fully folded into Allstate’s business. The question remains as to how well Allstate integrates Esurance’s digital-first customer experience, ease of use and affordability into its own business platform.

Esurance pros and cons

Allstate pros and cons

Claims service: Allstate

At this point, it’s likely that Esurance claims are serviced by Allstate or its affiliates. So it may be beside the point to include this as a comparison category. But based on the data we use to evaluate insurers, Allstate comes out on top.

Esurance was not rated in the J.D. Power 2023 U.S. Auto Insurance Claims Satisfaction Study. But Allstate was, earning a respectable 882 points. That placed the company above the national average, and eighth out of the 24 companies in the study.

According to the Crash Network 2023 Insurer Report Card, both companies have room for improvement. Allstate earned a D+, which was the lowest among the ten largest insurers. Esurance also earned a D+. These grades reflect how well the companies work to ensure quality repairs and customer service.

Finally, both companies have A+ ratings from AM Best. AM Best ratings are based on a company’s financial strength and ability to pay claims, so we reference them in our Claims service category. An A+ is the second-highest possible rating.

Customer service: Allstate

‌Allstate gets the nod for customer service. However, neither company performs particularly well when it comes to third-party customer service ratings.

*Esurance NAIC code 25712; Allstate NAIC Code 19232

Esurance and Allstate have similar NPS results, at 33% and 34%, respectively. NPS is a customer service measurement based on customers’ likelihood of referring a company to friends, family, or colleagues. The industry average is 44%, while a score of 50% or higher is excellent, according to clearsurance.com.

The National Association of Insurance Commissioners’ (NAIC) complaint index is a measure of how many complaints are received by a state department of insurance about a particular company. The index is weighted to allow a fair comparison between companies of varying sizes. Esurance’s index is worryingly high and indicates that the company generates 17.3 times the average number of complaints. Allstate is responsible for an above-average number of complaints as well, as indicated by its 3.06 index.

Finally, Esurance and Allstate have nearly identical Trustpilot ratings. The companies both have 1.4 out of 5.0 stars.

Optional coverages: Allstate

Allstate edges out Esurance for optional coverages.

Both Esurance and Allstate offer the coverages you need to meet your state’s legal requirements, meet your lender’s requirements if you have a loan or lease and protect your investment in your car. These include coverages such as liability, uninsured and underinsured motorist, personal injury protection, comprehensive and collision.

But both companies appear to offer only a small selection of common optional coverages.

Note: The exact names of these coverage options may vary by company. Availability may vary by state.

The only differentiator here is that Allstate offers umbrella coverage, which boosts your liability limit beyond what is available with a standard policy.

Discounts: Allstate

When it comes to discounts, Allstate is the clear winner. It offers a nice selection of ways to save, including discounts for early signing and paperless policy that are often easy to qualify for. Esurance might have offered more discounts in the past, but its current list of offerings is paltry.

Note: The exact names of these discounts may vary by company. Availability may vary by state.

Ease of doing business: Allstate

‌Allstate gets our nod for ease of doing business.

Esurance is not rated in the J.D. Power 2023 U.S. Insurance Digital Experience Study. Once again, it seems likely at this point that Esurance customers are being serviced by Allstate’s customer service teams. And we know for sure that clicking the quote buttons to buy a policy at the Esurance website results in a redirect to Allstate’s site.

‌Allstate does offer a suite of digital tools that may appeal to the traditional Esurance customer. These include online quotes at the website and policy access through the site or the company’s app. However, Allstate’s recent ratings in the J.D. Power digital experience studies fall below the national average. So while Allstate offers the digital tools, it may still have some work to do to make them optimized for the modern insurance buyer.

One thing Allstate does have going for it is its local agent network. Whereas Esurance was always a digital-first insurer, Allstate has more than 10,000 agents across the country who provide in-person service. They primarily offer policy sales and service, but may also assist with claims. As a person’s insurance needs become more complex, having a relationship with an agent can truly be an asset.

Which is cheaper? Allstate

‌Allstate edges out Esurance in most of our pricing categories. The difference is most pronounced for 18-year-old drivers.

Note: These are annual costs. Sources: MoneyGeek reviews of Esurance and Allstate

Methodology

We compared Esurance and Allstate across multiple areas, including policy coverages and discounts, customer purchase/service options, and pricing. We relied primarily on company websites to gather company, policy, and service information. Our review does not account for discounts, policy features, or service options that a company does not actively promote through its website. Policy pricing information came from recent studies by MoneyGeek.

We also looked at third-party rankings and reviews. These included expert insurance industry ratings by J.D. Power, AM Best and Crash Network. We also checked consumer reviews posted to Trustpilot, and each company’s NPS score as tallied by Clearsurance.

We judged which company was better across a series of criteria and awarded points to each winner, as follows:

Finally, we tallied the points to determine which company was better overall.

A note on pricing: We gathered policy pricing information from publicly available online sources and shared it for informational purposes only. Your policy price from these companies may vary dramatically from what is shown here.

Frequently asked questions (FAQs)

Can I buy Esurance and Allstate online?

Allstate offers online quotes, and policies can be purchased through a local agent.

Esurance (which is owned by Allstate) is no longer selling new auto insurance policies. Its website is still operating, but if you click any of the “get a quote” buttons, you’ll be redirected to Allstate or one of Allstate’s affiliates.

Do Esurance and Allstate offer discounts for bundling insurance?

Yes, both Esurance and Allstate provide a multi-policy or bundling discount.

How do Esurance and Allstate compare to other auto insurance companies?

Allstate is one of the country’s largest insurance companies. It offers the coverages, options and discounts that you might expect from a national leader.

Esurance, which is owned by Allstate, no longer sells new car insurance policies. Allstate announced in 2019 that it would retire the Esurance brand. Today, the Esurance website still operates and existing customers are still being serviced by Allstate and its affiliate companies. It's unknown when the Esurance brand will finally shut down.