Car insurance in South Carolina
Drivers in South Carolina paid $1,517 a year for full coverage in 2023, 5% above the national average. With prices up since, figure on about $1,800 today. In South Carolina, the law asks for at least 25/50/25 liability.
What people pay in South Carolina
A typical yearly price today
about $1,800 a year (about $150 a month)
South Carolina's average full-coverage cost in 2023 was $1,517, according to the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC). Car insurance prices nationally have risen about 18% since then (government price index, August 2026), so we start from about $1,800.
That makes South Carolina the 14th most expensive of the 50 states and DC. Nationally, the average was $1,439.
It's an average across every kind of driver and car, not your price. Your car, your driving record, and how much coverage you carry move it up or down.
South Carolina next to its neighbors
A typical policy in South Carolina costs more than in North Carolina and less than in Georgia.
| State | Typical price, 2023 | Moving to South Carolina from there |
|---|---|---|
| South Carolina | $1,517 | Not a move |
| Georgia | $1,746 | About $310 less a year |
| North Carolina | $1,097 | About $570 more a year |
| National average | $1,439 | Not a move |
The move is the What-if page's starting example: a 40–64-year-old with a clean record and a 2020 Toyota Camry, full coverage, in the suburbs, with nothing else changed. Only the two states' typical prices make the difference, so a real move can come out differently.
The least insurance South Carolina's law asks for
- Liability (per person / per crash / property)
- $25,000 / $50,000 / $25,000
- Personal injury protection (PIP)
- Not required
- Medical payments
- Not required
- No-fault
- No
- Uninsured motorist
- Required
- Underinsured motorist
- Not required
Liability pays for injuries and damage you cause to others, up to these limits. A minimum is the least the law allows, not a recommendation, and it doesn't pay to fix your own car.
Liability-only coverage, the closest NAIC figure to what a minimum policy costs, averaged $879 in South Carolina in 2023 (about $1,040 today, brought up the same rough way), the 10th highest of the 50 states and DC. That's about 58% of the full-coverage price; the rest pays to fix or replace your own car.
South Carolina requires at least $25,000 per person and $50,000 per crash for injuries, plus $25,000 for property damage. Uninsured-motorist coverage is mandatory. Underinsured-motorist coverage must be offered to you but is optional.
What we couldn’t confirm: We marked PIP not required because we found no law requiring it. Medical payments coverage is optional: the law describes it as offered "at the option of the insured."
- Uninsured and underinsured motorist
- Uninsured motorist coverage is required, at no less than $25,000/$50,000 for injuries and $25,000 for property damage (the first $200 of property loss may be excluded). Insurers must offer more, and must offer underinsured motorist coverage, up to your liability limits, but underinsured coverage is optional.
- Checked
- September 22, 2026
A new teen driver in South Carolina
Adding a 16-year-old to a typical policy
about $1,190 more a year
About $100 a month, on one average car with full coverage. The whole policy with the teen: roughly $2,200–$3,950 a year.
On a policy of their own, with the same kind of car, the same teen would pay about $5,160 a year in South Carolina (roughly $3,950–$7,350).
What adding a teen costs comes from California's published prices, so the range is wide, and South Carolina may differ. How adding a teen driver works.
Cars that cost the least to add a teen with
In South Carolina, the 2022 Subaru Forester and Outback come out the same, the least of the 33 cars on the site's popular lists to add a teen with: about $1,060 more a year. At the other end of the same lists, the 2022 Tesla Model 3 costs about $1,790 more a year.
| Car | Added to your policy | On their own policy |
|---|---|---|
| 2022 Subaru Forester | +$1,060 a year | $4,600 a year |
| 2022 Subaru Outback | +$1,060 a year | $4,620 a year |
| 2022 Subaru Crosstrek | +$1,070 a year | $4,630 a year |
| 2022 Honda CR-V | +$1,140 a year | $4,950 a year |
| 2022 Toyota RAV4 | +$1,160 a year | $5,040 a year |
The order is the same in every state, because our car data is national. What changes from state to state is the price level.
Why these cars cost less, and what this doesn't cover.
“Try it with your own car” opens your own situation in South Carolina (a 2020 Toyota Camry if you haven't set one) with a new 16-year-old. It starts from that car, not an average one, so its figure can differ from the one above.
Where these numbers come from
- Typical prices: National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC), 2022/2023 Auto Insurance Database Report, 2023 data, brought up to today with the government's price index for car insurance.
- The law: South Carolina's own statute or insurance department, listed above with the date we checked it.
- Teen drivers and cars: the same math as the rest of the site. Here's how we got these, and every source.
This is an estimate to help you plan, not a quote. We don't sell insurance, and we never pass your info to anyone. Only an insurer can give you a real price.