Auto-Owners vs Liberty Mutual: which is better for car insurance in 2026?
Across our six scoring categories, Auto-Owners comes out ahead in 2, Liberty Mutual in 3, with 1 too close to call. There is no overall score to compare, though: Liberty Mutual does not publish enough of the underlying data to earn one, and we would rather leave it blank than build a number out of the two or three figures that happen to exist. Auto-Owners is the better-documented of the two, which is not the same as being the better insurer for you. Judge these two on the categories where both have real figures — and on what they actually quote you.
Auto-Owners vs Liberty Mutual, side by side
Sources: average premiums from NerdWallet's August 2026 rate analysis (Quadrant Information Services), for a 35-year-old driver with a clean record and good credit in a 2023 Toyota Camry LE at 12,000 miles a year, 100/300/50 limits with $1,000 deductibles — national average $2,356. Claims satisfaction from the J.D. Power 2025 U.S. Auto Claims Satisfaction Study (segment average 700). Complaint record from NerdWallet's analysis of NAIC complaint data, 2022–2024. Financial strength from AM Best. Discounts and app data from each carrier's published pages and the Apple App Store / Google Play, retrieved August 2026. Updated August 2026.
Category by category
Price
Too close to callLiberty Mutual does not release public rate data, so there is no like-for-like premium to set against Auto-Owners's $2,094/yr. That is a real gap in the comparison, not a rounding error — treat Liberty Mutual's price as unknown until you have a quote in hand.
$2,094 a year for full coverage, 11% below the national average — mid-pack, and close to State Farm and Progressive.
Not published. Liberty Mutual releases no public rate data, so no independent study — including ours — can put a national average against it. Any figure you see quoted for Liberty Mutual is an estimate.
Claims satisfaction
Liberty Mutual aheadLiberty Mutual takes claims satisfaction on 730/1,000 against Auto-Owners's 711/1,000.
711 out of 1,000, eleven points above the segment average and better than every carrier in the top four by market share except State Farm.
730 out of 1,000, third-highest in the J.D. Power 2025 study and thirty points above the segment average.
Complaint record
Auto-Owners aheadAuto-Owners takes complaint record on Fewer than expected against Liberty Mutual's More than expected.
Fewer complaints than expected for its size.
More complaints than expected for its size, based on 2021–2023 data — a different window from most carriers here, so not perfectly comparable.
Financial strength
Auto-Owners aheadAuto-Owners takes financial strength on A+ against Liberty Mutual's A.
AM Best A+ (Superior).
AM Best A (Excellent).
Discounts
Liberty Mutual aheadLiberty Mutual takes discounts on 12 published against Auto-Owners's 10 published*.
Around ten published discounts including a 20% good-student discount and a 36-month on-time payment discount — though Auto-Owners blocks automated access to its own discounts page, so this count comes from secondary sources.
Twelve published discounts, plus a customization tool Liberty Mutual says saves 12% or more — though that is excluded in nine states.
Digital experience
Liberty Mutual aheadLiberty Mutual takes digital experience on 4.79 iOS / 4.6 Android against Auto-Owners's 4.72 iOS / 4.8 Android.
4.72 on the App Store and 4.8 on Google Play — the only carrier here rated higher on Android than iOS, and the best Play Store score in the review.
4.79 on the App Store and 4.6 on Google Play across 669,000 combined ratings. Solid on both platforms.
So which one?
Pick Auto-Owners if…
- You are among drivers in its 26 states who prefer an independent agent.
- You want the lower complaint record — Auto-Owners sits at Fewer than expected.
- Financial strength is a priority; Auto-Owners holds A+ from AM Best.
- Availability fits: 26 states, through independent agents — no California, New York or Texas.
Pick Liberty Mutual if…
- You are among drivers who value claims handling and will quote it directly.
- You care most about how a claim actually goes: Liberty Mutual scores 730/1,000.
- You expect to stack discounts — Liberty Mutual's lineup is the broader of the two.
- You would rather handle everything in an app than on a phone call.
Auto-Owners vs Liberty Mutual, answered
The questions people ask before switching between these two.
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