Motorcycle insurance averages about $585 a year for full coverage, roughly $49 a month for a 45- to 54-year-old rider with a clean record on a mid-size cruiser (typical published 2025 averages). Liability-only runs about $222 a year. But the spread is enormous: North Dakota riders pay $330 while Louisianans pay $1,080, and a 22-year-old on a sportbike can top $3,000.
The $585 figure describes a benchmark policy: liability at state minimums plus comprehensive and collision on a mid-size cruiser. That's the "full coverage" most lenders require on financed bikes. Strip it to liability-only and the national average falls to about $222, which is why paid-off bikes are so cheap to keep on the road.
State matters as much as anything you control. Here's the shape of the country:
| Cost tier | Example states | Avg annual premium | Avg monthly |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cheapest | North Dakota, South Dakota, Montana, Iowa | $330 – $400 | $28 – $33 |
| Below average | Idaho, Wisconsin, New Hampshire, Maine | $410 – $470 | $34 – $39 |
| Near average | Missouri, Arizona, Pennsylvania, Colorado | $540 – $610 | $45 – $51 |
| Above average | Texas, New Jersey, Michigan, New York | $760 – $870 | $63 – $73 |
| Most expensive | California, Florida, Louisiana | $830 – $1,080 | $69 – $90 |
To price your own situation, run your state, age, bike type, and record through the motorcycle insurance cost calculator, which includes all 51 averages and the factor math behind them.
State, age, bike type, engine size, record, and discounts in. Annual and monthly premium out, benchmarked against your state's average.
Motorcycle Insurance Calculator →A 30-year-old Texas rider with one speeding ticket prices full coverage on a 600cc sportbike, MSF course completed. Start from Texas's $780 baseline. Age 25–34: ×1.35 = $1,053. Sportbike with a 500–749cc engine: ×1.65 × 0.95 = $1,650.63. The ticket: ×1.28 = $2,112.80. Course discount: ×0.93 lands at $1,965 a year, or $163.74 a month.
Same rider, same state, same record, but on a 650cc standard: $780 × 1.35 × 0.95 × 0.95 × 1.28 × 0.93 = $1,131. The bike choice alone is worth $834 a year. And a 52-year-old Ohioan with a clean record bundling a cruiser at liability-plus-comprehensive pays just $305, or $25.38 a month.
One gap worth closing while you're at it: motorcycle liability limits are often state minimums, which can be as low as $15,000 or $25,000 for property damage. A single at-fault crash into a late-model truck can outrun that. An umbrella policy adds $1 million of liability for roughly $150 to $300 a year and typically covers you on two wheels too.
Liability-only usually is, because a bike does less damage to other people's property than a car. Full coverage can rival car prices because riders are injured far more often per mile and popular models get stolen at high rates. A 45-year-old with a clean record pays about $585 a year for full motorcycle coverage versus roughly $2,500 for a new car.
The Plains and upper Midwest. North Dakota ($330 a year), South Dakota ($340), Montana ($380), and Iowa ($400) sit at the bottom of the table. The most expensive states are Louisiana ($1,080), Florida ($950), California ($830), New York ($820), and Michigan ($870), driven by litigation climates, no-fault systems, and theft.
Most insurers knock about 7% off for a completed Motorcycle Safety Foundation basic rider course, and the discount usually sticks for three years. Stack it with a bundling discount (another 10%) and a $585 average policy drops to about $490.
Florida is the notable exception to state insurance mandates: riders there aren't required to carry motorcycle liability insurance. But riders 21 and older who ride without a helmet must carry at least $10,000 of medical expense benefits, and an uninsured at-fault crash can still cost you everything. Skipping coverage to save $60 a month is a bad trade.