A mobile home costs a fraction of a traditional house, but insuring one isn't as simple as picking up a standard homeowners policy.
August 30, 2026
Mobile homes are a popular choice for many home buyers in the U.S., especially if you’re shopping for a house on a budget. The average cost of a manufactured home is $123,300, whereas the average site-built home costs $405,939, according to data from the Manufactured Housing Institute (MHI).
If you're shopping for coverage on a mobile or manufactured home, you're in the right place to compare where to get it and choose a policy. Our editorial team lines up marketplaces and carriers side by side so you can weigh quotes, coverage, and payout terms without calling each insurer one at a time.
You need a policy built for manufactured construction because a standard homeowners policy is designed for site-built houses, not factory-built ones. Mobile and manufactured homes are engineered, transported, and anchored differently.
That's why insurers write them on their own policy forms, with their own coverage and valuation rules, according to the Insurance Information Institute.
This is a big market. Approximately 22 million Americans lived in manufactured homes as of 2022. Manufactured homes make up roughly 5.4% of occupied U.S. housing nationally, per the American Housing Survey (AHS).
We've done the legwork of comparing the options so you don't have to. If you want to see prices for your own property first, start by comparing home insurance for your ZIP code.
Here are the four places we recommend for comparing and buying mobile home coverage, each with the reader situation it fits best:
We chose these picks by scoring each provider on the factors that matter most to mobile home shoppers. Because our list mixes comparison marketplaces with direct carriers, we rate each type on what it actually does: marketplaces on match quality, and carriers on the coverage they write.
Our editorial team weighed the following criteria:
We're a comparison platform, so our aim is to help you weigh real options and make an informed choice, not to hand down an absolute ranking. Coverage and pricing vary by property and state, so treat these as strong starting points for your own quote comparison.
Each of the four providers below is reviewed in the same format so you can compare like for like: a short positioning note, a pros-and-cons table, key features, and a link to visit the site.
QuoteWizard is an online marketplace that matches homeowners to local and national agencies, and it carries an A+ rating from the Better Business Bureau. It's built for speed if you want to get in front of agents quickly.
Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
Fast online application | Connects you to agents rather than binding a policy directly |
Broad network of local and national agencies | You may receive follow-up calls from matched agencies |
Matches on both liability and property needs | Coverage terms set by the matched insurer |
Key Features:
Read our full QuoteWizard review
SelectQuote compares policies across roughly 16 major insurers, which makes it a practical choice if you want to bundle your manufactured home and auto coverage. Comparing bundle prices in one place can be simpler than pricing each policy separately.
Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
Compares many major insurers in one place | Not a direct insurer |
Well-suited for home-and-auto bundling | Insurer availability varies by location |
No cost to compare quotes | You choose from matched carriers, not the full market |
Key Features:
Read our full SelectQuote review
Farmers is a national carrier with an A rating from A.M. Best, and its Farmers and Foremost family writes coverage specifically for mobile and manufactured homes. It's a fit if you'd rather buy directly from a long-established insurer than through a marketplace.
Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
Established carrier with an A.M. Best A rating | Not a side-by-side price comparison on its own |
Mobile-home-specific coverage via the Foremost family | Best rates still worth checking against other quotes |
Agent network with 24/7 support | Coverage details vary by state |
Key Features:
Liberty Mutual is a national carrier that writes mobile and manufactured home coverage directly, so you can buy a policy without going through a marketplace. It suits buyers who want a single, established insurer to handle the whole policy.
Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
Writes manufactured-home policies directly | Single-carrier pricing; still worth comparing quotes |
Customizable coverage and discount options | Coverage and discounts vary by state |
Long-established national insurer | Availability depends on your location |
Key Features:
Read our full Liberty Mutual review
You choose the right policy by comparing a few specific things across providers: what's covered, what isn't, how claims pay out, whether your home qualifies, and what drives the price. Here's how to shop for each.
A mobile home policy covers two core things: physical damage and personal liability, according to Triple-I.
"Mobile home insurance isn't just regular home insurance with a different label. The basics are similar, but the home itself is built and rated differently, so the policy needs to fit those specifications. The big difference is how carriers look at age, tie downs, location, roof condition, and wind or fire risk. A standard home policy often isn't built for those details."
— John Espenschied, Agency Principal and Owner, Insurance Brokers Group
Several major risks fall outside a standard mobile home policy, so you'll want to plan for them separately. Triple-I notes that flood damage is not covered and requires separate flood insurance through the NFIP or a private insurer.
Other common exclusions:
How your policy pays out matters as much as what it covers, and there are three approaches. The difference shows up when you file a claim.
On a 15-year-old roof destroyed by hail, an actual cash value policy pays the depreciated value of that aging roof, while a replacement-cost policy pays the full cost of a new one. That gap can run into thousands of dollars out of your pocket.
Payout Basis | How It Pays | Trade-Off |
|---|---|---|
Actual cash value | Replacement cost minus depreciation | Lower payouts on older items and roofs |
Replacement cost | Full replacement value, no depreciation | Usually a higher premium |
Stated/agreed amount | Payout capped at an agreed figure | Common for mobile homes; review yearly |
Stated-amount policies are common for mobile homes, and Triple-I recommends reviewing the agreed figure annually so you don't end up underinsured.
"For most mobile home owners, replacement cost is better if it's available and fits your budget. Actual cash value subtracts depreciation, which can leave a pretty painful gap after a loss. Nobody wants to rebuild a home using yesterday's value and today's prices," says Espenschied.
Yes, but the age of your home affects both financing and coverage.
A pre-1976 home isn't uninsurable, but expect to compare more carriers to find a fit.
Home insurance cost is highly variable and quote-dependent, so there's no reliable national average to anchor to. No primary industry or government body publishes a verified national average, so any figure you see is an estimate, not an industry survey.
Your home insurance rate depends on factors including:
Because these factors swing prices widely, the most reliable way to know your cost is to compare quotes for your specific home.
"To find the best price, I tell people not to shop on price alone. Get a few quotes, but compare deductibles and coverage limits line by line. A cheap policy can get expensive fast after a claim. Ask about bundling discounts, claim-free discounts, protective devices, newer home discounts, and discounts for proper tie downs or skirting."
— John Espenschied, Agency Principal and Owner, Insurance Brokers Group
Where you live is one of the biggest factors in whether extra coverage is worth it, and wind is the risk that matters most for mobile homes. If you're in a tornado- or hurricane-prone state, the practical priority is protecting against wind and anchoring your home properly.
According to the National Weather Service (NWS), mobile home residents are 15 to 20 times more likely to be killed in a tornado than people in permanent homes, and 54% of in-home tornado fatalities occur in mobile homes. Anchor and tie-down failure is the leading cause, which is why proper anchoring is the single most important safeguard.
Construction standards reflect this. HUD defines three wind zones with design wind speeds of 70, 100, and 110 mph, which explains why coastal and hurricane regions carry stricter requirements, according to HUD's standard.
The good news is that mitigation can also lower your premium. Common levers include:
Discount Lever | How It Helps | Source |
|---|---|---|
Higher deductible | Lowers the annual premium | Foremost |
Tie-downs and full skirting | Qualifies for a mitigation discount | GEICO |
Bundling home and auto | One deductible applies to a shared claim | Progressive |
State wind-mitigation credits | FL, LA, and RI mandate discounts or deductible waivers | III |
This guide is for anyone weighing coverage on a factory-built home and trying to compare options quickly. You'll get the most out of it if you fit one of these profiles:
There's no verified national average, because cost depends on your home's age, location, coverage limits, and claims history. Any range you see is a broker estimate rather than an industry survey, so comparing quotes for your own home is the most reliable way to price it.
No federal law requires it, but a lender or lienholder will typically require coverage while you're paying off the home. If you own the home outright, it's optional but still protects a major asset.
Wind damage from a hurricane is generally covered, but flooding is not, according to the Insurance Information Institute. Flood protection requires a separate policy through the NFIP or a private insurer.
Yes, though it may take more shopping. Pre-1976 homes aren't eligible for FHA financing and can be harder to insure privately, per HUD Archives, so comparing several carriers helps.
Mobile home policies are written on separate forms designed for manufactured construction, transport, and anchoring, according to the Insurance Information Institute. They also more often use stated-amount valuation than site-built home policies.
You can raise your deductible, add tie-downs and skirting, and bundle home and auto, based on carrier options from Foremost, GEICO, and Progressive. Some states also mandate wind-mitigation discounts.
You can trust this guide because it's built on primary sources and reviewed by our home-insurance editorial team. For this article, we drew on coverage and valuation guidance from the Insurance Information Institute, construction and financing standards from HUD and the federal regulations on govinfo, wind-risk data from the National Weather Service, and product pages from carriers including Foremost, Progressive, GEICO, Farmers, and Liberty Mutual.
We're a comparison platform, so our role is to help you weigh real coverage options and make an informed choice. Our editorial team evaluates providers on coverage fit, financial strength, discounts, and support, and we tell you plainly where costs and terms vary by home and state.
We researched this guide using published, verifiable sources rather than proprietary estimates. Our reporting relied on the Insurance Information Institute's coverage and claims-settlement articles, HUD and 24 CFR Part 3282 regulatory records via govinfo, National Weather Service wind data, and individual carrier product pages.
We note honestly that this guide relies on secondary and regulatory sources, and that no BestMoney first-party survey exists for mobile home insurance. Where a first-person expert view or research-depth figure belongs, we've flagged it for a credentialed reviewer to supply.
The right choice comes down to whether you'd rather compare many quotes at once or buy directly from one carrier. If you want options, start with a marketplace such as QuoteWizard or SelectQuote; if you prefer a single established insurer, Farmers or Liberty Mutual write manufactured-home coverage directly.
Whichever route you take, confirm your coverage type and payout basis, prioritize wind mitigation if you're in a high-risk state, and compare quotes before you renew. When you're ready, compare home insurance options for your property to see where you stand.
Elizabeth Rivelli is a business finance and insurance expert at BestMoney.com with over five years of experience covering car, home, life, and health insurance. She has contributed to major outlets such as Investopedia, Forbes, CNN Underscored, U.S. News & World Report, and Bankrate. Elizabeth also partners with insurance companies to provide readers with practical insights into industry trends.
