Do Teenage Boys Pay More for Car Insurance?

Teenage boys usually pay more for car insurance than teenage girls in states that allow gender rating — commonly about 11% to 13% more at ages 16 to 18, per 2026 industry data. Insurers price the gap because young men have higher crash and fatality rates, and it nearly disappears by around age 30.

If you are adding a son to your policy and bracing for a bigger bill than a friend paid for her daughter, you are not imagining it. Gender is one of many rating factors, and for teens it moves the price in a measurable way. This guide covers how big the gap really is, why it exists, the states that ban it, and the levers that outweigh it.

Do teenage boys pay more for car insurance than girls?

Yes, in most states. Teenage boys pay roughly 11% to 13% more for car insurance than teenage girls of the same age — about $984 more a year at 17, per 2026 industry data. A number of states ban gender rating, so boys and girls there pay the same for identical risk.

The dollar gap is widest at 16 and narrows every year after. These are national full-coverage averages for a driver on their own policy; your number depends on your state, the car, your limits, and which discounts the household earns. See how much the state alone shifts the base price in our cost hub.

Why do teen boys pay more for car insurance?

Teen boys pay more because they crash and die at higher rates. The motor vehicle crash death rate for male drivers ages 16 to 19 was three times the rate for females in 2020, per the CDC, and young men speed far more often. Insurers price that measured risk, not a stereotype.

The per-mile numbers tell the same story. Male drivers ages 16 to 19 were involved in 9.2 fatal crashes per 100 million miles driven in 2022, versus 5.2 for females the same age, according to the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety. Among drivers 15 to 19, 36% of males in fatal crashes were speeding, compared with 21% of females — the widest gender gap of any age group.

Which states don't let insurers charge teen boys more?

A number of states — including California, Hawaii, Massachusetts, Michigan, North Carolina, and Pennsylvania — prohibit insurers from using gender to set auto rates. In those states a teen boy and a teen girl with the same record, car, and address are quoted the same price. Rules change, so confirm with your state insurance department.

In these states, other factors carry more weight instead: driving record, location, vehicle, credit where allowed, and telematics data. The list is not fixed — Montana banned gender rating for decades, then reversed course for auto insurance in 2021. Check where your own state stands through our states hub or your insurance commissioner before assuming a boy will or will not cost more.

Does the gender gap go away, and how can you lower it?

The gender gap shrinks steadily with age and nearly vanishes by about 30, when male and female rates differ by only a few dollars, per 2026 data. Parents cannot change a teen’s sex, but the good student discount, telematics, a safe car, and comparison shopping cut far more than gender ever adds.

• Keep your teen on the family policy to preserve multi-car and multi-policy discounts instead of buying a pricey standalone plan.
• Claim the good student discount, which can knock off far more than the 12% gender difference for a teen with a B average.
• Enroll in a telematics program so your son’s actual, careful driving is rated instead of his age and sex alone.
• Assign him to the lowest-value car in the household, not the fastest one.
• Compare carriers, because companies weigh gender very differently and the gap varies widely between insurers.

The single biggest lever is shopping, since one carrier may charge a teen boy far more than another for the same coverage. When you are ready, talk to an agent who works with young drivers and can find the company whose overall rating is kindest to your teen. For more ways to trim the bill, see cheap car insurance for teenagers and how rates fall over time in when car insurance goes down for young drivers.