How much does general liability insurance cost in 2026?

Typical general liability costs

Insureon’s figures are the median cost of policies sold to its customers, most of whom have fewer than five employees and $50,000 to $200,000 in annual revenue. Among those customers, 22% pay less than $30 a month and 41% pay between $30 and $60. About 85% choose limits of $1 million per occurrence and $2 million aggregate, and 8% choose $2 million and $4 million.

If your business is larger, the price scales with exposure. General liability is commonly rated on revenue, payroll or square footage depending on the class of business, so doubling sales can raise the premium even with no claims.

Cost by state

Location affects price through local litigation costs, medical costs and state rules. Insureon’s medians for several large states:

Cost by industry

Industry is usually the largest factor. Insureon reports a median of about $32 a month for IT consultants and $47 for coffee shops and cafes, while construction, installation and landscaping businesses are its highest-cost group, with appliance contractors around $85 to $90 a month. The difference reflects how often each type of work leads to injuries and property damage claims.

What drives your price

Beyond industry and location, insurers look at how much exposure you have and how you manage it.

• Limits: $2 million per occurrence costs more than $1 million.
• Deductible, if the policy has one.
• Revenue, payroll or square footage, depending on how your class is rated.
• Claims history over the past three to five years.
• Whether you work on customer premises, sell products or use subcontractors.
• Endorsements such as additional insured, waiver of subrogation or primary and non-contributory wording that clients request.

General liability alone, or a business owner’s policy?

If you rent or own a space with equipment, furniture or inventory, compare general liability against a business owner’s policy (BOP), which adds commercial property and business interruption coverage. Insureon’s medians are about $45 a month for general liability and $83 a month for a BOP, so for many businesses the property protection costs roughly $40 a month more when bundled. That is often cheaper than buying a separate property policy, where Insureon reports a median of about $108 a month.

If your business has little physical property — a consultant working from a laptop, for example — general liability alone may be enough, possibly alongside professional liability.

Mistakes that make general liability more expensive

A few avoidable errors regularly push small businesses into higher premiums or uncovered claims.

• Describing your business too broadly, so you are rated as a riskier class than the work you do.
• Leaving out work you do occasionally, which can lead to a coverage dispute when that work causes a claim.
• Overestimating revenue or payroll at the start of the policy; many policies are audited and adjusted, but you pay on the estimate until then.
• Letting coverage lapse between policies, which can make the next insurer more cautious.
• Hiring uninsured subcontractors, whose exposure may be charged back to you at audit.

How to pay less for general liability

If you also need property coverage, ask whether you qualify for a business owner’s policy, which bundles general liability and property and is often cheaper than buying both separately. Paying annually instead of monthly can earn a discount with many insurers. Keep your business description precise so you are not rated for riskier work you do not do, and require certificates from subcontractors so their claims are not pushed onto your policy. Finally, compare quotes from more than one insurer: appetite for a given class of business varies widely.