Independent insurance explainers
Plain-language guides to U.S. insurance, written for people making a real decision. Every cost figure we publish is attributed to a named primary source — the NAIC, CMS, KFF, the Insurance Information Institute and others — so you can check it yourself.
Start here
Eighteen guides covering the insurance most U.S. households and small businesses actually buy. Each one explains how the policy works, what it costs according to published data, and what it excludes.
In depth
Longer pieces on the questions that come up most often.
Why we do not publish a ranking of car insurers, and the four public data sources that let you evaluate any company on complaints, financial strength, price and service.
The discounts, deductible choices and shopping habits that actually reduce a car insurance premium, with NAIC data on what drivers pay and where the savings really come from.
How term and permanent life insurance actually differ, a step-by-step method for sizing coverage, and what LIMRA research says about how badly people misjudge the cost.
Employer and ACA marketplace premiums from KFF's 2025 survey and 2026 marketplace data, what the expiry of enhanced subsidies changed, and how to work out your own total cost.
The dwelling limit, valuation method and endorsements that decide what a homeowners claim actually pays, with NAIC premium data and III claim frequency and severity figures.
How a personal umbrella policy attaches above your auto and home liability, who genuinely needs one, how to size it, and the exclusions that surprise people.
A practical checklist of small business coverage by stage, what is legally versus contractually required, and the claims-made trap that catches consultants and agencies.
Why teenage and young-adult drivers face the highest premiums, which discounts genuinely apply, and the structural choices that lower a young driver's cost the most.
Side by side
How to compare two large national insurers on the factors that are actually knowable — complaint data, financial strength, distribution model — rather than on a score we invented.
Two of the largest U.S. auto insurers with different distribution models. What is verifiable about each, what is not, and how to decide which fits your profile.
A direct-to-consumer insurer and an agent-based insurer, compared on what is publicly verifiable — distribution, telematics, complaint data and financial strength.
Do the arithmetic
Rough estimates that run entirely in your browser. Nothing is sent anywhere, and no email is required.
Live from the BLS
Official Consumer Price Index figures for July 2026, pulled from the Bureau of Labor Statistics public API. Year-over-year change against July 2025.
-4.5%
Year over year, CPI-U. BLS series CUUR0000SETE.
+3.2%
Year over year, CPI-U. BLS series CUUR0000SEHC.
-2.7%
Year over year, CPI-U. BLS series CUUR0000SEMF.
+2.7%
Year over year, CPI-U. BLS series CUUR0000SAM2.
About this site