How much does aircraft insurance cost? Published premiums for a Cessna 172, PA-28, SR22 and more
October 29, 2026 · Chris van Eijk
Insurance is one of the fixed costs of owning an aircraft, and unlike the hangar or the annual inspection its price depends as much on the pilot as on the aircraft. Insurers rarely publish rates, but some brokers do publish what they quoted or sold for named types. This guide collects those figures from the brokers' own pages, read on 28 October 2026 — BWI Aviation Insurance's quote ranges, five real SkyWatch policies, Sunset Aviation's examples per pilot and a German broker's prices — and adds what Europe requires by law, what tax comes on top, and how our calculator's insurance assumption compares.
Short answer: For a Cessna 172 insured for $50,000 to under $100,000, BWI's typical quoted premium was $700–$1,250 a year, and $1,200–$1,700 for $100,000 to under $200,000, with $1 million liability and no deductible. A Piper PA-28-140 in the lower band was quoted at $850–$1,400 and a PA-28-180 at $750–$1,300, a Cessna 182 at $100,000–$200,000 at $1,150–$2,050. The pilot matters as much as the aircraft: Sunset's examples for a Cirrus SR22 insured for $800,000 run from $8,000 a year for a private pilot with an instrument rating to $21,000 for a student pilot. One broker puts an experienced owner-pilot of a high-value aircraft at about 1% of the hull value a year, rising with less experience; another gives 1% to 2% as a common benchmark. In Germany a broker prices hull cover for a Cessna 172 worth €100,000 from €1,365 a year, tax included. US federal rules require no insurance for a private aircraft; the EU sets minimum liability cover by weight; and in the UK, Germany and the Netherlands a tax of 12%, 19% or 21% comes on top of the premium.
What a year of insurance is quoted at, by type and insured value
- Cessna 172 insured $50k–$100k$700–$1,250
- Cessna 172 insured $100k–$200k$1,200–$1,700
- Cessna 182 insured $100k–$200k$1,150–$2,050
- Piper PA-28-140 insured $50k–$100k$850–$1,400
- Piper PA-28-180 insured $50k–$100k$750–$1,300
What a Cessna 172, PA-28 or Cessna 182 is quoted at
BWI Aviation Insurance publishes the typical range of the quotes it received per type and per band of insured value, for quotes from June 2025 to June 2026. All use the same cover: "Full-flight hull coverage, rather than liability-only or ground-only coverage.", "$1 million liability per occurrence, with a $100,000 per-passenger limit." and "$0 in-motion and $0 not-in-motion hull deductibles." For a Cessna 172, "the typical annual premium range was $700–$1,250 for Cessna 172 aircraft insured for $50,000 to under $100,000", and "For insured values of $100,000 to under $200,000, the typical range was $1,200–$1,700 per year". For a Cessna 182 at $100,000 to under $200,000 the range was $1,150–$2,050; for a Piper PA-28-140 at $50,000 to under $100,000, $850–$1,400, and for a PA-28-180, $750–$1,300.
Two cautions from BWI itself. The figures are quotes, "not premiums paid or guaranteed current rates", from pilots of mixed experience. And the jump between bands is not proportional: "Avoid assuming the premium scales directly with the aircraft's value."
SkyWatch published five 2025 policies for the same PA-28 family. They range from $608 a year for a commercial pilot with an instrument rating and 3,000 hours on the type ($60,000 hull, $500,000 liability) to $1,552 for a private pilot with 125 hours on a $115,000 aircraft.
Five real PA-28 policies
| Pilot | Hours | Hull | Premium | % of hull |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Student (1971, tie-down) | 20 / 20 | $45,000 | $1,248 | 2.8% |
| Student (1965, hangar) | 149 / 130 | $82,000 | $1,440 | 1.8% |
| ATP, instrument (1970, hangar) | 28,000 / 800 | $65,000 | $884 | 1.4% |
| Commercial, instrument (1974, hangar) | 6,000 / 3,000 | $60,000 | $608 | 1.0% |
| Private (1982, hangar) | 125 / 125 | $115,000 | $1,552 | 1.3% |
Why the pilot matters as much as the aircraft
The clearest view of the pilot's weight is a broker showing one aircraft at one value with different pilots. Sunset Aviation Insurance Services does that on its type pages. A Cirrus SR22 with $800,000 hull cover costs $8,000 a year for an owner with a private licence and instrument rating, $14,000 while that pilot is still working on the instrument rating, and $21,000 for a student working on the private licence — from 1.0% to 2.6% of the hull value. A Beechcraft Bonanza G36 at the same value shows nearly the same steps ($8,500, $14,000, $21,000), a Diamond DA40 at $500,000 runs $6,000 to $16,000, and a Cessna 172 Skyhawk at $300,000 costs $3,500 for an experienced owner and $8,000 for a student. In those examples the liability limits also differ per pilot, so the rows are not like-for-like on liability.
Same aircraft, different pilot: annual premium
| Private + instrument | $8,000 | 1.0% |
|---|---|---|
| Private, working on instrument | $14,000 | 1.8% |
| Student, working on private | $21,000 | 2.6% |
| Private + instrument | $8,500 | 1.1% |
|---|---|---|
| Private, working on instrument | $14,000 | 1.8% |
| Student, working on private | $21,000 | 2.6% |
| Private + instrument | $6,000 | 1.2% |
|---|---|---|
| Private, working on instrument | $11,000 | 2.2% |
| Student, working on private | $16,000 | 3.2% |
| Experienced owner | $3,500 | 1.2% |
|---|---|---|
| Student, working on private | $8,000 | 2.7% |
That is where the rules of thumb come from. Sunset gives "1% of the hull value for experienced pilots, no dry leases or fractional, pleasure & business operations by an owner pilot with a high hull value like $800,000.", and 2% to 4% for less experienced pilots, lower values and training use; SkyWatch writes "The common benchmark is roughly 1% to 2% of hull value as your annual premium." Sunset adds that "Liability premium is typically around 20% – 30% of the overall premium." Four of the five SkyWatch PA-28 policies pay 1.0% to 1.8% of their hull value; the fifth, a student with 20 hours, pays 2.8%.
Insurance in Europe
European prices are published even less often. One German broker, luftfahrtversicherung24.de, gives "from" prices for a German-registered Cessna 172: hull cover for €100,000 with a €1,000 deductible and one pilot, assuming a type rating and good flying experience, from €1,365 a year including 19% insurance tax; third-party liability of €4 million from €410; or a combined single limit of €5 million, which covers both third parties and passengers, from €1,198. Hull plus the combined limit is from €2,563 a year (the page does not say whether the €1,198 includes tax).
| Max. take-off mass | Million SDR |
|---|---|
| under 500 kg | 0.75 |
| under 1,000 kg | 1.5 |
| under 2,700 kg | 3 |
| under 6,000 kg | 7 |
| Per passenger | 0.25 |
| United Kingdom | 12% |
|---|---|
| Germany | 19% |
| Netherlands | 21% |
Unlike the US, the EU makes liability cover compulsory. Regulation (EC) No 785/2004 sets a minimum third-party cover per accident by maximum take-off mass, in Special Drawing Rights (SDR), the IMF's currency unit: 0.75 million SDR under 500 kg, 1.5 million under 1,000 kg and 3 million under 2,700 kg — the band of the German broker's Cessna 172 example, which it gives as 1,198 kg. For passengers, "the minimum insurance cover shall be 250 000 SDRs per passenger", though "in respect of non-commercial operations by aircraft with a MTOM of 2 700 kg or less, Member States may set a lower level of minimum insurance cover, provided that such cover is at least 100 000 SDRs per passenger." The UK's retained copy of the regulation on legislation.gov.uk shows the same table.
Tax comes on top of the premium. In the UK, insurance premium tax has "a standard rate 12%"; the aviation exemption covers only aircraft "of a weight of 8,000 kilograms or more" that are "not designed or adapted for use for recreation or pleasure". Germany taxes insurance at 19%, and the Netherlands at 21%, where the aviation exemption is for aircraft used mainly as public transport in international traffic.
Is aircraft insurance required in the US?
Not by federal rule for a private owner. As AOPA's legal services plan puts it: "Unlike automobile insurance, most states do not require aircraft owners to carry insurance. Additionally, there is no federal requirement for aircraft operators to maintain insurance unless operating as a direct air carrier." Clubs, rental operators and partnerships set their own requirements: what clubs require is in flying club insurance, and what renters buy for themselves in renter's insurance for pilots.
What our calculator assumes, and what a partnership pays
Our aircraft ownership cost calculator plans insurance as a share of the hull value plus a fixed liability premium: 1.1% plus $600 a year at US prices, and 1.4% plus €900 in Europe, including insurance tax where it applies. For a $100,000 aircraft that is $1,700 a year — the top of BWI's typical range for a Cessna 172 insured for $100,000 to under $200,000. For a €100,000 aircraft it is €2,300, a little below the German broker's €2,563 for hull plus a combined single limit. It is a planning figure for an experienced pilot, not a quote: a student pilot can pay more than twice as much, and a high-time pilot in a hangar less, so put your own quote in its place. Where insurance sits among the other fixed costs is in how much it costs to own a plane, next to what a hangar costs.
In a partnership the policy has to cover every owner who flies. BWI asks for "the qualifications of every pilot who will fly", and the premium follows those pilots: Sunset's 2% step is for "Private Pilots working on Instrument, fractional ownership and more than 3 named pilots with a high hull value like $600,000." A policy can name the pilots or use an open pilot warranty; a UK broker describes the latter as one that will "allow non-named pilots to fly your aircraft so long as they do so with your authority and they fulfil certain criteria such as qualifications, experience, age etc." How the group shares the premium — equally, as part of each owner's fixed monthly share, or with a surcharge for the least experienced pilot — belongs in the aircraft partnership agreement; split equally, the calculator's $1,700 is $425 a year for each of four owners.
That fixed share is what Pilot-Next bills. The premium is one of the costs in each owner's recurring fee — monthly, quarterly or yearly, with an own amount per owner where shares differ — billed as an invoice on each owner's account, while each flight is settled with the meter readings at the hourly rate. The partnership spreadsheet works out the same split for up to four owners.
These are brokers' published examples and quote ranges, not a survey of what owners pay, and every insurer prices the pilot, the aircraft and the use in its own way. Ask for a quote for your own aircraft.