Benzyl methacrylate (BzMA) propagation rate coefficients, kp, were determined in ionic liquids and common organic solvents via pulsed‐laser polymerizations with subsequent polymer analysis by size‐exclusion chromatography (PLP‐SEC). The aim of the work is to gain a deeper understanding of the solvent influence on kp and to develop a general correlation between solvent‐induced variations in kp and solvent properties. Applying a linear solvation energy relationship (LSER), which correlates kp to solvent solvatochromic parameters, suggests that dipolarity/polarizability determines the solvent influence on kp. To compare the solvent influence on BzMA kp with data for methyl methacrylate, hydroxypropyl methacrylate, and 2‐ethoxyethyl methacrylate normalized kp data were treated by a single LSER, providing a universal treatment of the solvent influence on the propagation kinetics of the four monomers. Further, the predictive capabilities of this universal correlation were tested with additional monomers from the methacrylate family.