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Flood insurance cost · Shelby County, AL

Flood insurance cost in Shelby County, Alabama

What homeowners with a National Flood Insurance Program policy actually pay, from FEMA's records of 483 home policies in force on August 31, 2026.

Shelby County, AlabamaPolicies in force on Aug 31, 2026

Median annual cost of NFIP flood insurance for a home

$1,267a year

Half of insured homes paid between $1,037 and $1,741. That is 3% more than the Alabama median ($1,233). Most insured homes here are rated in zone AE (50%).

$0$1,037 · $1,267 · $1,741$2,176
+13.1% vs Aug 31, 2025 (median $1,120)
483home policies in force
$1,457average cost (mean)
60%of insured homes in high-risk zones (A, V)
$250,000median building coverage

This is what policyholders paid, not a quote. Two neighbors can pay very different prices: NFIP prices depend on the building (elevation, foundation, number of floors, replacement cost), the coverage and deductible chosen and the distance to water (FEMA FloodSmart: premium factors). For a price for your building, ask an insurance agent. Private flood insurance is not included in these figures.

Cost by flood zone in Shelby County

The flood zone on FEMA's map is one of the main price factors. Median and middle half of what insured homes paid, by the zone used to rate the policy.

Flood zoneMedianMiddle half (25th–75th percentile)AveragePoliciesvs last year
Zone AE
High risk		$1,624$1,260–$2,007$1,738243 (50%)+10.4%
Zone A
High risk		$1,288$1,052–$1,920$1,66046 (10%)+4.0%
Zone X
Moderate to low risk		$1,083$775–$1,263$1,056194 (40%)+12.2%

Not shown (fewer than 10 home policies): VE, AO, AH, A99/AR, D. Shares are of all insured homes; a few policies have no rated zone. "vs last year" compares medians with policies in force a year earlier.

Cost by type of building

All NFIP policies in force in Shelby County, by what they insure.

Type of buildingPoliciesMedianAverage
Single-family home465$1,267$1,459
Manufactured (mobile) home11$1,142$1,384
Non-residential building or unit
Businesses, churches, farm buildings and other non-residential property.		95$2,808$3,618

Not shown (fewer than 10 policies): 2–4 unit building, condo or apartment unit, whole residential building (5+ units or condo association).

582NFIP policies in force, any building
582insured units (condo association policies count every unit)
75%of home policies also cover contents
$100,000median contents coverage, when bought

One year on: Shelby County

Policies in force on August 31, 2026 compared with a year earlier. Nationwide, practically all policies in both years carry FEMA's Risk Rating 2.0 occupancy codes, so both years use the same pricing system. The policies are not the same: some were new, some lapsed.

Aug 31, 2025Aug 31, 2026Change
Home policies in force522483−7.5%
Median annual cost$1,120$1,267+13.1%
Average annual cost$1,324$1,457+10.0%
All policies in force (any building)623582−6.6%

How many homes have flood insurance?

0.7%of all homes in Shelby County have an NFIP policy
30.7%of homes in high-risk zones (special flood hazard area) have one
76,018residential buildings counted by FEMA
944of them in high-risk zones

FEMA NFIP Residential Penetration Rates, data as of August 3, 2026: residential contracts in force divided by residential structures.

Flood claims history

Since 1978, NFIP policyholders in Shelby County, Alabama have filed 797 flood claims. 708 received a payment, for a total of $19.2 million (an average of $27,111 per paid claim). The year with the most claims was 2021 (153 claims). Amounts are in dollars of the time, not adjusted for inflation.

0501001502001979: 89 claims, 81 paid, $409,226 in total197919801983: 64 claims, 62 paid, $658,036 in total1990: 96 claims, 93 paid, $1,843,567 in total199019901996: 57 claims, 53 paid, $508,619 in total1998: 12 claims, 11 paid, $60,743 in total20002002: 13 claims, 12 paid, $180,586 in total2003: 47 claims, 44 paid, $923,399 in total2004: 12 claims, 10 paid, $136,308 in total2005: 20 claims, 16 paid, $294,141 in total2009: 13 claims, 13 paid, $156,696 in total2010: 22 claims, 18 paid, $340,419 in total20102012: 38 claims, 36 paid, $741,645 in total2014: 72 claims, 60 paid, $2,163,009 in total2015: 14 claims2017: 13 claims, 11 paid, $439,993 in total20202021: 153 claims, 145 paid, $9,608,165 in total2021
Flood claims per year of loss, 1978–2026. Years with fewer than 10 claims are left blank. Hover a bar for details.
All years with at least 10 claims (16)

Swipe the table sideways to see all columns.

Year of lossClaimsPaid claimsTotal paidAverage per paid claim
2021153145$9,608,165$66,263
20171311$439,993$39,999
201514<10––
20147260$2,163,009$36,050
20123836$741,645$20,601
20102218$340,419$18,912
20091313$156,696$12,054
20052016$294,141$18,384
20041210$136,308$13,631
20034744$923,399$20,986
20021312$180,586$15,049
19981211$60,743$5,522
19965753$508,619$9,597
19909693$1,843,567$19,823
19836462$658,036$10,613
19798981$409,226$5,052

From 2016 to 2026: 166 claims (counting only years with at least 10). 2026 is a partial year. Claims are counted where the insured property is; they include buildings and contents, homes and businesses.

Main NFIP communities in the county

Pelham (161 home policies) · Alabaster (95 home policies) · Unincorporated Shelby County (85 home policies) · Hoover (36 home policies) · Helena (31 home policies) · Calera (26 home policies)