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Flood insurance cost · Orleans Parish, LA

Flood insurance cost in Orleans Parish, Louisiana

What homeowners with a National Flood Insurance Program policy actually pay, from FEMA's records of 54,393 home policies in force on August 31, 2026.

Orleans Parish, LouisianaPolicies in force on Aug 31, 2026

Median annual cost of NFIP flood insurance for a home

$1,167a year

Half of insured homes paid between $1,000 and $1,309. That is 4% more than the Louisiana median ($1,119). Most insured homes here are rated in zone X (68%).

$0$1,000 · $1,167 · $1,309$1,636
+10.7% vs Aug 31, 2025 (median $1,054)
54,393home policies in force
$1,251average cost (mean)
32%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 Orleans Parish

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 VE / V
High risk, coastal		$3,297$2,223–$4,556$3,513147 (0%)+3.6%
Zone AE
High risk		$1,293$1,064–$1,669$1,49617,135 (32%)+11.9%
Zone AO
High risk, shallow		$1,228$1,078–$1,261$1,161122 (0%)+16.6%
Zone X
Moderate to low risk		$1,105$976–$1,261$1,12836,987 (68%)+7.2%

Not shown (fewer than 10 home policies): A, 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 Orleans Parish, by what they insure.

Type of buildingPoliciesMedianAverage
Single-family home41,591$1,158$1,258
2–4 unit building11,923$1,230$1,279
Condo or apartment unit872$522$544
Whole residential building (5+ units or condo association)
One policy covers the whole building, so the cost is much higher than for a single home.		1,663$1,556$2,084
Non-residential building or unit
Businesses, churches, farm buildings and other non-residential property.		4,686$2,095$2,521

Not shown (fewer than 10 policies): manufactured (mobile) home.

60,742NFIP policies in force, any building
65,974insured units (condo association policies count every unit)
84%of home policies also cover contents
$100,000median contents coverage, when bought

One year on: Orleans Parish

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 force57,62454,393−5.6%
Median annual cost$1,054$1,167+10.7%
Average annual cost$1,134$1,251+10.3%
All policies in force (any building)64,23760,742−5.4%

How many homes have flood insurance?

51.8%of all homes in Orleans Parish have an NFIP policy
115.2%of homes in high-risk zones (special flood hazard area) have one
108,361residential buildings counted by FEMA
15,430of 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 Orleans Parish, Louisiana have filed 127,363 flood claims. 104,186 received a payment, for a total of $7.3 billion (an average of $70,087 per paid claim). The year with the most claims was 2005 (71,536 claims). Amounts are in dollars of the time, not adjusted for inflation.

020k40k60k80k1978: 3,029 claims, 2,528 paid, $11,509,777 in total1979: 181 claims, 103 paid, $374,816 in total1980: 5,398 claims, 4,681 paid, $26,015,245 in total19801981: 847 claims, 688 paid, $2,785,769 in total1982: 1,207 claims, 954 paid, $3,309,250 in total1983: 5,572 claims, 4,480 paid, $25,782,785 in total19831984: 26 claims1985: 295 claims, 199 paid, $3,271,102 in total1986: 36 claims, 15 paid, $148,396 in total1987: 19 claims1988: 1,397 claims, 1,062 paid, $5,363,220 in total1989: 387 claims, 264 paid, $1,378,516 in total1990: 1,051 claims, 884 paid, $5,929,294 in total19901991: 1,838 claims, 1,483 paid, $13,340,450 in total1992: 291 claims, 187 paid, $879,749 in total1993: 37 claims, 12 paid, $154,126 in total1994: 574 claims, 464 paid, $3,302,224 in total1995: 13,841 claims, 11,633 paid, $160,597,524 in total19951996: 118 claims, 79 paid, $727,379 in total1997: 161 claims, 117 paid, $1,177,137 in total1998: 4,204 claims, 3,370 paid, $36,152,629 in total1999: 75 claims, 25 paid, $644,856 in total2000: 138 claims, 34 paid, $225,663 in total20002001: 1,471 claims, 829 paid, $3,985,988 in total2002: 4,131 claims, 2,676 paid, $26,474,634 in total2003: 489 claims, 300 paid, $2,500,731 in total2004: 336 claims, 206 paid, $2,246,783 in total2005: 71,536 claims, 62,003 paid, $6,807,344,387 in total20052006: 80 claims, 29 paid, $528,818 in total2007: 130 claims, 79 paid, $1,128,866 in total2008: 1,121 claims, 450 paid, $13,057,775 in total2009: 329 claims, 234 paid, $2,931,080 in total2010: 78 claims, 41 paid, $838,165 in total20102011: 314 claims, 205 paid, $6,069,438 in total2012: 1,583 claims, 757 paid, $12,546,515 in total2013: 54 claims, 23 paid, $304,957 in total2014: 34 claims, 13 paid, $270,873 in total2015: 61 claims, 29 paid, $467,357 in total2016: 76 claims, 19 paid, $352,487 in total2017: 883 claims, 723 paid, $29,904,065 in total2018: 40 claims, 20 paid, $318,718 in total2019: 1,148 claims, 936 paid, $44,736,204 in total2020: 231 claims, 124 paid, $2,752,496 in total20202021: 2,022 claims, 905 paid, $30,322,004 in total2022: 43 claims, 18 paid, $324,969 in total2023: 67 claims, 43 paid, $1,650,958 in total2024: 296 claims, 201 paid, $5,764,258 in total2025: 49 claims, 32 paid, $1,207,727 in total2026: 39 claims, 20 paid, $897,451 in total
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 (49)

Swipe the table sideways to see all columns.

Year of lossClaimsPaid claimsTotal paidAverage per paid claim
20263920$897,451$44,873
20254932$1,207,727$37,741
2024296201$5,764,258$28,678
20236743$1,650,958$38,394
20224318$324,969$18,054
20212,022905$30,322,004$33,505
2020231124$2,752,496$22,198
20191,148936$44,736,204$47,795
20184020$318,718$15,936
2017883723$29,904,065$41,361
20167619$352,487$18,552
20156129$467,357$16,116
20143413$270,873$20,836
20135423$304,957$13,259
20121,583757$12,546,515$16,574
2011314205$6,069,438$29,607
20107841$838,165$20,443
2009329234$2,931,080$12,526
20081,121450$13,057,775$29,017
200713079$1,128,866$14,289
20068029$528,818$18,235
200571,53662,003$6,807,344,387$109,791
2004336206$2,246,783$10,907
2003489300$2,500,731$8,336
20024,1312,676$26,474,634$9,893
20011,471829$3,985,988$4,808
200013834$225,663$6,637
19997525$644,856$25,794
19984,2043,370$36,152,629$10,728
1997161117$1,177,137$10,061
199611879$727,379$9,207
199513,84111,633$160,597,524$13,805
1994574464$3,302,224$7,117
19933712$154,126$12,844
1992291187$879,749$4,705
19911,8381,483$13,340,450$8,996
19901,051884$5,929,294$6,707
1989387264$1,378,516$5,222
19881,3971,062$5,363,220$5,050
198719<10––
19863615$148,396$9,893
1985295199$3,271,102$16,438
198426<10––
19835,5724,480$25,782,785$5,755
19821,207954$3,309,250$3,469
1981847688$2,785,769$4,049
19805,3984,681$26,015,245$5,558
1979181103$374,816$3,639
19783,0292,528$11,509,777$4,553

From 2016 to 2026: 4,894 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.

ZIP codes in Orleans Parish

ZIP codes with at least 300 NFIP home policies in force have their own page.

Main NFIP communities in the county

Unincorporated New Orleans/orleans Parish (54,373 home policies) · Unincorporated Jefferson Parish (14 home policies)