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Flood insurance cost · Charleston County, SC

Flood insurance cost in Charleston County, South Carolina

What homeowners with a National Flood Insurance Program policy actually pay, from FEMA's records of 44,728 home policies in force on August 31, 2026.

Charleston County, South CarolinaPolicies in force on Aug 31, 2026

Median annual cost of NFIP flood insurance for a home

$1,023a year

Half of insured homes paid between $802 and $1,305. That is 8% more than the South Carolina median ($949). Most insured homes here are rated in zone AE (74%).

$0$802 · $1,023 · $1,305$1,631
+10.1% vs Aug 31, 2025 (median $929)
44,728home policies in force
$1,245average cost (mean)
75%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 Charleston 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 VE / V
High risk, coastal		$1,494$1,017–$3,074$2,360642 (1%)+7.0%
Zone AE
High risk		$1,088$879–$1,423$1,34932,954 (74%)+11.1%
Zone A
High risk		$585$473–$877$99710 (0%)−0.7%
Zone AO
High risk, shallow		$1,534$1,199–$3,924$2,65436 (0%)+19.5%
Zone X
Moderate to low risk		$819$636–$1,080$86811,085 (25%)+2.8%

Not shown (fewer than 10 home policies): 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 Charleston County, by what they insure.

Type of buildingPoliciesMedianAverage
Single-family home42,830$1,028$1,249
2–4 unit building841$1,308$1,666
Manufactured (mobile) home171$804$1,058
Condo or apartment unit886$600$715
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.		1,966$2,702$3,779
Non-residential building or unit
Businesses, churches, farm buildings and other non-residential property.		2,043$2,350$3,204
48,737NFIP policies in force, any building
59,162insured units (condo association policies count every unit)
83%of home policies also cover contents
$100,000median contents coverage, when bought

One year on: Charleston 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 force46,91244,728−4.7%
Median annual cost$929$1,023+10.1%
Average annual cost$1,143$1,245+8.9%
All policies in force (any building)50,99148,737−4.4%

How many homes have flood insurance?

31.7%of all homes in Charleston County have an NFIP policy
78.3%of homes in high-risk zones (special flood hazard area) have one
148,009residential buildings counted by FEMA
44,952of 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 Charleston County, South Carolina have filed 19,300 flood claims. 13,292 received a payment, for a total of $312.3 million (an average of $23,494 per paid claim). The year with the most claims was 1989 (9,500 claims). Amounts are in dollars of the time, not adjusted for inflation.

02.5k5k7.5k10k1978: 10 claims1979: 320 claims, 225 paid, $383,117 in total1980: 13 claims19801981: 30 claims, 11 paid, $6,455 in total1982: 136 claims, 82 paid, $127,447 in total1983: 35 claims, 17 paid, $15,726 in total1984: 18 claims, 11 paid, $66,581 in total1985: 48 claims, 20 paid, $30,388 in total1986: 24 claims, 15 paid, $33,988 in total1987: 304 claims, 206 paid, $591,910 in total1988: 78 claims, 47 paid, $99,819 in total1989: 9,500 claims, 6,657 paid, $181,219,235 in total19891990: 128 claims, 82 paid, $376,857 in total19901991: 24 claims, 11 paid, $27,112 in total1992: 50 claims, 29 paid, $145,492 in total1993: 73 claims, 39 paid, $139,707 in total1994: 611 claims, 363 paid, $1,530,961 in total1995: 38 claims, 17 paid, $128,437 in total1996: 79 claims, 42 paid, $245,646 in total1997: 119 claims, 81 paid, $695,985 in total1998: 159 claims, 111 paid, $480,263 in total1999: 579 claims, 81 paid, $628,743 in total2000: 27 claims, 14 paid, $104,479 in total20002001: 36 claims, 19 paid, $397,112 in total2002: 57 claims, 34 paid, $456,052 in total2003: 19 claims2004: 197 claims, 100 paid, $1,256,566 in total2005: 79 claims, 59 paid, $800,147 in total2006: 21 claims2007: 15 claims2008: 153 claims, 134 paid, $3,657,645 in total2009: 54 claims, 40 paid, $375,505 in total2010: 25 claims, 13 paid, $94,558 in total20102011: 22 claims2012: 72 claims, 43 paid, $1,163,434 in total2013: 55 claims, 29 paid, $483,417 in total2014: 22 claims2015: 2,111 claims, 1,498 paid, $27,927,002 in total20152016: 1,463 claims, 1,125 paid, $33,915,507 in total2017: 1,579 claims, 1,356 paid, $39,452,976 in total20172018: 119 claims, 75 paid, $1,604,774 in total2019: 63 claims, 27 paid, $299,659 in total2020: 86 claims, 63 paid, $1,107,548 in total20202021: 41 claims, 28 paid, $245,772 in total2022: 141 claims, 101 paid, $2,675,892 in total2023: 295 claims, 219 paid, $5,645,052 in total2024: 142 claims, 107 paid, $2,960,249 in total2025: 24 claims, 10 paid, $239,711 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 (48)

Swipe the table sideways to see all columns.

Year of lossClaimsPaid claimsTotal paidAverage per paid claim
20252410$239,711$23,971
2024142107$2,960,249$27,666
2023295219$5,645,052$25,776
2022141101$2,675,892$26,494
20214128$245,772$8,778
20208663$1,107,548$17,580
20196327$299,659$11,098
201811975$1,604,774$21,397
20171,5791,356$39,452,976$29,095
20161,4631,125$33,915,507$30,147
20152,1111,498$27,927,002$18,643
201422<10––
20135529$483,417$16,670
20127243$1,163,434$27,057
201122<10––
20102513$94,558$7,274
20095440$375,505$9,388
2008153134$3,657,645$27,296
200715<10––
200621<10––
20057959$800,147$13,562
2004197100$1,256,566$12,566
200319<10––
20025734$456,052$13,413
20013619$397,112$20,901
20002714$104,479$7,463
199957981$628,743$7,762
1998159111$480,263$4,327
199711981$695,985$8,592
19967942$245,646$5,849
19953817$128,437$7,555
1994611363$1,530,961$4,218
19937339$139,707$3,582
19925029$145,492$5,017
19912411$27,112$2,465
199012882$376,857$4,596
19899,5006,657$181,219,235$27,222
19887847$99,819$2,124
1987304206$591,910$2,873
19862415$33,988$2,266
19854820$30,388$1,519
19841811$66,581$6,053
19833517$15,726$925
198213682$127,447$1,554
19813011$6,455$587
198013<10––
1979320225$383,117$1,703
197810<10––

From 2016 to 2026: 3,953 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 Charleston County

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

Main NFIP communities in the county

Charleston (13,611 home policies) · Mount Pleasant (11,314 home policies) · Unincorporated Charleston County (8,274 home policies) · Isle of Palms (2,434 home policies) · Kiawah Island (2,382 home policies) · North Charleston (1,412 home policies)