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Flood insurance cost · Galveston County, TX

Flood insurance cost in Galveston County, Texas

What homeowners with a National Flood Insurance Program policy actually pay, from FEMA's records of 51,674 home policies in force on August 31, 2026.

Galveston County, TexasPolicies in force on Aug 31, 2026

Median annual cost of NFIP flood insurance for a home

$1,214a year

Half of insured homes paid between $1,004 and $1,547. That is 12% more than the Texas median ($1,084). The most common flood zone for insured homes here is zone X (45%).

$0$1,004 · $1,214 · $1,547$1,934
+14.9% vs Aug 31, 2025 (median $1,057)
51,674home policies in force
$1,466average cost (mean)
55%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.

Disaster declarations: No FEMA declaration · IRS Feb 1, 2027. FEMA declarations and IRS tax relief in Galveston County.

Cost by flood zone in Galveston 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		$1,899$1,374–$2,845$2,3476,121 (12%)+3.7%
Zone AE
High risk		$1,294$1,063–$1,889$1,64821,847 (42%)+11.4%
Zone A
High risk		$1,096$992–$1,267$1,177161 (0%)+10.3%
Zone AO
High risk, shallow		$1,193$976–$1,337$1,27457 (0%)+17.9%
Zone AH
High risk, shallow		$1,088$1,023–$1,204$1,11312 (0%)+13.3%
Zone X
Moderate to low risk		$1,084$878–$1,257$1,06923,476 (45%)+15.7%

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

Type of buildingPoliciesMedianAverage
Single-family home50,087$1,219$1,475
2–4 unit building650$1,471$1,658
Manufactured (mobile) home128$1,084$1,251
Condo or apartment unit809$669$793
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.		918$2,928$4,820
Non-residential building or unit
Businesses, churches, farm buildings and other non-residential property.		2,392$3,698$5,026
54,984NFIP policies in force, any building
59,080insured units (condo association policies count every unit)
89%of home policies also cover contents
$100,000median contents coverage, when bought

One year on: Galveston 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 force54,49751,674−5.2%
Median annual cost$1,057$1,214+14.9%
Average annual cost$1,339$1,466+9.5%
All policies in force (any building)57,92754,984−5.1%

How many homes have flood insurance?

42.2%of all homes in Galveston County have an NFIP policy
66.0%of homes in high-risk zones (special flood hazard area) have one
125,276residential buildings counted by FEMA
43,982of 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 Galveston County, Texas have filed 60,948 flood claims. 49,690 received a payment, for a total of $2.5 billion (an average of $49,748 per paid claim). The year with the most claims was 2008 (22,606 claims). Amounts are in dollars of the time, not adjusted for inflation.

010k20k30k40k1979: 5,508 claims, 4,940 paid, $81,230,150 in total1980: 265 claims, 198 paid, $1,019,496 in total19801981: 2,410 claims, 2,050 paid, $9,549,095 in total1982: 51 claims, 29 paid, $150,187 in total1983: 7,720 claims, 5,430 paid, $48,306,864 in total19831984: 246 claims, 182 paid, $1,019,550 in total1985: 47 claims, 26 paid, $56,974 in total1986: 93 claims, 70 paid, $221,182 in total1987: 21 claims, 12 paid, $53,725 in total1988: 95 claims, 48 paid, $105,902 in total1989: 2,801 claims, 2,136 paid, $29,985,162 in total1990: 29 claims, 19 paid, $83,261 in total19901991: 156 claims, 116 paid, $651,556 in total1992: 72 claims, 51 paid, $234,988 in total1993: 51 claims, 33 paid, $268,230 in total1994: 179 claims, 146 paid, $5,815,618 in total1995: 385 claims, 304 paid, $2,241,339 in total1996: 116 claims, 69 paid, $538,332 in total1997: 189 claims, 138 paid, $827,648 in total1998: 2,720 claims, 2,057 paid, $20,517,105 in total1999: 31 claims, 11 paid, $36,086 in total2000: 45 claims, 26 paid, $176,665 in total20002001: 1,914 claims, 1,533 paid, $44,506,232 in total2002: 465 claims, 358 paid, $2,920,098 in total2003: 715 claims, 516 paid, $4,865,455 in total2004: 57 claims, 40 paid, $292,683 in total2005: 375 claims, 140 paid, $1,932,582 in total2006: 205 claims, 158 paid, $2,244,036 in total2007: 79 claims, 56 paid, $954,696 in total2008: 22,606 claims, 19,716 paid, $1,337,096,930 in total20082009: 440 claims, 380 paid, $9,492,656 in total2010: 55 claims, 21 paid, $262,547 in total20102011: 41 claims, 16 paid, $164,333 in total2012: 47 claims, 20 paid, $300,852 in total2013: 31 claims, 21 paid, $489,205 in total2014: 28 claims, 21 paid, $577,295 in total2015: 177 claims, 109 paid, $1,912,582 in total2016: 104 claims, 60 paid, $1,202,002 in total2017: 8,853 claims, 7,465 paid, $835,253,559 in total20172018: 163 claims, 115 paid, $3,423,372 in total2019: 121 claims, 76 paid, $1,259,469 in total2020: 171 claims, 106 paid, $2,329,279 in total20202021: 223 claims, 127 paid, $3,099,002 in total2022: 20 claims, 10 paid, $588,251 in total2023: 15 claims2024: 789 claims, 523 paid, $13,371,629 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 (46)

Swipe the table sideways to see all columns.

Year of lossClaimsPaid claimsTotal paidAverage per paid claim
2024789523$13,371,629$25,567
202315<10––
20222010$588,251$58,825
2021223127$3,099,002$24,402
2020171106$2,329,279$21,974
201912176$1,259,469$16,572
2018163115$3,423,372$29,768
20178,8537,465$835,253,559$111,889
201610460$1,202,002$20,033
2015177109$1,912,582$17,547
20142821$577,295$27,490
20133121$489,205$23,295
20124720$300,852$15,043
20114116$164,333$10,271
20105521$262,547$12,502
2009440380$9,492,656$24,981
200822,60619,716$1,337,096,930$67,818
20077956$954,696$17,048
2006205158$2,244,036$14,203
2005375140$1,932,582$13,804
20045740$292,683$7,317
2003715516$4,865,455$9,429
2002465358$2,920,098$8,157
20011,9141,533$44,506,232$29,032
20004526$176,665$6,795
19993111$36,086$3,281
19982,7202,057$20,517,105$9,974
1997189138$827,648$5,997
199611669$538,332$7,802
1995385304$2,241,339$7,373
1994179146$5,815,618$39,833
19935133$268,230$8,128
19927251$234,988$4,608
1991156116$651,556$5,617
19902919$83,261$4,382
19892,8012,136$29,985,162$14,038
19889548$105,902$2,206
19872112$53,725$4,477
19869370$221,182$3,160
19854726$56,974$2,191
1984246182$1,019,550$5,602
19837,7205,430$48,306,864$8,896
19825129$150,187$5,179
19812,4102,050$9,549,095$4,658
1980265198$1,019,496$5,149
19795,5084,940$81,230,150$16,443

From 2016 to 2026: 10,459 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 Galveston County

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

Main NFIP communities in the county

League City (14,583 home policies) · Galveston (12,727 home policies) · Unincorporated Galveston County (6,752 home policies) · Friendswood (4,590 home policies) · Dickinson (3,434 home policies) · Texas City (3,080 home policies)