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Flood insurance cost · Harris County, TX

Flood insurance cost in Harris County, Texas

What homeowners with a National Flood Insurance Program policy actually pay, from FEMA's records of 200,902 home policies in force on August 31, 2026.

Harris County, TexasPolicies in force on Aug 31, 2026

Median annual cost of NFIP flood insurance for a home

$1,088a year

Half of insured homes paid between $884 and $1,267. That is about the same as the Texas median ($1,084). Most insured homes here are rated in zone X (74%).

$0$884 · $1,088 · $1,267$1,584
+8.5% vs Aug 31, 2025 (median $1,003)
200,902home policies in force
$1,174average cost (mean)
26%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 Harris County.

Cost by flood zone in Harris 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		$1,758$1,211–$3,021$2,348594 (0%)+13.1%
Zone AE
High risk		$1,333$998–$1,837$1,51050,316 (25%)+9.5%
Zone A
High risk		$1,071$849–$1,364$1,142683 (0%)+4.0%
Zone AO
High risk, shallow		$975$781–$1,358$1,073610 (0%)+6.0%
Zone X
Moderate to low risk		$1,084$850–$1,261$1,056148,695 (74%)+16.3%

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 Harris County, by what they insure.

Type of buildingPoliciesMedianAverage
Single-family home195,296$1,097$1,184
2–4 unit building1,095$1,226$1,252
Manufactured (mobile) home296$899$983
Condo or apartment unit4,215$637$672
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.		4,126$2,220$3,030
Non-residential building or unit
Businesses, churches, farm buildings and other non-residential property.		11,070$2,637$3,187
216,098NFIP policies in force, any building
224,159insured units (condo association policies count every unit)
93%of home policies also cover contents
$100,000median contents coverage, when bought

One year on: Harris 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 force223,364200,902−10.1%
Median annual cost$1,003$1,088+8.5%
Average annual cost$1,065$1,174+10.2%
All policies in force (any building)239,512216,098−9.8%

How many homes have flood insurance?

16.6%of all homes in Harris County have an NFIP policy
48.4%of homes in high-risk zones (special flood hazard area) have one
1,245,880residential buildings counted by FEMA
113,215of 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 Harris County, Texas have filed 171,050 flood claims. 140,264 received a payment, for a total of $8.8 billion (an average of $62,485 per paid claim). The year with the most claims was 2017 (49,795 claims). Amounts are in dollars of the time, not adjusted for inflation.

020k40k60k80k1978: 181 claims, 114 paid, $448,765 in total1979: 8,188 claims, 7,022 paid, $72,042,044 in total1980: 665 claims, 391 paid, $1,672,283 in total19801981: 4,798 claims, 3,973 paid, $30,021,390 in total1982: 429 claims, 275 paid, $1,550,741 in total1983: 6,841 claims, 5,051 paid, $90,245,880 in total1984: 1,169 claims, 969 paid, $16,122,954 in total1985: 712 claims, 440 paid, $3,386,920 in total1986: 235 claims, 132 paid, $852,051 in total1987: 564 claims, 363 paid, $3,050,892 in total1988: 65 claims, 26 paid, $103,199 in total1989: 6,488 claims, 4,900 paid, $83,690,091 in total1990: 79 claims, 47 paid, $254,481 in total19901991: 412 claims, 253 paid, $2,046,494 in total1992: 2,908 claims, 2,533 paid, $52,266,624 in total1993: 445 claims, 340 paid, $4,157,967 in total1994: 3,563 claims, 3,003 paid, $98,675,387 in total1995: 328 claims, 194 paid, $1,304,893 in total1996: 285 claims, 221 paid, $4,889,893 in total1997: 1,624 claims, 1,291 paid, $17,106,326 in total1998: 3,937 claims, 3,283 paid, $78,823,422 in total1999: 591 claims, 470 paid, $4,577,940 in total2000: 277 claims, 160 paid, $1,704,038 in total20002001: 22,946 claims, 20,490 paid, $873,671,252 in total20012002: 3,198 claims, 2,690 paid, $75,809,572 in total2003: 1,650 claims, 1,359 paid, $33,689,160 in total2004: 330 claims, 218 paid, $2,215,391 in total2005: 386 claims, 173 paid, $2,811,199 in total2006: 2,466 claims, 2,188 paid, $56,356,471 in total2007: 1,425 claims, 1,202 paid, $31,205,217 in total2008: 13,717 claims, 8,920 paid, $424,824,135 in total20082009: 4,824 claims, 4,312 paid, $140,634,236 in total2010: 358 claims, 192 paid, $2,388,321 in total20102011: 62 claims, 12 paid, $87,159 in total2012: 944 claims, 717 paid, $17,787,607 in total2013: 451 claims, 328 paid, $6,377,090 in total2014: 340 claims, 220 paid, $3,179,536 in total2015: 7,003 claims, 5,993 paid, $396,891,473 in total2016: 8,159 claims, 7,061 paid, $446,049,942 in total2017: 49,795 claims, 42,816 paid, $5,383,341,046 in total20172018: 259 claims, 115 paid, $3,117,087 in total2019: 4,773 claims, 4,183 paid, $223,133,842 in total2020: 348 claims, 192 paid, $6,502,438 in total20202021: 573 claims, 130 paid, $3,700,352 in total2022: 187 claims, 89 paid, $2,583,027 in total2023: 187 claims, 90 paid, $2,738,336 in total2024: 1,742 claims, 1,050 paid, $53,889,430 in total2025: 63 claims, 33 paid, $866,648 in total2026: 80 claims, 40 paid, $1,600,639 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
20268040$1,600,639$40,016
20256333$866,648$26,262
20241,7421,050$53,889,430$51,323
202318790$2,738,336$30,426
202218789$2,583,027$29,023
2021573130$3,700,352$28,464
2020348192$6,502,438$33,867
20194,7734,183$223,133,842$53,343
2018259115$3,117,087$27,105
201749,79542,816$5,383,341,046$125,732
20168,1597,061$446,049,942$63,171
20157,0035,993$396,891,473$66,226
2014340220$3,179,536$14,452
2013451328$6,377,090$19,442
2012944717$17,787,607$24,808
20116212$87,159$7,263
2010358192$2,388,321$12,439
20094,8244,312$140,634,236$32,615
200813,7178,920$424,824,135$47,626
20071,4251,202$31,205,217$25,961
20062,4662,188$56,356,471$25,757
2005386173$2,811,199$16,250
2004330218$2,215,391$10,162
20031,6501,359$33,689,160$24,790
20023,1982,690$75,809,572$28,182
200122,94620,490$873,671,252$42,639
2000277160$1,704,038$10,650
1999591470$4,577,940$9,740
19983,9373,283$78,823,422$24,010
19971,6241,291$17,106,326$13,250
1996285221$4,889,893$22,126
1995328194$1,304,893$6,726
19943,5633,003$98,675,387$32,859
1993445340$4,157,967$12,229
19922,9082,533$52,266,624$20,634
1991412253$2,046,494$8,089
19907947$254,481$5,414
19896,4884,900$83,690,091$17,080
19886526$103,199$3,969
1987564363$3,050,892$8,405
1986235132$852,051$6,455
1985712440$3,386,920$7,698
19841,169969$16,122,954$16,639
19836,8415,051$90,245,880$17,867
1982429275$1,550,741$5,639
19814,7983,973$30,021,390$7,556
1980665391$1,672,283$4,277
19798,1887,022$72,042,044$10,259
1978181114$448,765$3,937

From 2016 to 2026: 66,166 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.

ZIP codes in Harris County

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

Main NFIP communities in the county

Houston (90,941 home policies) · Unincorporated Harris County (73,662 home policies) · Pasadena (6,187 home policies) · Bellaire (4,302 home policies) · La Porte (3,132 home policies) · Seabrook (2,691 home policies)