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Flood insurance cost · WA

Flood insurance cost in Washington

What homeowners with a National Flood Insurance Program policy actually pay, from FEMA's records of 22,185 home policies in force on August 31, 2026.

WashingtonPolicies in force on Aug 31, 2026

Median annual cost of NFIP flood insurance for a home

$1,058a year

Half of insured homes paid between $752 and $1,401. That is 2% less than the national median ($1,082). Most insured homes here are rated in zone AE (53%).

$0$752 · $1,058 · $1,401$1,751
+10.6% vs Aug 31, 2025 (median $957)
22,185home policies in force
$1,243average cost (mean)
69%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: see FEMA declarations and IRS tax relief in Washington, county by county.

Cost by flood zone in Washington

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		$801$639–$1,120$967596 (3%)+0.9%
Zone AE
High risk		$1,107$818–$1,588$1,38411,838 (53%)+8.1%
Zone A
High risk		$1,176$886–$1,705$1,4941,271 (6%)+7.7%
Zone AO
High risk, shallow		$997$788–$1,342$1,1791,459 (7%)+7.9%
Zone AH
High risk, shallow		$1,350$899–$2,079$1,585222 (1%)+16.1%
Zone X
Moderate to low risk		$959$596–$1,233$9736,782 (31%)+4.8%
Zone D
Undetermined		$2,008$610–$3,388$2,33616 (0%)−5.3%

Not shown (fewer than 10 home policies): A99/AR. 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 Washington, by what they insure.

Type of buildingPoliciesMedianAverage
Single-family home19,969$1,056$1,235
2–4 unit building535$1,247$1,528
Manufactured (mobile) home1,196$1,247$1,518
Condo or apartment unit485$515$578
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.		915$2,400$2,868
Non-residential building or unit
Businesses, churches, farm buildings and other non-residential property.		3,072$2,030$2,731
26,172NFIP policies in force, any building
29,034insured units (condo association policies count every unit)
64%of home policies also cover contents
$100,000median contents coverage, when bought

One year on: Washington

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 force22,92822,185−3.2%
Median annual cost$957$1,058+10.6%
Average annual cost$1,145$1,243+8.6%
All policies in force (any building)26,90326,172−2.7%

Flood claims history

Since 1978, NFIP policyholders in Washington have filed 16,074 flood claims. 12,836 received a payment, for a total of $368.2 million (an average of $28,687 per paid claim). The year with the most claims was 1996 (1,917 claims). Amounts are in dollars of the time, not adjusted for inflation.

05001k1.5k2k1978: 31 claims, 23 paid, $83,051 in total1979: 179 claims, 123 paid, $674,260 in total1980: 487 claims, 418 paid, $5,733,939 in total19801981: 125 claims, 84 paid, $368,549 in total1982: 215 claims, 148 paid, $655,037 in total1983: 123 claims, 70 paid, $793,237 in total1984: 91 claims, 55 paid, $330,745 in total1986: 370 claims, 271 paid, $3,874,136 in total1987: 31 claims, 15 paid, $293,146 in total1989: 79 claims, 56 paid, $480,015 in total1990: 1,610 claims, 1,315 paid, $21,371,965 in total199019901991: 92 claims, 46 paid, $848,813 in total1992: 21 claims1993: 30 claims, 16 paid, $205,572 in total1994: 72 claims, 56 paid, $652,590 in total1995: 882 claims, 701 paid, $11,032,782 in total1996: 1,917 claims, 1,597 paid, $36,946,482 in total19961997: 409 claims, 308 paid, $4,183,891 in total1998: 143 claims, 83 paid, $1,193,671 in total1999: 195 claims, 130 paid, $2,136,516 in total2000: 28 claims, 17 paid, $263,029 in total20002001: 75 claims, 49 paid, $900,176 in total2002: 45 claims, 24 paid, $167,391 in total2003: 425 claims, 336 paid, $6,683,240 in total2004: 49 claims, 35 paid, $619,911 in total2005: 35 claims, 20 paid, $358,251 in total2006: 1,356 claims, 1,197 paid, $32,568,543 in total2007: 1,062 claims, 949 paid, $52,693,942 in total2008: 125 claims, 86 paid, $1,107,253 in total2009: 1,758 claims, 1,527 paid, $46,647,971 in total20092010: 221 claims, 143 paid, $2,447,399 in total20102011: 159 claims, 91 paid, $1,367,963 in total2012: 174 claims, 117 paid, $3,305,982 in total2013: 59 claims, 37 paid, $376,725 in total2014: 109 claims, 61 paid, $3,838,549 in total2015: 662 claims, 544 paid, $12,221,663 in total2016: 148 claims, 96 paid, $2,358,806 in total2017: 112 claims, 68 paid, $1,152,786 in total2018: 70 claims, 40 paid, $1,005,497 in total2019: 57 claims, 39 paid, $1,058,457 in total2020: 255 claims, 193 paid, $6,546,727 in total20202021: 480 claims, 400 paid, $26,134,963 in total2022: 513 claims, 422 paid, $19,777,598 in total2023: 66 claims, 41 paid, $1,152,498 in total2024: 30 claims, 15 paid, $1,117,255 in total2025: 854 claims, 742 paid, $49,749,055 in total2026: 33 claims, 20 paid, $643,184 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 (47)

Swipe the table sideways to see all columns.

Year of lossClaimsPaid claimsTotal paidAverage per paid claim
20263320$643,184$32,159
2025854742$49,749,055$67,047
20243015$1,117,255$74,484
20236641$1,152,498$28,110
2022513422$19,777,598$46,866
2021480400$26,134,963$65,337
2020255193$6,546,727$33,921
20195739$1,058,457$27,140
20187040$1,005,497$25,137
201711268$1,152,786$16,953
201614896$2,358,806$24,571
2015662544$12,221,663$22,466
201410961$3,838,549$62,927
20135937$376,725$10,182
2012174117$3,305,982$28,256
201115991$1,367,963$15,033
2010221143$2,447,399$17,115
20091,7581,527$46,647,971$30,549
200812586$1,107,253$12,875
20071,062949$52,693,942$55,526
20061,3561,197$32,568,543$27,208
20053520$358,251$17,913
20044935$619,911$17,712
2003425336$6,683,240$19,891
20024524$167,391$6,975
20017549$900,176$18,371
20002817$263,029$15,472
1999195130$2,136,516$16,435
199814383$1,193,671$14,382
1997409308$4,183,891$13,584
19961,9171,597$36,946,482$23,135
1995882701$11,032,782$15,739
19947256$652,590$11,653
19933016$205,572$12,848
199221<10––
19919246$848,813$18,452
19901,6101,315$21,371,965$16,252
19897956$480,015$8,572
19873115$293,146$19,543
1986370271$3,874,136$14,296
19849155$330,745$6,014
198312370$793,237$11,332
1982215148$655,037$4,426
198112584$368,549$4,387
1980487418$5,733,939$13,718
1979179123$674,260$5,482
19783123$83,051$3,611

From 2016 to 2026: 2,618 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.

Counties in Washington

Counties with at least 100 NFIP home policies in force have their own page.

Other counties (fewer policies, no separate page)
CountyHome policiesMedian
Asotin County12$992
Columbia County40$1,369
Douglas County27$1,664
Ferry County16$1,638
Franklin County15$1,408
Garfield County13$1,336
Klickitat County29$1,427
Lincoln County32$1,414
Pend Oreille County88$1,490
San Juan County95$1,281
Skamania County24$1,238
Stevens County56$1,258
Whitman County36$1,188

ZIP codes with the most insured homes