Natural disaster risk by county

How exposed is your county to floods, tornadoes, hurricanes, wildfire, earthquakes and other natural hazards — 18 in all? FEMA's National Risk Index rates every US county — 3,232 of them — on its overall risk, its expected yearly losses, its social vulnerability and its community resilience. Pick a state, then a county.

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Counties with the highest natural hazard risk

Ranked by FEMA's composite risk score. The score is a national percentile: 99 means a higher modelled risk than 99% of US counties. High scores come from many people and buildings exposed to several hazards at once.

#	County	Overall risk
1	Los Angeles County California	Very high 100
2	Cook County Illinois	Very high 100
3	Maricopa County Arizona	Very high 99.9
4	Riverside County California	Very high 99.9
5	Harris County Texas	Very high 99.9
6	Alameda County California	Very high 99.8
7	Orange County California	Very high 99.8
8	San Bernardino County California	Very high 99.8
9	San Diego County California	Very high 99.7
10	Santa Clara County California	Very high 99.7
11	Dallas County Texas	Very high 99.7
12	King County Washington	Very high 99.7
13	Miami-Dade County Florida	Very high 99.6
14	Clark County Nevada	Very high 99.6
15	Philadelphia County Pennsylvania	Very high 99.6
16	Contra Costa County California	Very high 99.5
17	San Francisco County California	Very high 99.5
18	Broward County Florida	Relatively high 99.5
19	Ventura County California	Relatively high 99.4
20	Shelby County Tennessee	Relatively high 99.4
21	Bexar County Texas	Relatively high 99.4
22	Fresno County California	Relatively high 99.3
23	St. Louis County Missouri	Relatively high 99.3
24	Kings County New York	Relatively high 99.3
25	San Mateo County California	Relatively high 99.2

Counties with the lowest natural hazard risk

The safest places from natural disasters, by this measure — lower modelled risk compared with other counties, not no risk. Every county faces some hazards.

#	County	Overall risk
1	Loving County Texas	Very low 0
2	Wrangell City and Borough Alaska	Very low 0.1
3	Kalawao County Hawaii	Very low 0.1
4	McPherson County Nebraska	Very low 0.1
5	Grant County Nebraska	Very low 0.2
6	Logan County Nebraska	Very low 0.2
7	Thomas County Nebraska	Very low 0.2
8	Arthur County Nebraska	Very low 0.3
9	Hooker County Nebraska	Very low 0.3
10	Loup County Nebraska	Very low 0.3
11	King County Texas	Very low 0.3
12	Blaine County Nebraska	Very low 0.4
13	Harding County New Mexico	Very low 0.4
14	Terrell County Texas	Very low 0.4
15	Skagway Municipality Alaska	Very low 0.5
16	Echols County Georgia	Very low 0.5
17	Treasure County Montana	Very low 0.5
18	Schley County Georgia	Very low 0.6
19	Slope County North Dakota	Very low 0.6
20	McMullen County Texas	Very low 0.6
21	Taliaferro County Georgia	Very low 0.7
22	Keweenaw County Michigan	Very low 0.7
23	Rock County Nebraska	Very low 0.7
24	Clark County Idaho	Very low 0.8
25	Banner County Nebraska	Very low 0.8

How to read these ratings

Ratings run in five steps: very low, relatively low, relatively moderate, relatively high and very high. They compare a county with every other US county; they are not a measure of danger on their own.
Scores run from 0 to 100 and are national percentiles. The bar shows the score: a score of 80 means a higher value than 80% of US counties.
Overall risk combines the expected annual loss with social vulnerability and community resilience.
Expected annual loss is the average yearly loss to buildings, people and agriculture the model expects from all 18 hazards.
Social vulnerability describes how hard it may be for people to prepare for and recover from a disaster. Higher is worse.
Community resilience describes a community's ability to prepare, adapt and recover. Higher is better.
"Not applicable" means FEMA does not model that hazard there (for example, hurricanes far inland).

About this data

Source: FEMA National Risk Index, version 1.20, released December 2025, published by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (US public domain). About the National Risk Index. The index is a model of relative risk built from historical hazard records, what is exposed and community factors. It is not a forecast, it does not describe any single property, and it is not insurance or financial advice. For decisions about a specific address, check FEMA's flood maps and your local emergency management office.

Questions

What is the natural disaster risk for my county?

Choose your state and then your county above. Each county page shows FEMA's overall risk rating, the expected annual loss, social vulnerability, community resilience, and a rating for each of 18 hazards, from flooding and tornadoes to wildfire and earthquakes.

Which US counties are most prone to natural disasters?

In FEMA's National Risk Index the highest composite risk scores belong to Los Angeles County, California; Cook County, Illinois; Maricopa County, Arizona. Composite risk is high where many people and buildings are exposed to several hazards at once. The ranking on this page lists the top 25.

Where are the safest places from natural disasters in the US?

No county is free of hazards. The lowest composite risk scores in the National Risk Index belong to Loving County, Texas; Wrangell City and Borough, Alaska; Kalawao County, Hawaii. A low score means lower modelled risk relative to other counties, not that disasters cannot happen there.

Is this a forecast or insurance advice?

No. The National Risk Index is a model of relative risk built from historical hazard data, exposure and community factors. It does not predict events, does not describe any single property, and is not insurance or financial advice. Check your local emergency management office and FEMA flood maps for decisions about a specific place.

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