Natural disaster risk in Illinois, by county
All 102 counties in Illinois, ranked by FEMA's National Risk Index composite risk score, with each one's highest-rated hazard. Other states
At a glance
1
Very high risk
5
Relatively high risk
14
Relatively moderate risk
45
Relatively low risk
37
Very low risk
Highest overall risk: Cook County (very high, score 100.0). Lowest: Scott County (very low, score 2.8).
Top hazards in Illinois
| Hazard | Counties rated relatively high or very high | Average score |
|---|---|---|
| Strong wind | 33 of 102 | 67.3 |
| Cold wave | 26 of 102 | 67.2 |
| Winter weather | 15 of 102 | 50.8 |
| Tornado | 14 of 102 | 59.5 |
| Lightning | 12 of 102 | 44.3 |
All counties, highest risk first
| # | County | Overall risk | Highest-rated hazard |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Cook County | Very high 100 | Cold wave (very high) |
| 2 | DuPage County | Relatively high 97.6 | Cold wave (very high) |
| 3 | Will County | Relatively high 97.3 | Cold wave (very high) |
| 4 | Lake County | Relatively high 96 | Cold wave (very high) |
| 5 | St. Clair County | Relatively high 94.9 | Heat wave (relatively high) |
| 6 | Kane County | Relatively high 94.6 | Cold wave (very high) |
| 7 | Madison County | Relatively moderate 93.4 | Heat wave (relatively high) |
| 8 | Winnebago County | Relatively moderate 92.4 | Cold wave (relatively high) |
| 9 | Sangamon County | Relatively moderate 91.7 | Tornado (relatively high) |
| 10 | McHenry County | Relatively moderate 90.8 | Cold wave (relatively high) |
| 11 | Peoria County | Relatively moderate 90.7 | Cold wave (relatively high) |
| 12 | Champaign County | Relatively moderate 90.5 | Cold wave (relatively high) |
| 13 | Kankakee County | Relatively moderate 88.2 | Cold wave (relatively high) |
| 14 | Jackson County | Relatively moderate 87.1 | Strong wind (very high) |
| 15 | McLean County | Relatively moderate 86.9 | Cold wave (relatively high) |
| 16 | LaSalle County | Relatively moderate 86.1 | Cold wave (relatively high) |
| 17 | Williamson County | Relatively moderate 85.8 | Strong wind (very high) |
| 18 | Tazewell County | Relatively moderate 84.2 | Cold wave (relatively high) |
| 19 | Rock Island County | Relatively moderate 84.1 | Cold wave (relatively high) |
| 20 | Macon County | Relatively moderate 83.3 | Cold wave (relatively high) |
| 21 | Franklin County | Relatively low 80.9 | Cold wave (relatively high) |
| 22 | DeKalb County | Relatively low 80.8 | Cold wave (relatively high) |
| 23 | Kendall County | Relatively low 80.2 | Cold wave (relatively high) |
| 24 | Macoupin County | Relatively low 79.9 | Strong wind (relatively high) |
| 25 | Vermilion County | Relatively low 78.8 | Cold wave (relatively high) |
| 26 | Randolph County | Relatively low 78.6 | Strong wind (relatively high) |
| 27 | Jefferson County | Relatively low 77.2 | Strong wind (relatively high) |
| 28 | Marion County | Relatively low 77.1 | Strong wind (relatively high) |
| 29 | Iroquois County | Relatively low 74 | Cold wave (relatively high) |
| 30 | Stephenson County | Relatively low 73.9 | Strong wind (relatively high) |
| 31 | Perry County | Relatively low 72.1 | Earthquake (relatively moderate) |
| 32 | Livingston County | Relatively low 71.8 | Cold wave (relatively moderate) |
| 33 | Morgan County | Relatively low 71.1 | Cold wave (relatively high) |
| 34 | Ogle County | Relatively low 71.1 | Hail (relatively moderate) |
| 35 | Coles County | Relatively low 70.4 | Drought (relatively moderate) |
| 36 | Saline County | Relatively low 70.1 | Strong wind (relatively high) |
| 37 | Grundy County | Relatively low 66.5 | Cold wave (relatively high) |
| 38 | Whiteside County | Relatively low 65.8 | Strong wind (relatively high) |
| 39 | Clinton County | Relatively low 65.6 | Strong wind (relatively high) |
| 40 | Montgomery County | Relatively low 65.4 | Strong wind (relatively high) |
| 41 | Adams County | Relatively low 64.2 | Strong wind (relatively high) |
| 42 | Bureau County | Relatively low 62.3 | Drought (relatively high) |
| 43 | Douglas County | Relatively low 62.1 | Hail (relatively high) |
| 44 | Massac County | Relatively low 61.6 | Earthquake (relatively moderate) |
| 45 | Fulton County | Relatively low 59 | Hail (relatively moderate) |
| 46 | Logan County | Relatively low 58.1 | Drought (relatively high) |
| 47 | Boone County | Relatively low 57.3 | Hail (relatively moderate) |
| 48 | Knox County | Relatively low 57.2 | Strong wind (relatively high) |
| 49 | Henry County | Relatively low 57.1 | Strong wind (relatively high) |
| 50 | Union County | Relatively low 55.4 | Strong wind (relatively high) |
| 51 | Washington County | Relatively low 55.2 | Earthquake (relatively moderate) |
| 52 | Lee County | Relatively low 54.4 | Strong wind (relatively high) |
| 53 | White County | Relatively low 54.3 | Earthquake (relatively moderate) |
| 54 | Christian County | Relatively low 54 | Drought (relatively high) |
| 55 | Effingham County | Relatively low 53.8 | Drought (relatively moderate) |
| 56 | Shelby County | Relatively low 51.7 | Drought (relatively high) |
| 57 | Jo Daviess County | Relatively low 51.3 | Landslide (relatively moderate) |
| 58 | Johnson County | Relatively low 51.1 | Earthquake (relatively moderate) |
| 59 | Lawrence County | Relatively low 49.2 | Drought (relatively moderate) |
| 60 | Pulaski County | Relatively low 49 | Earthquake (relatively moderate) |
| 61 | Fayette County | Relatively low 48.8 | Drought (relatively moderate) |
| 62 | Richland County | Relatively low 46.7 | Drought (relatively moderate) |
| 63 | Moultrie County | Relatively low 45 | Drought (relatively moderate) |
| 64 | Alexander County | Relatively low 44.1 | Earthquake (relatively moderate) |
| 65 | Mason County | Relatively low 43 | Drought (relatively moderate) |
| 66 | Monroe County | Very low 41.9 | Heat wave (relatively moderate) |
| 67 | Clay County | Very low 41.1 | Drought (relatively moderate) |
| 68 | Wayne County | Very low 40.7 | Heat wave (relatively moderate) |
| 69 | Woodford County | Very low 39.9 | Cold wave (relatively moderate) |
| 70 | Carroll County | Very low 39 | Drought (relatively moderate) |
| 71 | Cass County | Very low 38.6 | Cold wave (relatively moderate) |
| 72 | McDonough County | Very low 37.5 | Drought (relatively moderate) |
| 73 | Crawford County | Very low 37 | Drought (relatively moderate) |
| 74 | Bond County | Very low 36.2 | Earthquake (relatively low) |
| 75 | Piatt County | Very low 35 | Drought (relatively moderate) |
| 76 | Edgar County | Very low 34.9 | Drought (relatively moderate) |
| 77 | Gallatin County | Very low 33.9 | Drought (relatively moderate) |
| 78 | Hancock County | Very low 31.1 | Drought (relatively moderate) |
| 79 | Hamilton County | Very low 30.8 | Earthquake (relatively moderate) |
| 80 | Pike County | Very low 30.3 | Drought (relatively moderate) |
| 81 | De Witt County | Very low 29.3 | Drought (relatively moderate) |
| 82 | Menard County | Very low 28.7 | Drought (relatively moderate) |
| 83 | Clark County | Very low 27.3 | Drought (relatively moderate) |
| 84 | Marshall County | Very low 27.2 | Drought (relatively moderate) |
| 85 | Ford County | Very low 26.2 | Cold wave (relatively moderate) |
| 86 | Edwards County | Very low 26.1 | Drought (relatively high) |
| 87 | Cumberland County | Very low 25.9 | Drought (relatively moderate) |
| 88 | Wabash County | Very low 24.8 | Drought (relatively moderate) |
| 89 | Jasper County | Very low 20.4 | Drought (relatively moderate) |
| 90 | Jersey County | Very low 18.9 | Heat wave (relatively moderate) |
| 91 | Henderson County | Very low 17.5 | Drought (relatively moderate) |
| 92 | Warren County | Very low 15.5 | Drought (relatively moderate) |
| 93 | Pope County | Very low 14.9 | Earthquake (relatively low) |
| 94 | Greene County | Very low 13 | Drought (relatively moderate) |
| 95 | Schuyler County | Very low 11.4 | Strong wind (relatively moderate) |
| 96 | Putnam County | Very low 9.2 | Drought (relatively low) |
| 97 | Mercer County | Very low 8.8 | Drought (relatively moderate) |
| 98 | Hardin County | Very low 8.3 | Earthquake (relatively low) |
| 99 | Stark County | Very low 7.3 | Drought (relatively moderate) |
| 100 | Calhoun County | Very low 6.1 | Landslide (relatively low) |
| 101 | Brown County | Very low 4.7 | Landslide (relatively low) |
| 102 | Scott County | Very low 2.8 | Drought (relatively moderate) |
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
Which county in Illinois has the highest natural disaster risk?
Cook County has the highest composite risk score in Illinois in FEMA's National Risk Index: 100.0, rated very high.
Which county in Illinois has the lowest natural disaster risk?
Scott County has the lowest composite risk score in Illinois: 2.8, rated very low. A low score means lower modelled risk compared with other US counties, not no risk.
What natural disasters is Illinois most at risk from?
Across Illinois, the hazards rated highest in the most counties are strong wind, cold wave, winter weather, according to FEMA's National Risk Index. Each county page lists all 18 hazards.
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