Flood insurance in Montana: cost by ZIP code and county
Montana is one of the smallest flood insurance markets: 2,798 single-family policies on July 31, 2026, with a median bill of $1,009.
Median single-family flood bill, Montana
$1,009
2,798 policies in force on July 31, 2026, premium and fees included.
| Median full-risk price, same policies | $1,091 |
| Policies still below their full-risk price | 44 % |
| Median paid in August 2023 | $836 |
| Increase left from the median | 1 renewal at 18 % |
| Next five bills, added up | $5,455 |
| Median claim paid, 2016 to 2025 (200 claims) | $10,302 |
Compiled by Radif Partners · Where the numbers come from · 87 ZIP codes and 38 counties of Montana in FEMA's tables · not a quote
The median single-family flood policy in Montana cost $1,009 a year on July 31, 2026, with the Reserve Fund Assessment, the HFIAA surcharge and the Federal Policy Fee included, a little under the national $1,081. With only 2,798 policies statewide, county figures rest on a few hundred homes and can move with each renewal cycle, so they are best read as orders of magnitude. Two things stand out. First, the zone order is reversed: policies rated in X zones had a higher median bill, $1,152, than those in high-risk A zones, $939. The state totals do not say why; with so few policies, the mix of houses in each zone can tilt a median. Second, one flood shapes the claims record. Yellowstone Flooding in 2022 paid 75 of the state's 200 paid single-family claims from 2016 to 2025. The full-risk median is $1,091, and 44 % of policies still pay below it.
Miles City has the most policies
The largest pool of insured homes in Montana is in Custer County, around Miles City, where the USGS gauges both the Tongue River and the Yellowstone. Its 683 single-family policies had a median bill of $667 on July 31, 2026, among the lowest of any county in the data, and a full-risk median of $699. With 24 % of the state's policies, those homes pull the statewide medians down.
Montana median bill by zone type
Median yearly cost, X, B and C zones, Montana
$1,152
| Same zone type, whole country | $958 |
| A zones in Montana | $939 |
Flathead, Cascade and Gallatin
Flathead County, around Kalispell, had a median of $1,307 and a full-risk median of $2,180; Cascade County, at Great Falls on the Missouri, $1,311 against $2,268. In both, more than half of the policies are still capped, so their owners face yearly increases of up to 18 % for a primary home. Gallatin County, around Bozeman, is the opposite case, with a median of $809 close to its full-risk median and only 22 % of policies capped.
June 2022 on the Yellowstone
The National Weather Service in Billings records 0.8 to over 5 inches of rain and 2 to 5 inches of snowmelt from June 10 to 13, 2022, with record crests on the Yellowstone River at Billings and the Stillwater River near Absarokee. The federal program paid 75 single-family claims for $5,847,996. Park County, which includes Gardiner and Livingston, recorded 30 paid claims over the decade at a median of $37,552; Yellowstone County, at Billings, had 32. Stillwater County, west of Yellowstone County, has the widest current to full-risk gap in FEMA's 2023 table: $1,121 against $4,334, though on only 58 policies.
Claims inside A zones were much larger than outside: a median of $20,385 against $6,319 for X zones. Small totals like these swing with one event, which is why the average claim guide also gives the national figures.
The thin market has a practical side. FEMA's 2023 table lists policies in only 87 Montana ZIP codes, so many Montana ZIP codes have no figure of their own and the county median is the nearest guide. For a single house, the elevation certificate and the quote from a licensed agent say far more than any median.
The Montana counties with the most policies
| County | Policies | Median bill | Full-risk median | Still below full risk | Renewals left at 18 % | Median bill, August 2023 | Median claim 2016-2025 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Custer County | 683 | $667 | $699 | 41 % | 1 | $645 | n/a |
| Flathead County | 295 | $1,307 | $2,180 | 56 % | 4 | $943 | n/a |
| Gallatin County | 252 | $809 | $813 | 22 % | 1 | $768 | n/a |
| Cascade County | 221 | $1,311 | $2,268 | 62 % | 4 | $881 | $17,162 |
| Yellowstone County | 216 | $1,143 | $1,243 | 44 % | 1 | $885 | $9,982 |
| Missoula County | 201 | $922 | $960 | 43 % | 1 | $781 | $6,730 |
| Lewis and Clark County | 148 | $1,024 | $1,131 | 40 % | 1 | $881 | $5,409 |
| Park County | 93 | $1,526 | $2,865 | 50 % | 4 | $1,251 | $37,552 |
Full-risk prices of Montana homes, band by band
| Full risk-based price a year | Policies | Share | Median rebuild value |
|---|---|---|---|
| $0 to $1,000 | 1,439 | 44.6 % | $324,708 |
| $1,000 to $2,000 | 918 | 28.5 % | $384,518 |
| $2,000 to $3,000 | 349 | 10.8 % | $380,784 |
| $3,000 to $4,000 | 184 | 5.7 % | $412,326 |
| $4,000 to $5,000 | 132 | 4.1 % | $430,122 |
| $5,000 or more | 202 | 6.3 % |
The floods that paid the most Montana claims since 2016
| Event (FEMA name) | Year | Paid claims | Paid in total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Yellowstone Flooding | 2022 | 75 | $5,847,996 |