Flood insurance in Nebraska: cost by ZIP code and county
On July 31, 2026, 5,389 Nebraska homes had a federal single-family flood policy, at a median of $942 a year.
Median single-family flood bill, Nebraska
$942
5,389 policies in force on July 31, 2026, premium and fees included.
| Median full-risk price, same policies | $991 |
| Policies still below their full-risk price | 35 % |
| Median paid in August 2023 | $795 |
| Increase left from the median | 1 renewal at 18 % |
| Next five bills, added up | $4,955 |
| Median claim paid, 2016 to 2025 (1,033 claims) | $19,764 |
Compiled by Radif Partners · Where the numbers come from · 131 ZIP codes and 52 counties of Nebraska in FEMA's tables · not a quote
Nebraska flood insurance is cheaper than the national norm: the 5,389 single-family policies in force on July 31, 2026 had a median yearly bill of $942, against $1,081 nationwide, and that figure already counts the Reserve Fund Assessment, the HFIAA surcharge and the Federal Policy Fee on top of the premium. Most of those homes are close to full price: the median full-risk bill is $991, and only 35 % of policies remain below their full-risk premium. The state's claims file is dominated by one event. The March 2019 Midwest Flooding produced 848 paid single-family claims and $38,043,424, about 82 % of every single-family claim the program paid in Nebraska from 2016 to 2025. Sarpy County, south of Omaha, had the costliest claims, with a median of $62,870. Cass County is the main exception to the low prices, at $1,228.
One flood in the record
In the 2019 flooding, declared by FEMA as disaster 4420 (severe winter storm, straight-line winds and flooding, from March 9), the federal program paid 848 claims on insured single-family houses. No other event in the ten-year file comes close; it is the only one large enough to be listed for the state. Across the whole period the median paid claim in Nebraska was $19,764, against $42,494 for the country. In Sarpy County the median claim reached $62,870, and in Cass County $37,355, for counties whose median bill is close to a thousand dollars.
A Nebraska median claim measured in years of bills
Median single-family claim paid in Nebraska, 2016 to 2025
$19,764
| Years of the bill entered that one median claim equals | 18 |
| Median claim, whole country | $42,494 |
| Average claim, whole country | $70,978 |
The river counties around Omaha
The USGS gauges the Missouri River at Omaha and the Platte near Fremont. Douglas County (Omaha) holds 814 policies at a median of $880. Dodge County, around Fremont, has nearly as many, 686, and the most paid claims among the large counties over the period, 279. Lancaster County, home of Lincoln, is the cheapest of the large counties at $727, and its policies are almost all at full price.
Cass County, on the Platte and Missouri rivers, is different: $1,228 paid at the median, $1,565 at full risk, with 51 % of policies still capped. Renewals there will keep stepping up, by up to 18 % a year on a main home's premium.
High-risk zones that are not expensive
About 80 % of Nebraska policies sit in A zones (4,294 of 5,389), where a federally backed mortgage requires coverage. Yet the A-zone median, $919, is below the X-zone median of $1,062. FEMA's 2023 price bands point the same way: 52 % of the state's single-family policies had a full-risk price under $1,000, a larger share than in most states. For a buyer in a mapped zone, the guide to buying in a flood zone covers what the lender will ask for. A low price is not a low risk: the bill measures modeled cost per year, and the median Nebraska claim equals many years of the median bill. Upstream, South Dakota shares the Missouri River.
The Nebraska 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Douglas County | 814 | $880 | $903 | 25 % | 1 | $774 | $16,976 |
| Dodge County | 686 | $982 | $1,023 | 28 % | 1 | $848 | $16,867 |
| Lancaster County | 676 | $727 | $737 | 20 % | 1 | $684 | n/a |
| Sarpy County | 549 | $1,016 | $1,094 | 35 % | 1 | $804 | $62,870 |
| Cass County | 402 | $1,228 | $1,565 | 51 % | 2 | $885 | $37,355 |
| Saunders County | 372 | $849 | $936 | 46 % | 1 | $815 | $31,477 |
| Colfax County | 251 | $1,088 | $1,258 | 58 % | 1 | $838 | $5,824 |
| Platte County | 111 | $1,205 | $1,639 | 60 % | 2 | $780 | $20,344 |
Full-risk prices of Nebraska homes, band by band
| Full risk-based price a year | Policies | Share | Median rebuild value |
|---|---|---|---|
| $0 to $1,000 | 3,024 | 52.3 % | $275,952 |
| $1,000 to $2,000 | 1,857 | 32.1 % | $346,475 |
| $2,000 to $3,000 | 451 | 7.8 % | $369,184 |
| $3,000 to $4,000 | 169 | 2.9 % | $359,054 |
| $4,000 to $5,000 | 113 | 2.0 % | $378,890 |
| $5,000 or more | 173 | 3.0 % |
The floods that paid the most Nebraska claims since 2016
| Event (FEMA name) | Year | Paid claims | Paid in total |
|---|---|---|---|
| March 2019 Midwest Flooding | 2019 | 848 | $38,043,424 |