Best flood insurance companies in 2024

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The best flood insurance for your needs depends on factors like your budget and where your home is located. Flood insurance is required for some homeowners and optional for others, but most people can compare several options.

Most flood insurance policies are sold directly through the NFIP; these policies can also be purchased through home insurance companies that participate in the Write-Your-Own (WYO) program, and there are also private flood insurance options.

To help you choose the right carrier, our editors have identified some of the best flood insurance companies in 2024, whether you want to buy from a private flood insurance policy or through a company that sells NFIP policies.

Key Takeaways

Because floods are not covered by homeowners insurance, adding flood insurance is important for many homeowners in the U.S.
Flood insurance can be purchased through insurers selling federally backed policies or those with their own flood insurance programs.
Determining the best flood insurance companies depends on what you’re looking for; private flood insurance companies have higher coverage limits than federal flood insurance policies, for example.

How to choose the best flood insurance company

Standard homeowners insurance policies exclude coverage for floods, and the only way to get coverage is through a flood insurance policy.

Flood insurance can be obtained in one of three ways:

Buying a policy from the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) directly through an insurance agent or company.
Buying a policy from an insurance company that participates in the NFIP’s Write-Your-Own (WYO) program – with a WYO policy, you’re effectively buying an NFIP policy that’s serviced by a private insurance company.
Buying a policy directly from a private flood insurance company much like you would buy home or auto insurance from a private insurance company.

Our expert editorial team chose the companies below based on a careful review of the coverage options and rates, where available, and included both private and NFIP options.

Best private flood insurance carriers

Determining the best private flood insurance carriers depends on what you’re looking for, such as your budget and location. But to give you some direction, our editorial team analyzed several factors at different insurers, including coverage options, waiting periods, geographic availability and rates, where available.

From there, we chose the best residential private flood insurance companies across several categories. Note that because rates are not available for every company, only companies that we have rates for were considered for the “cheapest overall” category.

Neptune: Best overall

Availability: National

Waiting period: 10 days (with exceptions)

Neptune was selected as the overall best private flood insurance company in 2024 due to its numerous positive attributes, including nationwide availability, high coverage limits, breadth of coverage options and a 10-day waiting period (with no waiting period on real estate closings or rollovers from other flood policies).

Neptune offers flood insurance policies with the following coverage limits:

Type of coverage	Maximum limit
Dwelling	$4 million
Personal property	$500,000
Temporary living expenses	$20,000
Basement contents	$10,000
Unattached structures	$100,000
Pool repair and refill	$20,000
Loss of rents	$20,000

Palomar: Cheapest overall

Availability: 30 states

Waiting period: None

Among the companies from which we could obtain rates, Palomar was the cheapest overall private flood insurance company. With an average annual premium of $390, Palomar’s flood insurance rates also fall well below the estimated average for NFIP policies, which is approximately $700 per year.

Palomar provides coverage in 30 states. It also has no waiting periods.

In terms of coverage limits, Palomar offers flood insurance policies with the following:

Type of coverage	Maximum limit
Dwelling	$5 million
Contents	$1 million
Loss of use	$50,000

Kin Insurance: Best for Florida

Availability: Florida only

Waiting period: None

Florida may be called the Sunshine State, but it’s prone to significant storms like hurricanes. That, combined with its low elevation, makes Florida one of the riskiest states for flooding, even in inland areas.

Meanwhile, the residential insurance market in Florida is going through some struggles as costs and risks change, but Kin stands out as a stalwart in this state. Kin offers flood insurance as an endorsement to home insurance policies, making it easy for Florida homeowners to get more protection from one provider.

As an endorsement, Kin flood coverage is paid as part of one premium that includes homeowners insurance. That also means that Kin’s flood coverage limits are based on the homeowners insurance policy limits, which are as follows:

Type of coverage	Maximum limit
Dwelling	Home’s full replacement cost
Personal property	50% of dwelling limit
Other structures	10% of dwelling limit

Another advantage of Kin is that there’s no waiting period for flood coverage. Plus, Kin claims that its rates for Zone X (moderate-to-low risk) start at $175 per year vs. an average NFIP premium of $427 for Zone X. Note that higher-risk areas correlate with higher rates.

Wright Flood: Best for comparing your options

Availability: Depends on product

Waiting period: Depends on product

If you want to keep your options open when working with a flood insurance company, then Wright Flood is the best choice. That’s because Wright offers three different options for buying flood insurance:

Wright sells NFIP policies through more than 17,000 independent insurance agencies and says it serves more policyholders than any other WYO insurer.
Wright also sells excess flood insurance to provide coverage above NFIP limits. While NFIP policies max out at $250,000 in residential building coverage, Wright’s excess flood insurance provides coverage up to the full replacement cost of a building
If you want to go the private route, Wright also has its own private flood insurance program called ResiFlood. This private flood insurance provides dwelling coverage up to $1 million and contents coverage up to $250,000, without any waiting period.

Chubb: Best for high coverage limits

Availability: Nationwide (some exceptions)

Waiting period: None

If you have an expensive home and/or valuable possessions, you might prefer to go with Chubb for more protection. Chubb covers the home and its contents at their replacement cost, up to $15 million, which is around 43 times more than the NFIP’s limits of $250,000 for buildings and $100,000 for contents.

Chubb also offers several other protections, such as up to $5,000 in flood prevention. Plus, Chubb provides higher limits than many carriers in areas such as art, collectibles, jewelry and silverware and furs, with Chubb providing up to $5,000 in coverage for each of these categories. Here’s a look at some of Chubb’s more specialized coverages:

Type of coverage	Maximum limit
Dwelling/personal property	Home’s full replacement cost up to $15 million combined limit
Additional living expenses	$7,500
Basement	$30,000 structure/$15,000 contents
Debris removal	$250,000
Rebuilding to code	$30,000
Flood prevention	$5,000

Some limits vary based on the dwelling coverage and other factors, but overall, if you’re looking for higher limits across the board, then getting a quote from Chubb is a good idea.

Best flood insurance companies for NFIP policies

If you prefer to get an NFIP policy rather than private flood insurance coverage, there are some great options from carriers in the NFIP’s WYO program. Below are some of the most highly rated insurers based on customer service scores from Insure’s annual Best Insurance Companies survey and NAIC ratings.

Note that the companies listed below are not ranked but simply provide an overview of some of the best flood insurance companies for NFIP policies.

Company	Customer service rating	NAIC rating
Auto-Owners	3.9 stars	0.33
Allstate	4.2 stars	0.90
American Family	4.1 stars	0.37
Farmers	4.1 stars	0.54

A few other notable companies that offer flood insurance through WYO include:

PURE Insurance: 0.19 NAIC complaint ratio
Philadelphia Indemnity: 0.21 NAIC complaint ratio
Hartford Insurance Company: 0.38 NAIC complaint ratio
Liberty Mutual: 1.12 NAIC complaint ratio

NFIP flood insurance vs. private: Is private insurance better than NFIP?

Both NFIP flood insurance and private flood insurance have their pros and cons. One isn’t always better than the other – it depends on factors like where you live and what you’re comfortable with.

With NFIP policies, “a lot of people like the fact that it’s a federally backed insurance program. They feel more safe and secure with that,” says Denise Davis, agency owner at TWFG-Denise Davis Insurance.

Also, “historically it was the only option available, and there can be some high-risk areas that private flood doesn’t want to insure in, whereas NFIP will insure in most places,” she says.

However, NFIP policies can have some downsides. A major drawback is that NFIP policies have maximum limits of $250,000 for your home and $100,000 for personal property. Plus, you would receive actual cash value (ACV) for personal property, whereas you can find private flood insurance carriers that offer replacement cost coverage. ACV includes depreciation in the claim payout, so you likely won’t get enough to replace all of the items.

In contrast, private flood insurance carriers set their own limits; for example, Chubb covers up to $15 million at replacement cost for your home and possessions. Plus, private flood insurance carriers can offer a broader range of coverages that NFIP policies don’t include.

When deciding on flood insurance, “we ask customers what coverages are important to them, like replacement cost of contents, loss of use, and lower waiting periods, which are not available with NFIP,” says Davis.

In terms of cost, one isn’t necessarily cheaper than the other, as it depends on the situation. So, it’s important to compare quotes for both NFIP policies and private flood insurance policies.

“Definitely look in the market, ask your agent, and know that there’s more than one way to insure your property,” Davis says.

How much flood insurance do you need?

Your mortgage company may specify a minimum amount of flood coverage needed, but even if you do not face this requirement, it can be prudent to obtain flood insurance that protects the investment you’ve made in your home.

When figuring out how much flood coverage you need, Davis’s first recommendation “is to insure your home for its replacement cost,” she says.

That means that if your home’s replacement cost is more than the $250,000 NFIP limit, you either need excess flood insurance on top of an NFIP policy or a larger private flood insurance policy.

“Some people think they wouldn’t be likely to lose their entire house in a flood, so they don’t need to insure the full replacement cost; but a lot of flood insurance includes a co-insurance penalty, which means if you’re insuring your home for less than 80% of the replacement cost,” you can face penalties when making claims, explains Davis.

“That can vary between private flood policies, so customers would always want to ask and be aware of those penalties,” she says.

How to buy flood insurance

Buying flood insurance is similar to buying homeowners insurance, although coverage options aren’t as broad. Still, your current homeowners insurance provider may offer flood insurance policies, possibly through the NFIP’s WYO program.

Or, you might find that buying a separate policy from an insurer that sells NFIP policies or one that offers its own private flood insurance coverage works better for you, based on factors such as cost and coverage limits.

To start shopping for flood insurance, consider asking a homeowners insurance agent for help adding this coverage. You also might compare options online and get quotes from different private flood insurance companies.

Best flood insurance: The bottom line

Flood insurance is important for homeowners across the U.S., even if you don’t live in a designated high-risk area. Spending a few hundred dollars per year on insurance premiums can be more affordable than suffering hundreds of thousands of dollars in potential flood damage, which homeowners insurance excludes.

Finding the best flood insurance means comparing the options, including federally-backed NFIP policies and private coverage. Both have their pros and cons, so it’s helpful to compare costs and coverages, while also considering ratings and reviews of the best flood insurance companies.

What our expert says

Q: How do you find the best flood insurance?

Denise DavisAgency owner at TWFG-Denise Davis Insurance.

"Definitely look in the market, ask your agent, and know that there's more than one way to insure your property."

Methodology

Insure.com gathered coverage details on flood insurance policies from private flood insurance companies and then looked at NAIC rate data to calculate average rates, dividing direct written premiums by the number of policies in force at the end of the year for each carrier listed, where available. Note that some carriers’ average rates include rates for policy endorsements as well as standalone policies. We then analyzed each company’s offerings, waiting period and geographical availability and our editors made the final decision on the top companies for specific needs.

To compare NFIP Write-Your-Own insurance companies, we started with the list of companies provided by FEMA, and then looked at the companies that were ranked on our Best Home Insurance Companies 2024 rating, providing their score for customer service from that survey as well as their NAIC complaint ratio. Companies are presented in no particular order.

Jake Safane

Jake Safane is a freelance writer specializing in finance and sustainability. He has worked as a thought leadership editor at The Economist, and his writing has appeared in publications such as CBS MoneyWatch, Business Insider, and the Los Angeles Times.