Guides / Flood zone lookup

Flood zone lookup

Enter a ZIP code to see how FEMA flood zones split that ZIP, using the same National Flood Hazard Layer overlap a Consilium Compare report uses. The result is free. It is not a determination for a house.

How flood zones work

FEMA maps flood hazard for the National Flood Insurance Program. High-risk zones, the Special Flood Hazard Area, generally start with the letters A or V. Zone X is moderate or minimal mapped risk. The letters, and whether a federally backed mortgage requires insurance, are in FEMA flood zones explained.

A ZIP overlap is the share of the ZIP's land area, not the share of a neighborhood you have already chosen and not a parcel. Two houses on the same street can sit in different zones when the boundary runs between them.

Is my house in a flood zone?

Open the FEMA Flood Map Service Center and enter the address. If you need the building's height relative to the base flood, ask about an elevation certificate. Ask the seller what disclosures they have, and ask the lender for the official flood determination before you rely on a zone letter. This lookup cannot replace those steps.

What the result is showing

Each row is a FEMA zone letter and the share of the ZIP's mapped land in that zone. High-risk letters are the ones that start with A or V. The sentence at the top adds those high-risk shares together. A ZIP that is almost all Zone X can still contain a small Zone AE along a wash or a river. That is why the address map comes next, and why a lender's flood determination, not this page, is the official answer for a mortgage.

Why the ZIP still helps

When you are comparing two areas, the ZIP share shows whether high-risk mapped land is a large part of one ZIP and a small part of the other. That is a reason to look harder at addresses in the high-risk share. It is not a reason to label either ZIP. A full side-by-side report adds the other public layers. Read the sample report or compare two ZIPs.

FAQ

How do I find my flood zone by address?

Use FEMA's Flood Map Service Center and enter the street address. This page shows how zones split a ZIP. It does not determine a parcel.

Is my house in a flood zone if the ZIP has some high-risk area?

Not necessarily. A ZIP can be mostly Zone X and still contain a block of Zone AE. Only the address-level map, and your lender's determination, answer the house.

What flood zone requires insurance?

Zones that start with A or V are Special Flood Hazard Areas. A federally backed or federally regulated mortgage on a building in those zones generally requires flood insurance. Other zones are not under that federal rule, though a lender can still require a policy.