25 costliest hurricanes of all time
GIORGIO VIERA/AFP via Getty Images
25 costliest hurricanes of all time
Image shows post-storm debris including toppled homes and boats
As hurricane season begins on June 1, predictions for the season have ranged from “very active” to “below average.”
Part of the uncertainty around what 2023 has in store comes from the question of when El Niño will develop. Currently expected in the summer if not earlier, El Niño’s environmental conditions include warmer Pacific waters, weaker trade winds, and heavier rain in the Southeast and Gulf Coast regions. While flooding may become more prominent, the Atlantic hurricane season is often less active during El Niño years.
2022’s Atlantic hurricane season, which lasted roughly from June 1 to Nov. 30, was quieter than meteorologists predicted, but it still contained one of the most damaging storms in history: Hurricane Ian.
In the immediate aftermath of Ian’s landfall, at least 2.5 million households in Florida lost power. Storm surges caused life-threatening floods throughout West and Central Florida. Roads, bridges, and homes were destroyed, and excessive rains caused inland rivers to break record flood levels. Ian continued to move up the Atlantic Coast before making landfall again, this time as a Category 1 storm in South Carolina.
Whether or not 2023 ends up having a high number of storms, a single hurricane can cause billions of dollars in damage, not to mention the physical and emotional toll it takes on those in its path.
Hurricane recovery plans include everything from the basic distribution of food and water supplies to the rebuilding of highways, energy grid improvements, and far-reaching infrastructure upgrades. Recovering after extensive hurricane damage can take years and can sometimes be sidetracked by additional storms.
Stacker dug into NOAA data to extrapolate the costliest hurricanes of all time. In this gallery, you’ll find the peak category of the storm, the year it occurred, and how much damage it caused. Tropical storms, defined as cyclones with winds less than 74 mph, are not included in the analysis. The data includes hurricanes that impacted Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands, and the costs listed are in current U.S. dollars, which have been adjusted for inflation. This data also addresses the cost of these hurricanes to the U.S. (and its territories), not to other countries or regions. More information on the methodology can be found at the National Hurricane Center.
Read on for the costliest hurricanes of all time.
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DOUG COLLIER // Getty Images
#25. Opal
– Estimated cost: $9.2 billion
– Category: 3
– Start date: October 4, 1995
– End date: October 6, 1995
– Deaths: 27
DOUG COLLIER/AFP via Getty Images
#24. Fran
– Estimated cost: $9.6 billion
– Category: 3
– Start date: September 5, 1996
– End date: September 8, 1996
– Deaths: 37
ROBERT SULLIVAN/AFP via Getty Images
#23. Georges
– Estimated cost: $11.0 billion
– Category: 2
– Start date: September 20, 1998
– End date: September 29, 1998
– Deaths: 16
Fema // Getty Images
#22. Floyd
– Estimated cost: $11.7 billion
– Category: 1
– Start date: September 14, 1999
– End date: September 16, 1999
– Deaths: 77
Jeffrey Greenberg // Getty Images
#21. Jeanne
– Estimated cost: $11.9 billion
– Category: 3
– Start date: September 15, 2004
– End date: September 29, 2004
– Deaths: 28
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Sean Rayford // Getty Images
#20. Matthew
– Estimated cost: $12.5 billion
– Category: 2
– Start date: October 8, 2016
– End date: October 12, 2016
– Deaths: 49
Education Images // Getty Images
#19. Frances
– Estimated cost: $15.6 billion
– Category: 2
– Start date: September 3, 2004
– End date: September 9, 2004
– Deaths: 48
Universal Images Group // Getty Images
#18. Irene
– Estimated cost: $17.9 billion
– Category: 2
– Start date: August 26, 2011
– End date: August 28, 2011
– Deaths: 45
philippe giraud/Sygma via Getty Images
#17. Hugo
– Estimated cost: $21.7 billion
– Category: 4
– Start date: September 21, 1989
– End date: September 22, 1989
– Deaths: 86
Jeffrey Greenberg // Getty Images
#16. Charley
– Estimated cost: $25.4 billion
– Category: 1
– Start date: August 13, 2004
– End date: August 14, 2004
– Deaths: 35
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ANDREW CABALLERO-REYNOLDS/AFP via Getty Images)
#15. Laura
– Estimated cost: $26.9 billion
– Category: 4
– Start date: August 27, 2020
– End date: August 28, 2020
– Deaths: 42
Brian Vander Brug // Getty Images
#14. Rita
– Estimated cost: $28.1 billion
– Category: 3
– Start date: September 20, 2005
– End date: September 24, 2005
– Deaths: 119
Sean Rayford// Getty Images
#13. Florence
– Estimated cost: $28.8 billion
– Category: 1
– Start date: September 13, 2018
– End date: September 16, 2018
– Deaths: 53
ANTONIO LEVY/AFP via Getty Images
#12. Wilma
– Estimated cost: $28.9 billion
– Category: 3
– Start date: October 24, 2005
– End date: October 24, 2005
– Deaths: 35
Scott Olson // Getty Images
#11. Michael
– Estimated cost: $29.7 billion
– Category: 5
– Start date: October 10, 2018
– End date: October 11, 2018
– Deaths: 49
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Joe Sohm/Visions of America // Getty Images
#10. Ivan
– Estimated cost: $32.6 billion
– Category: 3
– Start date: September 12, 2004
– End date: September 21, 2004
– Deaths: 57
Paul Flipse/US Air Force // Getty Images
#9. Ike
– Estimated cost: $41.4 billion
– Category: 2
– Start date: September 12, 2008
– End date: September 14, 2008
– Deaths: 112
Steve Starr // Getty Images
#8. Andrew
– Estimated cost: $57.8 billion
– Category: 5
– Start date: August 23, 1992
– End date: August 27, 1992
– Deaths: 61
Jeffrey Greenberg // Getty Images
#7. Irma
– Estimated cost: $61.0 billion
– Category: 4
– Start date: September 6, 2017
– End date: September 12, 2017
– Deaths: 97
Spencer Platt // Getty Images
#6. Ida
– Estimated cost: $80.9 billion
– Category: 4
– Start date: August 29, 2021
– End date: September 1, 2021
– Deaths: 96
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#5. Sandy
– Estimated cost: $84.6 billion
– Category: 1
– Start date: October 30, 2012
– End date: October 31, 2012
– Deaths: 159
The Washington Post // Getty Images
#4. Maria
– Estimated cost: $109.8 billion
– Category: 5
– Start date: September 19, 2017
– End date: September 21, 2017
– Deaths: 2,981
GIORGIO VIERA/AFP via Getty Images
#3. Ian
– Estimated cost: $114.0 billion
– Category: 4
– Start date: September 28, 2022
– End date: September 30, 2022
– Deaths: 152
AFP Contributor // Getty Images
#2. Harvey
– Estimated cost: $152.5 billion
– Category: 4
– Start date: August 25, 2017
– End date: August 31, 2017
– Deaths: 89
ROBYN BECK // Getty Images
#1. Katrina
– Estimated cost: $192.5 billion
– Category: 3
– Start date: August 25, 2005
– End date: August 30, 2005
– Deaths: 1,833
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