List of costliest Atlantic hurricanes


This is a list of costliest Atlantic hurricanes, broadly capturing the severity of the damage each system has caused. The costliest tropical cyclone on record in the Atlantic is held jointly by hurricanes Katrina and Harvey, both of which resulted in approximately $125 billion in property damage during the year they occurred.
A majority of the costliest Atlantic hurricanes in recorded history have peaked as major hurricanes. However, weaker tropical cyclones can still cause widespread damage. Tropical storms Alberto in 1994, Allison in 2001, Lee in 2011 and Imelda in 2019 caused over a billion dollars in damage. Flooding typically accounts for about 60% of all of a storm's damages, and this is reflected in the list with Allison, Harvey, and Florence and most recently Imelda which produced catastrophic rainfall; and with Katrina, Ike, and Sandy which produced devastating storm surges. Wind damage encompasses a large portion of storm damage as well, evidenced by Andrew, Irma, and Michael. Due to their excessive damage, the names of tropical cyclones accruing at least $1 billion in damage are usually retired by the World Meteorological Organization, but this is not always the case. Hurricane Juan in 1985 was the first hurricane to cause at least a billion in damage and not be retired; its name was retired on a later usage in 2003 that did not cause over a billion in damage. Since Juan, eight tropical cyclones that caused at least a billion in damage were not retired, the most notable of which Hurricane Karl which incurred $3.9 billion in damage, and the most recent of which being Hurricane Isaac in 2012.
The first hurricane to cause at least $1 billion in damage was Hurricane Betsy in 1965, which caused much of its damage in southeastern Louisiana. Four years later, Hurricane Camille caused over $1 billion in damage as it ravaged Louisiana and Mississippi at landfall, and Virginia after moving inland. After the 1960s, each decade saw an increase in tropical cyclones causing at least a billion in damage over the last, due to increasing urban development and population. In the 1970s, four hurricanes caused at least a billion in damage; the costliest of which was Hurricane Agnes, which caused $2.1 billion in damage. The following decade featured seven hurricanes causing at least a billion in damage. In the 1990s, twelve tropical cyclones accrued at least a billion in damage, including Hurricane Andrew in 1992. The system greatly exceeded the damage figure of any preceding tropical cyclone, causing $27.3 billion in damage, mostly in South Florida. Nineteen tropical cyclones in the 2000s caused at least $1 billion in damage. The 2005 season had six billion-dollar hurricanes, the most of any season on record. Hurricanes Ivan in 2004 and Irma in 2017 caused at least $1 billion in damage in four separate countries. Thus far in the 2010s, twelve storms have caused at least $1 billion in damage, the most recent of which is Tropical Storm Imelda, which accrued at least $5 billion in damage.

Overall costliest

This list ranks tropical cyclones within the Atlantic that have accrued at least US$1 billion in damage, based on their nominal USD damage totals. Because these numbers have not been adjusted for inflation, nor adjusted for changes in population and wealth in coastal counties, the costliness of recent hurricanes is artificially inflated compared to hurricanes of the past. This makes it hard to accurately compare the damage inflicted by hurricanes over time.
In contrast, the normalized damage reported in the adjacent column gives an estimate of the direct economic losses from each hurricane if that same event was to occur under contemporary societal conditions, based on a method by Roger A. Pielke Jr. and Christopher Landsea. The general formula for normalized losses is
where is reported damage in current-year US dollars, is the GDP deflator for inflation adjustment, is an estimate of current-cost net stock of fixed assets and consumer durable goods to capture changes in real wealth per-capita, and county population adjustment.
Indicates that the storm name was not retired after its usage
NameNominal damage

SeasonStorm classification
at peak intensity		Areas affectedReferences
Katrina2005
Harvey2017
Maria2017
Irma2017
Sandy2012
Ike2008
Wilma2005
Andrew1992
Ivan2004
Michael2018
Florence2018
Rita2005
Charley2004
Matthew2016
Irene2011
Georges1998
Frances2004
Hugo1989
Allison2001
Gustav2008
Jeanne2004
Floyd1999
Mitch1998
Isabel2003
Dorian2019
Imelda2019
Fran1996
Opal1995
Stan2005
Karl 2010
Dennis2005
Isaac 2012
Alicia1983
Gilbert1988
Luis1995
Lee 2011
Michelle2001
Marilyn1995
Agnes1972
Dean2007
Joan1988
Fifi1974
Frederic1979
Dolly 2008
Allen1980
David1979
Alex 2010
Juan 1985
Bob1991
Roxanne1995
Ingrid2013
Betsy1965
Camille1969
Elena1985
Isidore2002
Lili2002
Alberto 1994
Emily 2005
Bonnie 1998