Flood risk

Zillow removed its flood risk scores. How to check a home’s flood risk yourself

Zillow listings used to show a flood risk score. According to news reports, they stopped in November 2025. If you relied on that score, here are free public sources you can check yourself for any address.

By the Terreflow team · Published October 31, 2026

What was reported

TechCrunch reported that Zillow added climate risk scores to for-sale listings in September 2024 and removed them from more than one million listings in November 2025, after objections from the California Regional Multiple Listing Service. Claims Journal reported that the change took effect on November 14, 2025, and that Zillow said it made the change to comply with varying listing-service requirements. RISMedia reported that listings now link to the data provider’s website, where the scores can still be viewed.

This summary relies on those reports; see the sources below for details. Terreflow is not affiliated with Zillow or with the scores’ provider.

What a single score summarizes

A flood risk score, from any provider, condenses a model into one number. That is quick to read. A buyer may also want to know things a single number doesn’t show on its own:

• The source of the water. A river, the coast, and rain collecting in a low spot each call for a different check.
• The building itself. Whether a house is damaged also depends on the building, such as how high its first floor sits.
• The model behind it. Flood models use different methods and data, and they can rate the same home differently.

The sources below don’t replace a score or answer the same question. They are public records you can read for yourself.

Source 1: the FEMA flood zone

In a FEMA zone starting with A or V, flood insurance is generally required for a federally backed mortgage. Look up the zone with the box above or on FEMA’s Flood Map Service Center, and note the map’s effective date. Your lender makes its own official determination.

FloodSmart describes moderate- and low-risk areas as “not entirely without risk.” In our analysis of FEMA claims in 20 flood-prone counties, about one in three flood insurance claims came from moderate- and low-risk zones. Is my house in a flood zone? explains each zone.

Source 2: the area’s flood history

FEMA publishes National Flood Insurance Program claims since 1978 without names or addresses. The lookup above shows how many claims the address’s ZIP code has had. For the 50 largest U.S. cities and 20 flood-prone counties, our city and county flood maps chart the claims year by year.

This describes the area, not a particular house. For the house itself, you can ask the seller for the disclosure, the property’s FEMA flood-loss history and a CLUE report; Has this address flooded? explains each.

Source 3: the terrain around the lot

FEMA flood maps focus on flooding from rivers, lakes and the sea. Heavy rain can also run off the surrounding land and collect in low spots. The terrain gives clues: is the lot lower than the street, at the foot of a slope, or along a drainage path?

Terreflow’s surface drainage map models this from USGS elevation data and shows, in 3D, which way rain tends to run around an address and where it tends to collect. See how to read a drainage map and the terrain checklist.