Storm risk in Alachua County, Florida

FEMA's overall hazard score for Alachua County is 90.33 (Relatively Moderate), 305th of 3,144 counties. Hail scores 17.88 (Very Low), strong wind 80.92 (Relatively Moderate) and tornado 90.33 (Relatively High). Expected hail loss is $0.46 per $1 million of buildings a year; NOAA logged 27 hail reports in Alachua County from 2014 to June 2026.

FEMA National Risk Index, version December 2025, retrieved October 8, 2026. NOAA hail reports 2014 to June 2026.

Alachua County: expected yearly loss per $1 million of buildings for hail, strong wind and tornado, on a log scale, against all U.S. counties and the counties of FL$0.1$1$10$100$1,000Hail: $0.46 per $1 million, 2,905th of 3,126 rated counties$0.46Hail2,905th of 3,126 countiesStrong wind: $7.73 per $1 million, 2,387th of 3,121 rated counties$7.73Strong wind2,387th of 3,121 countiesTornado: $161 per $1 million, 1,778th of 3,144 rated counties$161Tornado1,778th of 3,144 counties
  • Alachua County, coloured by its FEMA rating
  • all U.S. counties
  • each county in the state
  • U.S. median
  • state median

Expected yearly loss per $1 million of buildings, log scale. Dot colour is FEMA’s rating band. The tornado lane counts everything exposed, not only buildings.

How FEMA rates Alachua County

HazardRatingScore (0 to 100)Rank in U.S.Rank in FL
OverallRelatively Moderate 90.33305 of 3,14430 of 67
HailVery Low 17.882,583 of 3,12633 of 67
Strong windRelatively Moderate 80.92601 of 3,12623 of 67
TornadoRelatively High 90.33305 of 3,12623 of 67

Expected yearly loss, in dollars

HazardThis county, total a yearPer $1M of buildingsState median countyU.S. median countyRank per $1M, U.S.Rank per $1M, state
Hail$22,087$0.46 $0.46$22 2,905 of 3,12634 of 67
Strong wind$370,875$7.73 $8.40$20 2,387 of 3,12135 of 67
Tornado$7,709,017$161 $176$199 1,778 of 3,14439 of 67

Rank 1 is the highest. Overall, hail and wind losses count buildings; the tornado row counts everything FEMA exposes, so it overstates building damage. Expected annual loss is an average over many years for the whole county, not a forecast for one roof.

What stands out in Alachua County

  • FEMA expects hail in Alachua County to cost $0.46 per $1 million of buildings a year: 0.02 times the U.S. median and 1.00 times the FL county median, ranked 2,905th of 3,126 counties nationally and 34th of 67 in Florida.
  • FEMA expects strong wind in Alachua County to cost $7.73 per $1 million of buildings a year: 0.38 times the U.S. median and 0.92 times the FL county median, ranked 2,387th of 3,121 counties nationally and 35th of 67 in Florida.
  • FEMA expects tornado in Alachua County to cost $161 per $1 million of buildings a year: 0.81 times the U.S. median and 0.91 times the FL county median, ranked 1,778th of 3,144 counties nationally and 39th of 67 in Florida.
  • Applying FEMA's estimate to a $266,800 home, the average yearly loss in Alachua County is about $0.12 for hail and $2.06 for wind before any deductible; at the U.S. median county rates it would be $5.96 and $5.44.
  • If the next years look like 2014 to 2025, a roof kept 20 years in Alachua County meets about 11.7 hail days of 1 inch or more; the median county in NOAA's file (1,275 counties) would give 35.0.
  • Built in 1987, the median home in Alachua County is 39 years old, so an original roof has outlived a 3-tab shingle (15 to 20 years) and an architectural one (25 to 30 years); 71.7% of its 125,702 homes are at least 26 years old.
  • March to June holds 19 of the 27 hail reports in Alachua County (70 percent); the quietest month is January, with 0 reports.

What hail and wind cost a home here in an average year

Enter a home value. The calculator applies Alachua County’s own loss rate: the county’s expected yearly loss divided by the value of its buildings. It starts at the Census median home value for the county.

$0.12hail, a year; $5.96 at the U.S. median county rate
$2.06strong wind, a year; $5.44 at the U.S. median county rate
$44hail and wind together over 20 years, at today’s rate

Formula: home value × Alachua County yearly loss ÷ building value. Hail: $22,087 ÷ $47,974,434,057 = 0.0000005. Wind: $370,875 ÷ $47,974,434,057 = 0.0000077. This is FEMA’s estimate of average damage to buildings and does not account for your deductible. Tornado is left out because FEMA’s tornado loss counts people and other exposure, not only buildings.

Read this as a yardstick. The rate is an average over every building in the county, from sheds to office towers, and over many years. Real losses come in rare, large storms; a roof with no damage in 19 years can need full replacement in the 20th. The figure is not a quote and not a prediction for one address.

Alachua County in plain numbers

  • Alachua County scores 90.33 in FEMA's overall hazard index (Relatively Moderate): 305th of 3,144 rated counties and 30th of 67 in Florida.
  • Hail scores 17.88 (Very Low). FEMA expects $22,087 of hail damage to buildings in Alachua County a year, which is $0.46 per $1 million of buildings, 0.02 times the U.S. median.
  • Strong wind scores 80.92 (Relatively Moderate) with $370,875 of expected yearly building loss in Alachua County: $7.73 per $1 million of buildings, 0.38 times the U.S. median.
  • Tornado scores 90.33 (Relatively High) and FEMA's expected yearly tornado loss is $7,709,017, counting everything exposed, or $161 per $1 million of buildings in Alachua County.
  • FEMA's own event record for Alachua County averages 1.79 hail events and 0.99 strong-wind events a year.
  • NOAA logged 27 hail reports in Alachua County between 2014 and June 2026, on 7 days with stones of 1 inch or more; the largest was 2.5 inches.
  • In Alachua County, FEMA counts buildings worth 47.97 billion dollars and 277,984 residents.
  • Social vulnerability is Relatively Low in Alachua County.
  • Community resilience there is Very High, for 277,984 residents.
  • 1 city in Alachua County is covered on this site: Gainesville. 21 Census ZIP areas have more than half of their land in the county.
  • Our guide range for a 2,000 sq ft asphalt roof in Gainesville is $6,300 to $13,950.
  • Alachua County ranks 185 of the 194 counties with a page here for hail loss per $1 million of buildings, 126 for wind and 124 for tornado.
  • In Alachua County, April is the busiest month with 10 of the 27 reports (37 percent), against 0 reports in October.
  • Alachua County's worst year was 2023, with 2 hail days at 1 inch or more and 6 reports. At the 2014 to 2025 pace that is 0.58 such days a year, one about every 20.6 months.
  • The median home in Alachua County was built in 1987; 35.7% of its 125,702 housing units date from before 1980, 71.7% from before 2000 and 11.6% from 2010 on.
  • Census puts the median home value in Alachua County at $266,800, and 54.1% of homes are lived in by their owners.
  • 9,076 single-family building permits were issued in Alachua County from 2014 to 2025, about 72.2 per 1,000 homes, peaking in 2021.
  • NOAA lists 3 tornado tracks in Alachua County since 2014; the strongest was an EF0 on May 20, 2016 near Gainesville West, 0.66 miles long.
  • The fastest gust in NOAA's records for Alachua County is 81 mph on November 30, 2020 at Phifer.
  • The nearest county with a page here is Marion County, 34 miles from the centre of Alachua County; its hail score is 20.01.
  • Across counties the median is one roofing firm for every 5,189 homes; Census counted 22 roofing contractor establishments in Alachua County in 2023, one for every 5,714 homes.

The hail record of Alachua County, year by year

NOAA logged 27 reports in Alachua County; hail of 1 inch or more fell on 7 days. That is 0.6 such days a year; the median county in NOAA’s file has 1.8.

Alachua County: NOAA hail reports per year, 2014 to June 2026, with the number of days that had hail of 1 inch or more024682014: 4 reports, 1 days at 1 inch or more, largest 1 inch142015: 3 reports, 1 days at 1 inch or more, largest 1.75 inch152016: 1 reports, 0 days at 1 inch or more, largest 0.88 inch162017: 0 reports, 0 days at 1 inch or more, largest 0 inch172018: 0 reports, 0 days at 1 inch or more, largest 0 inch182019: 0 reports, 0 days at 1 inch or more, largest 0 inch192020: 0 reports, 0 days at 1 inch or more, largest 0 inch202021: 2 reports, 1 days at 1 inch or more, largest 1 inch212022: 1 reports, 0 days at 1 inch or more, largest 0.88 inch222023: 6 reports, 2 days at 1 inch or more, largest 1.75 inch232024: 3 reports, 1 days at 1 inch or more, largest 1 inch242025: 7 reports, 1 days at 1 inch or more, largest 2.5 inch252026: 0 reports, 0 days at 1 inch or more, largest 0 inch26*
  • reports
  • days with hail of 1 inch or more
  • * 2026 runs to June only
Alachua County: NOAA hail reports by calendar month, 2014 to June 2026January: 0 reports0JanFebruary: 5 reports5FebMarch: 0 reports0MarApril: 10 reports10AprMay: 5 reports5MayJune: 4 reports4JunJuly: 2 reports2JulAugust: 1 reports1AugSeptember: 0 reports0SepOctober: 0 reports0OctNovember: 0 reports0NovDecember: 0 reports0Dec

Reports by calendar month, all years together. Peak: April, 10 reports.

The same numbers as a table (years with at least one report)
YearReportsDays, 1 inch or moreDays, 1.75 inch or moreLargest stoneDamage reported
20144101 in–
20153111.75 in–
20161000.88 in–
20212101 in–
20221000.88 in–
20236221.75 in–
20243101 in–
20257112.5 in–

Biggest hail days in Alachua County

DateLargest stoneReports that dayDamage reportedNear
April 11, 20252.5 in7none recordedPhifer
June 1, 20151.75 in3none recordedHague
April 26, 20231.75 in2none recordedArcher
May 11, 20231.75 in2none recordedHigh Spgs
February 4, 20241 in3none recordedDayville

Where large hail was reported

FEMA scores the county as a whole. NOAA’s reports show where inside Alachua County the big stones fell.

Reported hail locations, Alachua County

1 in hail1 in hail1 in hail1.5 in hail1.5 in hail1.75 in hail1.75 in hail1.75 in hail1.75 in hail1.75 in hail1.75 in hail1.75 in hail2 in hail2.5 in hail Gainesville
  • 51 to 1.74 in
  • 91.75 to 2.74 in, golf ball to tennis ball
  • 02.75 in and up, baseball

Largest plotted stone: 2.5 in. Bigger dots are bigger stones.

14 reports of 1 inch or larger have coordinates. Each dot is a reported location, not a storm path.

Sources: NOAA, Census county outline

Wind and tornado records for Alachua County

Fastest gusts in Alachua County

DateGustNear
November 30, 202081 mphPhifer
June 14, 202374 mphNewberry
April 19, 201972 mphPhifer
November 30, 202070 mphPhifer

Strongest tornado tracks in Alachua County

DateScaleLengthInjured / killedNear
September 18, 2021EF00.1 mi0 / 0Island Grove
December 14, 2019EF00.2 mi0 / 0Kirkwood
May 20, 2016EF00.66 mi0 / 0Gainesville West

3 tornado tracks in all since 2014; the strongest 3 are listed.

How old the roofs are

Census counts homes by the decade they were built. Under each bar is the number of hail days of 1 inch or more that an original roof from that decade has met, at Alachua County’s 2014 to 2025 pace of 0.58 such days a year. Most roofs have been replaced since; the row shows what a roof that never was would have taken.

Alachua County: share of homes by decade built, with the hail days at 1 inch or more that an original roof from each decade has met at the county's 2014 to 2025 ratepre-1940: 2.7% of homes2.7%<1940531940s: 1.9% of homes1.9%1940s471950s: 5.2% of homes5.2%1950s411960s: 9.0% of homes9%1960s361970s: 16.9% of homes16.9%1970s301980s: 19.5% of homes19.5%1980s241990s: 16.5% of homes16.5%1990s182000s: 16.8% of homes16.8%2000s122010s: 9.8% of homes9.8%2010s62020+: 1.7% of homes1.7%2020+2

Bars: share of 125,702 housing units by decade built. Figures under the decade: hail days met by an original roof, at the county’s 2014 to 2025 pace. The pace of earlier years is unknown.

Median year built1987
Built before 198035.7%
Built before 200071.7%
Built since 201011.6%
Owner-occupied54.1%
Median home value$266,800
Single-family permits, 2014 to 20259,076
Permits per 1,000 homes72.2

Asphalt shingles are rated 15 to 20 years (3-tab) and 25 to 30 years (architectural). Source: Census ACS 2019 to 2023 and Building Permits Survey.

Roofers and past disasters in Alachua County

Roofing firms in Alachua County

Roofing contractor establishments, 202322
Change since 2016+4 (+22%)
Homes per roofing firm5,714
Median across counties5,189
Employees, 2023356

Source for Alachua County: Census County Business Patterns, NAICS 238160.

Nearby counties

The closest counties that have a risk page, by distance between county centres. Loss is per $1 million of buildings; the columns marked "times here" divide the neighbour's loss by Alachua County's.

CountyMilesOverallHail lossHail, times hereWind lossWind, times hereNOAA hail reports
Marion County, FL34 Relatively High $0.511.11$6.870.8919
Flagler County, FL64 Relatively Moderate $0.300.64$101.3049
Volusia County, FL83 Relatively High $0.370.80$4.850.6348
Polk County, FL125 Relatively High $2.014.36$19425.0633
Pinellas County, FL125 Relatively High $1429.53$2.820.367
Leon County, FL131 Relatively Moderate $1.403.05$9.751.2624

More Florida counties, nearest first

All 194 counties, with a filter by state and sorting

Cities and ZIP areas in Alachua County

1 city in this county is on PickARoofer. ZIP Code Tabulation Areas are Census shapes that approximate ZIP codes; where we have a city’s ZIPs, the share is the part of each area’s land that lies in this county. 21 such areas have more than half their land here.

CityZIP areas (share of land in the county)Pages
Gainesville 32601 (100%), 32603 (100%), 32605 (100%), 32607 (100%), 32608 (100%) Roofers

Storm hit your roof in Alachua County? A free inspection tells you if there is damage. One local roofer answers, not five.

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Questions

How high is storm risk in Alachua County?

FEMA's National Risk Index gives Alachua County an overall score of 90.33 (Relatively Moderate), 305th of 3,144. Hail scores 17.88 (Very Low), strong wind 80.92 (Relatively Moderate) and tornado 90.33 (Relatively High).

In Alachua County, how many hail reports has NOAA logged?

A report is one entry for one storm in one county, so counts follow where people live as well as where hail fell. NOAA has 27 for Alachua County between 2014 and June 2026, on 7 days with hail of 1 inch or more; the largest stone was 2.5 inches.

What do hail and wind cost a home in Alachua County each year, on average?

Applying FEMA's county rates to its median home value of $266,800: FEMA's estimate is about $0.12 a year for hail and $2.06 for wind, before any deductible, against $5.96 and $5.44 at the U.S. median county rates. This is an average over many years and all buildings, not a prediction for one roof; one bad storm costs far more than the average year.

How does Alachua County compare with the rest of Florida?

Per $1 million of buildings Alachua County loses $0.46 to hail a year, against $0.46 in the median county of the state. Among 67 rated counties it is 33rd for hail, 23rd for strong wind and 23rd for tornado.

How old are the roofs in Alachua County?

The median home was built in 1987, 39 years ago, and 71.7% of the 125,702 housing units in Alachua County date from before 2000. Asphalt shingles are rated 15 to 20 years (3-tab) or 25 to 30 years (architectural), so an original roof of either kind is past its rated life. The Census does not record when a roof was replaced.

What does expected annual loss mean?

It is FEMA's estimate of the average yearly loss from a hazard, in dollars, summed over the county. It is built for comparing counties at planning level, not for pricing one house.

Does a high rating mean my roof will be damaged?

No. The index compares counties and cannot say what will happen on your street. After a storm, a roof inspection is the only way to know.

Sources for Alachua County: FEMA National Risk Index, version December 2025, retrieved October 8, 2026; NOAA Storm Events Database hail reports for Alachua County; Census Bureau ZCTA-to-county relationship file (2020); Census ACS and Building Permits Survey, homes in Alachua County; Census County Business Patterns, roofing firms in Alachua County. Planning-level information about Alachua County, not an inspection and not insurance advice.

This product uses the Federal Emergency Management Agency's National Risk Index dataset but is not endorsed by FEMA. The Federal Government or FEMA cannot vouch for the data or analyses derived from these data after the data have been retrieved from the Agency's website(s).