Does South Beach flood?

South Beach, Miami Beach, FL · ZIP code 33139: the ZIP code on 162 of the 175 flood insurance claims counted here. ZIP codes do not follow neighborhood lines.

Yes. Insured properties in and around South Beach have filed flood claims. About 79% of South Beach’s mapped area is inside FEMA’s Special Flood Hazard Area (high-risk zones such as AE and VE). NFIP flood insurance records list 175 claims from the Census block groups that cover South Beach, from 1978 through 2025. 99 of them received a payment, totaling $2,436,076 (not adjusted for inflation). The busiest years were 2017 (45 claims), 2009 (39 claims), 1999 (14 claims).

What this page counts as South Beach

We could not find an openly licensed official boundary for South Beach, so this page uses a census-based area. For this page, South Beach means the 2010 Census block groups whose center lies inside the National Register of Historic Places boundary of the Miami Beach Architectural District (National Park Service) and inside the Miami Beach city limits (U.S. Census Bureau). South Beach here is the National Register's Miami Beach Architectural District (the Art Deco District), which covers much, but not all, of what people call South Beach. Every number below is for exactly those block groups (listed in “How these numbers were made”), so the edges are approximate and may include or leave out a few blocks people would call South Beach. Sources: U.S. Census Bureau TIGERweb, 2010 Census Block Groups, National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places boundaries (NRHP polygons) and U.S. Geological Survey, Geographic Names Information System (GNIS) domestic names.

Past claims do not predict future flooding, and a neighborhood figure cannot tell you about one building. Look up the exact address on the FEMA Flood Map Service Center (or the Miami-Dade County Flood Zone map viewer) and get flood insurance quotes before you sign a lease or a contract.

Check a specific address in South Beach

Neighborhood figures are averages. Our address check looks up the FEMA flood zone and the hurricane evacuation zone at one address, from the same public maps: check if your address is in a flood zone.

Flood zones street by street in South Beach

The named streets in South Beach, longest first, with how much of each street’s length inside South Beach lies in FEMA’s high-risk flood zones (the Special Flood Hazard Area, zones A and V). Length is the part inside South Beach; the main zone is the FEMA zone covering most of that length. A street can cross several zones, so the zone at one address can differ from the street’s main zone: check the address above for that. 2 shorter streets are not listed.

Streets: U.S. Census Bureau TIGERweb, Transportation (primary, secondary and local roads). Flood zones: FEMA National Flood Hazard Layer (NFHL), Flood Hazard Zones and FIRM Panels, retrieved October 28, 2026. Each street is clipped to the area boundary and measured in an equal-area projection. Street lengths are rounded.

Flood zones in South Beach

Share of South Beach’s mapped area (about 1.148 km²) in each FEMA flood zone, from FEMA National Flood Hazard Layer (NFHL), Flood Hazard Zones and FIRM Panels. Mapped base flood elevations inside the neighborhood range from 8 to 11 feet. Effective date of the FIRM panel(s) covering it (12086C0317L, 12086C0319L, 12086C0336L): September 11, 2009.

What the zones mean

Zone AE (and A, AH, AO)

High-risk: part of the Special Flood Hazard Area (SFHA), the area FEMA maps as having a 1-percent chance of flooding in any given year (the “100-year” or base flood). AE areas have a mapped base flood elevation.

Zone VE (and V)

High-risk coastal areas, also in the SFHA, where the base flood is expected to bring additional hazards from storm waves.

Zone X (shaded)

Moderate hazard: between the limits of the 1-percent and the 0.2-percent-annual-chance (“500-year”) flood.

Zone X (unshaded)

Minimal hazard: outside the SFHA and higher than the 0.2-percent-annual-chance flood elevation. Minimal is not zero: flood claims are filed from X zones too.

Source: FEMA Glossary: Flood Zones.

Flood insurance claims over time

Claims filed under the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) from the 2010 Census block groups that cover South Beach. This area is made of whole block groups, so every claim counted here comes from inside it. Only insured properties appear, so these counts understate total flooding.

By decade

By year of loss

Named flood events with the most claims

• Hurricane Irma: 33 claims
• Hurricane Irene: 12 claims
• Flooding: 8 claims
• Hurricane Andrew: 8 claims
• Blizzard of 1993: 5 claims

FEMA labels some events only as “Flooding”. Claims by the flood zone the property was rated in:

• A/AE/AH/AO (high risk): 171
• V/VE (coastal high hazard): 4

How much is flood insurance in South Beach?

The typical National Flood Insurance Program policy on homes and units (one building or unit per policy) in South Beach costs $937 a year: the median of 133 policies that started between August 1, 2025 and July 31, 2026. Half of them cost between $580 and $4,558. That is the full amount paid for the year, the premium plus FEMA’s fees and surcharges, and every one of these policies is priced under Risk Rating 2.0. A quote for one building can be far from this: its elevation, foundation, age, coverage and deductible all change the price. Private flood insurance is not included.

Source: FEMA OpenFEMA Dataset: FIMA NFIP Redacted Policies - v3, computed October 28, 2026.

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Before you rent or buy in South Beach

• Look up the exact address on the FEMA Flood Map Service Center; a neighborhood can mix high-risk and minimal-hazard zones.
• Ask the landlord or seller about past flooding and flood insurance claims at the property.
• Get a flood insurance quote early: new NFIP policies usually take 30 days to start (FloodSmart (NFIP): Buy a Flood Insurance Policy).
• Ask which floor the unit is on and where parking, storage and mechanical equipment sit.

Living in South Beach

Flood maps are only one part of choosing a neighborhood. To compare South Beach with other Miami Beach neighborhoods on more than flooding, see Miami Beach on StrollPlace.

Buyer and renter FAQ

FAQ sources: FloodSmart (NFIP): Buy a Flood Insurance Policy; FEMA Fact Sheet: Think you don’t need flood insurance? Think again (Jan. 21, 2025); 44 CFR 61.11, Effective date and time of coverage.

Nearby neighborhoods

• Does Collins Waterfront flood?
• Does Atlantic Heights flood?
• Does Isle of Normandy flood?
• Does Normandy Isles flood?
• Does Normandy Shores flood?
• Does North Shore flood?

How these numbers were made

Area: the census-based definition above, using U.S. Census Bureau TIGERweb, 2010 Census Block Groups, National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places boundaries (NRHP polygons) and U.S. Geological Survey, Geographic Names Information System (GNIS) domestic names. Flood zone shares: the area polygon intersected with FEMA National Flood Hazard Layer (NFHL), Flood Hazard Zones and FIRM Panels, area computed in an equal-area projection; retrieved October 28, 2026. Claims: OpenFEMA NFIP Redacted Claims v3 records for Miami-Dade County (county code 12086), dataset as of September 8, 2026, retrieved October 28, 2026. Claims are counted for exactly the block groups that make up the area. Block groups used: 120860044062, 120860042062, 120860042052, 120860042064, 120860042063, 120860043041, 120860043034, 120860044041. Neighboring pages can share a block group, so their counts can overlap. Paid totals add building, contents and Increased Cost of Compliance payments and are not adjusted for inflation; a claim whose FEMA record shows a negative payment (an adjustment) counts as zero. Evacuation zones: the polygon intersected with Miami-Dade County’s zone polygons in an equal-area projection; shares below 0.1% are left out. See the methodology.

Sources

1. Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), FEMA OpenFEMA Dataset: FIMA NFIP Redacted Claims - v3. Retrieved on October 28, 2026.
2. FEMA National Flood Hazard Layer (NFHL), Flood Hazard Zones and FIRM Panels. Retrieved on October 28, 2026.
3. U.S. Census Bureau TIGERweb, 2010 Census Block Groups, National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places boundaries (NRHP polygons) and U.S. Geological Survey, Geographic Names Information System (GNIS) domestic names.
4. FEMA Glossary: Flood Zones.
5. FloodSmart (NFIP): Buy a Flood Insurance Policy.
6. FEMA Fact Sheet: Think you don’t need flood insurance? Think again (Jan. 21, 2025).
7. 44 CFR 61.11, Effective date and time of coverage.
8. OpenFEMA Terms and Conditions.
9. Miami-Dade County, Storm Surge Planning Zones (Hurricane Evacuation Zone feature layer) (retrieved October 31, 2026).
10. Miami-Dade County: Storm Surge (Storm Surge Planning Zones).
11. FEMA OpenFEMA Dataset: FIMA NFIP Redacted Policies - v3.
12. U.S. Census Bureau TIGERweb, Transportation (primary, secondary and local roads).

Data as of September 8, 2026 (FEMA claims) and October 28, 2026 (flood zones); hazard data computed October 31, 2026. Page last updated October 31, 2026.