Santa Rosa County, FL: flood risk, in FEMA's own numbers
On FEMA's National Risk Index, Santa Rosa County scores at the 73.7th percentile for flood hazard, rated "Relatively Moderate" — a middling flood hazard by national standards. The hazard here is split between inland river flooding (about 1.6 times a year) and coastal storm surge (about 3.8 times a year). County-wide, not parcel-specific: FEMA's real flood-zone map is queried live, never shipped as a download.
Mandatory flood insurance compliance in Santa Rosa County
Out of 5,594 homes FEMA counts inside Santa Rosa County's mapped flood zone, 3,744 carry the flood policy federal law requires there — 66.9% compliance, short of full coverage. Looking beyond the mandated zone, 14.1% of all residential structures in Santa Rosa County carry flood coverage voluntarily or otherwise — relevant because most NFIP claims nationally come from outside the mapped SFHA.
Where Santa Rosa County ranks
Among the 3144 US counties FEMA scores for flood hazard, Santa Rosa County ranks 863 — 1 being the highest hazard nationally — and 345 by population among all 3144 counties covered here, where 1 is the largest. Santa Rosa County, Florida covers 1,012.402 square miles and counts roughly 207,653 residents.
What to do next if you own or are buying in Santa Rosa County
FEMA counts 69,725 residential structures in Santa Rosa County overall, 9,799 of them carrying some form of NFIP coverage — but a lender or insurer cares about one parcel, not that county total.
Where Santa Rosa County's figures come from
Every figure on this page traces to a named FEMA dataset, documented in the methodology guide. Santa Rosa County's coastal exposure is covered in the coastal vs. inland flood risk guide, including how storm surge risk differs from river flooding.