Water damage, without the panic pricing.
Standing water right now? Safety first — don't step into water that could be touching anything electrical. Then move fast: drywall wicks water upward and mold can start within 24–48 hours, so every hour adds cost.
Sparks, a burning smell, a buzzing panel, or anyone in contact with water and electricity: get everyone out and call 911.
💧 Water spreading right now? → The first-60-minutes checklist (what to do, in order)Put honest numbers on itCosts in your city →
IICRC S500 standardInsurance Information InstituteFEMA / NFIPEPA
Everything here is free tools and straight numbers — sourced from the IICRC S500 restoration standard, the Insurance Information Institute and FEMA's flood program — so you can act fast and negotiate from knowledge.
Start with a tool
First 60 minutesBurst pipe, flooding basement, ceiling leak or sewage — the step-by-step checklist for the hour that decides the bill.Open free →Cost calculatorFour questions → an honest planning range, built on published per-square-foot data and the IICRC S500 categories.Open free →Will insurance cover it?Three questions give you the likely verdict and the reason why — plus what to document.Open free →
Live flood events
Louisiana floodingActive NWS flood warnings — what to do as water recedes, NFIP claims, gradual pump-out.Get help →Illinois floodingFlood warnings across southeastern IL and the Illinois River valley — the basement-state playbook.Get help →Iowa floodingFlood warnings across the Des Moines metro (Polk, Dallas, Story) and NE Iowa — the pump-out & claims playbook.Get help →Pennsylvania flash floodingFlash flood warnings across western PA (Armstrong, Butler, Westmoreland) and the PA Wilds — the water-recedes playbook.Get help →New Jersey floodingFlood warnings across South Jersey (Camden, Gloucester, Burlington) and the Shore (Monmouth, Ocean) — the water-recedes playbook.Get help →Arkansas flash floodingFlash flood warnings across north-central AR / the Ozarks (Baxter, Searcy, Stone) and the northeast (Lawrence, Sharp) — the water-recedes playbook.Get help →West Virginia flash floodingFlash flood warnings across the southern coalfields (Boone, Logan, Wyoming) and north-central WV (Gilmer) — the water-recedes playbook.Get help →Georgia flash floodingFlash flood warnings across the Augusta area / CSRA (Columbia, Lincoln, Richmond) and southwest GA (Randolph, Terrell) — the water-recedes playbook.Get help →Texas flash floodingFlood & flash flood warnings across the Brazos Valley (Brazos, Burleson, Grimes, Washington), the coastal plain (Jackson, Wharton) and the Hill Country (Frio, Medina, Uvalde) — the water-recedes playbook.Get help →Ohio flash floodingFlash flood warnings across southeastern Ohio and the Ohio River valley (Athens, Scioto, Vinton, Washington) — the basement-state pump-out & claims playbook.Get help →Kentucky flash floodingFlash flood warnings across the Lake Cumberland region of south-central KY (Wayne, Clinton, Cumberland, Russell) — the basement-and-hollow pump-out & claims playbook.Get help →New Mexico flash floodingMonsoon flash flood warnings across south-central & southwestern NM (Sierra, Grant, Doña Ana, Lincoln) — the arroyo & slab-home water-recedes playbook.Get help →New York City flash floodingFlash flood warnings across NYC, Long Island & Westchester (the Bronx, Brooklyn, Manhattan, Queens, Nassau, Suffolk) — the basement-apartment water-recedes playbook.Get help →Alabama flash floodingFlash flood warnings across the Birmingham metro & northeast Alabama (Jefferson, St. Clair, Calhoun, Etowah, Cherokee) — the water-recedes playbook.Get help →
Guides that answer the money questions
What restoration really costsThe full 2026 price picture: per-square-foot rates, what drives jobs from $1,300 to $10,000+, and where quotes pad.Read →Flooded basement cleanupPump-out timing, electricity safety, what's salvageable, costs by depth — and the flood-vs-pipe insurance trap.Read →Does insurance cover it?Every scenario in one table — burst pipes to floods — plus denial reasons and how to fight back.Read →Burst pipe playbookThe two bills (plumber vs restoration), the freeze facts, and the four moves that save thousands.Read →Ceiling water damageThe bulge rule, reading stains like an inspector, and repair costs from patch to replacement.Read →Mold: the 48-hour clockWhen DIY is safe (EPA's 10 sq ft rule), what remediation costs, and why insurance caps it.Read →Sewer backupThe black-water job: why sewage is Category 3, what cleanup runs, and the backup endorsement that decides who pays.Read →Water heater leakingTop-vs-bottom diagnosis, the power-then-water shut-off order, real replacement costs, and the sudden-vs-gradual insurance line.Read →Washing machine leakingThe power-then-water shut-off order, hose-vs-drum diagnosis, clean-vs-grey-water cleanup costs, and what insurance pays.Read →Dishwasher leakingThe power-then-water shut-off order, door-vs-bottom diagnosis, why the water hides under cabinets, and the sudden-vs-gradual insurance line.Read →Refrigerator leaking waterThe power-then-water shut-off order, behind-vs-inside-vs-underneath diagnosis, why the ice-maker line hides the leak, and the sudden-vs-gradual insurance line.Read →Air conditioner leaking waterThe power-then-contain order, clogged-drain-vs-frozen-coil-vs-cracked-pan diagnosis, why the ceiling hides the leak, and the sudden-vs-gradual insurance line.Read →Sump pump failurePower-before-water safety, why pumps quit in storms, grey-water cleanup costs, and the backup/sump-overflow endorsement that decides who pays.Read →
Water damage restoration cost by city
Local cost breakdowns, insurance notes and emergency steps for 91 metros across 34 states — find yours:
Arkansas: Fort Smith · Fayetteville
Connecticut: New Haven
Idaho: Boise · Idaho Falls
Kentucky: Lexington · Bowling Green
Massachusetts: Worcester · Springfield
New Mexico: Albuquerque · Las Cruces
North Carolina: Fayetteville
West Virginia: Huntington · Charleston
Why trust this
Every figure on this site is traceable to a published source — industry cost guides, the Insurance Information Institute, FEMA's flood program, and the IICRC restoration standard — and each page lists its sources at the bottom. No lead forms, no email walls, no invented “instant quotes.” When we can't know something (like what's inside your walls), we say so and tell you who can.
This is general information, not insurance, legal, or engineering advice. Estimates are planning ranges, not quotes — always get on-site assessments, and confirm coverage against your own policy wording or with your insurer.