Safest places to live in Connecticut
The counties and cities with the lowest natural disaster risk, ranked from FEMA's National Risk Index and checked against storm, hurricane and earthquake records.
Northeastern Connecticut Planning Region has the lowest natural disaster risk in Connecticut, followed by Northwest Hills Planning Region and Lower Connecticut River Valley Planning Region. At the other end, Capitol Planning Region carries the highest risk in the state, mostly from inland flooding. Ranks use FEMA's overall risk score, which weighs expected yearly losses against how vulnerable and how resilient each county is.
Lowest-risk counties
All 9 counties ›95,308 people. Top hazard: Inland flooding. 10 hurricanes within 65 miles, 28 federal declarations.2Northwest Hills Planning Region
112,433 people. Top hazard: Inland flooding. 5 hurricanes within 65 miles, 33 federal declarations.3Lower Connecticut River Valley Planning Region
174,152 people. Top hazard: Inland flooding. 12 hurricanes within 65 miles, 37 federal declarations.4Southeastern Connecticut Planning Region
280,316 people. Top hazard: Inland flooding. 10 hurricanes within 65 miles, 30 federal declarations.5Greater Bridgeport Planning Region
325,728 people. Top hazard: Inland flooding. 10 hurricanes within 65 miles, 31 federal declarations.6Naugatuck Valley Planning Region
450,296 people. Top hazard: Inland flooding. 9 hurricanes within 65 miles, 36 federal declarations.7South Central Connecticut Planning Region
570,229 people. Top hazard: Inland flooding. 11 hurricanes within 65 miles, 34 federal declarations.8Western Connecticut Planning Region
620,462 people. Top hazard: Inland flooding. 6 hurricanes within 65 miles, 33 federal declarations.9Capitol Planning Region
975,267 people. Top hazard: Inland flooding. 9 hurricanes within 65 miles, 30 federal declarations.
Lowest-risk cities
All cities ›Northwest Hills Planning Region, 35,547 people2Middletown
Lower Connecticut River Valley Planning Region, 47,958 people3Norwich
Southeastern Connecticut Planning Region, 39,973 people4New London
Southeastern Connecticut Planning Region, 27,625 people5Bridgeport
Greater Bridgeport Planning Region, 149,153 people6Waterbury
Naugatuck Valley Planning Region, 114,869 people7Bristol
Naugatuck Valley Planning Region, 61,462 people8Shelton
Naugatuck Valley Planning Region, 41,889 people9Naugatuck
Naugatuck Valley Planning Region, 31,800 people10New Haven
South Central Connecticut Planning Region, 134,349 people
Cities with 25,000 or more people. The rating is for the county the city is in.
Highest-risk counties
Top hazard: Inland flooding. 9 hurricanes within 65 miles, 30 federal declarations.2Western Connecticut Planning Region
Top hazard: Inland flooding. 6 hurricanes within 65 miles, 33 federal declarations.3South Central Connecticut Planning Region
Top hazard: Inland flooding. 11 hurricanes within 65 miles, 34 federal declarations.4Naugatuck Valley Planning Region
Top hazard: Inland flooding. 9 hurricanes within 65 miles, 36 federal declarations.5Greater Bridgeport Planning Region
Top hazard: Inland flooding. 10 hurricanes within 65 miles, 31 federal declarations.
Before you move
A county rating is an average. Inside any county, homes near rivers, coasts or steep slopes carry more risk than the rest. Look up the exact address with our flood zone lookup, ask the seller about past flood or storm claims, and get an insurance quote before you commit.
Questions
What is the safest county in Connecticut from natural disasters?
Northeastern Connecticut Planning Region has the lowest overall risk score in Connecticut, rated low by FEMA's National Risk Index. Its biggest remaining hazard is inland flooding.
What is the safest city in Connecticut from natural disasters?
Torrington sits in Northwest Hills Planning Region, which has the lowest risk score of any Connecticut county containing a city of 25,000 or more people. County ratings cover the whole county, so check the flood zone of any address you are considering.
Which counties in Connecticut have the highest disaster risk?
Capitol Planning Region, Western Connecticut Planning Region and South Central Connecticut Planning Region have the highest overall risk scores in the state.
Does a low rating mean no disasters?
No. A low rating means lower expected losses compared with other US counties, after accounting for how many people and buildings are exposed and how well the area recovers. Floods and severe storms can happen anywhere, and most flood claims come from outside mapped high-risk zones.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index (December 2025); NOAA Storm Events and HURDAT2; USGS earthquake catalog; OpenFEMA declarations since 1953.