Which flood zone is this address in? Paste one address or postcode, or a whole list, and see Flood Zone 1, 2 or 3 for each, from the Environment Agency's flood map for planning. Free, no account.
Quick answer
England's flood zones come from the Environment Agency and ignore flood defences. Flood Zone 1 is a low chance of flooding from rivers or the sea: less than 0.1% (1 in 1,000) a year. Flood Zone 2 is a medium chance: 0.1% to 1% a year from rivers, or 0.1% to 0.5% from the sea, plus land that has flooded before. Flood Zone 3 is a high chance: 1% (1 in 100) or more a year from rivers, or 0.5% (1 in 200) or more from the sea. Enter an address or postcode below to see its zone.
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UK addresses with a postcode, or postcodes on their own. Only the address is used for the check.
Any planning application in Flood Zone 2 or 3 needs a site-specific flood risk assessment. In Flood Zone 1 one is needed for sites of 1 hectare or more, and for a few other sites: land the Environment Agency has flagged with critical drainage problems, land the council's strategic flood risk assessment shows at increased risk in future, and land at risk from other sources of flooding where the development would bring in a more vulnerable use. National planning policy also steers new development to Flood Zone 1 first (the sequential test). Councils mark the functional floodplain, Flood Zone 3b, in their strategic flood risk assessment; the Environment Agency's Flood Zone 3 usually takes it in, so this check can't tell 3a from 3b.
A home in Flood Zone 3 can still be bought, mortgaged and insured, but lenders and insurers will ask about flood risk. Flood Re, the scheme run by the government and insurers, helps keep home insurance affordable for homes built before 2009. The flood zone describes the land, not the house: the Environment Agency says the zones can't show whether a particular property will flood.
The Environment Agency's Flood Map for Planning: Flood Zones 2 and 3 for rivers and the sea, the July 2026 release, built from local flood models, recorded flood outlines and the Environment Agency's national flood model. The Environment Agency plans to update it every three months. Each address is placed on the map from its street address or postcode, then checked against the zone outlines. A postcode on its own is checked at the postcode's centre, which can fall in a different zone from a house at the edge of a flood zone, so use the full address for those.
Flood zones cover rivers and the sea only, and ignore flood defences. Flooding from heavy rain (surface water), groundwater and sewers isn't part of them, and rivers draining less than 3 square kilometres may not be mapped. More properties in England are at risk from surface water than from rivers and the sea. The zones cover England only: Natural Resources Wales, SEPA in Scotland and DfI Rivers in Northern Ireland publish their own flood maps.
A planning and screening check, not a flood risk assessment. For a planning application, get the official flood map for planning report for the site from GOV.UK.
What is Flood Zone 3?
Land with a high probability of flooding: a 1% (1 in 100) or greater chance each year from rivers, or 0.5% (1 in 200) or greater from the sea, ignoring flood defences. Any planning application there needs a flood risk assessment.
What is Flood Zone 2?
Land with a medium probability of flooding: between 0.1% and 1% a year from rivers (1 in 1,000 to 1 in 100), or between 0.1% and 0.5% from the sea (1 in 1,000 to 1 in 200). It also takes in land the Environment Agency has recorded flooding on before.
What is Flood Zone 1?
Land with a low probability of flooding from rivers or the sea: less than 0.1% (1 in 1,000) a year. It's everywhere outside Flood Zones 2 and 3, which is most of England, and it's where planning policy steers new homes first.
Do I need a flood risk assessment?
For any development in Flood Zone 2 or 3, yes. In Flood Zone 1, for sites of 1 hectare or more, and for a few others, such as land with critical drainage problems. The download marks each address.
Can I check a whole list of addresses?
Yes. Paste up to 5,000 addresses or postcodes, or upload a spreadsheet. The first 25 show straight away; enter a work email to check the rest and download the whole list with the zone for each.
Is this the same as the flood map for planning?
It uses the Environment Agency's Flood Zones data, the same data the flood map for planning shows. For a planning application, get the official flood map for planning report for your site from GOV.UK; use this to check many addresses at once.
Does Flood Zone 1 mean a house won't flood?
No. It means a low chance of flooding from rivers and the sea. Surface water from heavy rain, which puts more properties at risk in England than rivers and the sea do, isn't part of the flood zones.
Does it cover Wales and Scotland?
No. The Environment Agency's flood zones cover England. Addresses in Wales, Scotland or Northern Ireland show as not covered.