Rank the strongest, deadliest and costliest hurricanes since 1950 by winds, pressure, deaths and damage

In the National Hurricane Center record from 1950 on, by peak winds, Melissa (2025) tops the list at 190 mph. By lowest central pressure, Wilma (2005) is lowest at 882 mb. Pressure and wind rank storms a little differently.

Our records cover the Atlantic and the eastern Pacific from 1950. The strongest in the Atlantic is Melissa (2025) at 190 mph. In the eastern Pacific it is Patricia (2015) at 215 mph with a lowest pressure of 872 mb. Storms in other ocean basins are not in this data. By definition a tropical storm has winds of 39 to 73 mph, so the strongest storms listed here are all hurricanes.

35 named storms since 1950 had peak winds of 157 mph or more (Category 5) in the NHC record.

It uses the named storms in the National Hurricane Center HURDAT2 record from 1950 onward. Earlier storms were not named and their intensities are more uncertain, so they are not ranked here.

It depends on the measure. By deaths, the 1900 Galveston hurricane (an estimated 8,000 or more). By damage adjusted to 2010 dollars, wealth and population, the 1926 Miami hurricane (about $165 billion), with Katrina (2005) second. By lowest pressure at landfall, the 1935 Labor Day hurricane in the Florida Keys (892 mb). Source: NHC Technical Memorandum NWS NHC-6, which covers mainland U.S. storms through 2010.

The 1900 Galveston, Texas hurricane, with an estimated 8,000 deaths (possibly as many as 12,000). It is first in the National Hurricane Center's list of the deadliest mainland U.S. tropical cyclones from 1851 to 2010. Katrina (2005) is third.

In the NHC's list of costliest mainland U.S. storms from 1900 to 2010, with damage adjusted to 2010 inflation, wealth and coastal population, the 1926 Miami hurricane is first at about $165 billion, and Katrina (2005) is second at about $113 billion. The list stops at 2010.

By central pressure at landfall, the 1935 Labor Day hurricane in the Florida Keys, a Category 5 at 892 mb. Camille (1969) was next at 909 mb, then Katrina (2005) at 920 mb and Andrew (1992) at 922 mb.

Landfall is the point where the surface center of a tropical cyclone crosses a coastline. The strongest winds can reach land before landfall happens, and a storm can make landfall while its strongest winds stay over water (National Hurricane Center glossary).

The National Hurricane Center calls a close approach by the storm a direct hit, and a location that avoids a direct hit but still gets hurricane-force winds or tides at least 4 feet above normal an indirect hit.