List of the top 20 disasters by cost in billions based on 2021 inflation (source: Wikipedia)

  1. 1986 Chernobyl with radioactive contamination in Soviet Union cost 774 billion
  2. 2011 Tลhoku earthquake and tsunami with radioactive contamination in Japan cost 423 billion
  3. 1995 Great Hanshin earthquake in Japan cost 344 billion
  4. 2021 North American winter storm in U.S., Mexico, Canada cost 196 billion
  5. 2001 U.S. terrorist attack cost 32 to 199 billion
  6. 2008 Sichuan earthquake in China cost 179 billion
  7. 2005 Hurricane Katrina in U.S. cost 167 billion
  8. 2017 Hurricane Harvey in U.S. cost 133 billion
  9. 2010 Deepwater Horizon with oil contamination cost 72 to 120 billion
  10. 1988 and 1989 North American drought in U.S and Canada cost 115 billion
  11. 2017 Hurricane Maria in Puerto Rico, Dominica, Guadeloupe cost 97 billion
  12. 1994 Northridge earthquake in U.S. cost 88 billion
  13. 2019 and 2020 Bushfire in Australia cost 71 billion
  14. 2012 Hurricane Sandy in Haiti, U.S., Cuba cost 78 billion
  15. 2019 and 2020 bushfire in Australia cost 71 billion
  16. 2017 Hurricane Irma in U.S., Sint Maarten, Saint Martin cost 69 billion
  17. 2021 Hurricane Ida in U.S., Cuba cost 65 billion
  18. 2012 and 2013 North American drought in U.S and Canada cost 56 to 64 billion
  19. 2011 Flood in Thailand cost 53 billion
  20. 1992 Hurricane Andrew in U.S. cost 51 billion

List of top 20 natural disasters by fatalities (source: Wikipedia and Inspirich)

  1. 1931 China floods killed around 1 to 4 million
  2. 1887 Yellow River flood killed around 2 million
  3. 1556 Shaanxi Province in China earthquake killed around 830,000
  4. 1976 Tangshan China earthquake killed around 242,000 to 655,000
  5. 1970 Bhola East Pakistan (now Bangladesh) cyclone killed around 450,000 to 500,000
  6. 365 Crete earthquake and tsunami in Greece killed 300,000 to 500,000
  7. 2010 Haiti earthquake killed around 160,000 to 316,000
  8. 526 Antioch Byzantine Empire (now Turkey and Syria) earthquake killed around 250,00 to 300,000
  9. 1881 Haiphong Typhoon in Philippines and Vietnam killed 30,000 to 300,000
  10. 1839 Andhra Pradesh India cyclone killed around 300,000
  11. 1737 Calcutta Cyclone in India killed around 300,000
  12. 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunami in Indonesia, Sri Lanka, Thailand killed around 275,000 to 280,000
  13. 1920 Haiyuan China earthquake killed around 273,400
  14. 1138 Aleppo Earthquake in Syria killed around 230,000
  15. 1975 Typhoon Nina in Taiwan and China killed around 229,000
  16. 1935 Yangtze River Flood killed around 145,000
  17. 1991 Bangladesh Cyclone killed around 138,866
  18. 1553 St. Felix's Flood in Netherlands killed 100,000
  19. 1815 Mount Tambora volcanic eruption in Indonesia killed 92,000
  20. 2003 North European heat wave killed around 70,000