Katrina was the third most intense hurricane to hit the United States in recorded history. In the Atlantic Basin it achieved the status of the fourth lowest central pressure ever recorded. Many estimates predict that Katrina was the costliest storm in history to strike the United States, surpassing Hurricane Andrew which ravaged Miami-Dade County, Florida, in 1992.

Katrina was the second-deadliest named storm to hit the US, and may be declared the deadliest when the final toll is known. Other storms that killed many U.S. citizens include:

- The Galveston Hurricane of 1900, which killed an estimated 8,000–12,000.
- The 1928 Okeechobee Hurricane, which killed at least 2,000 people in the US and 1,000+ in Puerto Rico.
- 1957's Hurricane Audrey, which killed 390, with up to 160 more never accounted for.
- 1969's Hurricane Camille, which killed 256

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