A 72-hour emergency kit covers water, food, light, communications, first aid, sanitation, shelter, warmth, documents, medications, and special-needs items for every person in your household.
For the full breakdown, see our best 72 Hour Emergency Kits guide.
One gallon of water per person per day is the number most home kits miss — and it is the number that matters most when the tap stops running. Whether you are building from scratch or checking a store-bought bag before storm season, the list below is what FEMA’s official checklist actually requires, plus the items people forget until the night they need them.
The Core Items FEMA Lists for Every Kit
FEMA’s basic emergency supplies checklist covers ten categories, and every item on it serves a job you cannot substitute once the power is out.
- Water: at least 1 gallon per person per day for at least 3 days — drinking and sanitation combined.
- Food: a 3-day supply of non-perishable food, plus a manual can opener if any of it comes in cans.
- Light: a flashlight, with extra batteries stored alongside it.
- Alerts: a battery-powered or hand-crank radio, ideally a NOAA Weather Radio with tone alert.
- First aid: a stocked first aid kit.
- Communication: a cell phone with chargers and a backup battery.
- Signaling: a whistle — it carries farther than a voice and costs almost no energy.
- Air protection: a dust mask, plus cloth face coverings for everyone ages 2 and up.
- Sanitation: moist towelettes, garbage bags, and plastic ties for personal sanitation.
- Shelter materials: plastic sheeting and duct tape, so you can seal a room if you are told to shelter in place.
- Navigation: local maps, in case cell service is down.
- Warmth: a sleeping bag or warm blanket for each person, plus a complete change of clothing and sturdy shoes.
Notice what is missing from most home kits: the plastic sheeting and duct tape. They sit on FEMA’s core list because shelter-in-place orders happen without warning, and a hardware store run is not an option once the roads close.
Items People Add After the First Storm
FEMA tells you to tailor the kit to your household, and the personal items are where a generic kit quietly fails.
Important family documents — insurance policies, identification, bank records — belong in a waterproof, portable container, not a filing cabinet. Cash or traveler’s checks still work when card readers do not. Prescription medications, non-prescription medications, eyeglasses, and contact lens solution round out the medical side, while infant formula and diapers, pet food and water, and feminine supplies and hygiene items cover the people and animals a one-size kit ignores. FEMA also suggests matches in a waterproof container, a fire extinguisher, and activity items for children, because three days indoors is a long three days.
Backups are the other gap. FEMA explicitly lists extra batteries and a backup phone battery, and those two lines are the difference between a radio that works on day three and a paperweight.
| Category | FEMA Minimum | Easy to Forget |
|---|---|---|
| Water | 1 gallon per person per day, 3 days | Extra for pets |
| Food | 3-day non-perishable supply | Manual can opener |
| Light & alerts | Flashlight, hand-crank or battery radio | Extra batteries |
| Shelter | Plastic sheeting and duct tape | Sealing a room takes practice |
| Sanitation | Moist towelettes, bags, plastic ties | Hand sanitizer and soap |
| Documents | Waterproof, portable container | Cash in small bills |
| Medical | Prescriptions, OTC meds, eyewear | Pet and infant supplies |
If assembling the list yourself sounds slower than it should be, our breakdown of the best 72 hour emergency kits compares ready-made bags against their contents so you can spot which ones skimp on water capacity.
How Much Water and Food Do You Actually Need?
For three days, the math is simple: one gallon of water per person per day, which means a household of four needs 12 gallons of drinking water on hand. That is a real weight and volume problem, which is why many kits pair stored water with a portable container. FEMA’s gallon-per-person-per-day figure is the one to plan around.
Food follows the same logic: a 3-day non-perishable supply per person. Emergency food bars and pouches exist because they survive heat and cold, but shelf-stable items from your own pantry work just as well as long as nothing needs cooking or refrigeration.
Building It in One Afternoon
Grab a backpack or a rolling bin and pack in this order: water first, then food plus the manual can opener, then light and radio with spare batteries, then the first aid kit and whistle, then sanitation supplies, then plastic sheeting and duct tape, then warmth and clothing, then documents and cash, and finally the medications and specialty items for your household. Check the kit twice a year — swap out expired food, test the flashlight, and confirm the backup battery still holds a charge. One afternoon of packing covers the full three-day window FEMA’s checklist is built around.
FAQs
How long does a 72-hour kit actually last?
It is built for three days of self-sufficiency per person. After 72 hours, resupply or evacuation is expected.
Should I buy a prepackaged kit or build my own?
Prepackaged kits save time and often include the odd items like aluminized rescue blankets and duct tape. Building your own lets you match exact quantities to your household and control quality and expiration dates. Many families buy a base kit and add water, medications, and pet supplies on top.
Where should I store the kit?
Keep it somewhere dry, accessible, and known to everyone in the household — a hall closet or garage shelf near an exit works well. Avoid attics and damp basements, since heat and moisture degrade food, batteries, and water pouches.
References & Sources
- FEMA. “How to Build a Kit for Emergencies” Source of the core water, food, radio, shelter, and document requirements.
- American Red Cross. “Survival Kit Buying Guide” Explains kit components and how prepackaged kits are sized for households.
