American Red Cross survival kit (3 days and 2 weeks)

The American Red Cross splits preparedness in two: a 3-day kit you can grab and evacuate with, and a 2-week supply for sheltering at home. It also asks for a 7-day supply of medication, a multi-tool and an emergency blanket, and lists a generator as optional for the 2-week supply.

The official numbers

• Self-reliance: 3 days (evacuation), 2 weeks (at home)
• Water: 1 gallon per person per day
• Medication: 7-day supply

What American Red Cross recommends

Gear

• First aid kit (home)
• Flashlight / torch
• Spare batteries
• Blankets and warm clothing
• Emergency blanket / bivvy
• Sleeping bag
• Emergency radio
• Local paper map
• Compact first aid kit (go-bag)
• Multitool / pocket knife
• Work gloves
• Water storage for two weeks
• Portable power station
• Inverter generator (houses with outdoor space)

Supplies to buy

• Bottled drinking water
• Long-life food (ready to eat)

To arrange

• Paper list of emergency contacts
• Personal medication supply
• Cash in small notes and coins
• Copies of ID and key documents
• Household emergency plan

What the authorities advise beyond the kit

The Red Cross frames preparedness as three steps: get a kit, make a plan, be informed.

• Choose two meeting places: one right outside your home in case of fire, and one outside your neighbourhood in case you can’t return.
• Pick an out-of-area contact. After a disaster, long-distance calls often get through when local ones don’t, and text messages get through when calls fail.
• Learn first aid and CPR. It’s the most useful skill in the first minutes, before help arrives.
• Know the hazards where you live and how you’ll be warned about each.
• Keep the plan and contacts on paper, not only in your phone.

Food to keep at home

What the official list says: Non-perishable, easy-to-prepare food: 3 days if you evacuate, 2 weeks at home.

General advice from the official food lists:

• Stock food you already eat, and rotate it: use the oldest first and replace it, so nothing expires unnoticed.
• For 72 hours, choose food that keeps at room temperature and can be eaten without cooking: tins, crispbread, dried fruit, nuts, muesli, long-life milk.
• For a week or longer, add dry staples such as rice, pasta, oats and pulses, plus oil, salt and sugar, and a stove to cook on.
• Dry staples need water to cook: count it in your water stock.
• Store food cool, dry and dark, in airtight containers once opened.
• Allow for babies, special diets, allergies and pets.
• Keep a manual can opener, and throw away tins that are swollen, dented or rusty.

Printable one-to-two-week food list, combined from official lists. Print it or save it as a PDF.

What other governments add

These appear on most of the 12 official lists we compared, but not on this one:

• Power bank (8 of 12 lists)
• Pet food and water (6 of 12 lists)
• Lighter and waterproof matches (6 of 12 lists)
• Hand sanitiser (6 of 12 lists)

Build your kit

Every item above is in our L1 kit (72 hours). Use the household calculator to get quantities for your household, and download the shopping list for the supplies you’ll buy at the supermarket and pharmacy.

FAQ

How long should an emergency kit last in United States? 3 days (evacuation), 2 weeks (at home), according to American Red Cross.

Do I need to buy a ready-made kit? No. Building your own from the official list is cheaper and you know what’s in it. Our picks cover the gear; the rest comes from the supermarket.

Source: American Red Cross. Last reviewed: October 2026.