Emergency gear by level: from 72 hours to months

Reviewed on November 15, 2026

Rough prices in Spanish stores (November 2026) for a 2-person household. They don't include medication or cash. You can spread the cost over several months.

Level 1 · The basics

From 72 hours to 1 week. What civil protection agencies and the European Union recommend for every household. Start here.

🔦 Light and power

• One LED flashlight per person · Rough price: 10–30 €
  LED is best: they use far less power than bulb flashlights.
• Headlamp · Rough price: 8–25 €
  It leaves your hands free to cook, treat wounds or go down stairs.
• Spare batteries: 2 sets per device · Rough price: 10–20 €
  Use the same size (AA or AAA) in all your devices so you can swap them around.
• A charged power bank of 10,000 mAh or more · Rough price: 20–40 €
  It gives 1.5–2 charges of a current phone.

🔥 Fire, heat and cooking

• 2 lighters and a box of matches in a waterproof bag · Rough price: 3–6 €
  For lighting a stove or a candle, not for heating the house.
• A blanket or sleeping bag and an emergency blanket per person · Rough price: 5–40 €
  The (foil) emergency blanket reflects body heat back and weighs 50 g. If you buy a blanket, wool is best: it still keeps you somewhat warm when damp.
• A rain jacket or waterproof poncho per person · Rough price: 5–20 €
  Getting wet in the cold chills the body very fast. A poncho also covers your bag.

💧 Water

• Water jugs as per the calculator · Rough price: 3–15 €
• Bleach suitable for drinking water, or water purification tablets · Rough price: 2–12 €
  2 drops per liter and 30 minutes (see "Water").

🥫 Food

• The calculator's food supplies (canned food, canned legumes, nuts) · Rough price: 20–50 €
• Manual can opener, cutlery, and reusable plates and cups · Rough price: 5–15 €

🩹 Health and hygiene

• First aid kit: gauze, bandages, tape, antiseptic, scissors, thermometer, painkillers · Rough price: 15–40 €
• Regular medication for the time frame plus a week, and copies of the prescriptions
• Toilet paper, hand sanitizer, soap, sanitary pads and heavy-duty trash bags · Rough price: 8–20 €

🧰 Tools

• Multi-tool knife, duct tape and a whistle · Rough price: 10–30 €
  A whistle carries farther than your voice and takes less effort when calling for help.
• Battery smoke alarm in the hallway outside the bedrooms · Rough price: 8–25 €
  In a blackout people use candles, camping stoves and heaters: that's when the most fires happen.
• Window breaker with seatbelt cutter in the car, within the driver's reach · Rough price: 5–12 €
  In a flood, the car can lose power with the windows shut. Keep it on your key ring or in the door, not in the glove box.

📻 Communication

• Battery, dynamo or hand-crank radio (FM/AM) · Rough price: 20–45 €
  In a blackout, the radio is how official instructions reach you.

📄 Documents and money

• Copies of documents, phone numbers on paper and cash in small bills · Rough price: 3–10 €

Level 2 · Extended pantry

From 2 weeks to 1 month. To manage without power, gas or shops for weeks: solar power, off-grid cooking and long-life food.

🔦 Light and power

• Folding USB solar panel (20–30 W) to charge power banks and phones · Rough price: 40–90 €
  In good sun, it charges a phone in a few hours; in winter or when it's cloudy, much less.
• Small power station (about 300 Wh) that can be charged with the solar panel · Rough price: 200–350 €
  For lights, phones, the radio or the router for several days. Check that the panel is compatible with the station.
• Rechargeable batteries and a USB or solar charger · Rough price: 20–40 €
• LED lantern or solar lamp to light a room · Rough price: 10–30 €
  Safer than candles: there's no fire risk.

🔥 Fire, heat and cooking

• Camping stove with spare gas canisters · Rough price: 20–45 €
  Only use it outdoors or with a window open, never in an enclosed space.
• Battery-powered carbon monoxide detector · Rough price: 20–40 €
  Essential if you're going to use a camping stove, heater or fireplace.
• Ferro rod fire starter and fire-starter tabs or tinder that burns when wet · Rough price: 8–20 €
  A backup for the lighters. Practice first: it's not as easy as it looks.
• Pot and saucepan with lids for the stove · Rough price: 15–40 €
  With a lid, water boils faster and uses less gas.

💧 Water

• Portable water filter (0.1 micron or less) · Rough price: 25–50 €
  It removes bacteria and protozoa; many don't remove viruses: combine it with bleach or boiling.
• Single-wall steel bottle or canteen (not insulated) · Rough price: 15–30 €
  It can go on the fire to boil water. Never heat an insulated (double-wall) bottle: it can burst.
• Stackable 10–20 L food-grade water containers · Rough price: 20–50 €

🥫 Food

• Dehydrated or freeze-dried food (pouches that only need water) · Rough price: 50–150 €
  Most need hot water; some can be rehydrated cold if you give them longer.
• Rice, pasta and dried legumes for 2–4 weeks · Rough price: 20–40 €
  They need a stove and water: dried legumes need soaking and long cooking.
• Salt, sugar, oil, honey, coffee or cocoa, and spices · Rough price: 15–30 €
• Multivitamin for long periods on a canned-food diet · Rough price: 8–20 €
  Check with your doctor or pharmacist.

🩹 Health and hygiene

• Emergency toilet: a bucket with a lid, heavy bags and sawdust or cat litter · Rough price: 15–30 €
  With no water in the tank, avoid using the toilet: it clogs and creates sources of infection.
• N95/FFP2 masks and disposable gloves · Rough price: 10–20 €
  For smoke, rubble dust or contagious illnesses.
• HEPA air purifier for one room · Rough price: 80–200 €
  With wildfire smoke, close the windows and keep one room with the purifier running. It needs power: think about how you'll run it.

🧰 Tools

• Sturdy fixed-blade knife with a sheath · Rough price: 20–60 €
  For cutting rope, kindling or preparing food. It's for home and outdoors: check the laws in your country before carrying it.
• 2–6 kg ABC dry powder fire extinguisher and a fire blanket in the kitchen · Rough price: 25–60 €
• Work gloves, rope, a waterproof tarp and cable ties · Rough price: 20–40 €

📻 Communication

• Walkie-talkies (licence-free PMR446 in the EU, FRS in the US) · Rough price: 30–70 €
  Real range of 0.5–3 km (0.3–2 miles) in a city. Agree on a channel in the family plan.

Level 3 · Long-term self-reliance

More than 1 month. For long crises or isolated homes. It takes space, money and, above all, knowing how to use it: get trained before you buy.

🔦 Light and power

• Portable power station (500 Wh or more) with a 100–200 W solar panel · Rough price: 500–1,500 €
  It can keep a small fridge, charge equipment or run a medical device for days.

🔥 Fire, heat and cooking

• Winter sleeping bag (comfort rating 0 °C / 32 °F or lower) per person · Rough price: 120–400 €
• Certified wood or pellet stove, with an inspected flue, and dry fuel · Rough price: 600–2,500 €
  Only if your home allows it. Never use outdoor heaters indoors.

💧 Water

• Rainwater collection (a tank with a lid) and a large gravity filter · Rough price: 100–400 €
  Rainwater from the roof isn't safe to drink: filter it and disinfect it.

🥫 Food

• Rotating pantry of 1–3 months of what you normally eat · Rough price: 200–600 €
  Eat what you store and store what you eat: replace things as you use them.
• Seeds and supplies for a vegetable garden or pots (legumes, potatoes, vegetables) · Rough price: 30–100 €

🩹 Health and hygiene

• Extended first aid kit and a first aid course for at least one adult · Rough price: 50–150 €
  The Red Cross and civil protection agencies run courses, many of them free.

🧰 Tools

• Axe or saw, shovel, hammer, nails, screws and basic wrenches · Rough price: 80–200 €

📻 Communication

• Shortwave receiver and, if you're interested, an amateur radio license · Rough price: 50–150 €
  Amateur radio keeps working when the internet and phone networks go down.

📄 Documents and money

• Encrypted digital copy of your documents on a USB drive, and cash for 2–4 weeks · Rough price: 10–25 €