The effects of Hurricane Wilma in Florida resulted in the storm becoming one of the costliest tropical cyclones in Florida history. Wilma developed in the Caribbean Sea just southwest of Jamaica on October 15 from a large area of disturbed weather. After reaching tropical storm intensity on October 17 and then hurricane status on October 18, the system explosively deepened, peaking as the strongest tropical cyclone ever recorded in the Atlantic basin. Wilma then slowly weakened while trekking to the northwest and fell to Category 4 intensity by the time it struck the Yucatn Peninsula on October 22. Thereafter, a strong cold front swept the storm northeastward into Florida on October 24, with landfall occurring near Cape Romano as a Category 3 hurricane with winds of 120 mph (190 km/h). Wilma continued rapidly northeastward into the Atlantic Ocean and became extratropical on October 26.

As the system drew closer, Florida governor Jeb Bush declared a state of emergency on October 19. Schools and government offices began closing on the following day. The storm's threat resulted in the postponement of several professional and collegiate sports games. The National Hurricane Center (NHC) issued many tropical cyclone warnings and watches for the state beginning on October 22. Officials ordered evacuations for southwestern Florida and the Florida Keys. However, fewer than 10% of Florida Keys residents complied with evacuation orders. No mandatory evacuations would be ordered for coastal areas of the Miami metropolitan area, though residents residing in low-lying areas and mobile homes were told to evacuate. Over 33,000 people sought refuge at a shelter in Florida.

Much of southern Florida experienced hurricane-force winds, with the strongest surface-height sustained wind speed being a 15-minute average of 92 mph (148 km/h), equivalent to a 1-minute speed of 104 mph (167 km/h), observed in Lake Okeechobee. High winds left approximately 3,241,000 customers of Florida Power & Light without electricity, including roughly 98% of urban southeast Florida. Primarily due to strong winds, agriculture sustained $1.3 billion or more in damage. There was also extensive impact to businesses and dwellings, with 55,000 residences and 3,600 workplaces in Palm Beach County alone reporting some degree of damage. Storm surge also left extensive damage in some parts of the state, especially in the Florida Keys and coastal Collier County. Damage in Florida totaled approximately $19 billion. At least 30 Wilma-related deaths were reported in Florida; five people died directly due to the hurricane's impacts.

Hurricane Wilma was the most intense tropical cyclone ever recorded in the Atlantic basin, and the second-most intense tropical cyclone recorded in the Western Hemisphere, after Hurricane Patricia in 2015. Part of the record-breaking 2005 Atlantic hurricane season, which included three of the ten most intense Atlantic hurricanes ever in terms of barometric pressure (along with #4 Rita and #7 Katrina), Wilma was the twenty-second storm, thirteenth hurricane, sixth major hurricane, fourth Category 5 hurricane, and the second-most destructive hurricane of the 2005 season. A tropical depression formed in the Caribbean Sea near Jamaica on October 15, headed westward, and intensified into a tropical storm two days later, which abruptly turned southward and was named Wilma. Wilma continued to strengthen, and eventually became a hurricane on October 18. Shortly thereafter, explosive intensification occurred, and in only 24 hours, Wilma became a Category 5 hurricane with wind speeds of 185 mph (298 km/h).

Wilma's intensity slowly leveled off after becoming a Category 5 hurricane, and winds had decreased to 150 mph (240 km/h) before it reached the Yucatán Peninsula on October 20 and 21. After crossing the Yucatán, Wilma emerged into the Gulf of Mexico as a Category 2 hurricane. As it began accelerating to the northeast, gradual re-intensification occurred, and the hurricane was upgraded to Category 3 status on October 24. Shortly thereafter, Wilma made landfall in Cape Romano, Florida with winds of 120 mph (190 km/h). As Wilma was crossing Florida, it briefly weakened back to a Category 2 hurricane, but again re-intensified as it reached the Atlantic Ocean. The hurricane intensified into a Category 3 hurricane for the last time, before weakening while accelerating northeastward. By October 26, Wilma transitioned into an extratropical cyclone southeast of Nova Scotia.

Wilma made several landfalls, with the most destructive effects felt in the Yucatán Peninsula of Mexico, Cuba, and the U.S. state of Florida. At least 52 deaths were reported and damage totaled to $22.4 billion, most of which occurred in the United States. After Wilma, no other major hurricane made landfall in the contiguous United States until Hurricane Harvey made landfall in southern Texas on August 26, 2017, ending a record period of 11 years 10 months. During this time, major Atlantic hurricanes occurred slightly more frequently than average; they just either did not make landfall at that strength in the United States or just missed the United States entirely. Also, after Wilma, no hurricane struck the state of Florida until Hurricane Hermine did so nearly 11 years later in 2016, and no major hurricane struck Florida until nearly 12 years later when Hurricane Irma made landfall in early September 2017.