With the use of a simplified prototype model domain and a dynamic modeling approach, this study shows that storm surge responds to sea-level rise (SLR) nonlinearly and the spatial distribution of the nonlinearity can be generalized as three distinct regions across the land-ocean boundary near the hurricane track. In particular for the lower floodplain region, compared with the baseline condition without SLR, the increment in the storm surge height under the SLR condition can be twice the SLR rate as a result of nonlinear amplification. This result highlights the necessity for designing more robust coastal infrastructure to mitigate the effect of storm surge in the context of SLR.