Earthquakes Near Me: Every Quake Around Your ZIP Code

Enter your ZIP code at the top of this page. It reads the USGS earthquake catalog live and lists every quake within 250 km (about 155 miles) in the last 30 days, with the magnitude, depth, distance, local time and how many people reported feeling it. If you felt one that is not listed yet, USGS takes reports on its Did You Feel It? page.

Magnitude measures the size of the quake at its source. The USGS puts it this way: “Magnitude is related to the amount of seismic energy released at the hypocenter of the earthquake.” And on the steps between numbers: “Each whole number increase in magnitude represents a tenfold increase in measured amplitude; as an estimate of energy, each whole number step in the magnitude scale corresponds to the release of about 31 times more energy than the amount associated with the preceding whole number value.”

A quake has one magnitude but many intensities. “Intensity is based on the observed effects of ground shaking on people, buildings, and natural features. It varies from place to place within the disturbed region depending on the location of the observer with respect to the earthquake epicenter.” The intensity scale used in the US is the Modified Mercalli scale, from I (not felt) to XII, and the Roman numeral beside a quake on this page is the intensity people reported.

Usually not. The USGS says: “Earthquakes with magnitude of about 2.0 or less are usually called microearthquakes; they are not commonly felt by people and are generally recorded only on local seismographs.” That is why the list starts at magnitude 2.5 in most states and 1.5 in the West and Alaska, where the networks record more small quakes; you can change the floor either way.

Drop, Cover and Hold On. Ready.gov: “Drop where you are onto hands and knees.” Then cover your head and neck, under a sturdy table if one is near, and hold on until the shaking stops. “If you are inside, stay and do not run outside; avoid doorways.”

Counting quakes of magnitude 2.5 or more from 2016 to 2025, the busiest states are Alaska (5,039 a year), Hawaii (1,739 a year) and California (1,269 a year). Across all fifty that is about 9,756 a year, and 47 states logged at least one of magnitude 3 or more since 1990. The table on this page ranks every state.

It is the number of Did You Feel It? reports USGS has for that quake. “Did You Feel It? (DYFI) collects information from people who felt an earthquake and creates maps that show what people experienced and the extent of damage.” The Roman numeral beside it is the shaking those reports describe, on the Modified Mercalli scale.

Not the standard policy. Ready.gov: “A standard homeowner’s insurance policy does not cover earthquake damage.” Earthquake coverage is a separate policy or endorsement; ask your insurer what it costs where you live.