Strongest earthquake in the period: ranking of US metro areas

Order: highest value first. Lower is better.

Strongest earthquake in the period: ranking of US metro areas: Anchorage ranks first (7.1 magnitude) and Las Vegas last (4.5 magnitude). The median across 38 metro areas is 5.3 magnitude. Observation period: 2006-2025. Source: USGS, ComCat earthquake catalog.

Largest earthquake magnitude within 100 km of the center during the observation period.

Data quality: observed tremors over 20 years only; no events means no value, not zero.

#Metro areaValue
1AnchorageAK7.1 magnitude
2SacramentoCA6.0 magnitude
3San FranciscoCA6.0 magnitude
4Santa RosaCA6.0 magnitude
5StocktonCA6.0 magnitude
6VallejoCA6.0 magnitude
7RichmondVA5.8 magnitude
8TulsaOK5.8 magnitude
9RenoNV5.7 magnitude
10OgdenUT5.7 magnitude
11Oklahoma CityOK5.7 magnitude
12ProvoUT5.7 magnitude
13Salt Lake CityUT5.7 magnitude
14ModestoCA5.5 magnitude
15SalinasCA5.5 magnitude
16San JoseCA5.5 magnitude
17Los AngelesCA5.4 magnitude
18RiversideCA5.4 magnitude
19OxnardCA5.3 magnitude
20BakersfieldCA5.2 magnitude
21San DiegoCA5.2 magnitude
22HickoryNC5.1 magnitude
23WinstonNC5.1 magnitude
24Boise CityID4.9 magnitude
25WichitaKS4.9 magnitude
26VisaliaCA4.9 magnitude
27AllentownPA4.8 magnitude
28New YorkNY4.8 magnitude
29PhiladelphiaPA4.8 magnitude
30San AntonioTX4.8 magnitude
31Santa MariaCA4.8 magnitude
32ShreveportLA4.8 magnitude
33TrentonNJ4.8 magnitude
34Little RockAR4.7 magnitude
35ManchesterNH4.7 magnitude
36PortlandME4.7 magnitude
37SeattleWA4.7 magnitude
38Las VegasNV4.5 magnitude

Only places with a value for the indicator are ranked; a gap is not a zero. A ranking on one indicator is not an assessment of a place to live.

Compare Anchorage and Sacramento