Every recorded earthquake within 30 km
Earthquakes near Palo Alto, CA
No earthquake was likely felt in Palo Alto in the 24 hours to 1:03 am PDT (08:03 UTC). The last one was M 1.9, 9 km (6 mi) W, at 4:14 pm PDT on 11 October 2026, estimated intensity II (weak) in town; 1 felt report to USGS.
M 2.6
Latest: 7:17 am PDT on 4 June 2026 · 23 km (14 mi) ENE of Palo Alto, CA
The most recent earthquake of M2.5 or more near Palo Alto was M 2.6, 23 km (14 mi) ENE of Palo Alto, CA, at 7:17 am PDT on 4 June 2026, 9 km deep. 8 people reported feeling it to USGS. The estimated shaking in Palo Alto was intensity II (weak), felt by some people at rest indoors. 22 smaller earthquakes have been recorded near Palo Alto since; the newest is first in the list below.
No earthquake of M1.5 or more was recorded within 30 km (19 mi) of Palo Alto in the last 24 hours.
- Last 24 hours
- 0
- Last 7 days
- 3
- Last 30 days
- 7 · an average 30 days here since 2016: 5.0
- Last 12 months
- 52 · largest M 2.6 on 4 June 2026
- Since 2016
- 662 earthquakes of M1.5 or more within 30 km
- Largest since 2016
- M 3.9 on 28 June 2021, 29 km (18 mi) N of Palo Alto, CA
- Reported felt
- 262 of them have felt reports to USGS
- Nearest mapped fault
- Monte Vista-Shannon fault, 7 km from its surface trace
USGS · feed checked · newest earthquake in our database · this page · counts are earthquakes of M1.5 or more within 30 km (19 mi) of the town centre; shaking is estimated for the town centre with the intensity equation USGS Did You Feel It? uses
If you felt one
- Was that an earthquake? — checks what was recorded near you in the last hour
- Report what you felt to USGS — reports go to USGS, not to us, and they are what produces the intensity maps
- Expect aftershocks, and be ready to Drop, Cover, and Hold On if you feel one; if you are in a damaged building, go outside and move away from it (Ready.gov, FEMA; what to do during and after an earthquake)
- Near the coast, go inland or to higher ground as soon as strong shaking stops (Ready.gov); official warnings are on Tsunami.gov
- Earthquakes in California — with the state's activity score
QuakeIndex does not issue warnings or forecasts. For earthquake early warning see ShakeAlert and the MyShake app.
The last 30 days
The latest 50
- 1.9 9 km (6 mi) W of Palo Alto, CA · felt by 1
- 1.8 29 km (18 mi) SSW of Palo Alto, CA
- 1.7 9 km (6 mi) S of Palo Alto, CA
- 1.6 26 km (16 mi) ENE of Palo Alto, CA
- 1.7 9 km (5 mi) W of Palo Alto, CA
- 1.8 9 km (6 mi) W of Palo Alto, CA · felt by 5
- 2.5 9 km (6 mi) W of Palo Alto, CA · felt by 179
- 1.8 29 km (18 mi) E of Palo Alto, CA
- 1.6 23 km (14 mi) NNE of Palo Alto, CA
- 1.5 8 km (5 mi) WSW of Palo Alto, CA
- 1.8 8 km (5 mi) WSW of Palo Alto, CA
- 1.7 13 km (8 mi) SSW of Palo Alto, CA
- 1.9 8 km (5 mi) WSW of Palo Alto, CA · felt by 1
- 1.6 24 km (15 mi) NNE of Palo Alto, CA
- 1.6 12 km (7 mi) WSW of Palo Alto, CA
- 2.0 24 km (15 mi) NNE of Palo Alto, CA · felt by 6
- 1.6 28 km (17 mi) NW of Palo Alto, CA
- 2.4 25 km (16 mi) NNE of Palo Alto, CA · felt by 42
- 1.5 23 km (14 mi) ENE of Palo Alto, CA
- 1.9 13 km (8 mi) SSW of Palo Alto, CA
- 2.1 21 km (13 mi) NE of Palo Alto, CA · felt by 1
- 1.8 22 km (14 mi) ENE of Palo Alto, CA · felt by 5
- 2.6 23 km (14 mi) ENE of Palo Alto, CA · felt by 8
- 1.6 23 km (14 mi) S of Palo Alto, CA
- 1.8 25 km (16 mi) NNE of Palo Alto, CA
- 2.2 25 km (16 mi) NNE of Palo Alto, CA · felt by 39
- 1.6 29 km (18 mi) E of Palo Alto, CA
- 1.9 26 km (16 mi) S of Palo Alto, CA · felt by 36
- 2.5 15 km (9 mi) SW of Palo Alto, CA · felt by 26
- 1.9 15 km (9 mi) SW of Palo Alto, CA · felt by 2
- 2.4 15 km (9 mi) SW of Palo Alto, CA · felt by 7
- 2.1 28 km (17 mi) NW of Palo Alto, CA · felt by 3
- 2.5 27 km (17 mi) ENE of Palo Alto, CA · felt by 32
- 1.8 24 km (15 mi) NNE of Palo Alto, CA · felt by 3
- 2.0 29 km (18 mi) ENE of Palo Alto, CA
- 1.6 30 km (18 mi) ENE of Palo Alto, CA · felt by 2
- 1.7 12 km (7 mi) SSW of Palo Alto, CA
- 1.7 24 km (15 mi) N of Palo Alto, CA
- 1.6 22 km (14 mi) ENE of Palo Alto, CA
- 1.5 28 km (18 mi) NW of Palo Alto, CA
- 2.0 24 km (15 mi) NW of Palo Alto, CA
- 2.2 21 km (13 mi) NE of Palo Alto, CA · felt by 20
- 2.0 27 km (17 mi) ENE of Palo Alto, CA
- 2.4 9 km (5 mi) W of Palo Alto, CA · felt by 23
- 1.6 9 km (6 mi) W of Palo Alto, CA
- 2.6 9 km (6 mi) W of Palo Alto, CA · felt by 262
- 2.2 9 km (6 mi) W of Palo Alto, CA · felt by 6
- 2.0 9 km (6 mi) W of Palo Alto, CA
- 2.5 9 km (5 mi) W of Palo Alto, CA · felt by 72
- 2.2 9 km (5 mi) W of Palo Alto, CA · felt by 7
From the QuakeIndex database, which reads the USGS feed every 30 seconds and holds the USGS catalogue for the US from 2016 (M1.5+). Times are Palo Alto time. Distances are from the town centre. Quakes USGS named after Palo Alto are listed even when they are further out.
Show these earthquakes on your own site: a free card with the latest quakes near Palo Alto, for a local news site, school or neighborhood page.
On the map
The white circle is Palo Alto; dots are the 50 most recent earthquakes within 30 km. Map © OpenStreetMap contributors.
Estimated shaking in Palo Alto
The strongest shaking in Palo Alto from a quake since 2016 is estimated at intensity III (weak), from the M 3.9 on 28 June 2021, 29 km away. Intensity II and III are felt by some people at rest indoors; IV by most people indoors; V and above wakes sleepers and moves objects.
| Magnitude | When | Distance | Shaking in Palo Alto (est.) |
|---|---|---|---|
| M 3.9 | 29 km | III · Weak · felt by 12,071 | |
| M 3.6 | 24 km | III · Weak · felt by 4,288 | |
| M 2.6 | 9 km | III · Weak · felt by 262 | |
| M 3.7 | 28 km | III · Weak · felt by 16,471 | |
| M 3.3 | 22 km | III · Weak · felt by 1,651 |
An estimate for the town centre from magnitude, depth and distance, with the intensity equation USGS Did You Feel It? uses (Atkinson & Wald, 2007), on the Modified Mercalli scale. All 5 reach intensity II or more in town, where people at rest start to notice. Ground conditions change it street by street. It describes the past, not a hazard.
Before 2016
The USGS record since 1900 lists 15 earthquakes of M5 or more within 50 km of Palo Alto; the five largest:
- 7.9 The 1906 San Francisco, California Earthquake · 50 km NW of Palo Alto
- 6.2 Near San Jose, California · 34 km ESE of Palo Alto
- 6.2 The 1984 Morgan Hill, California Earthquake · 44 km ESE of Palo Alto
- 6.1 Near San Jose, California · 41 km SE of Palo Alto
- 5.8 7 km NNW of Boulder Creek, California · 28 km S of Palo Alto
USGS ComCat, M5+ from 1900 to 2015. This is the record, not a forecast.
Nearest mapped faults
- Monte Vista-Shannon fault, 7 km from its surface trace
- San Andreas fault, 10 km from its surface trace
- Hayward fault, 20 km from its surface trace
USGS Quaternary Fault and Fold Database. Near is not the same as on.
Nearby towns
Stanford 3 km · East Palo Alto 3 km · Menlo Park 4 km · Los Altos 7 km · Mountain View 8 km · Redwood City 10 km · Portola Valley 10 km · Loyola 11 km
Be ready
Earthquakes cannot be predicted, here or anywhere, so the useful step is the one taken beforehand. The advice below is from the agencies responsible for it.
- Ready.gov: earthquakes (FEMA) — what to do before, during and after, including Drop, Cover, and Hold On
- Build a kit (FEMA) — water, food and supplies for several days; our summary
- USGS: preparedness — the hazard behind the advice, from the agency that records every quake on this page
- The Great ShakeOut — the yearly earthquake drill, with material for homes, schools and workplaces
- ShakeAlert covers Palo Alto, CA: alerts reach phones through Wireless Emergency Alerts and the MyShake app, seconds before shaking arrives
- Tsunami.gov (NOAA) — the official tsunami warnings for the coast; a quake page here never stands in for one
- California Earthquake Authority — retrofit grants and the state's not-for-profit earthquake insurance
QuakeIndex does not issue warnings or forecasts. For earthquake early warning see ShakeAlert and the MyShake app.