Country profile · USGS ComCat
Earthquakes in Bhutan
Bhutan has catalogued 35 M4+ earthquakes since 2005 (ranked 114th of 187 countries), with the strongest reaching magnitude M6.4.
Bhutan ranks 114th of 187 countries by catalogued seismic activity - a country with limited but non-zero seismic activity, averaging about 2 M4+ events a year alongside 3 significant M6+ earthquakes since 1900. The M6+ record here is thin - 3 events in all, so a single quake moves every figure on this page.
- 35
- M4+ events (since 2005)
- 3
- Major M6+ (since 1900)
- M6.4
- Strongest
- ~2
- M4+ per year
The verdict
Bhutan is below the global median in catalogued seismic activity, with 35 M4+ earthquakes logged since 2005 and 3 major M6+ events since 1900, the strongest reaching magnitude 6.4.
- 1941
- busiest year (1 major events)
- 15 km
- average recorded event depth
- 100%
- of events are shallow (<70 km, the most damaging kind)
Average catalogued magnitude is 4.5 - most events are moderate M4-5 tremors that are felt but rarely cause damage. On the M4+ activity ladder Bulgaria sits immediately above at 36 events and Malta sits immediately below at 34.
ComCat magnitude tape
Event tape BHUTAN · Bhutan M4+ · 114th/187
Bhutan · 35 M4+ · max M6.4 · 3 M6+
- DEPTH 35
- PHOTO 114th/187
- BUSY M6.4
- SHAL 3
- PCT near Bulgaria
- VS-PEER 100% shallow
Stamps derive from this country's USGS ComCat row (M4+ book, rank, peak magnitude, M6+ record, ladder neighbour, depth/peak year), not a hazard forecast. PlainQuake is informational only - not professional advice and not a substitute for official USGS guidance. See our disclaimer. Verify with USGS ComCat → · Read with methodology → · How earthquakes are measured → · Reading earthquake data → · All country catalog rows → · Countries ranked →
Observed impact record
What ComCat observed after earthquakes in Bhutan
USGS recorded Modified Mercalli Intensity (MMI) for 3 events in this catalogued record; their average observed intensity was MMI 6.4. These are only events with an observation, not an estimate of future shaking or a safety rating.
- MMI observations
- 3
- Average observed MMI
- 6.4
- PAGER alerts / tsunami flags
- 0 / 0
Source: USGS Comprehensive Earthquake Catalog (ComCat) GeoJSON impact fields. Missing MMI, alert, and tsunami values remain unreported rather than being treated as zero.
Where Bhutan sits in the catalog
Rank 114th of 187 tracked countries (39th percentile by M4+ count since 2005). On the M4+ activity ladder Bulgaria sits immediately above at 36 events and Malta sits immediately below at 34.
Same M4+ count, broken by peak magnitude
2 tracked countries share Bhutan's exact count of 35 M4+ events since 2005. Among that cohort, Bhutan ranks 1st of 2 by strongest recorded magnitude (M6.1).
| Country | M4+ count | Strongest |
|---|---|---|
| Bhutan (this page) | 35 | M6.1 |
| Tunisia | 35 | M5.1 |
Major (M6+) earthquakes in Bhutan by year
Count of significant (magnitude 6.0+) events catalogued each year
- 1941
1941: 1 major (M6+) events
1
- 1954
1954: 1 major (M6+) events
1
- 2009
2009: 1 major (M6+) events
1
What this shows Bhutan's most active year for major earthquakes was 1941 (1 M6+ events). Major-quake counts are irregular, they track the episodic release of tectonic stress, not a smooth trend.
1 of 35 catalogued M4+ events since 2005 reached M6.0 or higher.
Magnitude distribution of major events
Breakdown of the 3 significant (M6+) earthquakes on record for Bhutan.
M6.0-6.9
3
100.0%
Depth of major earthquakes
Hypocentral depth of the 3 M6+ events, shallow quakes shake the surface hardest. Average depth: 15 km.
Shallow (<70 km)
3
100.0% of events
Intermediate (70–300 km)
0
0.0% of events
Deep (>300 km)
0
0.0% of events
Strongest earthquakes in Bhutan
The 3 most powerful events on record (USGS, since 1900).
| Mag | Location | Depth | Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| 6.4 | 29 km SE of Trashigang, Bhutan | 15.0 km | Jan 21, 1941 |
| 6.2 | 12 km ENE of Trashi Yangtse, Bhutan | 15.0 km | Feb 23, 1954 |
| 6.1 | 11 km W of Trashigang, Bhutan | 14.0 km | Sep 21, 2009 |
Significant earthquake record (3 events)
Every catalogued magnitude-6.0-and-above earthquake in Bhutan since 1900, most recent first.
| Mag | Location | Depth | Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| 6.1 | 11 km W of Trashigang, Bhutan | 14.0 km | Sep 21, 2009 |
| 6.2 | 12 km ENE of Trashi Yangtse, Bhutan | 15.0 km | Feb 23, 1954 |
| 6.4 | 29 km SE of Trashigang, Bhutan | 15.0 km | Jan 21, 1941 |
Other countries in this catalog sample
A Bhutan-keyed shuffle of the full 186-country roster, not the six nearest by count.
Iran
3,577 M4+ events · strongest M7.7
Democratic Republic of the Congo
161 M4+ events · strongest M6.8
Svalbard and Jan Mayen
435 M4+ events · strongest M6.8
Guyana
12 M4+ events · strongest M5.5
Haiti
217 M4+ events · strongest M7.2
Central African Republic
2 M4+ events · strongest M4.7
Peak-magnitude sample from the same roster
A second Bhutan-keyed shuffle of countries with a recorded max magnitude.
Showing 6 of 186 countries with a recorded max magnitude.
According to the US Geological Survey Earthquake Hazards Program, PlainQuake's figures are rendered directly from 317,293 recorded M4+ earthquakes and 14,444 significant M6+ events (USGS ComCat, 2005-present) -- no figure is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of 2026-08-26.