Country profile · USGS ComCat
Earthquakes in Haiti
Haiti has catalogued 217 M4+ earthquakes since 2005 (ranked 57th of 187 countries), with the strongest reaching magnitude M7.2.
Haiti ranks 57th of 187 countries by catalogued seismic activity - a moderately seismically active country, averaging about 10 M4+ events a year alongside 6 significant M6+ earthquakes since 1900. The M6+ record here is thin - 6 events in all, so a single quake moves every figure on this page.
- 217
- M4+ events (since 2005)
- 6
- Major M6+ (since 1900)
- M7.2
- Strongest
- ~10
- M4+ per year
The verdict
Haiti is moderately seismically active, above the global median, with 217 M4+ earthquakes logged since 2005 and 6 major M6+ events since 1900, the strongest reaching magnitude 7.2.
- 2010
- busiest year (2 major events)
- 23 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 Mayotte sits immediately above at 232 events and MX sits immediately below at 202.
ComCat country tape
Event tape HAITI · Haiti M4+ · 57th/187
Haiti · 217 M4+ · max M7.2 · 6 M6+
- STRIP 217
- BOOK 57th/187
- RANK M7.2
- MAX 6
- M6 near Mayotte
- DEPTH 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 Haiti
USGS recorded Modified Mercalli Intensity (MMI) for 6 events in this catalogued record; their average observed intensity was MMI 7.1. These are only events with an observation, not an estimate of future shaking or a safety rating.
- MMI observations
- 6
- Average observed MMI
- 7.1
- PAGER alerts / tsunami flags
- 1 / 1
Source: USGS Comprehensive Earthquake Catalog (ComCat) GeoJSON impact fields. Missing MMI, alert, and tsunami values remain unreported rather than being treated as zero.
Where Haiti sits in the catalog
Rank 57th of 187 tracked countries (70th percentile by M4+ count since 2005). On the M4+ activity ladder Mayotte sits immediately above at 232 events and MX sits immediately below at 202.
Haiti's M4+ count vs. every tracked country
Total catalogued M4+ events since 2005, USGS ComCat
217 Top 30% higher than 70% of 187 countries
Each bar is a 500-wide band; taller bars hold more countries. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count, share, and where it sits relative to this entry.
Source USGS Comprehensive Earthquake Catalog (ComCat) · 2005-present
Major (M6+) earthquakes in Haiti by year
Count of significant (magnitude 6.0+) events catalogued each year
- 1952
1952: 1 major (M6+) events
1
- 1956
1956: 1 major (M6+) events
1
- 1962
1962: 1 major (M6+) events
1
- 2010
2010: 2 major (M6+) events
2
- 2021
2021: 1 major (M6+) events
1
What this shows Haiti's most active year for major earthquakes was 2010 (2 M6+ events). Major-quake counts are irregular, they track the episodic release of tectonic stress, not a smooth trend.
3 of 217 catalogued M4+ events since 2005 reached M6.0 or higher.
Magnitude distribution of major events
Breakdown of the 6 significant (M6+) earthquakes on record for Haiti.
M7.0-7.9
2
33.3%
M6.0-6.9
4
66.7%
Depth of major earthquakes
Hypocentral depth of the 6 M6+ events, shallow quakes shake the surface hardest. Average depth: 23 km.
Shallow (<70 km)
6
100.0% of events
Intermediate (70–300 km)
0
0.0% of events
Deep (>300 km)
0
0.0% of events
Strongest earthquakes in Haiti
The 6 most powerful events on record (USGS, since 1900).
| Mag | Location | Depth | Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| 7.2 | Nippes, Haiti | 10.0 km | Aug 14, 2021 |
| 7.0 | 10 km SE of Léogâne, Haiti | 13.0 km | Jan 12, 2010 |
| 6.6 | 68 km NNE of Borgne, Haiti | 25.0 km | Apr 20, 1962 |
| 6.2 | 5 km SE of Arcahaie, Haiti | 55.0 km | Jul 9, 1956 |
| 6.2 | 12 km SE of Corail, Haiti | 25.0 km | Oct 28, 1952 |
| 6.0 | 4 km SSW of Grangwav, Haiti | 10.0 km | Jan 12, 2010 |
Significant earthquake record (6 events)
Every catalogued magnitude-6.0-and-above earthquake in Haiti since 1900, most recent first.
| Mag | Location | Depth | Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| 7.2 | Nippes, Haiti | 10.0 km | Aug 14, 2021 |
| 6.0 | 4 km SSW of Grangwav, Haiti | 10.0 km | Jan 12, 2010 |
| 7.0 | 10 km SE of Léogâne, Haiti | 13.0 km | Jan 12, 2010 |
| 6.6 | 68 km NNE of Borgne, Haiti | 25.0 km | Apr 20, 1962 |
| 6.2 | 5 km SE of Arcahaie, Haiti | 55.0 km | Jul 9, 1956 |
| 6.2 | 12 km SE of Corail, Haiti | 25.0 km | Oct 28, 1952 |
Other countries in this catalog sample
A Haiti-keyed shuffle of the full 186-country roster, not the six nearest by count.
Peak-magnitude sample from the same roster
A second Haiti-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.