Country profile · USGS ComCat
Earthquakes in Kazakhstan
Kazakhstan has catalogued 174 M4+ earthquakes since 2005 (ranked 65th of 187 countries), with the strongest reaching magnitude M6.6.
Kazakhstan ranks 65th of 187 countries by catalogued seismic activity - a country with limited but non-zero seismic activity, averaging about 8 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.
- 174
- M4+ events (since 2005)
- 6
- Major M6+ (since 1900)
- M6.6
- Strongest
- ~8
- M4+ per year
The verdict
Kazakhstan is moderately seismically active, above the global median, with 174 M4+ earthquakes logged since 2005 and 6 major M6+ events since 1900, the strongest reaching magnitude 6.6.
- 1990
- busiest year (2 major events)
- 24 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 Romania sits immediately above at 183 events and Azerbaijan sits immediately below at 169.
Where Kazakhstan sits in the catalog
Rank 65th of 187 tracked countries (65th percentile by M4+ count since 2005). On the M4+ activity ladder Romania sits immediately above at 183 events and Azerbaijan sits immediately below at 169.
- Romania - next more active (183 M4+)
- Azerbaijan - next less active (169 M4+)
Kazakhstan's M4+ count vs. every tracked country
Total catalogued M4+ events since 2005, USGS ComCat
174 Top 35% higher than 65% 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
How Kazakhstan compares to its nearest peers
Kazakhstan ranks in the 65th percentile for M4+ frequency among all 187 tracked countries. Plotted here against its 20 nearest-ranked peers by how OFTEN they shake (M4+ count) against how HARD the strongest one ever hit (max recorded magnitude).
Read the chart (all 21 values)
| Country | M4+ events | Strongest magnitude |
|---|---|---|
| Algeria | 245 | M6.0 |
| Mayotte | 232 | M5.9 |
| Haiti | 217 | M7.2 |
| MX | 202 | M5.8 |
| Mongolia | 196 | M6.7 |
| South Africa | 191 | M5.4 |
| Morocco | 187 | M6.8 |
| Iraq | 185 | M7.3 |
| Saint Helena | 184 | M6.0 |
| Romania | 183 | M5.6 |
| Kazakhstan (this page) | 174 | M6.1 |
| Azerbaijan | 169 | M5.6 |
| Democratic Republic of the Congo | 161 | M6.8 |
| Guadeloupe | 152 | M6.5 |
| Turkmenistan | 143 | M5.4 |
| Mauritius | 135 | M6.0 |
| Zimbabwe | 135 | M7.0 |
| Poland | 130 | M5.0 |
| Antigua and Barbuda | 129 | M6.6 |
| Samoa | 116 | M6.2 |
| Saudi Arabia | 114 | M5.7 |
Major (M6+) earthquakes in Kazakhstan by year
Count of significant (magnitude 6.0+) events catalogued each year
- 1929
1929: 1 major (M6+) events
1
- 1937
1937: 1 major (M6+) events
1
- 1990
1990: 2 major (M6+) events
2
- 2003
2003: 1 major (M6+) events
1
- 2013
2013: 1 major (M6+) events
1
What this shows Kazakhstan's most active year for major earthquakes was 1990 (2 M6+ events). Major-quake counts are irregular, they track the episodic release of tectonic stress, not a smooth trend.
1 of 174 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 Kazakhstan.
M6.0-6.9
6
100.0%
Depth of major earthquakes
Hypocentral depth of the 6 M6+ events, shallow quakes shake the surface hardest. Average depth: 24 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 Kazakhstan
The 6 most powerful events on record (USGS, since 1900).
| Mag | Location | Depth | Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| 6.6 | 47 km NNE of Zaysan, Kazakhstan | 57.9 km | Jun 14, 1990 |
| 6.4 | 54 km SE of Zhabagly, Kazakhstan | 15.0 km | Dec 18, 1937 |
| 6.4 | 124 km SSW of Yanykurgan, Kazakhstan | 15.0 km | Jun 3, 1929 |
| 6.2 | 55 km N of Zaysan, Kazakhstan | 33.4 km | Aug 3, 1990 |
| 6.1 | 61 km SE of Kegen, Kazakhstan | 15.0 km | Jan 28, 2013 |
| 6.0 | 106 km E of Kegen, Kazakhstan | 10.0 km | Dec 1, 2003 |
Significant earthquake record (6 events)
Every catalogued magnitude-6.0-and-above earthquake in Kazakhstan since 1900, most recent first.
| Mag | Location | Depth | Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| 6.1 | 61 km SE of Kegen, Kazakhstan | 15.0 km | Jan 28, 2013 |
| 6.0 | 106 km E of Kegen, Kazakhstan | 10.0 km | Dec 1, 2003 |
| 6.2 | 55 km N of Zaysan, Kazakhstan | 33.4 km | Aug 3, 1990 |
| 6.6 | 47 km NNE of Zaysan, Kazakhstan | 57.9 km | Jun 14, 1990 |
| 6.4 | 54 km SE of Zhabagly, Kazakhstan | 15.0 km | Dec 18, 1937 |
| 6.4 | 124 km SSW of Yanykurgan, Kazakhstan | 15.0 km | Jun 3, 1929 |
Other countries in this catalog sample
A Kazakhstan-keyed shuffle of the full 186-country roster, not the six nearest by count.
Peak-magnitude sample from the same roster
A second Kazakhstan-keyed shuffle of countries with a recorded max magnitude.
Understand the data
Frequently asked questions
How many earthquakes have occurred in Kazakhstan? ▼
What was the strongest earthquake in Kazakhstan? ▼
How seismically active is Kazakhstan? ▼
How deep are earthquakes in Kazakhstan? ▼
Where does this data come from? ▼
About Kazakhstan's figures
174 M4+ events since 2005 · strongest M6.6 · average M4.5 · 6 M6+ significant events since 1900 · latest M4+ catalog stamp Jul 9, 2026. Computed from the USGS Comprehensive Earthquake Catalog (ComCat). See the methodology and USGS ComCat.
Disclaimer: PlainQuake is informational only, not an emergency service or engineering advice. See our full disclaimer.
What Kazakhstan's numbers mean
Kazakhstan ranks 65th of 187 countries tracked - a country with limited but non-zero seismic activity.
- About 8 M4+ earthquakes strike Kazakhstan per year on average, though major (M6+) activity is episodic - 1990 was the busiest year on record with 2 significant events. See the full country ranking
- 100% of Kazakhstan's catalogued major earthquakes are shallow (under 70km) - shallow events generally produce stronger surface shaking than deep ones of the same magnitude. How depth affects shaking
- The strongest catalogued event reached M6.6. Compare against neighboring or similarly-ranked countries before drawing conclusions from magnitude alone. Compare strongest earthquakes
Figures reflect the USGS ComCat catalog (M4+ since 2005, M6+ significant events since 1900) - not a real-time hazard assessment. For official guidance, see the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program.
According to the US Geological Survey Earthquake Hazards Program, PlainQuake's figures are rendered directly from 315,341 recorded M4+ earthquakes and 14,428 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 2026-07-19.