Country profile · USGS ComCat
Earthquakes in Morocco
Morocco has catalogued 188 M4+ earthquakes since 2005 (ranked 62nd of 187 countries), with the strongest reaching magnitude M6.8.
Morocco ranks 62nd of 187 countries by catalogued seismic activity - a country with limited but non-zero seismic activity, averaging about 9 M4+ events a year alongside 4 significant M6+ earthquakes since 1900. The M6+ record here is thin - 4 events in all, so a single quake moves every figure on this page.
- 188
- M4+ events (since 2005)
- 4
- Major M6+ (since 1900)
- M6.8
- Strongest
- ~9
- M4+ per year
The verdict
Morocco is moderately seismically active, above the global median, with 188 M4+ earthquakes logged since 2005 and 4 major M6+ events since 1900, the strongest reaching magnitude 6.8.
- 1994
- busiest year (1 major events)
- 10 km
- average recorded event depth
- 100%
- of events are shallow (<70 km, the most damaging kind)
Average catalogued magnitude is 4.4 - most events are moderate M4-5 tremors that are felt but rarely cause damage. On the M4+ activity ladder Iraq sits immediately above at 190 events and Romania sits immediately below at 186.
ComCat country tape
Event tape MOROCCO · Morocco M4+ · 62nd/187
Morocco · 188 M4+ · max M6.8 · 4 M6+
- BUSY 188
- SHAL 62nd/187
- PCT M6.8
- VS-PEER 4
- COMCAT near Iraq
- TAPE 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 Morocco
USGS recorded Modified Mercalli Intensity (MMI) for 4 events in this catalogued record; their average observed intensity was MMI 7.5. These are only events with an observation, not an estimate of future shaking or a safety rating.
- MMI observations
- 4
- Average observed MMI
- 7.5
- PAGER alerts / tsunami flags
- 2 / 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 Morocco sits in the catalog
Rank 62nd of 187 tracked countries (67th percentile by M4+ count since 2005). On the M4+ activity ladder Iraq sits immediately above at 190 events and Romania sits immediately below at 186.
Morocco's M4+ count vs. every tracked country
Total catalogued M4+ events since 2005, USGS ComCat
188 Top 33% higher than 67% 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 Morocco by year
Count of significant (magnitude 6.0+) events catalogued each year
- 1994
1994: 1 major (M6+) events
1
- 2004
2004: 1 major (M6+) events
1
- 2016
2016: 1 major (M6+) events
1
- 2023
2023: 1 major (M6+) events
1
What this shows Morocco's most active year for major earthquakes was 1994 (1 M6+ events). Major-quake counts are irregular, they track the episodic release of tectonic stress, not a smooth trend.
2 of 188 catalogued M4+ events since 2005 reached M6.0 or higher.
Magnitude distribution of major events
Breakdown of the 4 significant (M6+) earthquakes on record for Morocco.
M6.0-6.9
4
100.0%
Depth of major earthquakes
Hypocentral depth of the 4 M6+ events, shallow quakes shake the surface hardest. Average depth: 10 km.
Shallow (<70 km)
4
100.0% of events
Intermediate (70–300 km)
0
0.0% of events
Deep (>300 km)
0
0.0% of events
Strongest earthquakes in Morocco
The 4 most powerful events on record (USGS, since 1900).
| Mag | Location | Depth | Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| 6.8 | Al Haouz, Morocco | 19.0 km | Sep 8, 2023 |
| 6.4 | 11 km SSW of Tirhanimîne, Morocco | 0.0 km | Feb 24, 2004 |
| 6.3 | 49 km NNE of Al Hoceïma, Morocco | 12.0 km | Jan 25, 2016 |
| 6.0 | 15 km WNW of Tirhanimîne, Morocco | 9.7 km | May 26, 1994 |
Significant earthquake record (4 events)
Every catalogued magnitude-6.0-and-above earthquake in Morocco since 1900, most recent first.
| Mag | Location | Depth | Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| 6.8 | Al Haouz, Morocco | 19.0 km | Sep 8, 2023 |
| 6.3 | 49 km NNE of Al Hoceïma, Morocco | 12.0 km | Jan 25, 2016 |
| 6.4 | 11 km SSW of Tirhanimîne, Morocco | 0.0 km | Feb 24, 2004 |
| 6.0 | 15 km WNW of Tirhanimîne, Morocco | 9.7 km | May 26, 1994 |
Other countries in this catalog sample
A Morocco-keyed shuffle of the full 186-country roster, not the six nearest by count.
Peak-magnitude sample from the same roster
A second Morocco-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.