Country profile · USGS ComCat
Earthquakes in Saint Kitts and Nevis
Saint Kitts and Nevis has catalogued 23 M4+ earthquakes since 2005 (ranked 118th of 187 countries), with the strongest reaching magnitude M6.5.
Saint Kitts and Nevis ranks 118th of 187 countries by catalogued seismic activity - a country with limited but non-zero seismic activity, averaging about 1 M4+ events a year alongside 2 significant M6+ earthquakes since 1900. The M6+ record here is thin - 2 events in all, so a single quake moves every figure on this page.
- 23
- M4+ events (since 2005)
- 2
- Major M6+ (since 1900)
- M6.5
- Strongest
- ~1
- M4+ per year
The verdict
Saint Kitts and Nevis is below the global median in catalogued seismic activity, with 23 M4+ earthquakes logged since 2005 and 2 major M6+ events since 1900, the strongest reaching magnitude 6.5.
- 1935
- busiest year (1 major events)
- 14 km
- average recorded event depth
- 100%
- of events are shallow (<70 km, the most damaging kind)
Average catalogued magnitude is 4.3 - most events are moderate M4-5 tremors that are felt but rarely cause damage. On the M4+ activity ladder Armenia sits immediately above at 27 events and Mauritania sits immediately below at 21.
Where Saint Kitts and Nevis sits in the catalog
Rank 118th of 187 tracked countries (37th percentile by M4+ count since 2005). On the M4+ activity ladder Armenia sits immediately above at 27 events and Mauritania sits immediately below at 21.
- Armenia - next more active (27 M4+)
- Mauritania - next less active (21 M4+)
Saint Kitts and Nevis's M4+ count vs. every tracked country
Total catalogued M4+ events since 2005, USGS ComCat
23 Top 63% higher than 37% 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 Saint Kitts and Nevis compares to its nearest peers
Saint Kitts and Nevis ranks in the 37th 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 |
|---|---|---|
| Jamaica | 39 | M7.7 |
| Syria | 39 | M5.2 |
| Madagascar | 38 | M5.7 |
| Malaysia | 37 | M7.1 |
| Bulgaria | 36 | M5.0 |
| Libya | 36 | M5.2 |
| Bhutan | 35 | M6.1 |
| Tunisia | 35 | M5.1 |
| Malta | 34 | M5.5 |
| Armenia | 27 | M5.3 |
| Saint Kitts and Nevis (this page) | 23 | M4.8 |
| Mauritania | 21 | M4.6 |
| Namibia | 20 | M5.4 |
| Norway | 20 | M5.2 |
| Grenada | 19 | M5.5 |
| Saint Eustatius and Saba | 19 | M5.0 |
| Burundi | 18 | M5.2 |
| Serbia | 18 | M5.5 |
| Ukraine | 17 | M4.9 |
| South Korea | 15 | M5.5 |
| French Southern Territories | 14 | M5.3 |
0 of 23 catalogued M4+ events since 2005 reached M6.0 or higher.
Magnitude distribution of major events
Breakdown of the 2 significant (M6+) earthquakes on record for Saint Kitts and Nevis.
M6.0-6.9
2
100.0%
Depth of major earthquakes
Hypocentral depth of the 2 M6+ events, shallow quakes shake the surface hardest. Average depth: 14 km.
Shallow (<70 km)
2
100.0% of events
Intermediate (70–300 km)
0
0.0% of events
Deep (>300 km)
0
0.0% of events
Strongest earthquakes in Saint Kitts and Nevis
The 2 most powerful events on record (USGS, since 1900).
| Mag | Location | Depth | Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| 6.5 | 18 km SE of Market Shop, Saint Kitts and Nevis | 13.4 km | Mar 16, 1985 |
| 6.2 | 32 km SSE of Fig Tree, Saint Kitts and Nevis | 15.0 km | Nov 10, 1935 |
Significant earthquake record (2 events)
Every catalogued magnitude-6.0-and-above earthquake in Saint Kitts and Nevis since 1900, most recent first.
| Mag | Location | Depth | Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| 6.5 | 18 km SE of Market Shop, Saint Kitts and Nevis | 13.4 km | Mar 16, 1985 |
| 6.2 | 32 km SSE of Fig Tree, Saint Kitts and Nevis | 15.0 km | Nov 10, 1935 |
Other countries in this catalog sample
A Saint Kitts and Nevis-keyed shuffle of the full 186-country roster, not the six nearest by count.
Federated States of Micronesia
59 M4+ events · strongest M6.3
United Arab Emirates
6 M4+ events · strongest M4.7
Chile
13,836 M4+ events · strongest M8.8
Montenegro
42 M4+ events · strongest M5.2
Libya
36 M4+ events · strongest M5.2
Kuwait
12 M4+ events · strongest M4.7
Peak-magnitude sample from the same roster
A second Saint Kitts and Nevis-keyed shuffle of countries with a recorded max magnitude.
Understand the data
Frequently asked questions
How many earthquakes have occurred in Saint Kitts and Nevis? ▼
What was the strongest earthquake in Saint Kitts and Nevis? ▼
How seismically active is Saint Kitts and Nevis? ▼
How deep are earthquakes in Saint Kitts and Nevis? ▼
Where does this data come from? ▼
About Saint Kitts and Nevis's figures
23 M4+ events since 2005 · strongest M6.5 · average M4.3 · 2 M6+ significant events since 1900 · latest M4+ catalog stamp Mar 23, 2025. 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 Saint Kitts and Nevis's numbers mean
Saint Kitts and Nevis ranks 118th of 187 countries tracked - a country with limited but non-zero seismic activity.
- About 1 M4+ earthquakes strike Saint Kitts and Nevis per year on average, though major (M6+) activity is episodic - 1935 was the busiest year on record with 1 significant events. See the full country ranking
- 100% of Saint Kitts and Nevis'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 M6.5. 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.