Country profile · USGS ComCat
Earthquakes in Tanzania
Tanzania has catalogued 368 M4+ earthquakes since 2005 (ranked 48th of 187 countries), with the strongest reaching magnitude M7.0.
Tanzania ranks 48th of 187 countries by catalogued seismic activity - a moderately seismically active country, averaging about 18 M4+ events a year alongside 10 significant M6+ earthquakes since 1900. Its M6+ record runs from 1910 to 2020, peaking in 1985.
- 368
- M4+ events (since 2005)
- 10
- Major M6+ (since 1900)
- M7.0
- Strongest
- ~18
- M4+ per year
The verdict
Tanzania is moderately seismically active, above the global median, with 368 M4+ earthquakes logged since 2005 and 10 major M6+ events since 1900, the strongest reaching magnitude 7.0.
- 1985
- busiest year (2 major events)
- 18 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 Portugal sits immediately above at 434 events and Yemen sits immediately below at 339.
USGS event tape strip
Event tape TANZANIA · Tanzania M4+ · 48th/187
Tanzania · 368 M4+ · max M7.0 · 10 M6+
- PCT 368
- VS-PEER 48th/187
- COMCAT M7.0
- TAPE 10
- EPIC near Portugal
- YOY 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 Tanzania
USGS recorded Modified Mercalli Intensity (MMI) for 6 events in this catalogued record; their average observed intensity was MMI 6.0. These are only events with an observation, not an estimate of future shaking or a safety rating.
- MMI observations
- 6
- Average observed MMI
- 6.0
- PAGER alerts / tsunami flags
- 1 / 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 Tanzania sits in the catalog
Rank 48th of 187 tracked countries (74th percentile by M4+ count since 2005). On the M4+ activity ladder Portugal sits immediately above at 434 events and Yemen sits immediately below at 339.
Tanzania's M4+ count vs. every tracked country
Total catalogued M4+ events since 2005, USGS ComCat
368 Top 26% higher than 74% 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 Tanzania by year
Count of significant (magnitude 6.0+) events catalogued each year
- 1910
1910: 1 major (M6+) events
1
- 1919
1919: 1 major (M6+) events
1
- 1922
1922: 1 major (M6+) events
1
- 1942
1942: 1 major (M6+) events
1
- 1949
1949: 1 major (M6+) events
1
- 1964
1964: 1 major (M6+) events
1
- 1985
1985: 2 major (M6+) events
2
- 2000
2000: 1 major (M6+) events
1
- 2020
2020: 1 major (M6+) events
1
What this shows Tanzania's most active year for major earthquakes was 1985 (2 M6+ events). Major-quake counts are irregular, they track the episodic release of tectonic stress, not a smooth trend.
1 of 368 catalogued M4+ events since 2005 reached M6.0 or higher.
Magnitude distribution of major events
Breakdown of the 10 significant (M6+) earthquakes on record for Tanzania.
M6.0-6.9
10
100.0%
Depth of major earthquakes
Hypocentral depth of the 10 M6+ events, shallow quakes shake the surface hardest. Average depth: 18 km.
Shallow (<70 km)
10
100.0% of events
Intermediate (70–300 km)
0
0.0% of events
Deep (>300 km)
0
0.0% of events
Strongest earthquakes in Tanzania
The 10 most powerful events on record (USGS, since 1900).
| Mag | Location | Depth | Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| 7.0 | 17 km SSW of Sumbawanga, Tanzania | 15.0 km | Jul 8, 1919 |
| 6.9 | 39 km WSW of Karema, Tanzania | 15.0 km | Dec 13, 1910 |
| 6.5 | 15 km W of Nkove, Tanzania | 34.0 km | Oct 2, 2000 |
| 6.5 | 28 km W of Dongobesh, Tanzania | 30.9 km | May 7, 1964 |
| 6.5 | 149 km W of Kigoma, Tanzania | 15.0 km | Apr 16, 1922 |
| 6.4 | 120 km E of Madimba, Tanzania | 10.0 km | May 14, 1985 |
| 6.4 | 38 km S of Mbamba Bay, Tanzania | 15.0 km | Oct 9, 1942 |
| 6.0 | 13 km W of Sumbawanga, Tanzania | 15.0 km | Oct 1, 1949 |
| 6.0 | 66 km NNE of Kilindoni, Tanzania | 17.6 km | Aug 12, 2020 |
| 6.0 | 121 km E of Madimba, Tanzania | 10.0 km | May 14, 1985 |
Significant earthquake record (10 events)
Every catalogued magnitude-6.0-and-above earthquake in Tanzania since 1900, most recent first.
| Mag | Location | Depth | Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| 6.0 | 66 km NNE of Kilindoni, Tanzania | 17.6 km | Aug 12, 2020 |
| 6.5 | 15 km W of Nkove, Tanzania | 34.0 km | Oct 2, 2000 |
| 6.4 | 120 km E of Madimba, Tanzania | 10.0 km | May 14, 1985 |
| 6.0 | 121 km E of Madimba, Tanzania | 10.0 km | May 14, 1985 |
| 6.5 | 28 km W of Dongobesh, Tanzania | 30.9 km | May 7, 1964 |
| 6.0 | 13 km W of Sumbawanga, Tanzania | 15.0 km | Oct 1, 1949 |
| 6.4 | 38 km S of Mbamba Bay, Tanzania | 15.0 km | Oct 9, 1942 |
| 6.5 | 149 km W of Kigoma, Tanzania | 15.0 km | Apr 16, 1922 |
| 7.0 | 17 km SSW of Sumbawanga, Tanzania | 15.0 km | Jul 8, 1919 |
| 6.9 | 39 km WSW of Karema, Tanzania | 15.0 km | Dec 13, 1910 |
Other countries in this catalog sample
A Tanzania-keyed shuffle of the full 186-country roster, not the six nearest by count.
Saint Helena
185 M4+ events · strongest M6.0
Congo-Uganda
2 M4+ events · strongest M4.7
Martinique
83 M4+ events · strongest M7.4
Bolivia
835 M4+ events · strongest M6.8
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines
6 M4+ events · strongest M4.8
Mauritius
135 M4+ events · strongest M6.0
Peak-magnitude sample from the same roster
A second Tanzania-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.