Live earthquake check
Earthquakes near El Cajon today
Updated
No M2.5+ earthquake within 100 km of El Cajon in the last 24 hours 7 smaller quakes (largest M1.8) were recorded within 100 km; the latest 55 minutes ago.
Was there an earthquake in El Cajon just now? This page checks the live USGS catalogue for quakes around El Cajon, California, United States and updates every few minutes.
- Last 24 hours
- 0 M2.5+ within 100 km
- Last 7 days
- 0 M2.5+ within 100 km
- Last 30 days
- 1 M2.5+ within 100 km
- Largest in 30 days
- M3.1 91 km NNE, Oct 1, 2026
- Largest in past year
- M4.9 143 km NNE, Jan 20, 2026
- Past year count
- 197 M2.5+ within 150 km
- Nearest in 30 days
- 91 km M3.1, Oct 1, 2026
Recent earthquakes near El Cajon
USGS recorded 1 earthquake of magnitude 2.5 or more within 100 km of El Cajon in the past 30 days, 0 of them in the last 7 days. The most recent was M3.1 91 km NNE of the city at Sep 30, 17:01 local time (25 days ago).
The average depth was about 5 km and 1 of 1 were shallow (under 70 km), which are the ones most likely to be felt at the surface.
USGS also lists 7 smaller quakes (below M2.5) within 100 km in the last 24 hours; these are rarely felt.
| Time (El Cajon) | UTC | Magnitude | Distance | Depth | Location |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Oct 14, 20:30 | Oct 15, 03:30 UTC | M2.8 | 113 km N | 14 km | 3 km NNW of San Jacinto, CA |
| Oct 11, 01:04 | Oct 11, 08:04 UTC | M2.7 | 109 km N | 12 km | 4 km E of San Jacinto, CA |
| Oct 5, 15:06 | Oct 5, 22:06 UTC | M2.5 | 105 km WNW | 11 km | 31 km SW of Dana Point, CA |
| Oct 5, 13:23 | Oct 5, 20:23 UTC | M2.8 | 105 km WNW | 17 km | 32 km SW of Dana Point, CA |
| Oct 5, 13:22 | Oct 5, 20:22 UTC | M3.5 | 105 km WNW | 11 km | 31 km SW of Dana Point, CA |
| Oct 4, 05:18 | Oct 4, 12:18 UTC | M2.7 | 105 km SSW | 16 km | 48 km SW of Primo Tapia, B.C., MX |
| Sep 30, 17:01 | Oct 1, 00:01 UTC | M3.1 | 91 km NNE | 5 km | 20 km ESE of Anza, CA |
M2.5+ within 150 km, past 30 days, newest first. Times in America/Los_Angeles.
Largest earthquakes near El Cajon in the past year
The strongest earthquake within 150 km of El Cajon in the past 12 months was M4.9 on Jan 20, 2026, 143 km NNE of the city (20 km NNE of Indio, CA).
With 197 M2.5+ earthquakes in a year (about 16.4 a month), the area around El Cajon is very active by global standards. 2 of the ten largest reached M4.5, the level at which damage near the epicentre becomes possible.
| Date | Magnitude | Distance | Depth | Location |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan 20, 2026 | M4.9 | 143 km NNE | 3 km | 20 km NNE of Indio, CA |
| May 10, 2026 | M4.7 | 132 km E | 15 km | 3 km WSW of Brawley, CA |
| May 10, 2026 | M4.5 | 133 km E | 16 km | 2 km W of Brawley, CA |
| May 10, 2026 | M4.4 | 132 km E | 15 km | 3 km WSW of Brawley, CA |
| Jan 21, 2026 | M4.3 | 143 km NNE | 4 km | 20 km NNE of Indio, CA |
| Jan 15, 2026 | M4.1 | 141 km E | 16 km | 7 km WSW of Holtville, CA |
| May 10, 2026 | M4.0 | 133 km E | 9 km | 3 km WSW of Brawley, CA |
| Jan 20, 2026 | M3.8 | 140 km NNE | 5 km | 18 km N of Indio, CA |
| Jan 20, 2026 | M3.7 | 143 km NNE | 4 km | 20 km N of Indio, CA |
| Aug 19, 2026 | M3.6 | 74 km NNE | 5 km | 14 km N of Warner Springs, CA |
Was it felt in El Cajon?
The largest nearby quake this month, M3.1 at 91 km, was probably too small or too distant to notice in El Cajon by a rough rule of thumb (an M3 is typically noticed within a few tens of km, an M5 up to a few hundred km; local ground and building type matter a lot).
USGS "Did You Feel It?" received reports for 6 of these quakes: M2.8 on Oct 15, 2026 (87 reports, max intensity 2.7); M2.7 on Oct 11, 2026 (58 reports, max intensity 2.9); M2.5 on Oct 5, 2026 (1 reports); M2.8 on Oct 5, 2026 (3 reports, max intensity 2.2).
If you felt shaking, you can report it to USGS; reports refine the intensity map within minutes.
Tsunami warning status
1 earthquake near El Cajon in the past year carried the USGS tsunami flag: M4.3 20 km NNE of Indio, CA (Jan 21, 2026). The flag means the quake was large enough and in an oceanic region where tsunami warning centres issue messages; it does not mean a tsunami happened.
Official tsunami warnings come from the NOAA tsunami warning centres (tsunami.gov) and national agencies; follow local authorities if you are on a coast after strong shaking.
Earthquakes around the world today
Worldwide, USGS listed 153 earthquakes of M1+ in the last 24 hours; the largest was M6.5 Bonin Islands, Japan region.
USGS lists every magnitude in the United States but outside it coverage is complete only from about M4–4.5, so smaller local quakes reported by national agencies may be missing. Magnitudes and locations are revised for hours after an event.
Earthquakes near other cities in United States and nearby
Earthquake pages
More live data for El Cajon
Data: USGS Earthquake Hazards Program (ComCat), GeoNames (cities, CC BY 4.0).