Live earthquake check
Earthquakes near Rancho Santa Margarita today
Updated
No M2.5+ earthquake within 100 km of Rancho Santa Margarita in the last 24 hours 2 smaller quakes (largest M1.8) were recorded within 100 km; the latest 5 hours ago.
Recent earthquakes near Rancho Santa Margarita
USGS recorded 4 earthquakes of magnitude 2.5 or more within 100 km of Rancho Santa Margarita in the past 30 days, 0 of them in the last 7 days. The most recent was M2.8 62 km ENE of the city at Oct 14, 20:30 local time (22 days ago).
The average depth was about 11 km and 4 of 4 were shallow (under 70 km), which are the ones most likely to be felt at the surface.
USGS also lists 2 smaller quakes (below M2.5) within 100 km in the last 24 hours; these are rarely felt.
| Time (Rancho Santa Margarita) | UTC | Magnitude | Distance | Depth | Location |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Oct 14, 20:30 | Oct 15, 03:30 UTC | M2.8 | 62 km ENE | 14 km | 3 km NNW of San Jacinto, CA |
| Oct 11, 01:04 | Oct 11, 08:04 UTC | M2.7 | 65 km ENE | 12 km | 4 km E of San Jacinto, CA |
| Oct 9, 00:44 | Oct 9, 07:44 UTC | M3.2 | 56 km WNW | 12 km | 2 km SW of Signal Hill, CA |
| Oct 8, 01:09 | Oct 8, 08:09 UTC | M2.7 | 52 km NNE | 6 km | 2 km WNW of Fontana, CA |
M2.5+ within 150 km, past 30 days, newest first. Times in America/Los_Angeles.
Was there an earthquake in Rancho Santa Margarita just now? This page checks the live USGS catalogue for quakes around Rancho Santa Margarita, 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
- 4 M2.5+ within 100 km
- Largest in 30 days
- M3.2 56 km WNW, Oct 9, 2026
- Largest in past year
- M4.9 135 km ENE, Jan 20, 2026
- Past year count
- 133 M2.5+ within 150 km
- Nearest in 30 days
- 52 km M2.7, Oct 8, 2026
Largest earthquakes near Rancho Santa Margarita in the past year
The strongest earthquake within 150 km of Rancho Santa Margarita in the past 12 months was M4.9 on Jan 20, 2026, 135 km ENE of the city (20 km NNE of Indio, CA).
With 133 M2.5+ earthquakes in a year (about 11.1 a month), the area around Rancho Santa Margarita is very active by global standards. 1 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 | 135 km ENE | 3 km | 20 km NNE of Indio, CA |
| Jan 21, 2026 | M4.3 | 136 km ENE | 4 km | 20 km NNE of Indio, CA |
| Sep 30, 2026 | M3.8 | 136 km NW | 10 km | 4 km SE of Piru, CA |
| Jan 20, 2026 | M3.8 | 133 km ENE | 5 km | 18 km N of Indio, CA |
| Jan 20, 2026 | M3.7 | 135 km ENE | 4 km | 20 km N of Indio, CA |
| Aug 19, 2026 | M3.6 | 92 km ESE | 5 km | 14 km N of Warner Springs, CA |
| Feb 17, 2026 | M3.6 | 73 km ENE | 14 km | 4 km S of Banning, CA |
| Sep 27, 2026 | M3.6 | 83 km WNW | 12 km | 7 km WSW of Hermosa Beach, CA |
| Jan 20, 2026 | M3.5 | 135 km ENE | 3 km | 17 km NNE of Indio, CA |
| Nov 28, 2025 | M3.5 | 75 km E | 18 km | 10 km SW of Idyllwild, CA |
Was it felt in Rancho Santa Margarita?
The largest nearby quake this month, M3.2 at 56 km, was probably too small or too distant to notice in Rancho Santa Margarita 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 4 of these quakes: M2.8 on Oct 15, 2026 (88 reports, max intensity 2.7); M2.7 on Oct 11, 2026 (58 reports, max intensity 2.9); M3.2 on Oct 9, 2026 (1092 reports, max intensity 3.4); M2.7 on Oct 8, 2026 (158 reports, max intensity 3.1).
If you felt shaking, you can report it to USGS; reports refine the intensity map within minutes.
Tsunami warning status
1 earthquake near Rancho Santa Margarita 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 171 earthquakes of M1+ in the last 24 hours; the largest was M6.1 Fiji 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 Rancho Santa Margarita
Data: USGS Earthquake Hazards Program (ComCat), GeoNames (cities, CC BY 4.0).