Compare Disaster History by Country
Choose two countries to compare the earthquakes recorded in each, year by year, from 1976 to 2025, using the US Geological Survey's global catalog.
Indonesia and India: magnitude 5 or more
The USGS catalog holds 10,452 earthquakes of magnitude 5 or more located in Indonesia from 1976 to 2025; the busiest year was 2005, with 535.
The USGS catalog holds 947 earthquakes of magnitude 5 or more located in India from 1976 to 2025; the busiest year was 2004, with 135.
The chart needs JavaScript. Every number in it is in the tables below.
Indonesia India
Download these yearly counts (CSV)
By decade
| Years | Indonesia | India |
|---|---|---|
| 1976–1985 | 2,078 | 137 |
| 1986–1995 | 2,255 | 112 |
| 1996–2005 | 2,144 | 310 |
| 2006–2015 | 2,254 | 228 |
| 2016–2025 | 1,721 | 160 |
Every year
| Year | Indonesia | India |
|---|---|---|
| 1976 | 172 | 9 |
| 1977 | 336 | 13 |
| 1978 | 192 | 6 |
| 1979 | 206 | 7 |
| 1980 | 154 | 17 |
| 1981 | 119 | 5 |
| 1982 | 157 | 8 |
| 1983 | 279 | 21 |
| 1984 | 211 | 38 |
| 1985 | 252 | 13 |
| 1986 | 230 | 16 |
| 1987 | 178 | 4 |
| 1988 | 169 | 11 |
| 1989 | 217 | 7 |
| 1990 | 251 | 16 |
| 1991 | 238 | 15 |
| 1992 | 256 | 10 |
| 1993 | 229 | 17 |
| 1994 | 315 | 11 |
| 1995 | 172 | 5 |
| 1996 | 185 | 8 |
| 1997 | 115 | 8 |
| 1998 | 125 | 9 |
| 1999 | 147 | 10 |
| 2000 | 211 | 12 |
| 2001 | 192 | 20 |
| 2002 | 178 | 11 |
| 2003 | 171 | 12 |
| 2004 | 285 | 135 |
| 2005 | 535 | 85 |
| 2006 | 304 | 39 |
| 2007 | 394 | 15 |
| 2008 | 224 | 31 |
| 2009 | 280 | 44 |
| 2010 | 204 | 29 |
| 2011 | 190 | 10 |
| 2012 | 194 | 23 |
| 2013 | 129 | 15 |
| 2014 | 173 | 13 |
| 2015 | 162 | 9 |
| 2016 | 139 | 7 |
| 2017 | 163 | 18 |
| 2018 | 223 | 12 |
| 2019 | 284 | 16 |
| 2020 | 126 | 19 |
| 2021 | 167 | 21 |
| 2022 | 164 | 14 |
| 2023 | 178 | 21 |
| 2024 | 133 | 10 |
| 2025 | 144 | 22 |
The largest recorded in each
Indonesia
- M8.6 · 28 Mar 2005 · 78 km WSW of Singkil, Indonesia
- M8.4 · 12 Sep 2007 · 122 km SW of Bengkulu, Indonesia
- M8.3 · 19 Aug 1977 · 1977 Sumba, Indonesia Earthquake
- M8.1 · 17 Feb 1996 · 1996 Biak, Indonesia Earthquake
- M7.9 · 12 Sep 1979 · 55 km S of Biak, Indonesia
In this site's historical database:
- 2018 Sulawesi Earthquake and Tsunami
- 2004 Indian Ocean Earthquake and Tsunami
- 1883 Krakatoa Eruption and Tsunami
- 1815 Mount Tambora Eruption
Recorded on this site since 21 Jul 2026, every hazard:
Extreme Weather 2,507 · Wildfire 1,668 · Earthquake 676 · Volcanic Activity 9 · Flood 1 · country page
India
- M7.7 · 26 Jan 2001 · 17 km NW of Bhach?u, India
- M7.5 · 10 Aug 2009 · 266 km N of Bamboo Flat, India
- M7.5 · 12 Jun 2010 · Nicobar Islands, India region
- M7.3 · 6 Aug 1988 · 85 km SE of Phek, India
- M7.2 · 24 Jul 2005 · Nicobar Islands, India region
Recorded on this site since 21 Jul 2026, every hazard:
Severe Storm 2,184 · Flood 1,170 · Heavy Rain 1,114 · Earthquake 32 · Extreme Weather 32 · Wildfire 26 · Hurricane / Cyclone / Typhoon 2 · Drought 1 · Cold Wave 1 · country page
How the counts are made
The numbers are earthquakes of magnitude 5 or more in the USGS Comprehensive Earthquake Catalog for complete calendar years. USGS does not record a country for an earthquake; it describes where each one was, such as "25 km ENE of Jalalabad, Afghanistan". An earthquake is counted for a country when that description names it — including "off the coast of" it and "the country region" — or, for the United States, a state. Earthquakes described only by an ocean, a ridge, a sea or a region that is not a country are not given to any country: 23% of the 83,468 earthquakes in these years were left unassigned that way, most of them at sea.
At magnitude 5 and above the global catalog is far more complete than for smaller earthquakes, but its early years still hold fewer than were detected later, so a rise over the decades can be partly better recording.
This is a count of recorded earthquakes, not a ranking of risk. A larger country has more ground for earthquakes to happen under, most magnitude 5 earthquakes cause little or no damage, and a quiet record says nothing certain about the next year. For impacts, see the historical disasters database.
Counts built 13 Sep 2026 from the USGS event web service. Chart: Apache ECharts (Apache License 2.0).
Questions
How are earthquakes assigned to a country?
By the words the US Geological Survey uses for each epicentre, such as "25 km ENE of Jalalabad, Afghanistan". Earthquakes described only by an ocean, a ridge or a region that is not a country are not given to any country: 23% of the catalog in these years.
Does a country with more recorded earthquakes face more risk?
Not necessarily. These are counts of recorded earthquakes, not a ranking of risk: a larger country has more ground for earthquakes to happen under, most magnitude 5 earthquakes cause little or no damage, and a quiet record says nothing certain about the next year.
Can I download the yearly earthquake counts?
Yes. Every comparison has a CSV download with the count for each year for both countries, at the magnitude chosen.