Significant M5.9 Earthquake struck on Tuesday Evening in the North Pacific Ocean near San José (Costa Rica).

Written by Earthquakelist.org on October 22nd, 2025. Last updated November 9th, 2025.

In the evening of Tuesday October 21st, 2025, a significant Magnitude 5.9 earthquake hit in the North Pacific Ocean 64 kilometer from San José, Costa Rica. Roughly 6 million people may have felt this earthquake. Other nearby countries are Panama and Nicaragua.

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Earthquake Summary

This earthquake hit under water in the North Pacific Ocean, right off the coast of Costa Rica (2 mi offshore), 64 kilometer south of San José. The center of this earthquake had a quite shallow depth of 31 km. Shallow earthquakes usually have a larger impact than earthquakes deep in the earth.

Date and Time:	Oct 21, 2025 09:57PM (Costa Rica Time) - Oct 22, 2025 03:57 Universal Time.
Location:	64 km south of San José, Costa Rica. Coordinates 9°21'55"N 84°10'46"W.
Map:	Map of area around epicenter. Click to open in Google Maps.
Magnitude:	MAG 5.9 Detected by 84 stations. Maximum Error Range ±0.034 .
Depth:	31 km (19 mi) A quite shallow depth.
Max. Intensity:	VI Strong On the Modified Mercalli Scale.
Tsunami Risk:	Low tsunami risk Earthquakes under MAG-6.5 do not usually cause tsunami's. Always stay cautious - More info here.

Minimal impact predicted

Based on scientific estimates by the US Geographic Survey (USGS), the risk of high fatalities for this earthquake is classified at level GREEN (low). They expect an 65% likelyhood of between 0 and 1 fatalities, and a 96% chance that the number of fatalities falls no higher than 10.

The USGS classifies the economic impact of this earthquake at level GREEN (low). They expect an 65% likelyhood of between 0 and 1 million US Dollars in economic damage and impact, and a 96% chance that the economic impact of this earthquake falls no higher than 10 million USD.

Roughly 6 million people exposed to shaking

The USGS has published a report estimating the number of people exposed to this earthquake. Acoording to their analysis, roughly 6 million have been exposed to shaking at an MMI level of II or higher.

An estimated 39,980 people were exposed to level V. At this level, moderate shaking and very light damage can be expected. Intensity level IV was experienced by the majority of people (around 4.2 million). In their region, light shaking and likely no damage can be expected.

People in 3 countries have been exposed to shaking. In Costa Rica , around 5.3 million people, with impact levels up to V (moderate shaking, very light damage). Roughly 680 thousand people were exposed to shaking in Panama . People were exposed to shaking in Nicaragua as well.

Nearby towns and cities

This earthquake struck within proximity of multiple countries. Costa Rica , Panama and Nicaragua are all within 300km distance of its epicenter.

Tejar in San José, Costa Rica is the nearest significant place from the epicenter. The earthquake occurred 42 kilometer (26 mi) south of Tejar. The intensity of shaking and damage in Tejar is estimated to be around level IV on the Modified Mercalli Intensity scale (light shaking, likely no damage).

Major cities near this earthquake: San José is located 64 km to the north and experienced an intensity of IV (light shaking, likely no damage). Managua is located 382 km to the northwest (intensity unknown, possibly low). Masaya is located 358 km to the northwest (intensity unknown, possibly low).

A complete list of nearby places is included below. Estimated intensity data (MMI) sourced from a shake-map published by the US Geographic Survey is shown where available (cities without data probably experienced little impact).

Overview of nearby places

Earthquake Intensity Map

The graph below overlays a map of the region around the epicenter with earthquake intensity data provided by the US Geographic Survey. The highest intensity level detected for this earthquake is V.

I Not felt

II Weak

III Weak

IV Light

V Moderate

VI Strong

VII Very Strong

VIII Severe

IX Violent

X Extreme

Shaking reported by 211 people in 2 countries

People that feel an earthquake may report their experience to the US Geographic Survey. Currently, 211 people have reported shaking in 81 places in 2 countries (Costa Rica, Panama).We keep updating this article as more ground reports become available. You may report that you felt this earthquake here.

Places with most reports:

• San Isidro (San Isidro de El General), San José, Costa Rica: 13 people.
• Quepos, Puntarenas, Costa Rica: 12 people.
• Palmares, Alajuela, Costa Rica: 10 people.
• Jacó, Puntarenas, Costa Rica: 8 people.
• Asunción, Heredia, Costa Rica: 8 people.
• Cahuita, Limón, Costa Rica: 8 people.
• Escazú, San José, Costa Rica: 7 people.
• Boquete, Chiriquí, Panama: 6 people.
• Santa Ana, San José, Costa Rica: 6 people.
• Almirante, Bocas del Toro, Panama: 5 people.

11 Aftershocks detected

After this earthquake struck, 11 smaller aftershocks occurred. A 4.3 magnitude earthquake hit 24 hrs later 51 km (31 mi) south-east of this earthquake.

Before this earthquake struck, 2 smaller foreshocks occurred. A 3.1 magnitude earthquake hit 18 hrs earlier nearby.

Overview of foreshocks and aftershocks

More earthquakes coming?

Earthquakes can create aftershocks. These are generally at least 1 magnitude lower than any main shock, and as time passes the chance and strength of aftershocks decreases.

It's always adviced to be cautious of the risk of a larger shock following any significant earthquake, however this risk is fairly small. There is a roughly 94 percent change that no larger main shock will follow in the days following this earthquake.

Earthquakes like this are common in the region

Earthquakes of this strength occur quite regularly in the region. This is the strongest earthquake to hit since October 12th, 2024, when a 6.2 magnitude earthquake hit 250 km (155 mi) further west-northwest. An even stronger magnitude 6.7 earthquake struck on October 20th, 2022.

In total, 9 earthquakes with a magnitude of 5.9 or higher have been registered within 300km (186 mi) of this epicenter in the past 10 years. This comes down to an average of once every year.

Low tsunami risk

Based on early data it appears this earthquake was not strong enough (lower than MAG-6.5) to be likely to cause destructive tsunami's. However this earthquake appeared to have hit at a shallow depth under sea, so stay cautious and monitor advice from local authorities.

Tsunami Risk Factors

Sources

Last updated 09/11/25 05:38 (). This article contains currently available information about the earthquake and is automatically composed. We continue to update this article up to a few days after the earthquake occurred.

1. US Geographic Society (USGS): Earthquake us6000ril5
2. European-Mediterranean Seismological Centre (EMSC): Earthquake 20251022_0000051
3. Geonames.org: World Cities Database
4. Google Maps: Static API
5. Earthquakelist.org: Historic Earthquakes Database

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