Shallow M2.3 Earthquake struck on Friday Evening near San Ramon in The United States.

Written by Earthquakelist.org on December 20th, 2025. Last updated January 8th, 2026.

In the evening of Friday December 19th, 2025, a shallow M2.3 earthquake hit under land 3 miles from San Ramon in The United States. The earthquake struck near a very densely populated region.

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Earthquake Summary

The earthquake struck on land in The United States, 3 miles (5 km) south-east of San Ramon in California. The center of this earthquake had a very shallow depth of 6 km. Shallow earthquakes usually have a larger impact than earthquakes deep in the earth.

Date and Time:	Dec 19, 2025 07:49PM (Los Angeles Time) - Dec 20, 2025 03:49 Universal Time.
Location:	3 mi SE of San Ramon, California, The United States. Coordinates 37°44'57"N 121°56'34"W.
Map:	Map of area around epicenter. Click to open in Google Maps.
Magnitude:	MAG 2.3 Detected by 118 stations. Maximum Error Range ±0.033 .
Depth:	6 mi (10 km) A very shallow depth.
Max. Intensity:	IV Light On the Modified Mercalli Scale.
Tsunami Risk:	Tsunami very unlikely While this was a shallow earthquake in a coastal area, it appears to have occurred under land (13 mi from the sea) with a magnitude that is usually not strong enough to cause tsunami's. Always stay cautious - More info here.

Nearby towns and cities

This earthquake may have been felt in The United States . San Ramon in California, The United States is the nearest significant place from the epicenter. The earthquake occurred 3 miles (5 km) south-east of San Ramon. The intensity of shaking and damage in San Ramon is estimated to be around level IV on the Modified Mercalli Intensity scale (light shaking, likely no damage).

Multiple large cities are in proximity of today's earthquake. San Jose is located 29 mi to the south and experienced an intensity of II (very weak shaking, no damage). San Francisco is located 26 mi to the west and experienced an intensity of II (very weak shaking, no damage). Oakland is located 18 mi to the west-northwest and experienced an intensity of II (very weak shaking, no damage).

An overview of nearby towns and cities is available in the overview below. If places don't have intensity data available, it likely means the experienced impact in those places was fairly small.

Overview of nearby places

Earthquake Intensity Map

The intensity in shaking and damage by this earthquake is illustrated through the map below. The highest intensity measured for this earthquake is IV.

I Not felt

II Weak

III Weak

IV Light

V Moderate

VI Strong

VII Very Strong

VIII Severe

IX Violent

X Extreme

6 Aftershocks detected

This main shock was followed by 6 smaller aftershocks. Just 23 hrs after this main shock, an earthquake measuring MAG-3.9 was detected 0.5 mi (0.8 km) east-northeast of this earthquake.

In the days before this main shock, 2 smaller foreshocks were detected. Roughly 7 mins before this earthquake, a foreshock measuring MAG-3.8 was detected nearby this earthquake.

Overview of foreshocks and aftershocks

More earthquakes coming?

Aftershocks are usually at least 1 order of magnitude less strong than main shocks. The more time passes, the smaller the chance and likely strength of any potential aftershocks.

The chance that a significant earthquake like this one is followed by an even larger earthquake is not so large. On average, scientists estimate a 94% chance that a major earthquake will not be followed by an even larger one. It is still adviced to be aware of this risk

Earthquakes like this happen often in the region

Earthquakes of this strength are very common in the region. This is the strongest earthquake to hit since December 19th, 2025, when a 3 magnitude earthquake hit 186 mi (300 km) further east. An even stronger magnitude 6 earthquake struck on July 8th, 2021.

In total, 1184 earthquakes with a magnitude of 2.3 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 3 days.

Tsunami very unlikely

While MAG-6.5+ earthquakes may cause tsunami's, it appears that the epicenter of this earthquake hit under land. In addition, the reported depth is deeper than 100km, making the risk of a tsunami even less likely. However always stay cautious and monitor advice from local authorities.

Tsunami Risk Factors

Sources

Last updated 08/01/26 05:48 (). 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 nc75283011
2. Geonames.org: World Cities Database
3. Google Maps: Static API
4. Earthquakelist.org: Historic Earthquakes Database

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