USGS · October 27, 2026

Magnitude 2.6 earthquake near San Jose, California

A magnitude 2.6 earthquake was recorded near 14 km E of Seven Trees, CA on Oct 27, 2026, 12:38 PM (local time at the epicentre — PDT, UTC-7), at a depth of about 6.8 km, according to USGS.

USGSFelt by 6 people · community intensity III (weak)Shallow (0–70 km)Automatic solution — subject to revision

Updated 2026-10-27 21:21 UTC

The full record

Magnitude
M 2.6 · duration magnitude
Location
14 km E of Seven Trees, CA
Local time at the epicentre
Oct 27, 2026, 12:38 PM — PDT, UTC-7
Time (UTC)
2026-10-27 19:38 UTC
Depth
6.8 km · Shallow (0–70 km)
Coordinates
37.311, -121.678
Felt reports
Felt by 6 people · community intensity III (weak)
Tsunami
No tsunami evaluation was flagged for this earthquake.
Significance
108 / 1000 · routine event
Solution quality
74 seismic stations used · 44° azimuthal gap (well-constrained epicentre)
Review status
Automatic solution — subject to revision
Catalog
USGS

Open the official catalog record

Epicentre and nearby recent earthquakes

The highlighted circle is this earthquake. Smaller circles are other events recorded nearby in the last 30 days.

What the shaking was like

Shallow earthquakes release their energy close to the surface, so they are felt more strongly nearby than a deeper earthquake of the same magnitude.

People who reported it described intensity III (Weak): Felt indoors; hanging objects swing, like a passing truck.

Felt it yourself? USGS collects first-hand reports through “Did You Feel It?”, and those reports are what produce the community intensity above.

Who lives nearby

About 1,373,312 people live in towns within 30 km of the epicentre, and 8,340,729 within 100 km. Distances are from the epicentre to the town centre.

PlaceDistancePopulation
Seven Trees14.4 km W1,788
Alum Rock14.5 km WNW15,536
East Foothills14.6 km WNW8,269
Communications Hill15.8 km W11,267
San Jose19.4 km W997,368
Morgan Hill20.2 km S42,948
Buena Vista21.1 km W1,704
Burbank22.4 km W4,926
Cambrian Park23.1 km WSW3,282
Milpitas24.0 km WNW77,604

Earthquake history in this area

12 earthquakes of magnitude 4.5+ have been recorded within 200 km of this epicentre since 1960, in California.

Other earthquakes near this epicentre

4 other events within 100 km in the last 30 days.

Be first to know about the next earthquake near 14 km E of Seven Trees, CA

SeismoWatch pushes a notification to your Android phone within minutes of a matching earthquake — for the area and magnitude you choose.

Get the Android app

Frequently asked questions

How strong was the 14 km E of Seven Trees, CA earthquake?

Magnitude 2.6 (duration magnitude), at a depth of 6.8 km. Shallow earthquakes release their energy close to the surface, so they are felt more strongly nearby than a deeper earthquake of the same magnitude.

Exactly when did it happen?

Oct 27, 2026, 12:38 PM (local time at the epicentre — PDT, UTC-7). In universal time: 2026-10-27 19:38 UTC.

Was it felt?

Felt by 6 people · community intensity III (weak). Felt indoors; hanging objects swing, like a passing truck.

Was there a tsunami warning?

No tsunami evaluation was flagged for this earthquake.

Which towns are closest to the epicentre?

The closest is Seven Trees, 14.4 km W (population 1,788).

Are earthquakes normal in this area?

Yes. The largest earthquake recorded within 200 km since 1960 was magnitude 6.9 (The 1989 Loma Prieta, California Earthquake, 1989), and 4 further events were recorded within 100 km in the last 30 days.

How do I get alerts for the next earthquake here?

Install the free SeismoWatch Android app, draw a box over this area, set a minimum magnitude, and turn alerts on.

About this page

Event data: U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), the European-Mediterranean Seismological Centre (EMSC), in Venezuela FUNVISIS and in Brazil the RSBR through the Centro de Sismologia da USP. Populated places and time zones: GeoNames (CC BY 4.0). Preliminary solutions are revised as more observations arrive.