United States
Earthquakes in Rhode Island
ShareUSGS has not recorded an earthquake in and around Rhode Island in the last 30 days. The largest ever recorded here is M 3.5, 5 km SE of Portsmouth, Rhode Island, on 1976-03-11.
Nothing recorded in the last 30 days
USGS logged 1 events here in the last year. The historical record is below.
Recent earthquakes in and around Rhode Island
USGS has not located an earthquake in and around Rhode Island in the last 30 days. That is normal for this area: it recorded 1 in the last year.
The largest on record in and around Rhode Island
Since 1900, when the instrumental record becomes usable. The largest is M 3.5 at 5 km SE of Portsmouth, Rhode Island on 1976-03-11: minor: often felt, rarely causes damage.
Largest since 1900 USGS
| Magnitude | Location | Date | Depth |
|---|---|---|---|
| M 3.5 | 5 km SE of Portsmouth, Rhode Island | 1976-03-11 | 0.0 km deep |
| M 3.1 | 2 km NE of Bristol, Rhode Island | 1996-03-22 | 11.9 km deep |
| M 2.8 | 10 km SE of Narragansett Pier, Rhode Island | 1978-09-03 | 0.0 km deep |
| M 2.7 | 2 km ESE of Portsmouth, Rhode Island | 1981-04-03 | 1.0 km deep |
| M 2.6 | 2 km E of Wauregan, Connecticut | 2015-01-13 | 8.8 km deep |
| M 2.5 | 1 km E of West Warwick, Rhode Island | 1974-10-01 | Not recorded |
How these numbers were counted
Counts include every earthquake of magnitude 1.0 and above that USGS located in and around Rhode Island. The search is a latitude and longitude rectangle covering Rhode Island. No region is a rectangle, so events just outside the border can appear; each row shows the location text USGS published, which names the nearest town. Full method, including why counts from different places are not comparable.
Source: USGS Earthquake Hazards Program (FDSN event service). Retrieved 2026-08-10. Public domain.