The map shows quakes of M1.5 and up from the last 90 days, the 8 biggest on record, and always the very latest quake — even if it was smaller than M1.5. The list below can include smaller ones the map leaves out. Tap any dot for details.
In the last 30 days, 7 earthquakes of M1.5 or bigger were recorded within 100 km of Helena, the biggest of them M2.4. Over the past year, M3.0+ quakes near Helena came at 0.2× the usual pace — quieter than normal for this area. The biggest quake on record near Helena — records go back to 1980 — was the M5.8 of Jul 06, 2017, 06:30 UTC: 11 km SE of Lincoln, Montana.
How we figure this: 2 quakes of M3.0 or bigger within 100 km in the last 12 months (Nov 03, 2025 – Nov 03, 2026), compared with an average of 9.9 a year across the full calendar years 2016–2025, counted the same way. This compares how often quakes happened in two past periods. It is not a forecast, and it does not mean a big earthquake is on its way — nobody can predict earthquakes.
Latest earthquakes near Helena
| Mag | Location | Local time | Depth | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| M0.8 | 10 km NW of Helena Valley Northwest, Montana | Nov 02, 2026, 08:08 AM | 11 km | 23 km NNW |
| M1.0 | 21 km N of Twin Bridges, Montana | Nov 01, 2026, 07:42 AM | 3 km | 97 km SSW |
| M1.1 | 14 km NNE of Marysville, Montana | Nov 01, 2026, 01:15 AM | 1 km | 33 km NNW |
| M1.0 | 6 km SSW of Toston, Montana | Oct 31, 2026, 12:31 AM | 3 km | 68 km SE |
| M1.3 | 20 km NNE of Marysville, Montana | Oct 30, 2026, 08:17 PM | 10 km | 37 km NNW |
| M1.0 | 15 km SE of Lincoln, Montana | Oct 28, 2026, 12:49 AM | 13 km | 48 km NW |
| M2.4 | 20 km SW of Whitehall, Montana | Oct 25, 2026, 03:27 AM | 2 km | 96 km SSW |
| M1.7 | 14 km ESE of Lincoln, Montana | Oct 22, 2026, 09:47 PM | 9 km | 49 km NW |
| M1.9 | 24 km SSW of Augusta, Montana | Oct 22, 2026, 01:29 PM | 3 km | 89 km NNW |
| M1.2 | 18 km E of Townsend, Montana | Oct 22, 2026, 05:13 AM | 13 km | 66 km ESE |
Earthquakes per year near Helena (M3.0 and up, within 100 km)
M3.0–3.9 M4.0+
Each bar is one year; taller means more quakes (M3.0 and up). The dark red part is the bigger ones (M4.0+), counted inside the number above each bar — not added on top. These may be felt, depending on how far away and how deep they are. 2026 is not a full year yet — it only counts up to today. Source: USGS Earthquake Catalog.
What the last year looked like near Helena
Every quake of M1.5 or bigger within 100 km over the last year — 39 in total. A quake of exactly M2.0 counts in the M2.0–3.0 group.
The 8 biggest earthquakes on record near Helena (M4.0 and up, since 1980)
| Mag | Location | Date (UTC) | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|
| M5.8 | 11 km SE of Lincoln, Montana | Jul 06, 2017, 06:30 UTC | 52 km |
| M5.0 | 15 km S of Lincoln, Montana | Jul 06, 2017, 06:35 UTC | 54 km |
| M4.4 | 14 km SE of Lincoln, Montana | Jul 06, 2017, 07:27 UTC | 49 km |
| M4.3 | 19 km E of Lincoln, Montana | Jan 30, 2016, 19:31 UTC | 49 km |
| M4.3 | 18 km S of Whitehall, Montana | Oct 28, 1998, 03:11 UTC | 99 km |
| M4.2 | 4 km NW of Manhattan, Montana | Aug 16, 2019, 00:02 UTC | 94 km |
| M4.1 | 3 km NW of Manhattan, Montana | Aug 06, 2019, 04:27 UTC | 95 km |
| M4.1 | 8 km ENE of Townsend, Montana | Apr 08, 2000, 11:30 UTC | 55 km |
Nearby places
Helena Valley Southeast, MT (9 km) · Helena Valley Northeast, MT (13 km) · Clancy, MT (15 km) · Helena Valley Northwest, MT (15 km) · Townsend, MT (50 km) · Boulder, MT (40 km)
USGS data fetched Nov 03, 2026, 19:45 UTC · page built Nov 03, 2026, 19:45 UTC. How to read this page: recent-window counts cover M1.5+ events within 100 km; the 10-year layer is based on M3.0+ and the history layer on M4.0+ since 1980. Recording completeness varies by era and region — small quakes from early decades are under-recorded, so “no record” does not prove “never happened”. Depths are relative to sea level and can be slightly negative for shallow events in elevated terrain. Method: data & methodology.