An earthquake of magnitude 7.4 occurred in the morning on Friday, July 17th, 2026, at 8:48 am local time near Tapachula, Tapachula Municipality, Estado de Chiapas, Mexico, as reported by the United States Geological Survey.According to preliminary data, the quake was located at a shallow depth of 10. km. Shallow earthquakes are felt more strongly than deeper ones as they are closer to the surface. The exact magnitude, epicenter, and depth of the quake might be revised within the next few hours or minutes as seismologists review data and refine their calculations, or as other agencies issue their report.A second report was later issued by Geoscience Australia (GeoAu), which listed it as a magnitude 7.4 earthquake as well. A third agency, the German Research Centre for Geosciences (GFZ), reported the same quake at magnitude 6.6.Based on the preliminary seismic data, the quake should have been felt by everybody in the area of the epicenter. In those areas, dangerous ground shaking occurred with the potential to inflict moderate to heavy damage to buildings and other infrastructure. Towns or cities where the quake likely caused strong ground shaking include Moderate shaking probably occurred in Ciudad Hidalgo (pop. 14,600) located 96 km from the epicenter, Tapachula (pop. 353,700) 98 km away, Huixtla (pop. 32,000) 100 km away, and Pijijiapan (pop. 50,100) 145 km away.VolcanoDiscovery will automatically update magnitude and depth if these change and follow up if other significant news about the quake become available. If you’re in the area, please send us your experience through our reporting mechanism, either online or via our mobile app. This will help us provide more first-hand updates to anyone around the globe who wants to know more about this quake.Earthquake data: Date & time: Jul 17, 2026 08:48 am (GMT -6) local time (17 Jul 2026 14:48 GMT)Magnitude: 7.4Depth: 10.00 kmEpicenter latitude / longitude: 14.4°N / 93°W (Estado de Chiapas, Mexico)Primary data source: USGS