Weak magnitude 2.6 earthquake at 14 km depth23 May 15:55 UTC: First to report: GEONET (NZ) after 2 minutes.23 May 15:56: Magnitude recalculated from 2.3 to 2.6.I didn't feel itI felt this quakeEarthquake detailsDate & timeMay 23, 2026 15:53:32 UTC - Local time at epicenterSaturday, May 23, 2026, at 03:53 pm (Universal Time GMT +0)Statuspreliminary (automatic detection)Magnitude2.6Depth13.7 kmEpicenter latitude / longitude37.8271°S / 176.2434°ENew ZealandSeismic antipode37.8271°N / 3.757°WShaking intensityII Very weak shakingFelt0 reportsPrimary data sourceGEONET (NZ) (Earthquake Commission and Geological Survey, New Zealand)Nearest volcanoKaimai (4 km / 2 mi)Estimated seismic energy released5 x 108 joules (139 kilowatt hours, equivalent to 0.12 tons of TNT) | equivalent to ONE quake of magnitude 2.6 | about seismic energy3 minutes agoMay 23, 2026 15:53 GMT / May 23, 2026 03:53 pm (Universal Time)Lat / Lng: -37.82707 / 176.24339: New ZealandSource: GEONET (NZ)Detail info | You felt it? - Report it!';storedMarkers.push(['quake-23028308',-37.82707,176.24339,'3 minutes ago: Mag. 2.6, New Zealand',html,'quakes-4-24.png',14,14,7,7,123]); function mkRep(id,notFelt){var nFelt=notFelt||false;var src="https://www.volcanoesandearthquakes.com/app/earthquake-report.php?quakeId="+id;if(nFelt==true){src+="¬Felt=true";}window.open(src,"","status=0,toolbar=0,location=0,directories=0,menubar=0,resizable=1,scrollbars=1,height=400,width=350");} function locationHashChanged(e){-1!=e.oldURL.indexOf("#popupMap")&&closePopup()} window.onhashchange = locationHashChanged; function comment(e){var t=e.parentNode,a=(t.dataset.id,document.getElementById("commentForm"));"none"==a.style.display?(t.appendChild(a),a.style.display="block"):a.style.display="none"}function sendComment(e){var t=e.parentNode,a=t.parentNode.dataset.id,n=document.getElementById("commentContent"),p=n.value.trim();if(p){var o="id="+a+"&quakeId="+thisQuakeId;o+="&comment="+decodeURIComponent(p),mkRequest("//reports.volcanodiscovery.com/app/eqReportComment.php","post",o,function(e){e.responseText;alert("Thank you for submitting your comment!"),t.style.display="none",n.value=""})}}function flagReport(e){var t=e.parentNode.dataset.id;if(confirm("Report this as inappropriate?")){var a="id="+t+"&quakeId="+thisQuakeId+"&flagAsInappropriate=1";mkRequest("//reports.volcanodiscovery.com/app/eqReportComment.php","post",a,function(t){var a=t.responseText;alert(a),e.style.display="none"})}}function likeReport(e){var t="id="+e.parentNode.dataset.id+"&quakeId="+thisQuakeId+"&like=1";mkRequest("//reports.volcanodiscovery.com/app/eqReportComment.php","post",t,function(t){t.responseText;e.style.opacity=.5})}]]>[smaller] [bigger]Most recent quakes Top 20 past 24 hrs Quakes in New ZealandNearby placesThe closest larger town where the quake might have been felt is Oropi, a town with 2,500 inhabitants in New Zealand, in 7.4 km (4.6 mi) distance west of the epicenter. People likely experienced very weak shaking there. In the capital of New Zealand, Wellington, 405 km (252 mi) away from the epicenter, the earthquake could not be felt.The following table shows some of the places that might have been affected (or not) by the shaking.DistancePlaceMax. shaking intensity(*)RegionCountry7 km (5 mi)W of epicenterOropi(pop: 2,520)II: Very weakWestern Bay of Plenty District, Bay of PlentyNew Zealand9 km (6 mi)NE of epicenterTe Puke(pop: 10,500)II: Very weakWestern Bay of Plenty District, Bay of PlentyNew Zealand17 km (11 mi)NW of epicenterTauranga(pop: 155,200)II: Very weakBay of PlentyNew Zealand19 km (12 mi)S of epicenterKaharoa(pop: 1,620)II: Very weakRotorua District, Bay of PlentyNew Zealand19 km (12 mi)E of epicenterMaketu(pop: 1,410)II: Very weakWestern Bay of Plenty District, Bay of PlentyNew Zealand27 km (17 mi)NW of epicenterOmokoroa(pop: 5,990)I: Not feltWestern Bay of Plenty District, Bay of PlentyNew Zealand33 km (21 mi)SW of epicenterMamaku(pop: 751)I: Not feltRotorua District, Bay of PlentyNew Zealand35 km (22 mi)S of epicenterRotorua(pop: 65,900)I: Not feltBay of PlentyNew Zealand37 km (23 mi)W of epicenterTe Poi(pop: 840)I: Not feltMatamata-Piako District, WaikatoNew Zealand42 km (26 mi)NW of epicenterKatikati(pop: 6,000)I: Not feltWestern Bay of Plenty District, Bay of PlentyNew Zealand42 km (26 mi)W of epicenterMatamata(pop: 6,310)I: Not feltWaikatoNew Zealand45 km (28 mi)E of epicenterMatata(pop: 681)I: Not feltWhakatane District, Bay of PlentyNew Zealand47 km (30 mi)SW of epicenterPutaruru(pop: 4,670)I: Not feltSouth Waikato District, WaikatoNew Zealand50 km (31 mi)SE of epicenterKawerau(pop: 7,670)I: Not feltBay of PlentyNew Zealand55 km (34 mi)E of epicenterEdgecumbe(pop: 1,900)I: Not feltWhakatane District, Bay of PlentyNew Zealand56 km (35 mi)SW of epicenterTokoroa(pop: 14,500)I: Not feltSouth Waikato District, WaikatoNew Zealand58 km (36 mi)NW of epicenterTe Aroha(pop: 4,700)I: Not feltMatamata-Piako District, WaikatoNew Zealand59 km (36 mi)NW of epicenterWaitoa(pop: 1,170)I: Not feltMatamata-Piako District, WaikatoNew Zealand61 km (38 mi)NW of epicenterWaihi(pop: 4,620)I: Not feltHauraki District, WaikatoNew Zealand67 km (41 mi)W of epicenterMorrinsville(pop: 9,710)I: Not feltMatamata-Piako District, WaikatoNew Zealand71 km (44 mi)W of epicenterCambridge(pop: 15,200)I: Not feltWaipa District, WaikatoNew Zealand72 km (45 mi)NW of epicenterPaeroa(pop: 3,990)I: Not feltHauraki District, WaikatoNew Zealand73 km (45 mi)E of epicenterTaneatua(pop: 1,500)I: Not feltWhakatane District, Bay of PlentyNew Zealand75 km (47 mi)E of epicenterOhope Beach(pop: 3,250)I: Not feltWhakatane District, Bay of PlentyNew Zealand77 km (48 mi)NW of epicenterWhangamata(pop: 4,270)I: Not feltThames-Coromandel District, WaikatoNew Zealand82 km (51 mi)SE of epicenterMurupara(pop: 1,880)I: Not feltWhakatane District, Bay of PlentyNew Zealand83 km (51 mi)W of epicenterTe Awamutu(pop: 14,000)I: Not feltWaipa District, WaikatoNew Zealand85 km (53 mi)W of epicenterHamilton(pop: 189,700)I: Not feltWaikatoNew Zealand89 km (55 mi)NW of epicenterNgatea(pop: 1,150)I: Not feltHauraki District, WaikatoNew Zealand94 km (58 mi)W of epicenterPirongia(pop: 1,340): Not feltWaipa District, WaikatoNew Zealand94 km (58 mi)E of epicenterOpotiki(pop: 4,880): Not feltBay of PlentyNew Zealand96 km (60 mi)S of epicenterTaupo(pop: 26,600): Not feltWaikatoNew Zealand97 km (60 mi)N of epicenterTairua(pop: 1,590): Not feltThames-Coromandel District, WaikatoNew Zealand97 km (60 mi)W of epicenterNgaruawahia(pop: 8,500): Not feltWaikato District, WaikatoNew Zealand99 km (61 mi)NW of epicenterThames(pop: 7,140): Not feltWaikatoNew Zealand100 km (62 mi)SW of epicenterOtorohanga(pop: 3,280): Not feltWaikatoNew Zealand100 km (62 mi)W of epicenterHuntly(pop: 8,850): Not feltWaikato District, WaikatoNew Zealand107 km (67 mi)NW of epicenterTe Kauwhata(pop: 3,740): Not feltWaikato District, WaikatoNew Zealand110 km (68 mi)SW of epicenterTe Kuiti(pop: 4,890): Not feltWaitomo District, WaikatoNew Zealand405 km (252 mi)S of epicenterWellington(pop: 381,900): Not feltWellingtonNew ZealandNotes:(*) Shaking intensity according to the Modified Mercalli Intensity Scale (MMI) and estimated using seismic models.User-reports for this quakeThere are no user reports for this quake yet.At magnitude 2.6, this quake might have been felt very close to the epicenter and under calm conditions.If you felt it, be the first to report it!Get the Android appCompare Quake DataData for the same earthquake as reported by different agenciesThe more agencies report about the same quake and post similar data, the more confidence you can have in the data. It takes normally up to a few hours until earthquake parameters are calculated with near-optimum precision.MagDepthTime GMT2026-05-23EpicenterAgency2.614 km8.5 mi15:53:32New ZealandGEONET (NZ) (Earthquake Commission and Geological Survey, New Zealand)Earthquake statisticsAverage number of earthquakesBased on data from the past 26 years and our earthquake archive back to 1900, there are about 3,200 quakes on average per year in the area near the epicenter of this quake (within 100 km/61 mi):Mag. 6 or higher: 0.06 quakes per year (or 1 quake every 18.2 years)Mag. 5 or higher: 1.42 quakes per yearMag. 4 or higher: 15.6 quakes per yearMag. 3 or higher: 201 quakes per year (or 16.7 quakes per month)Mag. 2 or higher: 2,100 quakes per year (or 5.6 quakes per day)Mag. 1 or higher: 3,200 quakes per year (or 8.8 quakes per day)The area where this quake occurred has a high level of seismic activity. It has had at least 7 quakes above magnitude 6 since 1900, which suggests that larger earthquakes of this size occur infrequently, probably on average approximately every 15 to 20 years.Number of quakes per yearPrevious quakes in the same area of this earthquake