List of F5 and EF5 tornadoes

This is a list of tornadoes rated F5 on the Fujita scale, EF5 on the Enhanced Fujita scale, IF5 on the , or T10-T11 on the TORRO scale, which is equivalent to an F5 rating. These ratings (F5/EF5/IF5/T10/T11) are the highest possible ratings on the various global tornado intensity scales. These various scales attempt to estimate the strength of a tornado by classifying the damage caused to nature and man-made structures in the tornado's path.

Tornadoes are among the most violent known meteorological phenomena. Each year, more than 2,000&nbsp;tornadoes are recorded worldwide, with the majority occurring in North America and Europe. In order to assess the intensity of these events, meteorologist Ted Fujita created a way to estimate highest wind speeds within tornadic storms based on the damage caused; this became known as the Fujita scale. The scale ranks tornadoes from F0 to F5, with F0 being the least intense and F5 being the most intense. F5 tornadoes were estimated to have had maximum winds between 261-318 mph (420–512 kilometers per hour).   

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Following two particularly devastating tornadoes in 1997 and 1999, engineers questioned the reliability of the Fujita scale. Ultimately, a new scale was created that considered 28&nbsp;different damage indicators; this became known as the Enhanced Fujita scale. The Enhanced Fujita scale is used almost entirely in North America. Most of Europe, however, uses the TORRO tornado intensity scale (TORRO scale or T-Scale), which ranks tornado intensity between T0 and T11; F5/EF5 tornadoes are about the same to T10 to T11 on the T-Scale.

In the United States, between 1950&nbsp;and January&nbsp;31, 2007, a total of 50&nbsp;tornadoes were officially rated F5, and since February&nbsp;1, 2007, a total of nine tornadoes have been officially rated EF5. Since 1950, Canada has had one tornado officially rated an F5. Outside the United States and Canada, seven tornadoes have been officially rated F5/EF5/T10+ or equivalent: two each in France, Germany, and one in Italy, Argentina and Australia.

Several other tornadoes have also been documented as possibly attaining this status, though they are not officially rated as such. The work of tornado expert  revealed the existence of several dozen likely F5 tornadoes between 1880&nbsp;and 1995. Grazulis also called into question the ratings of several tornadoes currently rated F5 by official sources. Many tornadoes officially rated F4/EF4 have been questioned and described as actual F5/EF5/T10+ tornadoes, and vice versa; since structures are completely destroyed in both cases, distinguishing between an EF4 tornado and an EF5 tornado is often very difficult. Additionally, because tornado ratings are damage-based, many tornadoes capable of causing F5/EF5/T10+ damage, such as those that move through rural areas, may receive lower ratings because their strongest winds do not strike any suitable damage indicators.

## List of events
The tornadoes on this list have been formally rated F5 by an official government source. Unless otherwise noted, the source of the F5 rating is the U.S. National Weather Service (NWS), as shown in the archives of the Storm Prediction Center (SPC) and National Climatic Data Center (NCDC).

Before 1950, assessments of F5 tornadoes are based primarily on the work of Thomas P. Grazulis. The NCDC has accepted 38&nbsp;of his F5 classifications of tornadoes occurring between 1880 and 1950. In addition to the accepted ones, Grazulis rated a further 25&nbsp;during the same period which were not accepted. Grazulis' work has identified 16&nbsp;additional F5 tornadoes between 1950 and 1995, with four&nbsp;later being accepted by the NCDC. From 1950&nbsp;to 1970, tornadoes were assessed retrospectively, primarily using information recorded in government databases, as well as newspaper photographs and eyewitness accounts. Beginning in 1971, tornadoes were rated by the NWS using on-site damage surveys.

As of February&nbsp;1, 2007, tornadoes in the United States are rated using the Enhanced Fujita scale, which replaced the Fujita scale in order to more accurately correlate tornadic intensity with damage indicators and to augment and refine damage descriptors. No earlier tornadoes will be reclassified on the Enhanced Fujita scale, and no new tornadoes in the United States will be rated on the original Fujita scale. France and Canada also adopted the EF-Scale in the next few years. Since the creation of the International Fujita scale in 2018, no tornadoes have been rated IF5.

### Official F5/EF5 tornadoes
Worldwide, a total of 67&nbsp;tornadoes have been officially rated F5/EF5: 59&nbsp;in the United States, two each in France and Germany, and one each in Argentina, Australia, Canada, and Italy. Of the 59 tornadoes in the United States, 50&nbsp;are officially rated F5 on the original Fujita scale (with dates of occurrence between May&nbsp;11, 1953, and May&nbsp;3, 1999), and nine&nbsp;are officially rated EF5 on the Enhanced Fujita scale (with dates of occurrence between May&nbsp;4, 2007, and May&nbsp;20, 2013). In total, the United States produces almost 90% of the worlds strongest tornados (F5/EF5). 

#1764 Woldegk tornado
#1800 Hainichen tornado
#1845 Montville tornado
#1876 Bowen tornado
#1899 New Richmond tornado
#1925 Tri-State Tornado
#1930 Treviso–Udine tornado
#1953 Waco tornado
#1953 Fort Rice tornado
#1953 Flint–Beecher tornado
#1953 Adair tornado
#1953 Vicksburg tornado
#1955 Blackwell tornado
#1955 Udall tornado
#1956 Hudsonville–Standale tornado
#1957 Kansas City tornado
#1957 Fargo tornado
#
#1958 Colfax tornado
#1960 Prague–Paden tornado
#1964 Wichita Falls tornado
#1964 Central Nebraska tornado
#1965 Colome tornado
#1966 Candlestick Park tornado
#1966 Topeka tornado
#1966 Belmond tornado
#1967 Palluel tornado
#1968 Wheelers­burg–Gallipolis tornado
#1968 Charles City tornado
#1968 Oelwein–Maynard tornado
#1968 Tracy tornado
#1970 Lubbock tornado
#1971 Inverness tornado
#1973 San Justo tornado
#1973 Valley Mills tornado
#1974 Depauw–Daisy Hill tornado
#1974 Xenia tornado
#1974 Brandenburg tornado
#1974 Sayler Park tornado
#1974 First Tanner tornado
#1974 Second Tanner tornado
#1974 Guin tornado
#1976 Spiro tornado
#1976 Brownwood tornado
#1976 Jordan tornado
#1977 Birmingham tornado
#1982 Messer–Golden–Broken Bow tornado
#1984 Barneveld–Black Earth tornado
#1985 Niles–Wheatland tornado
#1990 Hesston tornado
#1990 Goessel tornado
#1990 Plainfield tornado
#1991 Andover tornado
#1992 Chandler–Lake Wilson tornado
#1996 Oakfield tornado
#1997 Jarrell tornado
#1998 Birmingham tornado
#1998 Lawrence County tornado
#1999 Bridge Creek–Moore tornado
#2007 Elie tornado
#2007 Greensburg tornado
#2008 Parkersburg–New Hartford tornado
#2011 Philadelphia tornado
#2011 Smithville tornado
#2011 Hackleburg–Phil Campbell tornado
#2011 Rainsville tornado
#2011 El Reno - Piedmont tornado
#2011 Joplin tornado
#2013 Moore tornado
#2025 Enderlin tornado

### Possible F5/EF5 tornadoes officially rated lower
The process to rate tornadic damage is often difficult. Because of the difficulty, the official ratings of tornadoes are sometimes questioned by others. These may be questioned by other meteorologists, universities and colleges, as well as independent studies published in academic journals.

#### Previously rated F5/EF5 tornadoes or rated F5/EF5 by others
This is a list of tornadoes. Tornadoes on this list may have been previously rated F5 or EF5 by the official government damage surveyors. Tornadoes on this list may have also been rated F5 or EF5 by some other meteorologist or expert.

*1876 Bradford tornado
*1931 Lublin Tornado
*1952 Byhalia–Moscow tornado
*1953 Worcester tornado
*1960 Wamego–St. Marys tornado
*1961 Custer–Valley County tornado
*1965 Dunlap tornado
*1965 Lebanon–Sheridan tornado
*1965 Pittsfield–Strongsville tornado
*1965 Wolbach–Primrose tornado
*1971 Gosser Ridge tornado
*1974 Lincoln–Franklin County tornado
*1984 Ivanovo tornado
*1995 McLean–Kellerville tornado
*1995 Allison tornado
*1998 Hardin–Wayne County tornado
*2002 La Plata tornado
*2004 Marion tornado
*2011 Tuscaloosa–Birmingham tornado
*2011 Goldsby tornado
*2011 Chickasha tornado
*2013 El Reno tornado
*2014 Vilonia tornado
*2021 Mayfield - Bremen tornado
*2023 Rolling Fork–Silver City tornado

#### Possible EF5 damage
This is a list of tornadoes which had possible F5 or EF5 damage. The ratings of possible F5 or EF5 damage could come from the National Weather Service, other branches of the U.S. government, or other tornado experts.

*1666 Lincolnshire tornado
*1946 Windsor–Tecumseh tornado
*1951 Olney tornado
*1951 Waupaca tornado
*1952 Linwood–Edwardsville tornado
*1953 Cygnet tornado
*1954 Crowell–Snyder tornado
*1955 Walcott tornado
*1957 Rush City tornado
*1957 Fremont tornado
*1957 Pavia tornado
*1958 El Dorado tornado
*1963 Swett–Patricia tornado
*1964 Lawrence tornado
*1968 Falmouth–Ripley tornado
*1984 Kostroma tornado
*1985 Parker Dam State Park–Moshannon State Forest tornado
*1987 Edmonton tornado
*1989 Allendale tornado
*1991 Hackney–Tisdale tornado
*1992 Bucca tornado
*1995 Pampa tornado
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*2004 Harper tornado
*2011 New Wren–Amory tornado
*2011 Chickasha–Blanchard tornado
*2012 Henryville tornado
*2020 Cookeville tornado

#### Possible EF5 intensity
This is a list of tornadoes which may have or did reached F5 or EF5 strength. These tornadoes did not caused F5 or EF5 damage. However, experts or scientists have determined these tornadoes reached F5 or EF5 intensity or think they did.

*1931 Lublin tornado
*1957 Dallas tornado
*1969 Bazhou–Tianjin tornado
*1973 Union City tornado
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*1991 Red Rock tornado
*1998 Spencer tornado
*2013 Bennington tornado
*2014 Mayflower–Vilonia tornado
*2016 Sulphur tornado
*2016 Friend tornado
*2016 Dodge City tornado
*2016 Abilene–Chapman tornado
*2017 Maloye Pes'yanovo tornado
*2018 Alonsa–Silver Ridge tornado
*2019 Nepal tornado
*2019 Greenwood Springs tornado
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*2023 Rolling Fork–Silver City tornado

## Notes
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## Further reading
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## Other websites
* Climatological Risk of Strong and Violent Tornadoes in the United States (Paper 9.4, Second Conference on Environmental Applications)
* Severe Thunderstorm and Tornado Climatology (NSSL)
* Fujita Scale
* Extreme Weather at the CBC.ca Archives
* List of strong tornadoes from 1879 to 2000