All 52 tectonic plates
Seven major plates carry most of the planet. Around them, 45 smaller plates take up the strain in Earth's busiest collision zones. Sizes and speeds below come from the PB2002 model.
The 7 major plates
Plate sizes compared
The 20 largest plates, by surface area.
Minor plates and microplates
13 minor plates (over 1 million km²) and 32 microplates. Select a column to sort.
| Plate | Type | Area | Avg speed | Main boundary | Neighbors | Countries |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Somali Plate | Minor plate | 19.2 million km² | 1.6 cm/yr | Divergent | 5 | 23 |
| Nazca Plate | Minor plate | 16.1 million km² | 7.9 cm/yr | Divergent | 10 | 2 |
| Indian Plate | Minor plate | 12.4 million km² | 2.8 cm/yr | Convergent | 5 | 8 |
| Sunda Plate | Minor plate | 8.92 million km² | 5.2 cm/yr | Convergent | 9 | 10 |
| Philippine Sea Plate | Minor plate | 5.44 million km² | 6.0 cm/yr | Convergent | 9 | 5 |
| Amur Plate | Minor plate | 5.30 million km² | 1.2 cm/yr | Divergent | 5 | 6 |
| Arabian Plate | Minor plate | 4.90 million km² | 2.1 cm/yr | Convergent | 5 | 19 |
| Okhotsk Plate | Minor plate | 3.04 million km² | 3.3 cm/yr | Convergent | 5 | 2 |
| Caribbean Plate | Minor plate | 2.96 million km² | 1.9 cm/yr | Convergent | 5 | 20 |
| Cocos Plate | Minor plate | 2.93 million km² | 7.0 cm/yr | Divergent | 7 | - |
| Yangtze Plate | Minor plate | 2.20 million km² | 2.2 cm/yr | Divergent | 5 | 3 |
| Scotia Plate | Minor plate | 1.70 million km² | 1.6 cm/yr | Convergent | 4 | 2 |
| Caroline Plate | Minor plate | 1.53 million km² | 1.6 cm/yr | Convergent | 5 | - |
| North Andes Plate | Microplate | 971,794 km² | 2.2 cm/yr | Convergent | 4 | 4 |
| Altiplano Plate | Microplate | 832,154 km² | 2.6 cm/yr | Convergent | 2 | 3 |
| Banda Sea Plate | Microplate | 695,909 km² | 3.4 cm/yr | Convergent | 5 | 1 |
| New Hebrides Plate | Microplate | 643,471 km² | 7.5 cm/yr | Divergent | 4 | 1 |
| Anatolian Plate | Microplate | 575,615 km² | 1.9 cm/yr | Transform | 4 | 4 |
| Bird's Head Plate | Microplate | 525,648 km² | 6.4 cm/yr | Convergent | 8 | 1 |
| Burma Plate | Microplate | 515,365 km² | 3.4 cm/yr | Convergent | 4 | 2 |
| Kermadec Plate | Microplate | 505,360 km² | 5.2 cm/yr | Convergent | 3 | 1 |
| Woodlark Plate | Microplate | 453,071 km² | 3.1 cm/yr | Convergent | 8 | 2 |
| Mariana Plate | Microplate | 420,773 km² | 4.8 cm/yr | Convergent | 2 | 2 |
| Molucca Sea Plate | Microplate | 418,102 km² | 4.0 cm/yr | Convergent | 3 | 1 |
| North Bismarck Plate | Microplate | 388,136 km² | 5.7 cm/yr | Convergent | 6 | 1 |
| Timor Plate | Microplate | 353,276 km² | 2.7 cm/yr | Convergent | 3 | 2 |
| Okinawa Plate | Microplate | 324,728 km² | 6.3 cm/yr | Convergent | 3 | 2 |
| Aegean Sea Plate | Microplate | 321,892 km² | 2.9 cm/yr | Convergent | 3 | 2 |
| South Bismarck Plate | Microplate | 309,087 km² | 9.8 cm/yr | Convergent | 4 | 1 |
| Panama Plate | Microplate | 273,735 km² | 3.0 cm/yr | Convergent | 4 | 3 |
| Juan de Fuca Plate | Microplate | 256,344 km² | 4.9 cm/yr | Convergent | 2 | - |
| Tonga Plate | Microplate | 253,617 km² | 11.4 cm/yr | Divergent | 4 | 1 |
| Balmoral Reef Plate | Microplate | 195,387 km² | 3.5 cm/yr | Transform | 4 | - |
| Sandwich Plate | Microplate | 184,411 km² | 7.3 cm/yr | Convergent | 3 | - |
| Easter Plate | Microplate | 166,979 km² | 7.2 cm/yr | Divergent | 2 | - |
| Conway Reef Plate | Microplate | 144,452 km² | 5.0 cm/yr | Divergent | 3 | - |
| Solomon Sea Plate | Microplate | 128,671 km² | 5.9 cm/yr | Convergent | 4 | - |
| Niuafo'ou Plate | Microplate | 124,280 km² | 8.5 cm/yr | Divergent | 4 | - |
| Maoke Plate | Microplate | 115,306 km² | 3.9 cm/yr | Transform | 3 | 1 |
| Rivera Plate | Microplate | 100,895 km² | 4.6 cm/yr | Convergent | 3 | - |
| Juan Fernandez Plate | Microplate | 97,681 km² | 8.8 cm/yr | Divergent | 3 | - |
| Shetland Plate | Microplate | 72,215 km² | 1.0 cm/yr | Convergent | 2 | 1 |
| Futuna Plate | Microplate | 32,024 km² | 5.3 cm/yr | Transform | 3 | - |
| Galapagos Plate | Microplate | 14,625 km² | 5.4 cm/yr | Divergent | 3 | - |
| Manus Plate | Microplate | 8,219 km² | 6.5 cm/yr | Divergent | 2 | - |
Why 52 plates?
Older maps show a dozen plates because they only draw the big, rigid pieces. In 2003 the geophysicist Peter Bird combined earthquake locations, GPS motion and seafloor data into a single global model, PB2002, and found that the surface fits better with 52. Most of the extra plates are small blocks squeezed between the giants in places like the western Pacific, the Andes and the eastern Mediterranean.
PB2002 also marks 13 "orogens", broad zones such as the Himalaya and Tibet where the crust deforms too widely to draw a single line. Where scientists still debate a plate, like the Amur or Okhotsk plates, the profile page says so.
Quick answers
How many tectonic plates are there?
It depends on the model. Most textbooks name 7 major plates and around a dozen minor ones. Peter Bird's PB2002 model, which this site uses, divides the surface into 52 plates by adding microplates in fast-deforming regions like Indonesia, Papua New Guinea and the Andes. Read more.
What are the 7 major tectonic plates?
The Pacific, African, Antarctic, North American, Eurasian, Australian, South American plates. Together they cover about 81% of Earth's surface.
What is the largest tectonic plate?
The Pacific Plate at about 104.6 million km², roughly 21% of the planet. It is almost entirely oceanic.
What is the smallest tectonic plate?
In the PB2002 model the smallest is the Manus Plate near Papua New Guinea, at only 8,219 km².