Where the 2025 Tornado Season Ranks so Far for Violent Storm Numbers

It has been an active year for tornadoes, and June is just now starting. There have been hundreds of twisters confirmed across the U.S. this year with five of these events coming in as violent EF4s. Here is a deeper dive into the numbers thus far for 2025.

Five EF4 Tornadoes Have Come to Life in the Front Half of the U.S. Season

It has been a busy season for tornadoes across the U.S. As of the end of May, the 2025 tornado season ranks in fourth place over the last 15 years. This is a drop from the peak earlier in the season when the numbers hovered at levels of the second-most active year. The 2011 tornado season remains firmly in first place for the highest amount of activity.

According to the Storm Prediction Center (SPC), there have been 1,042 preliminary filtered tornado reports in the U.S. as of May 31. This equates to 260 more than the historical average figure of 782.

A handful of major outbreaks in the middle of March, early April, and the middle of May have been responsible for the historically high number of confirmed twisters this year. Four states lead the pack for the hardest hit areas in 2025. Not surprisingly, due to its sheer size, Texas is in first place with 109 tornado reports thus far this year. Illinois and Missouri are tied for second with 105 reports each. Mississippi comes in next on the list with 100 preliminary tornado reports.

This list differs from 2024 when the top spots went to Texas, Iowa, Nebraska, Missouri, and Oklahoma. Activity has been particularly sparse in Iowa this year when compared to last year. The Hawkeye State had over 100 reports of tornadoes in 2024, compared to just 11 in 2025. Conversely, Mississippi saw only 11 reports last year.

The calendar just flipped from May to June and there have already been five tornadoes rated as EF4s. Two of these massive tornadoes happened in mid-May. While this may seem like a small number, it is important to note that tornadoes rated EF4 or higher account for less than 1% of all twisters over the last 100 years.

The Enhanced Fujita scale is the measurement used by meteorologists to categorize tornado intensity. EF4 and EF5 ratings are reserved for what experts refer to as "violent" tornadoes. This is because twisters of this magnitude are capable of unleashing mass devastation and fatalities. EF4 and EF5 tornadoes are able to sweep homes off of their foundations, send vehicles flying through the air, and completely level structures. Wind speeds of at least 166 mph or higher are used to categorize violent tornadoes.

The first two EF4 tornadoes of 2025 hit northern Arkansas on March 14. The next day, another EF4 event carved a path from Tangipahoa Parish, Louisiana, to Covington County, Mississippi. This was followed by two EF4s on May 16. One of these tornadoes hit south of Marion, Illinois, while the other one wrecked portions of Pulaski and Laurel counties in the southeastern corner of Kentucky.

When compared to the 10-year average, the year 2025 has come in on the higher end so far. The average number of EF4 twisters during this time frame has been about three per year. With five of these events already on the books, the year is already beating the norm.

The Enhanced Fujita scale was adopted in early 2017. Since that time, there have been as many as 23 EF4 or higher tornadoes in one year. This happened during the record-breaking year of 2011. The year prior was also a particularly busy year with 13 EF4 or higher tornadoes confirmed. These two outlier years have skewed the average to about 5 to 6 EF4s since 2007.

Why Scientists Track EF4 and EF5 Numbers so Intently

The most worrisome aspect of violent tornadoes is that they are clearly deadlier. When looking at data between 2007 and 2024, the small number of EF4 and EF5 tornadoes was responsible for half of the fatalities attributed to this severe weather event in the U.S. For example, 858 people were killed at the hands of EF4 or EF5 tornadoes during that time frame when compared to 649 for all twisters with a rating of EF0 to EF3 combined.

Not surprisingly, the traditional "Tornado Alley" zone is home to the overwhelming majority of violent tornadoes. Going back to 1950, the states of Texas, Oklahoma, Iowa, and Kansas experienced the highest concentration of violent tornadoes. Outside of this zone, the Ohio Valley, Tennessee, Alabama, and Mississippi also account for high numbers of violent tornadic activity.

Although EF4 tornadoes are something that meteorologists expect to see to some degree every year, the same cannot be said about EF5 twisters. The last tornado to rank this high on the scale happened in May of 2013 when a deadly twister roared through the Oklahoma City suburb of Moore.

Scientists blame the more stringent criteria used to define EF5 tornadoes in recent years as to why there do not seem to be as many of these monster events when compared to the past. In addition, structures are now engineered and built to higher standards, making it more difficult to ascertain the intensity of a tornado based on property damage alone.

The date of May 25 is historically the most active day of tornado season. The amount of activity tends to decrease throughout the summer and into the fall months. A secondary tornado season then pops up again in November when the atmospheric conditions become more favorable to this type of development.

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