Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Scale Reference

The Saffir-Simpson hurricane wind scale rates a tropical cyclone from category one to category five based on its maximum sustained wind speed, giving a quick sense of the potential for damage. It is the scale you hear in every hurricane forecast, and it drives evacuation decisions and building codes across coastal regions. This reference tool takes a sustained wind speed in miles per hour, kilometers per hour, knots or meters per second and returns the matching category, the wind range for that category, and a summary of the typical damage, from minor roof and tree harm at category one to catastrophic, uninhabitable destruction at category five. It also flags tropical storm and tropical depression strength winds below hurricane threshold. You can review the full scale at a glance in the table below. Everything is computed locally in your browser, so lookups are instant and private.