Waves travel at very different speeds depending on the type of wave and the medium, from about walking speed to nearly the speed of light.

Quick Scoop

  • Typical ocean surface waves near the beach: around 1–2 meters per second (about 2–4 mph).
  • Faster ocean swells in deep water: slower components under 5 mph, long-period swells over 35 mph as they cross the open ocean.
  • Tsunami waves in the deep ocean: up to roughly 200 meters per second, around 600 mph, similar to a jet plane.
  • Sound waves in air (room temperature): about 343 meters per second (roughly 767 mph).
  • Seismic (earthquake) waves:
    • P-waves in crust: about 5–7 km/s (11,000–15,000 mph).
* S-waves: about 2–4 km/s (4,500–9,000 mph).
  • Light and other electromagnetic waves in vacuum: about 300,000,000 meters per second (the universal speed limit for signals).

What actually sets the speed?

For any repeating wave, the speed vvv is given by
v=wavelength×frequencyv=\text{wavelength}\times \text{frequency}v=wavelength×frequency.

In practice, the medium is what really sets the possible speed:

  • In water: depth, gravity, and wavelength control how fast surface waves and tsunamis move.
  • In solids and rocks: density and stiffness control how fast earthquake waves travel.
  • For sound: temperature, density, and elasticity of air or another material determine its speed.
  • For light: it is fastest in vacuum and slows slightly in materials like air, water, or glass.

Tiny example to picture it

Imagine watching swells roll in at the beach. Nearby wind chop might creep along at a few mph, while long, smooth swells that started from a distant storm can race across the ocean at tens of mph, and a deep-ocean tsunami outruns even commercial jets before it finally rises near shore.

TL;DR:

  • Everyday water waves: a few mph.
  • Sound in air: hundreds of m/s.
  • Earthquake waves: thousands of m/s.
  • Light: hundreds of millions of m/s.

Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.