Which scale classifies tornado damage from EF0 to EF5 in the United States?

The scale that classifies tornado damage from EF0 to EF5 in the United States is the Enhanced Fujita scale.

The United States adopted the Enhanced Fujita scale in 2007, replacing the original Fujita scale for operational tornado ratings. It uses observed damage to infer the wind speeds most likely to have produced that damage. The categories run from EF0, the weakest, through EF5, the most destructive.

The enhanced system improved the original scale by adding more detailed damage indicators and degrees of damage. These account for different construction types, such as homes, schools, hospitals, and manufactured homes. Investigators can therefore make a more structured assessment than by relying on a single general description.

An EF rating is not normally a direct measurement from an instrument inside the tornado. It is a post-storm engineering and meteorological estimate based on damage surveys and available evidence. The scale is also not a worldwide universal standard; other countries use systems such as the original Fujita scale or the TORRO scale.