The U.S. Geological Survey said the magnitude of the quake that hit at 11:53 a.m. (1:53 p.m. EDT, 1753 GMT) was calculated as 6.9 and struck about 65 miles (105 kilometers) south of Los Mochis, a city just inland from the coast in Sinaloa.
The epicenter was 85 miles (140 kilometers) northeast of La Paz in Baja California Sur and was at a relatively shallow depth of 6.2 miles (10 kilometers).
Sinaloa civil protections authorities reported no immediate reports of injuries or damage.
Alberto Montoya Rodriguez, who runs the losmochis.com website from his home in Ahome, north of the city, said it seemed to shake for more than a minute, sending him and his neighbors into the streets.
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"There was a lot a panic," he said, but there was no damage beyond "just a big scare."Alejandra Cruz, a worker who answered the telephone at the Best Western Hotel in Los Mochis, said employees and guests were evacuated but returned to the building shortly after.
"We had customers in the restaurant that took to the streets," added Sujey Becerra, an employee of Las Fuentes Los Mochis, another hotel in the city.
The same region was hit by three moderately powerful earthquakes ranging in magnitude from 5.5 to 5.8 Tuesday night and early Wednesday, but they caused no known damage.