Earthquake scales that take into consideration the damage caused by an earthquake are known as intensity scales. Examples include the The Modified Mercalli Intensity Scale and the Macroseismic Scale.

Richter scale

It is the Richter Magnitude Scale that measures the intensity of earthquakes.

Earthquake magnitude is measured using a number of differing scales including the Richter scale, the moment magnitude scale and the surface magnitude scale. Intensity is measured using he Modified Mercalli intensity scale.

A number of scales are used to measure earthquakes. These are broadly split into two main types. Magnitude scales and intensity scales.

Magnitude scales give an indication of the amount of energy released during an earthquake and intensity scales give an indication of the sevirity of ground shaking and resultant damage in a given location.

For more information on these, please see the related questions.