The Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology said the quake, which was initially reported as being of 5.8 magnitude by the United States Geological Survey (USGS), occurred at 4:42 a.m. local time and its epicenter was situated in Carrascal, in the Surigao Del Sur area.
There was no tsunami warning from the Hawaii-based Pacific Tsunami Warning Center immediately after the quake.
Philippine disaster officials said 25 people suffered minor injuries and were treated at a hospital in the town of Madrid.
The tremor caused the ceiling of a church to collapse and it slightly damaged several houses, a government building and a public market, according to disaster officials. Cracks also appeared on a bridge but it remained passable.
The Philippines is prone to natural disasters arising from its location on the seismically active Pacific "Ring of Fire", a horseshoe-shaped band of volcanoes and fault lines that circles the edges of the Pacific Ocean.
It is also hit by an average of 20 typhoons a year, bringing heavy rains that trigger deadly landslides.