Santa Monica tides today
The Santa Monica Municipal Pier reaches into the middle of Santa Monica Bay, and its NOAA gauge gives the open-water tide for the beaches between Malibu and the South Bay.
Shaded: night. Green bands: solunar periods (thick = major, thin = minor). Heights in feet above Mean Lower Low Water, the zero of NOAA charts.
Santa Monica, CA · Tuesday, October 13
Tide falling, 2.6 ft now
Low 6:00 PM
0.2 ft · in 3 h 19 min
| Low | 4:23 AM | 2.2 ft |
| High | 10:42 AM | 5.8 ft |
| Low | 6:00 PM | 0.2 ft |
Tide coefficient 103 (average), range 5.6 ft
Sunrise 6:58 AM · sunset 6:22 PM
Waxing crescent, 10% lit · fishing day ★★☆☆
Solunar: major 1:39 AM–3:39 AM, minor 9:35 AM–10:35 AM, major 2:04 PM–4:04 PM, minor 7:29 PM–8:29 PM
Santa Monica tide table, next 7 days
| Day | High tides | Low tides | Coef. | Sun | Moon |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10:42 AM 5.8 ft | 4:23 AM 2.2 ft · 6:00 PM 0.2 ft | 103 | 6:58 AM–6:22 PM | Waxing crescent ★★☆☆ | |
| 12:26 AM 3.5 ft · 11:09 AM 5.5 ft | 4:41 AM 2.6 ft · 6:48 PM 0.5 ft | 92 | 6:58 AM–6:21 PM | Waxing crescent ★★☆☆ | |
| 1:39 AM 3.2 ft · 11:40 AM 5.2 ft | 4:52 AM 2.9 ft · 7:47 PM 0.8 ft | 81 | 6:59 AM–6:20 PM | Waxing crescent ★★☆☆ | |
| 12:21 PM 4.8 ft | 9:10 PM 1.0 ft | 70 | 7:00 AM–6:18 PM | First quarter ★★☆☆ | |
| 1:31 PM 4.4 ft | 10:39 PM 1.0 ft | 64 | 7:01 AM–6:17 PM | First quarter ★★☆☆ | |
| 7:30 AM 3.7 ft · 3:29 PM 4.2 ft | 10:06 AM 3.6 ft · 11:38 PM 0.8 ft | 63 | 7:02 AM–6:16 PM | First quarter ★★☆☆ | |
| 7:07 AM 3.9 ft · 5:00 PM 4.3 ft | 11:46 AM 3.2 ft | 20 | 7:03 AM–6:15 PM | First quarter ★★☆☆ |
Plan around the tide at Santa Monica
- Tue Oct 13, 4:10 PM to 6:22 PM2 h 12 min · lowest 0.2 ft at 6:00 PM
- Wed Oct 14, 5:11 PM to 6:21 PM1 h 10 min · lowest 0.5 ft at 6:20 PM
A falling tide uncovers sand bars and tide pools first; plan to be back before the water rises past the level you chose. Not for navigation.
Station Santa Monica, Municipal Pier (NOAA 9410840). Predicted astronomical tide: wind, river flow and storms can move the real water by a foot or more. 5.4 ft is the average daily range here.
Published by Radif Partners · How the tides are computed · predictions downloaded October 13, 2026
Tide times for Santa Monica come from the National Ocean Service prediction for station 9410840, Santa Monica, Municipal Pier. The tide here is mixed: two highs and two lows most days, but of unequal size, the two highs of a day differing by 1.7 ft on average, for an average daily range of 5.4 ft between the higher high and the lower low. Around the new and full moon the range grows to about 7.4 ft on one day in ten, and at the quarter moons it shrinks to 3.5 ft. Heights are in feet above Mean Lower Low Water, the zero of nautical charts, so a negative number is water below that zero: 228 of the 457 days from October 1, 2026 to December 31, 2027 have one, down to -1.9 ft on January 21, 2027. The highest predicted tide of that period is 7.3 ft on August 1, 2027. Clock times are Pacific Time, daylight saving time included.
One curve for a long crescent of sand
Santa Monica Bay is a broad bight of the Pacific, open to the southwest, with Malibu on its northern arm and the Palos Verdes hills closing it to the south. A tide this wide reaches the whole bay within minutes: NOAA predicts El Segundo, eight miles down the shore, from the Los Angeles Outer Harbor gauge with high water 13 minutes later and heights at 96 percent, and King Harbor in Redondo Beach 8 minutes later. The pier itself carries a full reference gauge, so its numbers are measured, not derived. The average day spans 5.4 ft, a value that grows to 7.4 ft at the strongest spring tides.
A wide beach and a short slope
The sand in front of the city is a broad, dry plain above the reach of ordinary tides; the part that changes is the band of wet beach at the bottom, where the swash runs up and back. Low water widens that firm band, which is the easier surface for a run or a long walk toward Venice, and a high tide with swell pushes the wash up the slope. The South Bay beaches past Marina del Rey and Ballona Creek follow nearly the same times.
A summer peak worth noting
Unusually for this coast, the highest prediction of the period at the pier falls in summer, 7.3 ft on August 1, 2027, while most California gauges peak in December. The December highs come close behind, and a south swell in summer or a storm in winter adds more water at the shore than the prediction shows. For dates when both high tide and big surf are forecast, check the king tide calendar.
Highest and lowest tides at Santa Monica, 2026 to 2027
The six highest highs and six lowest lows predicted for Santa Monica, Municipal Pier between October 1, 2026 and December 31, 2027, one per day. The high-water dates are the king tides of this station; the low-water dates are the best days to see the flats, bars and tide pools.
| Highest highs | Time | Height |
|---|---|---|
| August 1, 2027 | 9:04 PM | 7.3 ft |
| December 24, 2026 | 8:30 AM | 7.3 ft |
| July 3, 2027 | 9:11 PM | 7.2 ft |
| July 4, 2027 | 9:59 PM | 7.2 ft |
| December 23, 2026 | 7:44 AM | 7.2 ft |
| August 2, 2027 | 9:51 PM | 7.1 ft |
| Lowest lows | Time | Height |
|---|---|---|
| January 21, 2027 | 2:56 PM | -1.9 ft |
| December 24, 2026 | 3:56 PM | -1.9 ft |
| January 22, 2027 | 3:36 PM | -1.9 ft |
| December 23, 2026 | 3:11 PM | -1.8 ft |
| December 25, 2026 | 4:43 PM | -1.7 ft |
| January 20, 2027 | 2:16 PM | -1.7 ft |
Tidal datums at station 9410840
NOAA's averages over the 1983-2001 epoch, measured from the chart zero (MLLW). Average range of the tide (MN): 3.8 ft; great diurnal range (GT): 5.4 ft.
| Datum | Meaning | Height above MLLW |
|---|---|---|
| MHHW | Mean Higher High Water | 5.4 ft |
| MHW | Mean High Water | 4.7 ft |
| MSL | Mean Sea Level | 2.8 ft |
| MLW | Mean Low Water | 0.9 ft |
| MLLW | Mean Lower Low Water (chart zero) | 0.0 ft |
Other stations nearby
- Long Beach tides: Long Beach, Terminal Island, average range 5.6 ft, highest predicted tide 7.4 ft on December 24, 2026
- Newport Beach tides: Balboa Pier, Newport Beach, average range 5.3 ft, highest predicted tide 7.0 ft on December 24, 2026
- Santa Barbara tides: Santa Barbara, average range 5.4 ft, highest predicted tide 7.2 ft on December 24, 2026
- La Jolla tides: La Jolla (Scripps Institution Wharf), average range 5.3 ft, highest predicted tide 7.2 ft on August 1, 2027
- San Diego tides: SAN DIEGO (Broadway), average range 5.6 ft, highest predicted tide 7.6 ft on December 24, 2026
- Monterey tides: MONTEREY, MONTEREY BAY, average range 5.3 ft, highest predicted tide 7.0 ft on December 24, 2026