Nags Head tides today
NOAA predicts the Nags Head ocean beach at Jennette’s Pier from the Duck pier, 15 miles north, with almost the same times.
Shaded: night. Green bands: solunar periods (thick = major, thin = minor). Heights in feet above Mean Lower Low Water, the zero of NOAA charts.
Nags Head, NC · Tuesday, October 13
Tide rising, 1.3 ft now
High 9:56 PM
3.4 ft · in 4 h 15 min
| Low | 3:17 AM | 0.8 ft |
| High | 9:41 AM | 4.4 ft |
| Low | 4:09 PM | 1.0 ft |
| High | 9:56 PM | 3.4 ft |
Tide coefficient 101 (average), range 3.6 ft
Sunrise 7:07 AM · sunset 6:29 PM
Waxing crescent, 9% lit · fishing day ★★★☆
Solunar: major 1:42 AM–3:42 AM, minor 9:42 AM–10:42 AM, major 2:07 PM–4:07 PM, minor 7:27 PM–8:27 PM
Nags Head tide table, next 7 days
| Day | High tides | Low tides | Coef. | Sun | Moon |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 9:41 AM 4.4 ft · 9:56 PM 3.4 ft | 3:17 AM 0.8 ft · 4:09 PM 1.0 ft | 101 | 7:07 AM–6:29 PM | Waxing crescent ★★★☆ | |
| 10:20 AM 4.2 ft · 10:38 PM 3.2 ft | 3:55 AM 1.0 ft · 4:52 PM 1.2 ft | 88 | 7:08 AM–6:28 PM | Waxing crescent ★★☆☆ | |
| 11:02 AM 4.0 ft · 11:21 PM 3.1 ft | 4:36 AM 1.3 ft · 5:38 PM 1.4 ft | 75 | 7:09 AM–6:27 PM | Waxing crescent ★★☆☆ | |
| 11:45 AM 3.8 ft | 5:22 AM 1.6 ft · 6:26 PM 1.6 ft | 63 | 7:10 AM–6:25 PM | First quarter ★★☆☆ | |
| 12:06 AM 3.0 ft · 12:30 PM 3.7 ft | 6:12 AM 1.7 ft · 7:18 PM 1.7 ft | 55 | 7:11 AM–6:24 PM | First quarter ★★☆☆ | |
| 12:56 AM 2.9 ft · 1:23 PM 3.6 ft | 7:05 AM 1.9 ft · 8:14 PM 1.7 ft | 52 | 7:12 AM–6:23 PM | First quarter ★★☆☆ | |
| 1:59 AM 2.9 ft · 2:25 PM 3.5 ft | 8:06 AM 1.9 ft · 9:08 PM 1.6 ft | 53 | 7:13 AM–6:21 PM | First quarter ★★☆☆ |
Plan around the tide at Nags Head
No window of 30 minutes or more below 1.0 ft over the next 7 days in daylight. Try a higher level.
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 Jennettes Pier, Nags Head (ocean) (NOAA 8652226). Predicted astronomical tide: wind, river flow and storms can move the real water by a foot or more. 3.6 ft is the average daily range here.
Published by Radif Partners · How the tides are computed · predictions downloaded October 13, 2026
Tide times for Nags Head come from the National Ocean Service prediction for station 8652226, Jennettes Pier, Nags Head (ocean), a subordinate station whose highs and lows NOAA corrects from DUCK PIER. The tide here is semidiurnal: two highs and two lows of similar height every day, about six hours and a quarter apart, with an average daily range of 3.6 ft. Around the new and full moon the range grows to about 4.8 ft on one day in ten, and at the quarter moons it shrinks to 2.4 ft. Heights are in feet above Mean Lower Low Water, the zero of nautical charts, so a negative number is water below that zero: 164 of the 457 days from October 1, 2026 to December 31, 2027 have one, down to -1.4 ft on January 23, 2027. The highest predicted tide of that period is 4.9 ft on October 1, 2027. Clock times are Eastern Time, daylight saving time included.
Jennette's Pier and the ocean beach
Nags Head's tide station is Jennette's Pier, on the open Atlantic. NOAA computes it from Duck: high water five minutes earlier, low water a minute later, high-water heights 4 percent larger and lows deeper, for an average day of 3.6 ft. Between those highs and lows, the curve here follows the shape of Duck's hourly prediction. On the beaches from Kill Devil Hills to South Nags Head, the timing is the same within a few minutes.
Roanoke Sound runs on another clock
West of the beach road lies Roanoke Sound, and beyond it Roanoke Island and Croatan Sound. Their water comes in through Oregon Inlet, eight miles south, and arrives late and small: NOAA predicts the Roanoke Sound channel from the Oregon Inlet marina with high water about an hour and a half later and a fraction of the marina's already small range. Kayakers and kiteboarders on the sound watch the wind far more than the tide.
Shifting sand at the south end
Nags Head is a famously eroding beach, and at high tide on a big swell the water can reach the dune line in the narrow stretches. The highest prediction this period is 4.9 ft, on October 1, 2027; storms, not the tide alone, cause the overwash. The lowest low is -1.4 ft, on January 23, 2027. See Duck for the reference station and the Outer Banks comparison for the whole chain.
Highest and lowest tides at Nags Head, 2026 to 2027
The six highest highs and six lowest lows predicted for Jennettes Pier, Nags Head (ocean) 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 |
|---|---|---|
| October 1, 2027 | 8:46 AM | 4.9 ft |
| October 27, 2026 | 8:31 AM | 4.9 ft |
| October 28, 2026 | 9:20 AM | 4.9 ft |
| September 30, 2027 | 8:00 AM | 4.9 ft |
| October 2, 2027 | 9:32 AM | 4.8 ft |
| October 29, 2027 | 7:40 AM | 4.8 ft |
| Lowest lows | Time | Height |
|---|---|---|
| January 23, 2027 | 1:20 AM | -1.4 ft |
| January 24, 2027 | 2:13 AM | -1.3 ft |
| January 22, 2027 | 12:26 AM | -1.3 ft |
| February 21, 2027 | 1:12 AM | -1.2 ft |
| February 22, 2027 | 2:02 AM | -1.2 ft |
| February 20, 2027 | 12:19 AM | -1.1 ft |
A subordinate station
NOAA predicts Jennettes Pier, Nags Head (ocean) from the reference station DUCK PIER (8651370): high water 5 minutes earlier, low water 1 minutes later, heights multiplied by 1.04 at high water and 1.43 at low water. Between those highs and lows the curve on this page follows the shape of the reference station's hourly curve.
Other stations nearby
- Oregon Inlet tides: OREGON INLET MARINA, average range 0.9 ft, highest predicted tide 1.6 ft on October 1, 2027
- Duck tides: DUCK PIER, average range 3.5 ft, highest predicted tide 4.7 ft on October 1, 2027
- Hatteras tides: CAPE HATTERAS FISHING PIER, average range 3.4 ft, highest predicted tide 4.5 ft on November 25, 2026
- Beaufort tides: Beaufort, Duke Marine Lab, average range 3.5 ft, highest predicted tide 4.5 ft on October 1, 2027
- Wrightsville Beach tides: Wrightsville Beach, average range 4.4 ft, highest predicted tide 5.7 ft on October 1, 2027