Santa Monica Pier Surf Forecast and Surf Reports

(Los Angeles County, USA)

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- Hourly Forecast
- 16 Day Forecast
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Spot Information

Santa Monica Pier Surf Guide

Santa Monica Pier in LA County is an exposed beach break that has fairly consistent surf and can work at any time of the year. Offshore winds are from the northeast. Groundswells more frequent than windswells and the ideal swell direction is from the west southwest. The beach breaks peel to the right. Best around low tide. It's sometimes crowded here. Hazards include rips and pollution.

Santa Monica Pier Spot Info

Type:	Rating:	Reliability:	Todays Sea Temp*:
Beach	1	fairly consistent	16.7°C*ocean temperature recorded from satellite

Surfing Santa Monica Pier:

The best conditions reported for surf at Santa Monica Pier occur when a West-southwest swell combines with an offshore wind direction from the Northeast.

Hourly Forecast

16 Day Forecast

What's the best time of year to surf Santa Monica Pier (for consistent clean waves)?

januaryBest Season: winter

The best time of year for surfing Santa Monica Pier with consistent clean waves (rideable swell with light / offshore winds) is during Winter and most often the month of January. Clean surfable waves are typically found 66% of the time in January while 26% of the time it tends to be blown out. For the remaining 8% of the time it is considered too small by most surfers but may still be OK for beginners and groms at times.

clean

66%

Surfable waves that hold up well for longer rides in prevailing cross-offshore, offshore or light wind conditions.

blown out

26%

Surfable sized waves that are of poorer quality due to prevailing onshore, cross-onshore or windy conditions (may be preferable for kitesurfing).

too small

Waves usually considered too small for good surf. Some wave-magnet breaks may still work though if conditions are right (on occasion).

Explore Santa Monica Pier Location Map

Interactive Santa Monica Pier surf break location map. View information about nearby surf breaks, their wave consistency and rating compared to other spots in the region. Current swell conditions from local buoys are shown along with live wind speed and direction from nearby weather stations. Click icons on the map for more detail. The closest passenger airport to Santa Monica Pier is Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) in USA, 11 km (7 miles) away (directly). The second nearest airport to Santa Monica Pier is Jack Northrop Fld Hawthorne Muni Airport (HHR), also in USA, 18 km (11 miles) away.

Map Icons:
Break
Live Wave Height (m)
Live Wind Speed (km/h)
Surf Rating (10 Max)
Ocean Swells (m)
Wind Speed (km/h)

Please note that some surf spot locations are approximate to protect their exact location while others are not shown at close zoom level.

Santa Monica Pier Surf Forecasts:

Hourly Forecast

16 Day Forecast

Todays Surf Summary
Monday, 4 May 2026, 08:21 Local Time

m, °C	Monday 04
ft, °F	8AM	11AM	2PM	5PM
Wave (m)	SW	SSW	SW	SW
Period (s)	15	16	16	16
Wind (km/h)
Wind State	cross- on	on	on	on

What does Santa Monica Pier look like?

Latest photos from Santa Monica Pier. Upload your own or view all photos on the gallery page.

Tides at Santa Monica Pier

Current tide and informaton

For Santa Monica, California, 0 km from Santa Monica Pier.

Next High Water: 12:37pm | 0.93m

Next Low Water: 04:21pm | 0.75m

NEXT	IS AT (local time)	remaining
high tide
low tide

Santa Monica Pier Sea Temperature

The water temperature (16.7 °C) at Santa Monica Pier is quite cool. If the sun shines as we have forecast, it should feel warm enough to surf in a good spring wetsuit. Effective windchill factor of (16.0 °C) will make the air and water feel about the same temperature.

Today, many surfers would wear a spring wetsuit.

Current Temp*: 16.7°C*ocean temperature recorded from satellite