Average Temperatures for California's Ocean Beaches
Average temperatures for the year at beaches, cities and parks along the Pacific Ocean in California are listed below. The tables give annual averages of daily maximum and minimum air temperatures for each location and, where available, the year's average ocean temperature.
You can jump to a separate table for each region of the state: Southern Coast, Los Angeles Area, Central Coast, San Francisco Area and Northern Coast.
Place name links take you to more detailed temperature information for that location.
Long Beach has the warmest average year round temperature along California's Pacific coast. Annual daily high temperatures for California beaches range from an average of 74 degrees Fahrenheit (23 degrees Celsius) at Long Beach to 58 degrees F (14 °C) at Crescent City and Fort Bragg.
The coast's nighttime average low temperatures for the year range from as warm as 58 degrees F (14 °C) at San Diego to as cool as 42 degrees F (6 °C) at Klamath.
In the north, the year's ocean temperatures average 52 degrees F (11 °C), while in southern California the water is at least 10 degrees F (5 °C) warmer.
Southern California Coast
| High | Low | Place | Ocean |
|---|---|---|---|
| 70 | 55 | Imperial Beach | – |
| 73 | 52 | Laguna Beach | – |
| 67 | 57 | Newport Beach | 64 |
| 66 | 54 | Oceanside | 62 |
| 70 | 58 | San Diego | 62 |
| 67 | 54 | Santa Catalina Island | 63 |
Los Angeles Area
| High | Low | Place | Ocean |
|---|---|---|---|
| 66 | 54 | Anacapa Island | 60 |
| 74 | 55 | Long Beach | 63 |
| 69 | 53 | Oxnard | 59 |
| 66 | 57 | Santa Monica | 62 |
Central California Coast
| High | Low | Place | Ocean |
|---|---|---|---|
| 72 | 49 | Avila Beach | 57 |
| 69 | 46 | Big Sur State Park | – |
| 68 | 49 | Lompoc | – |
| 62 | 48 | Monterey | 56 |
| 67 | 50 | Morro Bay | 56 |
| 64 | 50 | Pismo Beach | – |
| 68 | 48 | Salinas | – |
| 70 | 54 | Santa Barbara | 60 |
San Francisco Area
| High | Low | Place | Ocean |
|---|---|---|---|
| 60 | 48 | Bodega Bay | 53 |
| 62 | 46 | Half Moon Bay | – |
| 65 | 52 | Pacifica | – |
| 60 | 50 | San Francisco, Fort Funston | 56 |
| 65 | 44 | San Gregorio | – |
| 70 | 48 | Santa Cruz | 56 |
Northern California Coast
| High | Low | Place | Ocean |
|---|---|---|---|
| 58 | 46 | Crescent City | 54 |
| 60 | 46 | Eureka | 52 |
| 58 | 45 | Fort Bragg | 52 |
| 63 | 45 | Fort Ross State Park | 52 |
| 59 | 42 | Klamath | – |
| 63 | 49 | Shelter Cove | – |
The high and low air temperatures are normals for the years 1981 to 2010. Temperatures for the two places without climate normals, Anacapa Island, and Avila Beach are instead averages for the years that weather data were collected. Ocean temperatures are also averages of all the years with measurements.
Often the location of stations that measure weather and those that measure ocean water temperature don't match. For beaches with climate but no ocean data, a nearby location, where available, is used here. So the ocean temperature listed for San Diego is from La Jolla. Other substitutions are Los Angeles for Long Beach, Port Hueneme for Oxnard, Pacific Grove for Monterey, Fort Point for San Francisco, Trinidad for Eureka, and Mendocino for Fort Bragg.
References
National Climatic Data Center. NOAA's 1981-2010 Climate Normals.
NOAA National Oceanographic Data Center. NODC Coastal Water Temperature Guide (CWTG).
Western Regional Climate Center. Comparative Data for the Western States.