Surf in Los Angeles today
Los Angeles County, California · 19 spots ranked
Topanga Beach is the best choice in Los Angeles today: overhead, 18-second swell, almost no wind, rated fair to good.Malibu First Point is close behind.
Tomorrow, Wednesday 4 November
Malibu First Point is the best choice in Los Angeles tomorrow: overhead, 15-second swell, almost no wind, rated fair to good.Haggerty's is close behind.
Surfing in Los Angeles
Los Angeles has two coasts that face different ways. Malibu and the beaches up to County Line face south and come alive on summer south swell - Malibu's First Point is the most famous longboard wave in the world for that reason. The South Bay - El Porto, Manhattan, Hermosa - faces west and takes winter north-west swell that Malibu barely sees.
So the daily question is which way the swell is coming from and which coast it favours. This page ranks the county's named spots from today's and tomorrow's forecast, using the same model as the app.
Where should a beginner surf in Los Angeles?
Malibu's First Point on a small day is slow and forgiving, if crowded; Will Rogers and Santa Monica's beaches are sandy and gentle; Zuma on a small day is wide open. In the South Bay, Torrance Beach and Manhattan's southern stretch are the softer options.
Lunada Bay and Haggerty's on the Palos Verdes peninsula are rocky, powerful and unwelcoming to outsiders. El Porto gets heavy on a winter swell.
When is the best time to surf Los Angeles?
Summer for Malibu and the north coast, when south swell arrives from June to September and First Point lines up for two hundred yards. Winter for the South Bay on north-west groundswell, with Santa Ana winds making the cleanest mornings from October to December. Spring is windy and inconsistent everywhere.
Common questions
Is Malibu good today?
The table above says. First Point needs south swell; on a north-west winter swell it is small and the South Bay is the call.
Where should a beginner surf in LA?
Will Rogers or Santa Monica for sand and gentle waves; Malibu First Point on a small day for a long, slow ride, if you can bear the crowd.
When is the best time of year to surf Los Angeles?
Summer for Malibu and south swell; autumn and winter for the South Bay on north-west swell with offshore mornings.
Is El Porto good for beginners?
Not on a real swell - it is the most powerful beach break in the South Bay. On a small summer day it is manageable.
Which LA beaches are cleanest to surf?
The further from creek mouths and storm drains the better, and never within three days of rain. Zuma and the Malibu beaches west of Point Dume are the most reliable.