California

How's the tide at Santa Cruz today?

High water today at 12:11 am (4.6 ft) and 12:20 pm (5.2 ft). Low water at 6:02 am (1.3 ft) and 6:51 pm (0.7 ft).

Times are local to Santa Cruz (America/Los_Angeles). Heights are feet above MLLW.

Santa Cruz — today and tomorrow

TodaySunday, September 13

Boating PoorBeach PoorFishing Poor
00h06h12h18h00h12:11 am6:02 am12:20 pm6:51 pm
Interpolated between the official NOAA predictions above — not a measured hourly curve.
TideTimeHeight
High12:11 am4.6 ft
Low6:02 am1.3 ft
High12:20 pm5.2 ft
Low6:51 pm0.7 ft

Sunrise 6:48 am · Sunset 7:18 pm · Moon 8% · Air 57–62 °F · Wind 11–33 kn · Rain 1% · Mostly sunny

Monday, September 14

Boating PoorBeach PoorFishing Poor
00h06h12h18h00h1:05 am6:31 am12:51 pm7:42 pm
Interpolated between the official NOAA predictions above — not a measured hourly curve.
TideTimeHeight
High1:05 am4.2 ft
Low6:31 am1.8 ft
High12:51 pm5.2 ft
Low7:42 pm0.7 ft

Sunrise 6:49 am · Sunset 7:16 pm · Moon 15% · Air 55–64 °F · Wind 2–21 kn · Rain 0% · Mostly sunny

Santa Cruz tide chart — next seven days

Today — Sunday, September 13

TideTimeHeightRelative height
High12:11 am4.6 ft
Low6:02 am1.3 ft
High12:20 pm5.2 ft
Low6:51 pm0.7 ft

Monday, September 14

TideTimeHeightRelative height
High1:05 am4.2 ft
Low6:31 am1.8 ft
High12:51 pm5.2 ft
Low7:42 pm0.7 ft

Tuesday, September 15

TideTimeHeightRelative height
High2:06 am3.8 ft
Low7:00 am2.4 ft
High1:24 pm5.1 ft
Low8:37 pm0.8 ft

Wednesday, September 16

TideTimeHeightRelative height
High3:24 am3.4 ft
Low7:30 am2.8 ft
High2:03 pm4.9 ft
Low9:42 pm0.9 ft

Thursday, September 17

TideTimeHeightRelative height
High5:10 am3.3 ft
Low8:04 am3.2 ft
High2:53 pm4.7 ft
Low10:56 pm0.9 ft

Friday, September 18

TideTimeHeightRelative height
High7:11 am3.4 ft
Low9:11 am3.4 ft
High4:00 pm4.6 ft

Three turns fall on this date. The next one lands after midnight and is listed under the following day.

Saturday, September 19

TideTimeHeightRelative height
Low12:08 am0.8 ft
High8:10 am3.6 ft
Low11:15 am3.5 ft
High5:16 pm4.5 ft

Santa Cruz tides — month by month

Every high and low water for September 2026 and October 2026.

Santa Cruz tide calendar — September 2026

DayHigh waterLow water
1 Tue1:37 am (3.9), 1:35 pm (5.3)7:05 am (1.8), 8:32 pm (0.9)
2 Wed2:51 am (3.5), 2:17 pm (5.4)7:37 am (2.3), 9:45 pm (0.7)
3 Thu4:32 am (3.2), 3:11 pm (5.5)8:15 am (2.8), 11:06 pm (0.4)
4 Fri6:32 am (3.2), 4:18 pm (5.5)9:16 am (3.1)
5 Sat7:56 am (3.5), 5:33 pm (5.6)12:23 am (0.1), 10:57 am (3.3)
6 Sun8:43 am (3.7), 6:46 pm (5.7)1:27 am (-0.3), 12:31 pm (3.1)
7 Mon9:17 am (4.0), 7:50 pm (5.8)2:20 am (-0.5), 1:43 pm (2.7)
8 Tue9:49 am (4.2), 8:48 pm (5.8)3:05 am (-0.6), 2:42 pm (2.2)
9 Wed10:19 am (4.5), 9:41 pm (5.7)3:46 am (-0.5), 3:36 pm (1.7)
10 Thu10:50 am (4.8), 10:31 pm (5.4)4:24 am (-0.2), 4:26 pm (1.3)
11 Fri11:19 am (5.0), 11:21 pm (5.1)4:58 am (0.2), 5:15 pm (1.0)
12 Sat11:49 am (5.2)5:31 am (0.7), 6:03 pm (0.8)
13 Sun · today12:11 am (4.6), 12:20 pm (5.2)6:02 am (1.3), 6:51 pm (0.7)
14 Mon1:05 am (4.2), 12:51 pm (5.2)6:31 am (1.8), 7:42 pm (0.7)
15 Tue2:06 am (3.8), 1:24 pm (5.1)7:00 am (2.4), 8:37 pm (0.8)
16 Wed3:24 am (3.4), 2:03 pm (4.9)7:30 am (2.8), 9:42 pm (0.9)
17 Thu5:10 am (3.3), 2:53 pm (4.7)8:04 am (3.2), 10:56 pm (0.9)
18 Fri7:11 am (3.4), 4:00 pm (4.6)9:11 am (3.4)
19 Sat8:10 am (3.6), 5:16 pm (4.5)12:08 am (0.8), 11:15 am (3.5)
20 Sun8:38 am (3.7), 6:25 pm (4.6)1:07 am (0.6), 12:37 pm (3.3)
21 Mon9:00 am (3.8), 7:21 pm (4.8)1:52 am (0.5), 1:31 pm (2.9)
22 Tue9:20 am (4.0), 8:09 pm (4.9)2:29 am (0.3), 2:13 pm (2.6)
23 Wed9:39 am (4.2), 8:52 pm (5.0)3:01 am (0.3), 2:52 pm (2.1)
24 Thu9:58 am (4.4), 9:35 pm (5.0)3:30 am (0.3), 3:31 pm (1.7)
25 Fri10:19 am (4.7), 10:18 pm (4.9)3:58 am (0.5), 4:11 pm (1.3)
26 Sat10:42 am (5.0), 11:04 pm (4.7)4:26 am (0.8), 4:53 pm (0.8)
27 Sun11:08 am (5.3), 11:54 pm (4.4)4:54 am (1.2), 5:37 pm (0.5)
28 Mon11:37 am (5.6)5:24 am (1.6), 6:25 pm (0.2)
29 Tue12:50 am (4.1), 12:11 pm (5.7)5:55 am (2.1), 7:18 pm (0.0)
30 Wed1:57 am (3.8), 12:50 pm (5.8)6:28 am (2.5), 8:19 pm (-0.1)

Times local to Santa Cruz, heights in feet above MLLW.

Santa Cruz tide calendar — October 2026

DayHigh waterLow water
1 Thu3:21 am (3.5), 1:39 pm (5.7)7:08 am (2.9), 9:28 pm (-0.1)
2 Fri5:01 am (3.5), 2:42 pm (5.5)8:05 am (3.2), 10:44 pm (-0.1)
3 Sat6:30 am (3.6), 4:00 pm (5.3)9:41 am (3.4), 11:56 pm (-0.2)
4 Sun7:25 am (3.9), 5:24 pm (5.2)11:30 am (3.2)
5 Mon8:05 am (4.1), 6:41 pm (5.1)12:57 am (-0.2), 12:53 pm (2.7)
6 Tue8:37 am (4.4), 7:48 pm (5.1)1:48 am (-0.2), 1:56 pm (2.1)
7 Wed9:08 am (4.7), 8:48 pm (5.0)2:31 am (0.0), 2:50 pm (1.5)
8 Thu9:36 am (5.0), 9:42 pm (4.8)3:10 am (0.4), 3:38 pm (1.0)
9 Fri10:04 am (5.3), 10:34 pm (4.6)3:44 am (0.8), 4:23 pm (0.5)
10 Sat10:32 am (5.5), 11:25 pm (4.3)4:16 am (1.3), 5:07 pm (0.2)
11 Sun10:59 am (5.5)4:46 am (1.8), 5:49 pm (0.1)
12 Mon12:16 am (4.1), 11:27 am (5.5)5:16 am (2.2), 6:31 pm (0.0)
13 Tue1:12 am (3.8), 11:56 am (5.4)5:44 am (2.7), 7:15 pm (0.1)
14 Wed2:14 am (3.6), 12:27 pm (5.2)6:13 am (3.0), 8:04 pm (0.3)
15 Thu3:31 am (3.5), 1:04 pm (4.9)6:44 am (3.3), 9:00 pm (0.4)
16 Fri5:04 am (3.5), 1:52 pm (4.7)7:26 am (3.5), 10:03 pm (0.6)
17 Sat6:27 am (3.6), 2:58 pm (4.4)8:52 am (3.6), 11:07 pm (0.6)
18 Sun7:11 am (3.7), 4:18 pm (4.2)10:54 am (3.5)
19 Mon7:38 am (3.9), 5:35 pm (4.2)12:04 am (0.6), 12:17 pm (3.1)
20 Tue7:59 am (4.1), 6:41 pm (4.2)12:50 am (0.6), 1:12 pm (2.7)
21 Wed8:19 am (4.3), 7:39 pm (4.2)1:28 am (0.6), 1:56 pm (2.2)
22 Thu8:38 am (4.6), 8:32 pm (4.3)2:02 am (0.8), 2:37 pm (1.6)
23 Fri8:59 am (5.0), 9:23 pm (4.3)2:33 am (1.0), 3:17 pm (1.0)
24 Sat9:23 am (5.4), 10:14 pm (4.3)3:03 am (1.3), 3:58 pm (0.4)
25 Sun9:51 am (5.7), 11:07 pm (4.2)3:35 am (1.6), 4:41 pm (-0.2)
26 Mon10:22 am (6.0)4:08 am (2.0), 5:26 pm (-0.6)
27 Tue12:04 am (4.0), 10:57 am (6.2)4:43 am (2.4), 6:15 pm (-0.8)
28 Wed1:05 am (3.9), 11:37 am (6.2)5:21 am (2.7), 7:09 pm (-0.9)
29 Thu2:15 am (3.8), 12:24 pm (6.1)6:06 am (3.0), 8:07 pm (-0.8)
30 Fri3:33 am (3.7), 1:19 pm (5.8)7:02 am (3.2), 9:10 pm (-0.7)
31 Sat4:49 am (3.8), 2:26 pm (5.4)8:22 am (3.3), 10:16 pm (-0.5)

Times local to Santa Cruz, heights in feet above MLLW.

Wind and weather at Santa Cruz

Seven days from the National Weather Service forecast for this stretch of coast. Each row is the range across the whole day, not a reading for one moment.

DayWindGustsAirSkyRainWaves
Today11–33 kn NW35 kn57–62 °FMostly sunny1 %3 ft 8 s
Mon, September 142–21 kn NNE26 kn55–64 °FMostly sunny0 %3 ft 9 s
Tue, September 152–9 kn NNW15 kn56–60 °FMostly sunny0 %3 ft 9 s
Wed, September 161–5 kn NNW12 kn56–64 °FPartly cloudy0 %2 ft 9 s
Thu, September 170–5 kn N14 kn56–67 °FMostly sunny0 %2 ft 8 s
Fri, September 181–11 kn N21 kn57–72 °FMostly sunny0 %2 ft 7 s
Sat, September 194–15 kn NNW27 kn57–72 °FMostly sunny0 %3 ft

Source: NOAA National Weather Service, forecast office MTR. Public domain. Wind in knots, from the direction given. Wave heights are the forecast for the water off this coast, not the surf on the beach.

Boating, beach and fishing at Santa Cruz

The same forecast as above, read for three things people do here. Each verdict names what decided it.

DayBoatingBeachFishing
TodayPoorgusts to 35 knPooronly 62 °FPoorgusts to 35 kn
Mon, September 14Poorgusts to 26 knPooronly 64 °FPoorgusts to 26 kn
Tue, September 15Fair3 ft of seaPooronly 60 °FGoodlight wind, major window in daylight
Wed, September 16Goodwind 5 kn or lessPooronly 64 °FGoodlight wind, major window in daylight
Thu, September 17Goodwind 5 kn or lessFair67 °FGoodlight wind, major window in daylight
Fri, September 18Fairgusts to 21 knFair72 °FGoodlight wind, major window in daylight
Sat, September 19Poorgusts to 27 knFair72 °FPoorgusts to 27 kn

Boating turns to Poor at the National Weather Service small craft threshold — sustained wind of 22 kn, gusts of 26 kn, or seas of 5 ft — and to Fair at 15 kn or 3 ft. Beach weighs air temperature, chance of rain and wind.Fishing asks whether the day is fishable at all and whether a solunar major window falls in daylight; it is not a prediction of what will bite. None of this replaces the marine forecast before you go out.

Sun and moon

Today

Sunrise 6:48 am · Sunset 7:18 pm
Moon 8% lit, waxing

Tomorrow

Sunrise 6:49 am · Sunset 7:16 pm
Moon 15% lit, waxing

Solunar windows for Santa Cruz

The moon pulls hardest when it is directly overhead or on the far side of the earth — the two major windows of about two hours. The shorter minor windows sit around moonrise and moonset. Anglers use them to pick a time on the water; they are computed from the moon's position, not measured.

Today — Sunday, September 13

  • Major1:41 am – 3:41 amMoon underfoot
  • Minor9:03 am – 10:03 amMoonrise
  • Major2:04 pm – 4:04 pmMoon overhead
  • Minor7:56 pm – 8:56 pmMoonset

Monday, September 14

  • Major2:26 am – 4:26 amMoon underfoot
  • Minor10:07 am – 11:07 amMoonrise
  • Major2:50 pm – 4:50 pmMoon overhead
  • Minor8:26 pm – 9:26 pmMoonset

Times are local to Santa Cruz (America/Los_Angeles).

Questions about Santa Cruz tides

Answered from the same NOAA predictions as the table above; the solunar windows come from this page's own moon calculation. Where this page has no basis for an answer, there is no entry.

What time is high tide in Santa Cruz today?
High water at 12:11 am (4.6 ft) and 12:20 pm (5.2 ft), local time in Santa Cruz. Heights are feet above MLLW. Because the tide runs on the moon rather than the clock, each turn falls roughly 50 minutes later tomorrow — the seven-day table above carries the shift.
What time is low tide in Santa Cruz today?
Low water at 6:02 am (1.3 ft) and 6:51 pm (0.7 ft), local time in Santa Cruz. A height below zero is a minus tide: the water falls further than MLLW, the level the heights are counted from.
How many tides does Santa Cruz get in a day?
Two high waters and two low waters on most days, a little over six hours apart. Over the seven days on this page that comes to 14 high waters and 13 low waters. Where a date shows only three turns, the fourth has slipped past midnight and is listed under the following day.
What is the tidal range at Santa Cruz?
About 4.6 ft between today's lowest and highest water. Across the next seven days the water moves between 0.7 and 5.2 ft — a span of about 4.6 ft. The range is widest around new and full moon and narrowest at the quarters, so it changes from week to week.
Which tide station do these Santa Cruz tide times come from?
NOAA station 9413745, Santa Cruz, Monterey Bay — a subordinate station, about 2.4 km from the centre of Santa Cruz. A subordinate station carries no gauge of its own: NOAA publishes its times as an offset from a nearby reference station, which is how the agency itself issues them. The predictions here are NOAA's, unchanged.
What time zone are the Santa Cruz tide times in?
Every time on this page is clock time in Santa Cruz — the America/Los_Angeles zone, daylight saving already applied. Nothing has to be converted, and no time is shown in UTC except the retrieval stamp at the foot of the page.
When are the solunar windows at Santa Cruz today?
The major windows run 1:41 am to 3:41 am and 2:04 pm to 4:04 pm, with shorter minor windows around moonrise and moonset. They are computed from the moon's position over Santa Cruz, not measured — anglers use them to pick a time on the water. The moon is 8% lit and waxing.
How far ahead does this Santa Cruz tide chart go?
Seven days in the table, and every high and low water for September 2026 and October 2026 in the calendar below it. The page is rebuilt every morning, so the first day is always today.

Santa Cruz on the map

Santa Cruz and the 7 nearest places with their own NOAA station. Every marker opens that place’s tide chart.

Coastal map

Choose a place on the map

Every marker opens its local tide chart.

California tide chart locationsA clickable map of the 8 places covered in California.Santa CruzAptosMoss LandingMontereyHalf Moon BayAlamedaSan FranciscoSan Simeon

Nearby tide charts

Where these times come from

Source
NOAA Center for Operational Oceanographic Products and Services — station 9413745, Santa Cruz, Monterey Bay (subordinate station)
Datum
MLLW — heights in feet above mean lower low water
Distance
2.4 km from the centre of Santa Cruz
Retrieved
Sep 13, 2026, 2:27 PM UTC
Licence
Public domain (US federal government data). NOS requests that attribution be given whenever NOS material is reproduced and re-disseminated.

Predictions are issued by NOAA. The official NOAA data are authoritative. Not for navigation. Check the official NOAA station page before you rely on these times on the water.