Gold Coast
Boca Raton Water Temperature
Boca Inlet, Lake Boca, and the close-in reef.
That is right about average for this time of year, and holding steady over the last two weeks. The September average here is 87°F.
Updated Monday, September 21 — sea-surface temperature modeled for Boca Raton by Open-Meteo.
Out in the open Gulf, NOAA buoy LKWF1 — 19 miles offshore — is reading 87°F. Deep water offshore runs cooler than the shallows in summer and warmer in winter, so it won't match the beach.
For swimming
Very warm
Bath-warm. Pleasant, though it stops being much relief from the heat of the day.
For fishing
Hot — fish the edges of the day
Early and late is the play. Through the middle of the day fish drop into deeper channels and passes where there's moving water and more oxygen.
The last two weeks
Daily average sea-surface temperature, °F.
Boca Raton water temperature by month
Averaged from 3 years of daily sea-surface temperature (2023–2025). The range column is the coolest and warmest daily average recorded in that month over the period — a guide to how much any given year can differ, not a record high and low.
| Month | Average | Range | Swimming |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 76°F | 74–79°F | Warm |
| February | 76°F | 74–79°F | Warm |
| March | 77°F | 74–79°F | Warm |
| April | 79°F | 76–81°F | Warm |
| May | 82°F | 79–85°F | Very warm |
| June | 85°F | 82–87°F | Very warm |
| July | 87°F | 84–89°F | Very warm |
| August | 88°F | 86–89°F | Bath water |
| Septembernow | 87°F | 85–89°F | Very warm |
| October | 84°F | 82–87°F | Very warm |
| November | 81°F | 79–83°F | Warm |
| December | 79°F | 77–82°F | Warm |
Warmest on average in August at 88°F; coolest in January at 76°F.
The water at Boca Raton
Boca Raton's inlet is short and shallow but it drains Lake Boca and the south end of the lagoon, and the jetties and bridge there hold snook, tarpon, jacks, and sheepshead. Outside, the first reef line runs close to the beach and gives up permit, snapper, and Spanish mackerel within a mile of the sand. South Inlet Park on the jetty gives good land-based access to all of it.
Boca Inlet & Lake Boca
What moves the water temperature here
The Gulf shelf off this coast is shallow, which is why the water swings so much more between summer and winter than open ocean at the same latitude does. Shallow water heats fast and gives that heat up fast: a single strong winter cold front can pull the inshore bays several degrees down in a couple of days, while the beaches a mile offshore barely move. Wind direction matters too — a sustained offshore breeze can pull cooler water up from below and drop the beach temperature noticeably in a morning.
Inshore bays, canals and flats run warmer than the beach through the summer and colder through the winter, for the same reason. The reading above is for the open water at Boca Raton; expect the back bays to be a few degrees either side of it depending on the season.
Common questions
- What is the water temperature at Boca Raton right now?
- The water at Boca Raton is currently about 87°F (31°C). The September average here is 87°F.
- Is the water warm enough to swim at Boca Raton in September?
- September averages 87°F at Boca Raton, which most people would call very warm. Bath-warm. Pleasant, though it stops being much relief from the heat of the day.
- When is the water warmest at Boca Raton?
- August is the warmest month on average at 88°F, and January the coolest at 76°F. 12 months of the year average 75°F or above.
- Why does the water temperature change so quickly here?
- The Gulf shelf off this coast is shallow, so it heats and cools far faster than deep open ocean. A strong winter cold front can pull the inshore water down several degrees in a couple of days, and a sustained offshore wind can drop beach temperatures in a single morning by pulling cooler water up from below.