Texas Gulf Coast
Surfside Beach Water Temperature
One of the few real surf breaks in Texas, plus the Freeport jetty rocks.
That is about 5°F warmer than average for this time of year, and cooling over the last two weeks. The October average here is 80°F.
Updated Saturday, October 3 — sea-surface temperature modeled for Surfside Beach by Open-Meteo.
Out in the open Gulf, NOAA buoy 42035 — 57 miles offshore — is reading 86°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.
Surfside Beach 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 | 58°F | 51–66°F | Cold |
| February | 60°F | 56–67°F | Bracing |
| March | 67°F | 60–73°F | Bracing |
| April | 74°F | 70–79°F | Cool but comfortable |
| May | 80°F | 74–86°F | Warm |
| June | 86°F | 83–88°F | Very warm |
| July | 88°F | 85–89°F | Bath water |
| August | 89°F | 87–91°F | Bath water |
| September | 86°F | 81–89°F | Very warm |
| Octobernow | 80°F | 74–85°F | Warm |
| November | 73°F | 64–79°F | Cool but comfortable |
| December | 64°F | 57–69°F | Bracing |
Warmest on average in August at 89°F; coolest in January at 58°F.
The water at Surfside Beach
Texas does not get much surf, so when a tropical swell or a strong onshore wind puts rideable waves on the coast, Surfside is where people go — the jetty at the Freeport ship channel bends swell into something worth paddling out for. That same rock holds fish: trout and redfish along the granite on moving water, bull drum in spring, and sharks and jack crevalle prowling the beachfront through the warm months. The beach itself is open and drivable in stretches, backed by low dunes and beach houses rather than a seawall, and it draws campers and shellers as much as surfers. Brazos runoff colors the water brown after heavy rain, and clean green water is worth chasing until you find it. The swell that makes fall the best surf season is the same weather you have to watch.
the Freeport jetties & the open beach
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 Surfside Beach; 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 Surfside Beach right now?
- The water at Surfside Beach is currently about 85°F (30°C). The October average here is 80°F.
- Is the water warm enough to swim at Surfside Beach in October?
- October averages 80°F at Surfside Beach, which most people would call warm. About as good as it gets — warm enough to stay in for hours without getting chilled.
- When is the water warmest at Surfside Beach?
- August is the warmest month on average at 89°F, and January the coolest at 58°F. 6 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.