Ebbward: Ocean Conditions

Endpaper Labs

About this app

Check beach conditions before you go: water temperature, waves, wind and, at ocean beaches, tide times, each marked with how old it is. Use it to plan a beach day, an open water swim or a snorkel.

Search over 4,500 beaches on US ocean coasts and the Great Lakes, from Waikīkī to Jones Beach, or tap Near me. Plan a window to see which of the next 48 hours fit the waves and wind you want. Save the beaches you check most and see each one’s water temperature and waves at a glance.

What each beach report shows
• Ocean and lake water temperature from NOAA data, or a measured reading when a station or buoy is close by.
• Modeled offshore waves with height, period and swell direction. Offshore waves aren’t breaking surf, and the app labels them that way.
• Regional wind and gusts, and whether the wind is onshore at your beach.
• Tide times and tide heights from the nearest NOAA tide station, for coastal beaches with one close enough.
• The nearest NOAA buoy that reported today, with its distance.
• Marine life: the fish and other sea life most often reported near your beach at this time of year, with credited photos from iNaturalist.
• A seven-day marine forecast for waves, wind and water temperature, plus tides at ocean beaches.
• A coast map for finding beaches.

Honest about what it knows
Every reading is labeled modeled, predicted or observed, with its age. When something isn’t known, Ebbward says so. Underwater visibility for snorkeling stays unreported unless someone who was in the water today reports it.

With an account
• Saved beaches and settings on every device you sign in on.
• Morning alerts: set the waves and wind you’d go out in, and get one notification on mornings when a window fits, in your beach’s own time zone.
• Visibility reports: share what you saw underwater and read today’s reports from other people. Each shows a first name and a time, and disappears at the end of the day.

Checking conditions never needs an account.

Not a safety rating
Ebbward describes ocean conditions. It doesn’t tell you whether it’s safe to swim, surf or snorkel. Check lifeguards, posted flags and official beach and weather notices before you go in.

Near me asks for your location only when you tap it, uses it once, and doesn’t keep it.

Data: NOAA forecast models, satellite sea surface temperature, tide predictions and buoys; the National Weather Service; Open-Meteo (CC BY 4.0) as a backup; iNaturalist observations; and © OpenStreetMap contributors.

What’s new

Saved beaches load faster and use less data.