Updated August 2026
Best beaches in Texas by water quality
Texas has 169 public beaches in the EPA monitoring dataset, 66 of them with enough bacteria samples to grade. 14 earn an A for consistently clean water, while 2 grade an F for frequently exceeding the safe-swimming limit. Full ranking below.
| Grade | Beach | County | % over limit | Samples | Advisory |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| A | Access Point #6 | Cameron | 0% | 272 | Excellent |
| A | Access Point #4 | Cameron | 0% | 234 | Excellent |
| A | South Padre Island -North | Cameron | 0% | 233 | Excellent |
| A | City Of South Padre Island | Cameron | 0.2% | 1,788 | Excellent |
| A | Andy Bowie Park | Cameron | 0.2% | 1,012 | Excellent |
| A | Access Point #3 | Cameron | 0.2% | 506 | Excellent |
| A | Park Road 100 Bay Access #2 | Cameron | 0.4% | 274 | Excellent |
| A | Atwood Park | Cameron | 0.8% | 510 | Excellent |
| A | Boca Chica State Park | Cameron | 1.1% | 1,488 | Excellent |
| A | Isla Blanca Park | Cameron | 1.6% | 367 | Excellent |
| A | McFaddin Nwr | Jefferson | 2% | 2,785 | Excellent |
| A | Swan Lake | Brazoria | 2.3% | 257 | Excellent |
| A | Mustang Island State Park | Nueces | 2.4% | 1,011 | Excellent |
| A | County Road 257f | Brazoria | 2.9% | 514 | Excellent |
| B | Seidler's Landing | Brazoria | 3.3% | 511 | Good |
| B | Surfside | Brazoria | 3.5% | 1,026 | Good |
| B | North Beach - South End | Nueces | 3.5% | 483 | Good |
| B | JFK Causeway - SW | Nueces | 3.6% | 249 | Good |
| B | Rollover Pass West | Galveston | 4% | 253 | Good |
| B | Indian Point Park | San Patricio | 4.1% | 73 | Good |
| B | Appfel Park | Galveston | 4.4% | 498 | Good |
| B | Jetty Park | Matagorda | 4.7% | 1,086 | Good |
| B | Galveston Island State Park | Galveston | 5% | 804 | Good |
| B | North Padre Island | Kleberg | 5.3% | 1,029 | Good |
| B | Jp Luby Park | Nueces | 5.5% | 1,017 | Good |
| B | San Luis Pass | Galveston | 5.5% | 765 | Good |
| B | Rollover Pass East | Galveston | 5.8% | 778 | Good |
| B | Jamaica Beach | Galveston | 6% | 504 | Good |
| B | 45th St. | Galveston | 6.1% | 1,286 | Good |
| B | O'neil Rd. | Galveston | 6.1% | 264 | Good |
| B | Indian Beach | Galveston | 6.2% | 260 | Good |
| B | Gulf Shores | Galveston | 6.5% | 784 | Good |
| B | Lighthouse Lake | Nueces | 6.5% | 246 | Good |
| B | San Luis Park | Brazoria | 6.7% | 253 | Good |
| B | 61st St. | Galveston | 6.8% | 1,746 | Good |
| B | Clara St. | Galveston | 7% | 775 | Good |
| C | Stewart Beach | Galveston | 7.3% | 778 | Fair |
| C | Pirates Beach | Galveston | 7.4% | 773 | Fair |
| C | Spanish Grant/Bermuda Beach | Galveston | 7.4% | 497 | Fair |
| C | Padre Bali Park | Nueces | 8% | 1,506 | Fair |
| C | Quintana | Brazoria | 8.4% | 1,349 | Fair |
| C | Rockport Beach Park | Aransas | 8.4% | 996 | Fair |
| C | 25th St. | Galveston | 8.8% | 557 | Fair |
| C | Sargent Beach | Matagorda | 9.1% | 275 | Fair |
| C | West End | Galveston | 9.3% | 269 | Fair |
| C | Corpus Christi Marina | Nueces | 9.8% | 521 | Fair |
| C | Holiday | Galveston | 10.1% | 257 | Fair |
| C | Frank Carmona Beach | Galveston | 10.2% | 264 | Fair |
| C | North Beach - Main | Nueces | 10.7% | 533 | Fair |
| C | Nueces Bay Causeway #3 | San Patricio | 10.9% | 265 | Fair |
| C | Port Aransas - South | Nueces | 11.3% | 1,010 | Fair |
| C | Packery Channel Park | Nueces | 11.6% | 232 | Fair |
| C | Dellanera Park | Galveston | 11.7% | 554 | Fair |
| D | Port Aransas Park | Nueces | 12.1% | 496 | Poor |
| D | Rettilon Road | Galveston | 15.1% | 548 | Poor |
| D | Galveston Island State Park Backside | Galveston | 15.1% | 259 | Poor |
| D | University Beach | Nueces | 16.6% | 265 | Poor |
| D | McGee Beach | Nueces | 17.9% | 548 | Poor |
| D | Bryan Beach | Brazoria | 18.1% | 587 | Poor |
| D | Emerald Beach | Nueces | 18.7% | 823 | Poor |
| D | Texas City Dike | Galveston | 20.1% | 289 | Poor |
| D | Sylvan Beach Park | Harris | 22.4% | 615 | Poor |
| D | Poenisch Park | Nueces | 23.6% | 284 | Poor |
| D | South Bay Boat Ramp | Matagorda | 23.7% | 659 | Poor |
| F | Cole Park | Nueces | 37.6% | 988 | Failing |
| F | Ropes Park | Nueces | 38.6% | 360 | Failing |
Download the full Texas beach safety ranking
All 66 graded Texas beaches with their Beach Safety Grade, exceedance rate, sample counts, and program status — from EPA monitoring data. Enter your email to download; you'll also get swim-advisory alerts. A grade is a multi-year classification, not a same-day safety clearance.
Texas beach alerts
Get swim-advisory alerts and water-quality updates for Texas beaches by email.
Where to stay near Texas beaches
Find beachfront hotels, condos, and vacation rentals across Texas — live availability and prices.
Top-rated places to stay near Texas beaches
Availability and prices from Stay22 partners (Booking.com, Vrbo, Expedia). We may earn a commission from bookings, at no extra cost to you.