EPA beach monitoring tiers

By the Ocean98 editorial team. Last reviewed October 2026.

Beach programs rank their beaches by priority so they can focus sampling where use is highest and pollution risk is greatest. The rank is recorded as a tier.

How tiers usually work

Tier 1 beaches are generally the most used or most at risk and are sampled most often during the swim season. Higher numbers usually mean lower priority and less frequent sampling. Each state defines its own tiers, so a Tier 2 beach in one state is not directly comparable with a Tier 2 beach in another.

Tier and sampling frequency

The attributes also list a swim season monitoring frequency, such as "1 per-week" or "2 per-month". Read the tier and frequency together. A frequency of "0 per-year" means no routine sampling was planned in the attribute year.

Blank tiers

Many beaches have no tier in the source. Ocean98 leaves those blank and never guesses a tier.