Do you need a fishing license to fish off a San Diego pier?

This is one of the best free things in San Diego: walk onto a public pier with a rod and start fishing. No license, no fee, no age limit. The fine print is about what counts as a public pier and which rules still follow you onto it.

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Leaflet | © OpenStreetMap contributors

Open

1. 1Shelter Island Pier — Bay fishing in Point Loma
2. 2Embarcadero Marina Park South pier — Downtown, by the Convention Center
3. 3Crystal Pier, Pacific Beach — Fully reopened July 2025
4. 4Pepper Park pier, National City — South bay
5. 5J Street pier, Chula Vista Bayfront — South bay
6. 6Imperial Beach Pier — Pier open, but check water advisories: Tijuana River sewage often closes the shoreline
7. 7Oceanside Pier — Mostly open; the fire-damaged far end is fenced off
8. 8Oceanside Harbor fishing pier — Inside the harbor

Closed

1. 9Ocean Beach Pier — Closed since October 2023; no reopening date

Piers from CDFW's list of free fishing piers; status as of October 6, 2026. Coronado Fishing Pier and the Mission Bay and Oceanside jetties are also on CDFW's list. Pins from OpenStreetMap.

What counts as a public pier

Under state rules, a public pier has to be connected to the shoreline, allow free, unrestricted public access and be built or used mainly for fishing. A public jetty or breakwater can qualify too, but only out on the structure: on the Mission Bay and Oceanside jetties, the rocks where they meet land need a license.

Rules that still apply on the pier

• —Two lines max per person: rods, handlines, or crab nets or traps.
• —Size, bag and season limits are the same as anywhere else.
• —Lobster: the 2026–27 season opened Friday, October 2 at 6 p.m. and runs to Wednesday, March 17, 2027. Everyone, including kids and pier fishers, needs a Spiny Lobster Report Card ($12.70); limit 7, minimum 3¼-inch carapace, up to two hoop nets on a pier.
• —Mussels: the state's annual sport-harvest quarantine runs through October 31.