Lobster season is open in San Diego: the rules, the costs, and where to buy one if you'd rather not dive

California spiny lobster is San Diego's local lobster. It has no claws, and most of the commercial catch gets shipped overseas. From early October to mid-March you can catch your own with a hoop net or by hand, and San Diego Bay is one of the best places in the state to do it. The rules are strict, so read them before you go.

The rules that get people ticketed

• —Measure on the spot. Take a fixed-arm gauge and measure every lobster as soon as you catch it, in a straight line from the rear edge of the eye socket to the rear edge of the body shell. If it's under 3¼ inches, let it go right away. It can't go in a bag, even for a moment.
• —Keep them whole. You can't tail lobsters at sea or at the ramp. They have to stay whole and measurable until you're about to cook them.
• —Hands or hoop nets only. Divers have to use their hands. Tickle sticks, spears, hooks and traps are all illegal for lobster, even though divers may carry spearfishing gear.
• —Net limits. You can use 2 hoop nets from a pier, jetty or other shore structure. From a boat it's 5 per person and 10 per vessel. Each buoy has to show the GO ID number of one of the operators.
• —Check your nets. Pull and check every hoop net at least every two hours.

What it costs to go

Why San Diego Bay is a good bet

Two of the six most productive spots in California are in San Diego: the bay and the Zuniga Jetty at its mouth. Even so, keep your expectations in check. CDFW's report cards show an average of about two lobsters per trip, and that number has held steady for years. Nearly half of all trips happen in the first month, so October weeknights are less crowded than the first two weekends.

Where you can and can't go

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Leaflet | © OpenStreetMap contributors

Buy one

1. 1Tuna Harbor Dockside Market — Saturdays 8am–2pm or until sold out. Local lobstermen sell live spiny lobster in season

Hoop it

1. 2Shelter Island Pier — Public pier on San Diego Bay. No license needed here, just a report card and up to 2 nets
2. 3Zuniga Jetty — At the mouth of San Diego Bay. 6th in California for reported catch (CDFW, 2022–23)
3. 4Point Loma Sportfishing — One operator here runs private night hoop-net trips: $1,195 for up to six, licenses not included

No-take zone

1. 5Cabrillo State Marine Reserve — No take of anything, lobster included
2. 6Matlahuayl State Marine Reserve — No take of anything, lobster included
3. 7South La Jolla State Marine Reserve — No take from shore out to about 180 ft. The SMCA beyond it allows only hook-and-line pelagic finfish, so no lobster there either

Marine protected area pins mark roughly where each zone sits, not its legal boundary. Check CDFW's Ocean Sport Fishing map for the exact lines before you set a net.

See these on the full San Diego map

Your first night, step by step

Or just buy one

Most San Diego spiny lobster never reaches a San Diego plate. In 2018 one local distributor told KPBS that 98 to 99 percent of his catch went to Asia. At the time, local lobster sold for about $30 a pound, against $12 to $15 for imported Maine lobster. The best way to get one is to buy it from the people who caught it: at Tuna Harbor Dockside Market on Saturdays, 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. or until sold out, local fishermen sell what they've landed, live lobster included in season. The market also hosts a Spiny Lobsterfest in early October. The 2025 one was on October 4 and had grilled lobster and live lobster to take home. A 2026 date hadn't been posted when we checked.