US States Bordering the Pacific Ocean: North to South

Five US states have Pacific Ocean coastlines, spanning from the Arctic Circle to the tropics. Here they are in geographic order:

Coastline: 6,640 mi (general) / 33,904 mi (tidal) — most of any state
Key features: Gulf of Alaska, Bering Sea, Arctic Ocean (technically), Inside Passage, Aleutian Islands
Major ports: Anchorage, Dutch Harbor (top US fishing port), Juneau
Unique: Only state with Arctic and Pacific coastlines

Coastline: 157 mi (general) / 3,026 mi (tidal)
Key features: Strait of Juan de Fuca, Puget Sound, San Juan Islands, Olympic Coast
Major ports: Seattle/Tacoma (3rd largest US container gateway), Port Angeles, Bellingham
Unique: Only state with temperate rainforest (Hoh, Quinault) on Pacific coast

Coastline: 296 mi (general) / 1,410 mi (tidal)
Key features: 363 mi public beach access (Oregon Beach Bill 1967), Columbia River mouth, rugged headlands, sea stacks
Major ports: Portland (inland via Columbia), Coos Bay, Astoria
Unique: All beaches public by law; dramatic basalt formations

Coastline: 840 mi (general) / 3,427 mi (tidal)
Key features: Diverse: redwoods (north), Big Sur (central), beaches (south), Channel Islands
Major ports: LA/Long Beach (busiest US container port), Oakland, San Diego, San Francisco
Unique: Most populous; Mediterranean climate south; Cold Current (California Current)

Coastline: 750 mi (general) / 1,052 mi (tidal)
Key features: Volcanic islands, coral reefs, tropical beaches, 200 nm EEZ
Major ports: Honolulu (Hub for Pacific), Hilo, Kahului, Nawiliwili
Unique: Only island state; only tropical US state; most isolated population center

State	General Coastline	Tidal Coastline	Climate Zone	Major Port Complex
Alaska	6,640 mi	33,904 mi	Subarctic/Arctic	Anchorage/Dutch Harbor
Washington	157 mi	3,026 mi	Temperate Marine	Seattle/Tacoma
Oregon	296 mi	1,410 mi	Temperate Marine	Portland (Columbia)
California	840 mi	3,427 mi	Mediterranean/Subtropical	LA/Long Beach
Hawaii	750 mi	1,052 mi	Tropical	Honolulu

Guam: 126 mi — major US military hub
American Samoa: 116 mi — only US territory south of equator
Northern Mariana Islands: 184 mi — Saipan, Tinian, Rota
Wake Island, Midway Atoll, Johnston Atoll, Kingman Reef, Palmyra Atoll, Jarvis Island, Baker Island, Howland Island: Minor outlying islands

Ocean currents: California Current (southward) → North Equatorial Current → Kuroshio (northward) — connects all five
Marine ecosystems: Continuous biogeographic province with latitudinal gradients
Shipping lanes: Great Circle routes link all five to Asia
Climate teleconnections: ENSO (El Niño) affects all five differently but simultaneously

From Arctic tundra to tropical reefs, these five states share one ocean—but each writes its own Pacific story.

South Pacific