Coopers Named No. 1 Beach in the U.S. Again; Main Beach Ranked Fifth Best

Coopers Beach in Southampton Village was named the best beach in the United States, and East Hampton Main Beach the fifth-best, by the Florida scientist known as “Dr. Beach” in his annual “Top 10 Beaches” list.

Dr. Stephen Leatherman ranks America’s beaches each year by scoring them on 50 separate criteria, from the width of the beach to the concessions, amenities, color and softness of the grains of sand, the “smell” of the beach, and the ease of access or cost of parking permits.

Both Coopers and Main Beach have held the top spot in years past but had fallen in Leatherman’s rankings because of the cost of parking permits, the challenges of access due to traffic, and aging facilities.

But improvements to the concessions offerings and facilities for beachgoers and free shuttle service between the Southampton Village and East Hampton Village downtowns have bumped them back up the list.

Coopers has been climbing the list steadily since 2017 and was ranked second by Leatherman last year, behind Duke Kahanamoku Beach in Hawaii.

“Coopers Beach is hundreds of yards wide, made of grainy white quartz sand,” Leatherman writes in his 2025 Top 10 Beaches assessment. “The beach is backed by large sand dunes covered by American beach grass interspersed with extravagant mansions.”

East Hampton’s Main Beach returned to the list last year for the first time in more than 15 years, landing in the sixth spot, moving up one this year.

“Main Beach provides the perfect blend of nature and the built environment,” Leatherman says. “Wealthy summertime residents flock to the beaches protected by a conservation easement that dates back over 300 years.

“Main Beach is a great place for star-spotting as many actors and actresses frequently visit this beach for its peaceful, countryside setting in a small village. The wide sandy beach, composed of grainy quartz grains, has towering sand dunes and beautiful clean and clear blue water.”