Popular Southern California beach ranked worst on planet in new ‘complaint’ index

Trash can be a real beach.

One of the most beautiful cities in California has just racked up the most complaints for the dirtiest beach in the world.

Venice Beach is known for palm tree-lined streets, an iconic outdoor gym with bodybuilding legends and a stunning sandy shoreline. According to tech company Cloudwards, the famous spot has some of the filthiest complaints.

The software company analyzed reviews from TripAdvisor — a travel-review platform — where it took 200 of the world’s most popular beaches and searched complaint-related keywords like “dirty,” “overcrowded,” “long queues,” “noise” and “disruption.” 

The score was then calculated and found that California ranks as the second most complained-about beach, with cleanliness at the center of the madness.

Waikiki Beach took the top spot, scoring “100/100” for complaints ranging from cleanliness to overcrowding. Venice Beach was a very close second as it had an overall ranking of “89.7/100.”

While the tourist favorite Waikiki came in first, Venice beat out the filthy beach taking the title of the world’s Top 10 Dirtiest Beaches. The California spot had over 60% of complaints citing its lack of cleanliness. 

One TripAdvisor reviewer said Venice, “is dirty and some parts even smelled like urine.” 

Another reviewer wrote, “Venice Beach may be the only place worse than Hell. Feared for my family and thinking to myself we might get killed. Weed and piss everywhere.”

The ranking may come as a shock to many outside of California, but the arty city has always been at the center of counter-culture. The eclectic oceanfront neighborhood is home to street performers, skaters and artists.

Venice is also full of contrast — a super beautiful beach on one side with homes selling for millions, and years of homelessness on the other. Hundreds of people have been living in tents over the years despite many movements to clean the city up.

Another factor, a lack of maintenance crews tidying the streets despite the city’s 2026 budget specifically funding Operation Healthy Streets — a team aimed at comprehensive cleanups and hazardous-waste removal. 

Mix this with a lack of law enforcement and the problems persist. The LAPD has seen citywide shortages with numbers dropping to multi-decade lows, according to a report. 

In a recent neighborhood meeting where 100 residents attended, folks were irate telling lawmakers they have had enough of the violent fights and “dead bodies” plaguing the neighborhood.

Residents gave details on terrifying crime, including knife-wielding brawls and other violent confrontations, which are spiraling out of control. “It feels like a lot of lip service and not a lot of action,” a fed-up local screamed.

Folks put the onus on the Journey Apartments and the Safe Place for Youth headquarters for the increasing lawlessness. Both aim to provide housing to homeless people and those from extremely low-income backgrounds.

However, locals don’t feel safe as the city streets are filled with grime, crime and trash.

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