A collection of deepwater wave records, especially those from Coastal Information Data Program (CDIP) Data from UCSD Scripps Institute of Oceanography were assessed to create a statistical average wave data set. Then, a long-term annual average and monthly offshore wave probability distributions were created for 1 degrees latitude bins bound by 100 and 1000 m depth contours seaward of California coast. The probability distributions were used to simulate and quantify the potential for useful energy extraction from the coastal wave of California using software, Simulating Waves Near-shore (SWAN). The method is used to map the wave energy resource for possible wave energy conversion. The results indicate that the west coast of the continental North America has energetic waves that increase northward-from as low as about 10 kW m(-1) in the shallow waters of the south, to as high as 32 kW m(-1) in the north. Copyright (C) 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.