Barotropic boundary conditions and tide forcing in split-explicit high resolution coastal ocean models

•Tide forcing methodologies in the Regional Ocean Modeling System are investigated in an operational coastal ocean forecasting model.•The tide is forced using two methods: (1) through the open boundaries (NCOM) and (2) using harmonic forcing (TPXO).•Using method (1), we explore two tide filtering methods: using a simple low-pass filter and using classic harmonic analysis.•Using method (1) with a low-pass filter yields the lowest error in SSH when compared to NOAA tide gauge observations.•Grid sensitivity shows model performance improves from 3.6km to 1.2km resolution, but no improvement at higher resolutions.