Human-induced activities significantly impact the natural coastlines of island cities, primarily due to the processes of urbanization and population concentration in developing nations. Over the past decades, affluent communities have rapidly urbanized the Lekki Peninsula on the Nigerian Coast and provided adequate coastal protection. However, little attention is paid to its effects on its adjacent coastlines. This study highlights these coastline alterations and corresponding patterns of land use/land cover (LULC) along the ∼88 km stretches of the study area. The study employs six multispectral Landsat 7 ETM+ and Landsat 8 OLI images within the geographic information system (GIS) framework to analyze these changes. Results reveal that urbanized areas increased from 5.36 % in 2002 to 42.37 % in 2022, accompanied by a significant retreat of approximately 56 % (49 km) along the entire coast over the entire study period. These changes are resultant effects of few protected and isolated major infrastructures exhibiting developmental levels significantly higher than the rest of the coastline. Therefore, addressing these pressing issues is essential for sustainable environmental management and the well-being of ecosystems and human societies.