AbstractFog water and interstitial air samples were collected simultaneously and analyzed for methoxylated phenols, which have been previously reported as incomplete combustion products from wood lignin. The purposes of this study were to ascertain if these methoxylated phenols could be detected in fog sampled in residential areas and to determine the distribution of the compounds between fog droplets and interstitial air. The fog water was collected with a Teflon® filament fog collector and filtered through a 0.2‐μm filter before extraction and GC analysis. Vapor samples were collected using a dichotomous sampler to separate fog droplets from interstitial air; the organic vapors were collected on polyurethane foam. Guaiacol, 4‐methylguaiacol, and syringol were the most commonly found among the 16 methoxylated phenols confirmed in fog samples. The distributions between air and water approximately followed Henry's law, suggesting that previously reported enrichments into fog water are related to analyte hydrophobicity, described by either the octanol/water partition coefficient or the water solubility.