Surf-zone hydrodynamic processes that vary over timescales shorter than a wave period have implications for the mobilization of sediments and determine how waves transform as they approach the shore. SWASH is a non-hydrostatic and phase-resolving model that allows for simulation of sub-wave-period processes, as opposed to spectrally averaged wave models. This study compares wave-ensemble-averaged hydrodynamics (e.g. water levels, velocities) between laboratory wave-basin experiments and SWASH numerical simulations. The laboratory experiments were conducted in the Queen’s Coastal Engineering Laboratory Wave Basin (20m x 26m) with monochromatic waves breaking on a 10:1 smooth concrete bed for a range of different incident wave angles, with observations collected using an array of sensors and cameras. The results highlight differences in how hydrodynamic quantities vary over the course of a wave cycle, namely the wave shape quantified by skewness and asymmetry, that influences shear stress at the bed.