Microplastics are ubiquitous emerging contaminants in marine environments, with implications for food webs, ecosystems, and human health. This study was conducted on 26 April 2025 to investigate the occurrence and ingestion of microplastics in zooplankton collected from coastal waters of Al Fujairah (Gulf of Oman, UAE), from three transects perpendicular to the shoreline. Each transect represented a site influenced by distinct human activities:(1) agricultural, (2) industrial, and (3) residential impacts. At each site, zooplankton were collected from the water column at three stations with depths of 10 m, 20 m, and 30 m using a 100 µm zooplankton net and preserved in 10% neutralized formaldehyde. In the laboratory, each sample was filtered and washed through 500 µm nylon net, followed by a second filtration through pre-weighed 200 µm nylon net discs. The net discs were dried at 40 °C and weighed to determine the zooplankton biomass (mg). The dried nets with zooplankton were rinsed in Q10 water to remove any residuals, treated with 10% KOH at 40 °C for 24 hours, and the residue was washed with Q10 water and vacuum-filtered through 0.45 μm filters, with a procedural blank run in parallel for quality control. A dual-staining approach using Nile Red and Rose Bengal dyes was employed to distinguish synthetic particles from biological debris on the filters. Suspected microplastics (film-like, rods and spherical particles) were identified under a UV compound microscope. Microplastics were detected in all zooplankton samples with sizes ranged from 25 to 80 μm, and a total of 316 particles recovered, ranging from 11 to 91 per sample and 1.25 to 31.38 particles per mg of zooplankton dry weight. The results confirm widespread contamination of microplastics in the Gulf of Oman coastal area and shallower stations exhibited direct influence by shoreline runoff. Microplastic abundances varied between sites, with the agricultural area exhibiting the highest counts Film-like, rods and spherical particles were the most prevalent morphotypes observed. These findings demonstrate that zooplankton in Al Fujairah’s coastal waters routinely ingest microplastics and may represent the first link introducing microplastics to the food web of the studied area as primary consumers. The results are discussed in the context of different human activity sites and prevailing environmental conditions during the study period.