In the title compound, C(15)H(10)O(2), a 3-phenyl derivative of the coumarin (also known as 2H-chromen-2-one or 2H-1-benzopyran-2-one) scaffold, the C(p)-C(p)-C(c)-C(c) torsion angle between the coumarin (c) ring system and the phenyl (p) ring is -47.6 (2)°.