The asymmetric unit of the title compound, C8H8O2, contains two crystallographically independent molecules, which form dimers linked by O⋯H—O hydrogen bonds. The benzene rings in the dimers are inclined at a dihedral angle of 7.30 (8)° and both methyl groups display rotational disorder. This redetermination results in a crystal structure with significantly higher precision than the original determination [Ellas & García-Blanco (1963 ▶). Acta Cryst. 16, 434], in which the authors reported only the unit-cell parameters and space group, without any detailed information on the atomic arrangement. In the crystal, dimers are connected by weak C—H⋯O interactions, forming R
2
2(10) and R
4
4(18) rings along [110] and an infinite zigzag chain of dimers along the [001] direction also occurs.