
Surf Forecasts:
Broken Head surf forecast from 4 Sep 2026:
- Best quality surf: Tuesday 8 Sep, 10PM (local time) - 7.5ft (2.3m), 10s period, SSE swell with cross-offshore winds.
- Most powerful swell: Thursday 10 Sep, 4PM (local time) - 10ft (3.0m), 9s period, SSE swell with 1,461 kJ wave energy.
- Next surfable swell (1★+): Saturday 5 Sep, 4AM (local time) - 3ft (0.9m), 11s period with SSE swell.
Best Forecast Surf Conditions for Broken Head this week:
The surf forecast for Broken Head over the next 16 days: The first swell (rated 1 star or higher) is forecast to arrive on Saturday (Sep 05) at 4AM. The primary swell is predicted to be 0.9m and 11s period with a secondary swell of 0.4m and 5s. The wind is predicted to be offshore as the swell arrives.
The most powerful waves expected at Broken Head in the next 16 days are 3.0m 9s and forecast to arrive on Thursday (Sep 10) at 4PM. Winds are predicted to be cross-offshore at the time the swell arrives. The largest open ocean swell (not directed at the beach) is 2.0m 10s period and expected on Monday (Sep 07) at 4PM.
| Wave Type | Time (AEST) & Date | Wave Height & Period |
|---|---|---|
| Next good surf (1 star+) | 4AM (Sat 5th Sep) | 3ft (0.9m) 11s |
| Best Surf | 10PM (Tue 8th Sep) | 7.5ft (2.3m) 10s |
| Most Powerful | 4PM (Thu 10th Sep) | 10ft (3.0m) 9s |
Table - best surf conditions forecast for Broken Head over the next 16 days.
The Lowdown
G’day, Rusty here, lookin’ at the charts for Broken Head. It’s a bit of a slow start, but there’s a proper little gem hiding in the middle of this outlook.
Alright, Saturday morning we’re only lookin’ at a tiny 1 ft easterly windswell, period 9 seconds, and the energy’s weak at 38. The wind’s light from the NNE, so it’s onshore, but the surf is poor. Saturday afternoon the wind picks up to 12 mph cross-on and the swell drops to 1.0 ft. Not worth paddlin’ out.
Sunday the 6th sees a pulse of bumpy 5 ft north swell, period 6 seconds, with a light cross breeze. The energy’s moderate at 272, but it’s messy and marginal. Monday morning the 7th has a small 2 ft swell with clean conditions from a light SSW cross-offshore, but it’s just too small to get excited about.
Tuesday the 8th is interestin’ but tricky. We get a 4 ft SSE swell in the morning, period 9 seconds, with moderate energy (293) and clean cross-off winds. By the afternoon, the swell builds to 7 ft from the SSE, period 8 seconds, and the energy jumps to 586. The wind is still a clean cross-off, but it’s a fresh breeze at 16 mph. The surf is marginal, but there’s some size.
But the standout – and I mean the real standout – is Wednesday morning, the 9th of September. Glassy conditions, dead calm, with a 7 ft SSE groundswell at 11 seconds. The combined energy is a strong 1045. That’s proper power. The water temp is about average for the time of year here. Now, at 7 ft, this is expert territory, but for the crew who know, Broken Head is a point break, and that long period SSE swell (11 seconds) will wrap in beautifully with that optimum ENE direction. This is the best on offer, and it’s clean as a whistle. The afternoon goes to crap with onshore wind, so hit the dawny.
Thursday the 10th is for the brave. The morning has 8 ft SSE swell, period 7 seconds, with a fresh 19 mph cross-off – that’s big and gnarly, expert only. The afternoon sees 10 ft at 9 seconds, energy at 1503, still with fresh cross-off winds. This is heavy, powerful, and not for the faint-hearted.
Friday the 11th is a sweet second day. The morning has 7 ft SSE swell, period 9 seconds, with a gentle offshore from the SW. The energy is 756, and it’s clean. This is very good surf, but the afternoon fades as the wind swings.
After that, the swell drops right off. Saturday the 12th is tiny, and Sunday the 13th brings back some clean 3 ft to 3 ft SSE swell, period 10-11 seconds, with light winds. Monday the 14th is a beaut with glassy 4 ft SSE swell at 12 seconds – that’s a long period, very clean but a bit small. After that, we’re in a long run of poor surf from Tuesday the 15th right through to Saturday the 20th of September. Most days have onshore winds and small, weak swell. There’s a gap of about 5 days with no real recommendations.
So, to sum it up: Wednesday morning the 9th is the absolute winner – glassy, 7 ft SSE groundswell at 11 seconds, strong energy. Friday the 11th morning is a solid backup. The rest is either too big, too small, or blown out.
Rusty.
Short Range ForecastMostly dry. Warm (max 28°C on Sun morning, min 15°C on Sun night). Wind will be generally light. | Days 5-7 Weather SummaryModerate rain (total 13mm), heaviest on Wed night. Warm (max 20°C on Wed morning, min 14°C on Tue night). Winds increasing (calm on Wed morning, fresh winds from the S by Wed night). | ||||||||||||||||||
Saturday 5 | Sunday 6 | Monday 7 | Tuesday 8 | Wednesday 9 | Thursday 10 | ||||||||||||||
Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | AM | PM | Night | |
Swell Height Map | |||||||||||||||||||
Wave Height (m) Direction Period (s) | SSE 13 | E 9 | E 10 | N 5 | N 6 | NNE 6 | SSE 8 | NNE 6 | E 9 | SSE 9 | SSE 9 | SSE 8 | SSE 10 | SSE 11 | SSE 11 | SSE 10 | SSE 7 | SSE 9 | SSE 9 |
Wave Graph | |||||||||||||||||||
127 | 27 | 30 | 53 | 153 | 85 | 310 | 21 | 15 | 294 | 258 | 561 | 1010 | 1027 | 656 | 373 | 618 | 1461 | 1048 | |
Wind (km/h) | |||||||||||||||||||
Wind State on-shore cross-onshore cross-shore cross-offshore off-shore glassy | off | on | cross-on | cross-on | cross | cross | cross-off | cross-off | cross | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | glassy | on | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off |
High Tide | 1:39AM0.89m | 2:48PM1.42m | 3:16AM0.87m | 4:05PM1.52m | 4:35AM0.93m | 5:07PM1.63m | 5:34AM1.03m | 5:59PM1.72m | 6:22AM1.15m | 6:44PM1.77m | 7:05AM1.26m | 7:25PM1.76m | |||||||
Low Tide | 7:35AM0.32m | 9:55PM0.40m | 9:00AM0.30m | 11:06PM0.29m | 10:17AM0.23m | 11:59PM0.18m | 11:18AM0.14m | 00:41AM0.09m | 12:11PM0.06m | 1:19AM0.03m | 12:58PM0.01m | 1:52AM0.00m | |||||||
— | 5:56 | — | — | 5:54 | — | — | 5:54 | — | — | 5:52 | — | — | 5:50 | — | — | 5:50 | — | — | |
— | — | 5:31 | — | — | 5:32 | — | — | 5:32 | — | — | 5:34 | — | — | 5:34 | — | — | 5:35 | — | |
mm | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 2 | 2 | — | — | — | — | 6 | 3 | — | — |
Temp °C | 19 | 23 | 22 | 22 | 28 | 22 | 19 | 20 | 19 | 19 | 18 | 18 | 18 | 20 | 19 | 18 | 18 | 17 | 17 |
Feels °C | 20 | 21 | 20 | 19 | 26 | 19 | 16 | 17 | 16 | 18 | 15 | 13 | 16 | 18 | 16 | 18 | 12 | 11 | 12 |
Swell 1 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | SSE 13 | S 10 | S 9 | SSE 10 | NNE 6 | NNE 6 | NNE 6 | S 9 | S 10 | NE 7 | NE 8 | NE 8 | SSE 10 | SSE 11 | SSE 11 | SSE 10 | ENE 8 | SSE 18 | ENE 9 |
127 | 94 | 40 | 35 | 101 | 85 | 40 | 459 | 620 | 8 | 18 | 9 | 1010 | 1027 | 656 | 373 | 14 | 31 | 15 | |
Swell 2 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | NNE 6 | NNE 5 | E 10 | E 10 | S 9 | E 10 | E 10 | NNE 6 | NE 6 | E 9 | E 10 | E 10 | NE 9 | ENE 9 | ENE 9 | ENE 8 | SSE 20 | E 9 | SSE 23 |
17 | 11 | 28 | 18 | 27 | 17 | 17 | 21 | 8 | 15 | 17 | 16 | 20 | 16 | 16 | 14 | 39 | 7 | 105 | |
Swell 3 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | S 5 | E 9 | SSE 12 | S 8 | E 10 | S 19 | — | E 9 | E 9 | NNE 9 | — | — | ENE 9 | NE 6 | E 16 | E 16 | E 15 | E 15 | E 15 |
14 | 27 | 30 | 11 | 18 | 7 | — | 16 | 15 | 7 | — | — | 16 | 2 | 5 | 5 | 4 | 4 | 4 | |
Wind waves Height (m) Direction Period (s) | — | — | NNE 5 | N 5 | N 6 | SE 3 | SSE 8 | — | S 10 | SSE 9 | SSE 9 | SSE 8 | — | — | NE 3 | — | SSE 7 | SSE 9 | SSE 9 |
— | — | 30 | 53 | 153 | 11 | 310 | — | 865 | 294 | 258 | 561 | — | — | 2 | — | 618 | 1461 | 1048 | |
Nearest Offshore or Glassy | |||||||||||||||||||
Distance (km) | 0 | 7 | 437 | 19 | 2 | 8 | 0 | 7 | 61 | 0 | 7 | 51 | 0 | 0 | 236 | 0 | 221 | 509 | 8 |
Best forecast wave conditions in North Coast - New South Wales | |||||||||||||||||||
Best forecast wave conditions in Australia | |||||||||||||||||||
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Information about the Broken Head Surf forecast
The above surf forecast table for Broken Head provides essential information for determining whether the surfing conditions will be good over the next 16 days. A general guide to surfing at Broken Head can be found by selecting the local surf guide option on the grey menu. Our Broken Head surf forecast is unique since it includes wave energy (power) that defines the real feel of the surf rather than just the height or the period. If you surf the same spot (Broken Head) regularly then make a mental note of the wave energy from the surf forecast table each time you go. Very soon you may start to choose your surf days based on the wave energy alone combined with our forecast of favourable offshore wind conditions. Our star ratings will help here and of course you will also find the usual wave height and period predictions on our surf forecasts as well as a full break down of the swell components under our advanced users option (to reveal that, click the little Einstein character under the tide times).
Further information to help with frequently asked questions about our surf forecast for Broken Head may be found under the help tab on the top menu and also by moving your mouse over the question marks on the surf forecast table itself. Please always bear in mind that the forecast is for near-shore open water and local factors at each surf break influence the actual breaking wave height, such as the beach / reef profile, water depths offshore and shelter.
Broken Head is 19 km (12 miles) from Ballina. If you plan a holiday in North Coast - New South Wales, look for hotels and other accommodation in Ballina. Ballina has rooms for a wide range of budgets as well as car hire and transport links.










