Surf Forecasts:
Burleigh Heads surf forecast from 27 Aug 2026:
- Best quality surf: Thursday 27 Aug, 10PM (local time) - 5.5ft (1.7m), 8s period, SSE swell with cross-offshore winds.
- Most powerful swell: Sunday 30 Aug, 1PM (local time) - 6ft (1.8m), 9s period, SSE swell with 505 kJ wave energy.
- Next surfable swell (1★+): Thursday 27 Aug, 10PM (local time) - 5.5ft (1.7m), 8s period with SSE swell.
Best Forecast Surf Conditions for Burleigh Heads this week:
The surf forecast for Burleigh Heads over the next 16 days: The first swell (rated 1 star or higher) is forecast to arrive on Thursday (Aug 27) at 10PM. The primary swell is predicted to be 1.7m and 8s period with a secondary swell of 0.9m and 8s. The wind is predicted to be cross-offshore as the swell arrives.
The most powerful waves expected at Burleigh Heads in the next 16 days are 1.8m 9s and forecast to arrive on Sunday (Aug 30) at 1PM. Winds are predicted to be cross-shore at the time the swell arrives. The largest open ocean swell (not directed at the beach) is 1.7m 6s period and expected on Saturday (Aug 29) at 10PM.
| Wave Type | Time (AEST) & Date | Wave Height & Period |
|---|---|---|
| Next good surf (1 star+) | 10PM (Thu 27th Aug) | 5.5ft (1.7m) 8s |
| Best Surf | 10PM (Thu 27th Aug) | 5.5ft (1.7m) 8s |
| Most Powerful | 1PM (Sun 30th Aug) | 6ft (1.8m) 9s |
Table - best surf conditions forecast for Burleigh Heads over the next 16 days.
The Lowdown
G'day, I'm Rusty. Let's get into it.
Look, I'm not gonna sugarcoat it – the next two weeks are a total write-off for Burleigh Heads (Gold Coast, Australia). There's a bit of a tease with some small swell and decent winds early on, but it's not worth paddling out for. The first real chance of anything rideable comes on the 29th, but even then it's a scrounge. After that, the surf flatlines for a good week or so.
Right now, Thursday the 27th and Friday the 28th are a complete bust. The water temp is sitting at 69°, which is about average for this time of year, but you won't be in the water long enough to notice. The weak wave energy (259) on Thursday morning is from a scrappy SSE swell at 5 ft, but the period is only 7 seconds – that's just wind chop, and it's a poor surf quality. The cross-off wind can't save it.
We get a little glimmer on Saturday morning the 29th. The swell is still small at 4 ft from the SSE, but the period bumps up to 10 seconds, and the energy is moderate (329). The cross-off breeze from the SSE at 12 mph should keep it clean. The forecast says "expect good surf conditions," but it's only a 2/10 for me – it's not going to be pumping, just a few clean, grovelly waves. The afternoon brings rain showers and the wind picks up to 16 mph, so it'll get messy. Sunday the 30th morning has a bit more size at 6 ft from the SSE with 8-second period, but the energy is moderate (551). The cross-off wind is there, but it's still a marginal call.
Then from Monday the 31st afternoon onwards, it all dries up. The swell drops to ankle-snappers – 0.7 ft to 2 ft – with weak energy (down to 29). The wind is a mess of cross-shore and onshore directions. The poor surf conditions just keep coming. There's a tiny spike on the 8th of September with a 3 ft SSE swell, but the wind is cross-shore, and the energy is still low (232). It's a no-go.
So, what's the best of a bad bunch? That Saturday morning the 29th is the only standout. It's not a classic Burleigh day, but with the cross-off wind and 10-second period, you might squeeze a few clean ones. The rest of the forecast is a blank run – that's normal for this area when the trade winds set in. I'd be looking at the long-range for a proper swell.
Stay patient, Rusty.
Short Range ForecastLight rain (total 2mm), mostly falling on Sat morning. Warm (max 20°C on Thu morning, min 14°C on Sat night). Wind will be generally light. | Days 4-6 Weather SummaryMostly dry. Very mild (max 19°C on Sun morning, min 15°C on Sun night). Wind will be generally light. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Thursday 27 | Friday 28 | Saturday 29 | Sunday 30 | Monday 31 | Tuesday 1 | Wednesday 2 | |||||||||||||||
AM | PM | 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 7 | SSE 8 | SSE 8 | SSE 8 | SSE 9 | SSE 11 | SSE 10 | SSE 10 | SSE 6 | SSE 8 | SSE 9 | SSE 7 | SSE 9 | SSE 17 | SSE 7 | SSE 8 | SSE 9 | E 10 | E 10 | E 10 | E 10 |
Wave Graph  | |||||||||||||||||||||
 kJ | 175 | 276 | 284 | 250 | 225 | 372 | 275 | 312 | 253 | 498 | 454 | 249 | 363 | 29 | 129 | 105 | 110 | 68 | 68 | 68 | 47 |
Wind (km/h) | |||||||||||||||||||||
Wind State on-shore cross-onshore cross-shore cross-offshore off-shore glassy | cross-off | cross | cross-off | cross | cross-on | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | cross | off | cross-off | cross | off | cross | on | cross-off | cross | cross-on | cross |
High Tide | 7:35PM1.70m | 7:52AM1.23m | 8:06PM1.71m | 8:26AM1.30m | 8:39PM1.68m | 9:01AM1.35m | 9:12PM1.60m | 9:39AM1.40m | 9:48PM1.49m | 10:21AM1.42m | 10:29PM1.34m | 11:09AM1.41m | 11:16PM1.17m | ||||||||
Low Tide | 1:06PM0.11m | 2:06AM0.08m | 1:42PM0.08m | 2:35AM0.05m | 2:19PM0.07m | 3:05AM0.03m | 2:58PM0.10m | 3:35AM0.05m | 3:40PM0.15m | 4:07AM0.08m | 4:28PM0.23m | 4:43AM0.14m | 5:25PM0.33m | ||||||||
 | |  | | |  |  | |  | | | | | | |  | | | | | | |
 | 6:05 | — | — | 6:05 | — | — | 6:03 | — | — | 6:03 | — | — | 6:01 | — | — | 6:01 | — | — | 6:00 | — | — |
 | — | 5:29 | — | — | 5:30 | — | — | 5:30 | — | — | 5:30 | — | — | 5:30 | — | — | 5:31 | — | — | 5:31 | — |
mm | — | — | — | — | — | — | 1 | 1 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
Temp °C | 20 | 19 | 17 | 19 | 18 | 17 | 18 | 17 | 16 | 19 | 19 | 16 | 19 | 19 | 16 | 19 | 19 | 18 | 23 | 21 | 18 |
Feels °C | 17 | 15 | 15 | 18 | 16 | 16 | 16 | 13 | 14 | 14 | 14 | 14 | 16 | 15 | 15 | 17 | 17 | 17 | 20 | 18 | 17 |
Swell 1 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | E 8 | ENE 8 | ENE 8 | SSE 8 | SSE 9 | SSE 11 | SSE 10 | E 9 | E 8 | E 10 | E 9 | E 9 | ENE 9 | E 8 | ENE 11 | SSE 8 | SSE 9 | E 10 | E 10 | E 10 | NE 5 |
| kJ | 84 | 94 | 69 | 250 | 203 | 372 | 275 | 54 | 36 | 47 | 43 | 41 | 26 | 22 | 38 | 105 | 110 | 68 | 68 | 68 | 13 |
Swell 2 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | NE 8 | NE 12 | NE 12 | E 7 | ENE 8 | E 8 | E 9 | NE 10 | NE 10 | NE 15 | NE 15 | NE 13 | NE 13 | SSE 17 | SE 17 | E 10 | E 10 | S 9 | S 10 | S 10 | E 10 |
| kJ | 15 | 6 | 6 | 40 | 49 | 50 | 54 | 4 | 4 | 8 | 8 | 7 | 7 | 29 | 72 | 74 | 71 | 59 | 48 | 48 | 47 |
Swell 3 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | NNE 6 | NE 12 | NE 12 | NE 8 | SSE 13 | NE 7 | NE 11 | — | — | S 18 | NE 15 | S 17 | S 17 | NE 12 | E 8 | SSE 16 | SSE 16 | NNE 12 | ENE 4 | NNE 11 | SSE 10 |
| kJ | 7 | 6 | 6 | 11 | 68 | 2 | 4 | — | — | 6 | 8 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 12 | 52 | 24 | 13 | 7 | 12 | 31 |
Wind waves Height (m) Direction Period (s) | SSE 7 | SSE 8 | SSE 8 | — | S 9 | — | — | SSE 10 | SSE 6 | SSE 8 | SSE 9 | SSE 7 | SSE 9 | SSE 6 | SSE 7 | — | — | NE 4 | NW 3 | NNE 4 | NNW 4 |
| kJ | 175 | 276 | 284 | — | 225 | — | — | 312 | 253 | 498 | 454 | 249 | 363 | 193 | 129 | — | — | 11 | 3 | 13 | 17 |
Nearest Offshore or Glassy | |||||||||||||||||||||
Distance (km) | 12 | 12 | 0 | 11 | 11 | 0 | 0 | 11 | 5 | 11 | 12 | 0 | 11 | 12 | 0 | 5 | 166 | 0 | 0 | 271 | 0 |
Best forecast wave conditions in Gold Coast | |||||||||||||||||||||
Best forecast wave conditions in Australia | |||||||||||||||||||||
Header Global | |||||||||||||||||||||
- Map Icons:
Break
Live Wave Height (m)
Live Wind Speed (km/h)
Surf Rating (10 Max)
Ocean Swells (m)- Wind Speed (km/h)
FREE! Surf-Forecast.com widget for your website
The surf report / weather widget below is available to embed on third party websites free of charge and provides a summary of our Burleigh Heads surf forecast. Simply grab the html code snippet that we provide and paste it into your own site. You can choose your preferred language and metric/imperial units for the surf forecast feed to suit users of your site. Click here to get the code.
Information about the Burleigh Heads Surf forecast
The above surf forecast table for Burleigh Heads provides essential information for determining whether the surfing conditions will be good over the next 16 days. A general guide to surfing at Burleigh Heads can be found by selecting the local surf guide option on the grey menu. Our Burleigh Heads 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 (Burleigh Heads) 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 Burleigh Heads 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.
Burleigh Heads is 10 km (6 miles) from the city of Surfers Paradise. If you plan a holiday in Gold Coast, look for hotels and other accommodation in Surfers Paradise. Surfers Paradise has rooms for a wide range of budgets as well as car hire and transport links.
Nearest