Surf Forecasts:
Emerald Beach surf forecast from 18 Aug 2026:
- Best quality surf: Wednesday 19 Aug, 4AM (local time) - 5ft (1.6m), 11s period, ESE swell with offshore winds.
- Most powerful swell: Wednesday 19 Aug, 4AM (local time) - 5ft (1.6m), 11s period, ESE swell with 617 kJ wave energy.
- Next surfable swell (1★+): Tuesday 18 Aug, 1PM (local time) - 5.5ft (1.7m), 8s period with ESE swell.
Best Forecast Surf Conditions for Emerald Beach this week:
The surf forecast for Emerald Beach over the next 16 days: The first swell (rated 1 star or higher) is forecast to arrive on Tuesday (Aug 18) at 1PM. The primary swell is predicted to be 1.7m and 8s period. The wind is predicted to be cross-offshore as the swell arrives.
The most powerful waves expected at Emerald Beach in the next 16 days are 1.6m 11s and forecast to arrive on Wednesday (Aug 19) at 4AM. Winds are predicted to be offshore at the time the swell arrives. The largest open ocean swell (not directed at the beach) is 0.8m 10s period and expected on Monday (Aug 24) at 4PM.
| Wave Type | Time (AEST) & Date | Wave Height & Period |
|---|---|---|
| Next good surf (1 star+) | 1PM (Tue 18th Aug) | 5.5ft (1.7m) 8s |
| Best Surf | 4AM (Wed 19th Aug) | 5ft (1.6m) 11s |
| Most Powerful | 4AM (Wed 19th Aug) | 5ft (1.6m) 11s |
Table - best surf conditions forecast for Emerald Beach over the next 16 days.
The Lowdown
Alright, mate, Rusty here. Let’s talk about the next couple of weeks at Emerald Beach.
The window kicks off with a bit of a tease. We’ve got some clean, lined-up swell moving in for Tuesday the 18th and Wednesday the 19th. It’s not going to be massive, but there’s enough energy in the water – we’re looking at a combined energy reading of 343 on Tuesday morning – to get some fun ones. The swell is coming from the ESE with a short-period, around 7-8 seconds, so it’ll be a bit crumbly, but the wind is light and cross-off or even glassy. That’s the kind of clean surface that makes a point break like this light up. Water temp is 66.7°F, which is about normal for this time of year. These two days are your best early bet, but it’s not a standout. It’s just solid, surfable.
Then we hit a wall. Thursday and Friday (20th and 21st) are blown out with onshore winds and the energy drops right off. The swell gets smaller, and the wind turns against us. It’s going to be a bit of a write-off. The weekend doesn’t offer much either – Saturday morning (22nd) has some tiny, glassy waves, but they’re weak, with energy down in the 60s. Sunday morning (23rd) is the same story, just clean but very small.
We’ve got a real dry spell from the 20th through the 26th. It’s just not happening. The swell is small, the wind is mostly onshore or cross-onshore, and there’s no power behind anything. It’s the kind of flat, junky stretch that makes you wonder if the ocean’s on a break. Then, out of nowhere, things change late on Thursday the 27th. A new pulse of swell shows up in the afternoon, with the wind dropping to glassy and the energy jumping to 398. We’re looking at chest to head-high waves, but the swell direction is NNE and the period is a short 6 seconds, so it might be a bit sectiony. It’s exciting to see the energy, but the short period means it won’t be the cleanest.
However, the real standout of this entire outlook is Sunday the 30th of August. This is the one. After all that mediocrity, the ocean finally wakes up. We’ve got a proper pulse of swell, with the morning seeing 6.2ft of swell from the NE. The combined energy jumps to 362, which is a solid, powerful reading. But the magic is in the wind: a light SSW offshore breeze is forecast, which is exactly what you want at Emerald Beach. This is going to be clean, lined-up, and with some real push behind it. This is the day to clear your calendar. The swell direction is from the NE, which matches the guidance optimum, so it should be hitting the point perfectly. This is your standout, plan for it.
Monday the 31st has some more size, but the wind is howling offshore at 22-25 mph. It’s going to be a clean but wild and hard-to-paddle-into session. The energy is still moderate, but that wind is a serious factor. Into early September, things taper off and get smaller again, with a return to cleaner but weaker conditions. The long-range stuff looks promising but it's a lot less certain. Keep your eyes on that Sunday the 30th.
Overall, it's a week and a half of frustration followed by one great day. That’s the way it goes sometimes.
Short Range ForecastModerate rain (total 11mm), heaviest on Tue morning. Very mild (max 18°C on Thu morning, min 14°C on Thu night). Wind will be generally light. | Days 4-6 Weather SummaryLight rain (total 3mm), mostly falling on Sat afternoon. Warm (max 20°C on Fri morning, min 15°C on Fri night). Wind will be generally light. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Tuesday 18 | Wednesday 19 | Thursday 20 | Friday 21 | Saturday 22 | Sunday 23 | Monday 24 | |||||||||||||||
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) | ESE 7 | ESE 8 | ESE 9 | SE 10 | SE 10 | ESE 9 | ESE 8 | ESE 7 | NE 6 | ENE 6 | NE 4 | NE 5 | NE 6 | NE 7 | NE 8 | ENE 8 | NE 7 | ENE 7 | ENE 8 | NE 8 | NNE 6 |
Wave Graph | |||||||||||||||||||||
228 | 343 | 293 | 392 | 281 | 138 | 186 | 158 | 35 | 71 | 58 | 74 | 59 | 65 | 88 | 74 | 56 | 47 | 56 | 169 | 108 | |
Wind (km/h) | |||||||||||||||||||||
Wind State on-shore cross-onshore cross-shore cross-offshore off-shore glassy | cross-off | cross-off | off | glassy | glassy | cross-off | on | on | cross-on | cross-on | on | cross-on | glassy | cross-on | off | off | cross-off | cross-on | cross-on | on | cross-on |
High Tide | 11:58AM1.31m | 11:53PM1.08m | 12:49PM1.27m | 00:41AM0.94m | 1:49PM1.23m | 1:46AM0.84m | 2:58PM1.23m | 3:12AM0.80m | 4:07PM1.26m | 4:31AM0.82m | 5:04PM1.33m | 5:29AM0.88m | 5:51PM1.41m | ||||||||
Low Tide | 6:07PM0.41m | 6:02AM0.26m | 7:10PM0.50m | 6:44AM0.35m | 8:31PM0.55m | 7:39AM0.41m | 10:01PM0.53m | 8:51AM0.44m | 11:11PM0.47m | 10:03AM0.42m | 00:00AM0.39m | 11:03AM0.36m | 00:38AM0.31m | ||||||||
6:18 | — | — | 6:18 | — | — | 6:16 | — | — | 6:15 | — | — | 6:13 | — | — | 6:13 | — | — | 6:11 | — | — | |
— | 5:22 | — | — | 5:23 | — | — | 5:23 | — | — | 5:24 | — | — | 5:25 | — | — | 5:25 | — | — | 5:27 | — | |
mm | 3 | 1 | 4 | 3 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 2 | 1 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
Temp °C | 17 | 17 | 16 | 16 | 17 | 16 | 18 | 18 | 15 | 20 | 19 | 16 | 19 | 18 | 18 | 18 | 19 | 18 | 22 | 21 | 18 |
Feels °C | 15 | 15 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 16 | 15 | 15 | 13 | 17 | 16 | 14 | 17 | 18 | 17 | 17 | 18 | 18 | 19 | 19 | 18 |
Swell 1 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | SE 10 | ESE 8 | ESE 9 | SE 10 | SE 10 | ESE 9 | ESE 8 | ESE 7 | E 6 | ENE 6 | SE 7 | SE 7 | NE 6 | NE 7 | NE 8 | ENE 8 | NE 7 | ENE 7 | ENE 8 | S 10 | ENE 8 |
100 | 343 | 293 | 392 | 281 | 138 | 186 | 158 | 30 | 71 | 25 | 17 | 59 | 65 | 88 | 74 | 56 | 47 | 56 | 138 | 72 | |
Swell 2 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | S 9 | ESE 13 | SE 12 | ENE 6 | ENE 6 | ENE 6 | ESE 11 | ESE 10 | SSE 8 | SE 7 | E 9 | E 8 | SE 7 | SSE 7 | SSW 5 | SE 9 | SSW 18 | S 10 | S 11 | ENE 8 | S 10 |
43 | 70 | 135 | 31 | 44 | 32 | 11 | 10 | 24 | 27 | 1 | 1 | 8 | 5 | 2 | 3 | 106 | 70 | 88 | 53 | 102 | |
Swell 3 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | E 9 | S 9 | S 11 | S 11 | S 10 | S 8 | — | — | SE 7 | E 9 | S 12 | S 11 | S 10 | ESE 10 | S 9 | E 7 | S 9 | S 14 | S 8 | — | S 16 |
15 | 24 | 57 | 35 | 29 | 18 | — | — | 24 | 2 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 9 | 6 | 1 | 13 | 94 | 45 | — | 21 | |
Wind waves Height (m) Direction Period (s) | ESE 7 | — | — | — | — | — | — | NE 4 | NE 6 | WNW 3 | NE 4 | NE 5 | — | — | — | SSW 4 | S 4 | — | — | NE 8 | NNE 6 |
228 | — | — | — | — | — | — | 12 | 35 | 1 | 58 | 74 | — | — | — | 10 | 16 | — | — | 169 | 108 | |
Nearest Offshore or Glassy | |||||||||||||||||||||
Distance (km) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 120 | 2 | 2 | 394 | 2 | 0 | 39 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 268 | 7 |
Best forecast wave conditions in North Coast - New South Wales | |||||||||||||||||||||
Best forecast wave conditions in Australia | |||||||||||||||||||||
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Information about the Emerald Beach Surf forecast
The above surf forecast table for Emerald Beach provides essential information for determining whether the surfing conditions will be good over the next 16 days. A general guide to surfing at Emerald Beach can be found by selecting the local surf guide option on the grey menu. Our Emerald Beach 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 (Emerald Beach) 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 Emerald Beach 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.
Are you planning a holiday in North Coast - New South Wales? If you are looking for accommodation near Emerald Beach, camping, hotels and holiday cottages in North Coast - New South Wales, consider staying in Coffs Harbour which is 21 km (13 miles) away. Alternatively, find information about places to stay and car hire in South Grafton which is 53 km (33 miles) away











