Surf Forecasts:
Emerald Beach surf forecast from 24 Aug 2026:
- Best quality surf: Wednesday 26 Aug, 10AM (local time) - 4.5ft (1.3m), 7s period, NE swell with glassy winds.
- Most powerful swell: Tuesday 25 Aug, 10PM (local time) - 7ft (2.1m), 6s period, NE swell with 326 kJ wave energy.
- Next surfable swell (1★+): Wednesday 26 Aug, 10AM (local time) - 4.5ft (1.3m), 7s period with NE 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 Wednesday (Aug 26) at 10AM. The primary swell is predicted to be 1.3m and 7s period with a secondary swell of 0.6m and 8s. The wind is predicted to be glassy as the swell arrives.
The most powerful waves expected at Emerald Beach in the next 16 days are 2.1m 6s and forecast to arrive on Tuesday (Aug 25) at 10PM. Winds are predicted to be cross-onshore at the time the swell arrives. The largest open ocean swell (not directed at the beach) is 2.5m 10s period and expected on Saturday (Aug 29) at 10PM.
| Wave Type | Time (AEST) & Date | Wave Height & Period |
|---|---|---|
| Next good surf (1 star+) | 10AM (Wed 26th Aug) | 4.5ft (1.3m) 7s |
| Best Surf | 10AM (Wed 26th Aug) | 4.5ft (1.3m) 7s |
| Most Powerful | 10PM (Tue 25th Aug) | 7ft (2.1m) 6s |
Table - best surf conditions forecast for Emerald Beach over the next 16 days.
The Lowdown
Alright, surfers, Rusty here. Let’s be straight with you: this forecast window for Emerald Beach is a tough one. We’re looking at a long stretch of small, messy, or just plain weak surf. The water temp is sitting right around average for the time of year at 68°F, nothing unusual there.
The first glimmer of anything rideable doesn’t show up until Wednesday morning, the 26th of August. We get a little bump of 4ft NE swell, but the real story is the wind. It goes glassy. That’s a major positive for a point break like this, and it’ll smooth out the surface. The wave energy is weak though, only about 197 (combined energy), so don’t expect much push. It’s surfable, but very ordinary.
Thursday morning the 27th is a similar story. The swell drops to 3ft from the ENE, but we get a clean, moderate offshore breeze from the S. The energy is even weaker at 71, but it’ll be one of the cleanest-looking windows of the whole period. Thursday afternoon stays clean with a cross-off wind, but the swell is still tiny at 3ft.
After that, we hit a massive gap. Friday through to the end of the first week and into the second is basically a write-off. Swell bottoms out to nothing, with most days showing poor conditions and energy readings below 100. The wind is often onshore or cross-onshore, and the few clean offshore days are on tiny, gutless waves.
There is one late, long-range standout to keep an eye on: Tuesday morning, the 8th of September. The forecast shows a jump in NE swell to 4ft, and the energy climbs to 184 (moderate). The wind is onshore from the N, which is a bummer for a point that likes a NE offshore, but it’s the biggest swell in the entire 16-day run. Don’t get your hopes up too much, it’s a long way out and the wind could easily change.
Honestly, for the majority of this period, the setup looks more interesting for kite surfing than paddle surfing. If the swell ever gets a bit of size with that strong cross-off or side-shore wind, it could be a session for the foil or kite.
Stay patient, and keep checking the charts. This run won’t last forever.
Rusty.
Short Range ForecastLight rain (total 5mm), mostly falling on Wed night. Warm (max 21°C on Tue morning, min 14°C on Wed night). Winds decreasing (fresh winds from the NNE on Tue afternoon, calm by Wed morning). | Days 4-6 Weather SummarySome drizzle, heaviest during Fri night. Very mild (max 19°C on Fri morning, min 13°C on Sat night). Winds increasing (light winds from the NNE on Fri morning, fresh winds from the S by Sat afternoon). | ||||||||||||||||||||
Tuesday 25 | Wednesday 26 | Thursday 27 | Friday 28 | Saturday 29 | Sunday 30 | Monday 31 | |||||||||||||||
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) | NE 8 | NE 5 | ENE 7 | NE 7 | NE 7 | ENE 7 | ENE 8 | ENE 8 | ENE 8 | ENE 8 | ENE 8 | ENE 8 | ENE 8 | ENE 9 | ENE 9 | E 10 | ENE 9 | ENE 9 | ENE 9 | S 18 | SE 7 |
Wave Graph | |||||||||||||||||||||
132 | 128 | 180 | 144 | 143 | 93 | 71 | 96 | 73 | 51 | 54 | 61 | 57 | 42 | 44 | 48 | 29 | 28 | 26 | 0 | 44 | |
Wind (km/h) | |||||||||||||||||||||
Wind State on-shore cross-onshore cross-shore cross-offshore off-shore glassy | cross-on | on | cross-on | glassy | cross | off | off | cross-off | glassy | on | cross-on | off | off | cross-off | off | off | cross-off | off | cross-off | cross-on | cross-on |
High Tide | 6:31PM1.49m | 6:52AM1.03m | 7:06PM1.56m | 7:28AM1.11m | 7:40PM1.60m | 8:03AM1.20m | 8:13PM1.60m | 8:38AM1.27m | 8:46PM1.57m | 9:14AM1.34m | 9:20PM1.51m | 9:52AM1.39m | 9:57PM1.41m | ||||||||
Low Tide | 11:51AM0.29m | 1:11AM0.22m | 12:33PM0.22m | 1:42AM0.15m | 1:12PM0.16m | 2:11AM0.09m | 1:51PM0.13m | 2:41AM0.05m | 2:30PM0.12m | 3:11AM0.03m | 3:10PM0.14m | 3:41AM0.03m | 3:54PM0.17m | ||||||||
6:11 | — | — | 6:09 | — | — | 6:09 | — | — | 6:07 | — | — | 6:07 | — | — | 6:05 | — | — | 6:03 | — | — | |
— | 5:27 | — | — | 5:28 | — | — | 5:28 | — | — | 5:29 | — | — | 5:29 | — | — | 5:30 | — | — | 5:30 | — | |
mm | — | — | 2 | — | 1 | 2 | — | — | — | — | — | 1 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
Temp °C | 21 | 21 | 18 | 21 | 19 | 17 | 18 | 18 | 17 | 19 | 18 | 17 | 18 | 17 | 14 | 17 | 18 | 17 | 18 | 18 | 16 |
Feels °C | 18 | 17 | 17 | 19 | 17 | 14 | 15 | 15 | 16 | 16 | 16 | 16 | 12 | 11 | 8 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 16 | 17 | 14 |
Swell 1 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | NE 8 | S 10 | ENE 7 | NE 7 | NE 7 | ENE 7 | ENE 8 | ENE 8 | S 9 | S 9 | S 9 | S 10 | ENE 8 | ENE 9 | ENE 9 | E 10 | ENE 9 | S 9 | SE 8 | S 18 | S 16 |
132 | 53 | 180 | 144 | 143 | 93 | 71 | 96 | 320 | 225 | 157 | 367 | 57 | 42 | 44 | 48 | 29 | 101 | 136 | 792 | 412 | |
Swell 2 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | S 11 | S 16 | S 11 | ENE 8 | S 9 | N 13 | S 11 | S 15 | ENE 8 | ENE 8 | S 12 | ENE 8 | NE 11 | NE 10 | NE 10 | N 15 | N 15 | ENE 9 | S 19 | SSE 8 | S 8 |
79 | 20 | 20 | 53 | 6 | 3 | 2 | 18 | 73 | 51 | 146 | 61 | 5 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 28 | 587 | 120 | 58 | |
Swell 3 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | S 18 | — | S 16 | S 16 | S 16 | N 13 | S 15 | N 12 | S 15 | S 14 | ENE 8 | S 14 | NE 11 | — | N 16 | N 10 | — | S 19 | ENE 9 | S 8 | SE 7 |
25 | — | 44 | 46 | 20 | 4 | 5 | 3 | 39 | 60 | 54 | 33 | 5 | — | 5 | 2 | — | 64 | 26 | 86 | 44 | |
Wind waves Height (m) Direction Period (s) | N 4 | NE 5 | N 6 | — | — | S 5 | S 6 | S 8 | — | — | ENE 2 | SSE 3 | S 7 | S 8 | S 10 | S 10 | S 10 | SSE 9 | S 8 | — | — |
10 | 128 | 119 | — | — | 52 | 164 | 266 | — | — | 1 | 3 | 378 | 596 | 1268 | 986 | 767 | 368 | 140 | — | — | |
Nearest Offshore or Glassy | |||||||||||||||||||||
Distance (km) | 39 | 268 | 16 | 0 | 85 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 39 | 0 | 13 | 85 | 13 | 21 | 85 | 5 | 8 | 39 | 2 |
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











