Surf Forecasts:
Folly Beach surf forecast from 2 Sep 2026:
- Most powerful swell: Wednesday 9 Sep, 2AM (local time) - 4ft (1.2m), 7s period, ESE swell with 160 kJ wave energy.
Best Forecast Surf Conditions for Folly Beach this week:
The most powerful waves expected at Folly Beach in the next 16 days are 1.2m 7s and forecast to arrive on Wednesday (Sep 09) at 2AM. Winds are predicted to be cross-onshore at the time the swell arrives. The largest open ocean swell (not directed at the beach) is 0.5m 6s period and expected on Friday (Sep 04) at 5PM.
| Wave Type | Time (EDT) & Date | Wave Height & Period |
|---|---|---|
| Next good surf (1 star+) | - | - |
| Best Surf | - | - |
| Most Powerful | 2AM (Wed 9th Sep) | 4ft (1.2m) 7s |
Table - best surf conditions forecast for Folly Beach over the next 16 days.
The Lowdown
Alright folks, it’s Rusty here, and I gotta be straight with you – the next couple of weeks ain't looking good for a paddle. We've got a real dry spell on the horizon.
For the entire 16-day window, from Wednesday, September 2nd, right through to Thursday, September 17th, the surf is just not there. It's a long stretch of flat or near-flat conditions with poor to terrible wind. I’m looking at a solid 16-day gap with no real surf to recommend.
The only spot on the radar is Folly Beach. The combined swell energy is laughable, barely cracking 100 (92) even on the best of days, and most of the time it's sitting in the single or double digits. The swell is tiny, mostly under 2ft, and where there is a little bump, it comes with a cross-onshore breeze that tears it apart. Even when the wind goes light or cross-off, the swell is too small to do anything with – we're talking 0.7ft to 1.0ft. There's a moment on the morning of Thursday, September 10th, with clean conditions, but the swell is only 0.7ft. It's a ghost town out there.
The water temperature is about average for the time of year, so that's not the problem. The problem is there's just no energy. For a beginner, there's nothing to learn on, and for anyone else, it's a complete waste of a session. Honestly, with the wind picking up and the surf being so weak and choppy, this setup looks more interesting for kite surfing than paddle surfing. We just have to wait for the next system to push some life back into the ocean.
Rusty.
Short Range ForecastMostly dry. Warm (max 29°C on Fri afternoon, min 26°C on Tue night). Wind will be generally light. | Days 5-7 Weather SummaryModerate rain (total 11mm), heaviest on Sun morning. Warm (max 29°C on Sat afternoon, min 24°C on Sun morning). Winds increasing (calm on Sat night, fresh winds from the ENE by Mon morning). | ||||||||||||||||||
Wednesday 2 | Thursday 3 | Friday 4 | Saturday 5 | Sunday 6 | Monday 7 | ||||||||||||||
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) | SE 12 | SE 11 | SE 10 | SE 10 | SE 9 | SE 9 | SE 9 | SE 8 | SSE 6 | SSE 8 | SSE 6 | ESE 8 | ESE 8 | SSE 5 | E 5 | E 6 | E 6 | E 7 | ESE 7 |
Wave Graph  | |||||||||||||||||||
 kJ | 36 | 92 | 80 | 59 | 52 | 78 | 19 | 33 | 12 | 26 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 4 | 53 | 57 | 75 | 130 | 114 |
Wind (km/h) | |||||||||||||||||||
Wind State on-shore cross-onshore cross-shore cross-offshore off-shore glassy | on | cross-on | on | cross-on | cross-on | on | cross-on | cross-on | cross-on | cross | cross-off | cross-on | cross-off | cross | cross-on | cross-on | cross-on | cross-on | cross-on |
High Tide | 11:30PM1.59m | 12:02PM1.80m | 00:23AM1.53m | 1:02PM1.81m | 1:25AM1.49m | 2:08PM1.81m | 2:34AM1.47m | 3:19PM1.82m | 3:46AM1.49m | 4:28PM1.85m | 4:56AM1.55m | 5:33PM1.90m | |||||||
Low Tide | 5:42AM0.07m | 6:30PM0.31m | 6:35AM0.10m | 7:34PM0.35m | 7:35AM0.13m | 8:43PM0.37m | 8:42AM0.14m | 9:51PM0.34m | 9:50AM0.12m | 10:54PM0.28m | 10:55AM0.08m | 11:53PM0.20m | |||||||
 |  | | | | | | | | | |  |  |  | |  | | | | |
 | — | 6:54 | — | — | 6:54 | — | — | 6:56 | — | — | 6:56 | — | — | 6:56 | — | — | 6:58 | — | — |
 | 7:44 | — | 7:43 | — | — | 7:42 | — | — | 7:40 | — | — | 7:38 | — | — | 7:37 | — | — | 7:37 | — |
mm | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 2 | — | 4 | 3 | 2 | — |
Temp °C | 27 | 28 | 28 | 27 | 28 | 28 | 28 | 28 | 29 | 27 | 27 | 29 | 27 | 26 | 28 | 26 | 26 | 26 | 26 |
Feels °C | 30 | 31 | 31 | 30 | 32 | 31 | 32 | 32 | 32 | 29 | 29 | 30 | 28 | 27 | 29 | 26 | 24 | 24 | 25 |
Swell 1 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | ESE 7 | SE 11 | SE 10 | SE 10 | SE 9 | SE 9 | SSE 4 | SE 8 | SE 8 | SSE 8 | SSE 6 | ESE 8 | S 4 | SSE 5 | — | SE 9 | S 5 | — | — |
| kJ | 21 | 92 | 80 | 59 | 52 | 78 | 7 | 33 | 11 | 26 | 6 | 6 | 4 | 4 | — | 3 | 2 | — | — |
Swell 2 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | SE 12 | — | — | — | — | — | SE 9 | SE 8 | S 6 | — | ESE 8 | — | ESE 8 | SE 7 | — | — | — | — | — |
| kJ | 36 | — | — | — | — | — | 19 | 33 | 17 | — | 6 | — | 6 | 2 | — | — | — | — | — |
Swell 3 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | SE 9 | SE 9 | — | — | — | — | — |
| kJ | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 3 | 3 | — | — | — | — | — |
Wind waves Height (m) Direction Period (s) | — | — | — | — | — | — | S 5 | — | SSE 6 | — | — | SSE 3 | SSW 3 | — | E 5 | E 6 | E 6 | E 7 | ESE 7 |
| kJ | — | — | — | — | — | — | 9 | — | 12 | — | — | 3 | 5 | — | 53 | 57 | 75 | 130 | 114 |
Nearest Offshore or Glassy | |||||||||||||||||||
Distance (km) | 243 | 14 | 105 | 229 | 105 | 229 | 295 | 527 | 296 | 112 | 295 | 878 | 285 | 737 | 737 | 775 | 105 | 105 | 105 |
Best forecast wave conditions in South Carolina | |||||||||||||||||||
Best forecast wave conditions in United States | |||||||||||||||||||
Header Global | |||||||||||||||||||
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The surf report / weather widget below is available to embed on third party websites free of charge and provides a summary of our Folly Beach 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 Folly Beach Surf forecast
The above surf forecast table for Folly Beach provides essential information for determining whether the surfing conditions will be good over the next 16 days. A general guide to surfing at Folly Beach can be found by selecting the local surf guide option on the grey menu. Our Folly 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 (Folly 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 Folly 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.
Folly Beach is 8 km (5 miles) from the city of Mount Pleasant. If you plan a vacation in South Carolina, look for hotels and other accommodation in Mount Pleasant. Mount Pleasant has rooms for a wide range of budgets as well as car hire and transport links.
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