Surf Forecasts:
J-Bay surf forecast from 17 Sep 2026:
- Best quality surf: Sunday 20 Sep, 8AM (local time) - 7ft (2.2m), 14s period, SW swell with glassy winds.
- Most powerful swell: Wednesday 23 Sep, 11PM (local time) - 13ft (4.0m), 14s period, SSW swell with 5,508 kJ wave energy.
- Next surfable swell (1★+): Sunday 20 Sep, 8AM (local time) - 7ft (2.2m), 14s period with SW swell.
Best Forecast Surf Conditions for J-Bay this week:
The surf forecast for J-Bay over the next 16 days: The first swell (rated 1 star or higher) is forecast to arrive on Sunday (Sep 20) at 8AM. The primary swell is predicted to be 2.2m and 14s period with a secondary swell of 1.3m and 8s. The wind is predicted to be glassy as the swell arrives.
The most powerful waves expected at J-Bay in the next 16 days are 4.0m 14s and forecast to arrive on Wednesday (Sep 23) at 11PM. Winds are predicted to be cross-onshore at the time the swell arrives. The largest open ocean swell (not directed at the beach) is 1.6m 6s period and expected on Tuesday (Sep 22) at 8PM.
| Wave Type | Time (SAST) & Date | Wave Height & Period |
|---|---|---|
| Next good surf (1 star+) | 8AM (Sun 20th Sep) | 7ft (2.2m) 14s |
| Best Surf | 8AM (Sun 20th Sep) | 7ft (2.2m) 14s |
| Most Powerful | 11PM (Wed 23rd Sep) | 13ft (4.0m) 14s |
Table - best surf conditions forecast for J-Bay over the next 16 days.
Short Range ForecastLight rain (total 2mm), mostly falling on Thu morning. Very mild (max 19°C on Sat afternoon, min 14°C on Thu morning). Winds decreasing (fresh winds from the ESE on Fri morning, calm by Sat afternoon). | Days 4-6 Weather SummaryLight rain (total 9mm), mostly falling on Tue night. Warm (max 34°C on Tue afternoon, min 17°C on Sun morning). Winds increasing (calm on Sun morning, fresh winds from the WSW by Tue afternoon). | ||||||||||||||||||||
Thursday 17 | Friday 18 | Saturday 19 | Sunday 20 | Monday 21 | Tuesday 22 | Wednesday 23 | |||||||||||||||
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) | SW 13 | SW 12 | SW 12 | SW 12 | SW 11 | SW 13 | SW 12 | SW 12 | SSW 15 | SW 14 | SW 13 | SW 13 | SW 12 | SW 12 | SW 12 | SW 11 | WSW 11 | WSW 7 | SW 10 | SW 11 | SSW 14 |
Wave Graph  | |||||||||||||||||||||
 kJ | 1778 | 1404 | 1013 | 997 | 675 | 1021 | 706 | 614 | 584 | 2110 | 1668 | 1092 | 730 | 587 | 407 | 273 | 759 | 363 | 745 | 1456 | 5399 |
Wind (km/h) | |||||||||||||||||||||
Wind State on-shore cross-onshore cross-shore cross-offshore off-shore glassy | on | on | on | on | cross-on | cross-on | cross | on | cross-on | on | on | cross-off | cross-on | on | cross-on | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | cross-off | cross-on | cross-on |
High Tide | 6:38PM1.24m | 6:55AM1.09m | 7:11PM1.09m | 7:50AM0.95m | 8:56PM0.95m | 12:15PM0.96m | 00:28AM1.02m | 1:12PM1.11m | 1:16AM1.16m | 1:43PM1.27m | 1:48AM1.30m | 2:09PM1.43m | 2:17AM1.43m | ||||||||
Low Tide | 12:25PM0.48m | 00:53AM0.54m | 12:56PM0.63m | 1:41AM0.68m | 2:00PM0.77m | 4:51AM0.75m | 6:22PM0.77m | 6:53AM0.63m | 7:18PM0.62m | 7:28AM0.48m | 7:49PM0.47m | 7:55AM0.34m | 8:16PM0.32m | ||||||||
 | |  |  | | | | | |  | |  | | | |  | | | | | | |
 | 6:16 | — | — | 6:16 | — | — | 6:13 | — | — | 6:13 | — | — | 6:11 | — | — | 6:09 | — | — | 6:09 | — | — |
 | — | 6:12 | — | — | 6:13 | — | — | 6:14 | — | — | 6:14 | — | — | 6:15 | — | — | 6:15 | — | — | 6:15 | — |
mm | 1 | 1 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 2 | — | — | — | — | — | 7 | — | — | — |
Temp °C | 15 | 15 | 16 | 16 | 17 | 16 | 17 | 19 | 18 | 20 | 22 | 20 | 22 | 21 | 21 | 30 | 34 | 18 | 18 | 19 | 17 |
Feels °C | 11 | 10 | 11 | 10 | 11 | 11 | 16 | 19 | 17 | 19 | 21 | 20 | 23 | 21 | 22 | 28 | 32 | 14 | 13 | 16 | 16 |
Swell 1 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | SW 13 | SW 12 | SW 12 | SW 12 | SW 11 | SW 13 | SW 12 | E 8 | E 8 | SW 14 | SW 13 | SW 13 | SW 12 | SW 12 | SW 12 | E 8 | E 8 | E 9 | SW 10 | SW 11 | SSW 14 |
| kJ | 1778 | 1404 | 1013 | 997 | 675 | 1021 | 706 | 439 | 260 | 2110 | 1668 | 1092 | 730 | 587 | 407 | 172 | 205 | 171 | 745 | 1456 | 5399 |
Swell 2 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | E 11 | E 11 | E 10 | — | SSW 14 | — | — | SW 12 | SW 12 | E 8 | — | E 8 | E 8 | E 8 | E 8 | SW 11 | — | SW 12 | E 9 | E 9 | — |
| kJ | 108 | 108 | 75 | — | 352 | — | — | 614 | 383 | 219 | — | 191 | 133 | 133 | 104 | 273 | — | 132 | 108 | 83 | — |
Swell 3 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | SW 16 | SSW 15 | — | — | — | — | — | SSE 5 | SW 14 | — | S 13 | S 13 | — | — |
| kJ | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 124 | 584 | — | — | — | — | — | 11 | 46 | — | 3 | 13 | — | — |
Wind waves Height (m) Direction Period (s) | SE 7 | SE 7 | ESE 7 | ESE 7 | E 7 | E 7 | E 8 | — | E 8 | — | E 8 | — | — | — | E 8 | NNW 2 | WSW 11 | WSW 7 | — | — | E 6 |
| kJ | 323 | 351 | 342 | 371 | 396 | 553 | 569 | — | 392 | — | 224 | — | — | — | 161 | 1 | 759 | 363 | — | — | 279 |
Nearest Offshore or Glassy | |||||||||||||||||||||
Distance (km) | 197 | 197 | 197 | 594 | 598 | 172 | 31 | 31 | 2 | 31 | 180 | 0 | 13 | 180 | 19 | 0 | 52 | 140 | 142 | 3 | 183 |
Best forecast wave conditions in Eastern Cape (South) | |||||||||||||||||||||
Best forecast wave conditions in South Africa | |||||||||||||||||||||
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 J-Bay 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 J-Bay Surf forecast
The above surf forecast table for J-Bay provides essential information for determining whether the surfing conditions will be good over the next 16 days. A general guide to surfing at J-Bay can be found by selecting the local surf guide option on the grey menu. Our J-Bay 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 (J-Bay) 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 J-Bay 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.
J-Bay is 19 km (12 miles) from the city of Kruisfontein. If you plan a holiday in Eastern Cape (South), look for hotels and other accommodation in Kruisfontein. Kruisfontein has rooms for a wide range of budgets as well as car hire and transport links.
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