Mangawhai Heads Surf Forecast

/ Northland (73 surf breaks) /

New Zealand (466 surf breaks) / Lat Long: (36.08° S 174.60° E)

Surf Forecasts:

Mangawhai Heads surfForecast / Northland / New Zealand

12 Day Weather and Surf, issued 5 pm Thursday 18 Sep 2025 NZST

Forecast update in hr min s Forecast update imminent

Mangawhai Heads surf forecast is for near shore open water. Breaking waves will often be smaller at less exposed spots.

Today's Mangawhai Heads sea temperature is 15.2° C
(Which is normal for this time of year)

Best Forecast Surf Conditions for Mangawhai Heads this week:

The surf forecast for Mangawhai Heads over the next 12 days: The first swell (rated 1 star or higher) is forecast to arrive on Thursday (Sep 25) at 3PM. The primary swell is predicted to be 2.5m and 10s period with a secondary swell of 0.8m and 13s. The wind is predicted to be offshore as the swell arrives.

The most powerful waves expected at Mangawhai Heads in the next 12 days are 4.0m 9s and forecast to arrive on Thursday (Sep 25) at 6AM. Winds are predicted to be cross-shore at the time the swell arrives. The largest open ocean swell (not directed at the beach) is 1.1m 4s period and expected on Thursday (Sep 25) at 6PM.

Wave Type	Time (NZST) & Date	Wave Height & Period
Next good surf (1 star+)	3PM (Thu 25th Sep)	8ft (2.5m) 10s
Best Surf	3PM (Thu 25th Sep)	8ft (2.5m) 10s
Most Powerful	6AM (Thu 25th Sep)	13ft (4.0m) 9s

Table - best surf conditions forecast for Mangawhai Heads over the next 12 days.

Updates in hr min s Forecast update imminent

12 Days Hourly

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	Short Range Forecast Light rain (total 4mm), mostly falling on Thu afternoon. Very mild (max 18°C on Thu afternoon, min 10°C on Fri night). Winds increasing (light winds from the SSE on Fri night, fresh winds from the N by Sun morning).											Days 3-6 Weather Summary Moderate rain (total 16mm), heaviest on Wed morning. Very mild (max 16°C on Mon morning, min 14°C on Sun night). Mainly fresh winds.
	Thu 18		Friday 19			Saturday 20			Sunday 21			Monday 22			Tuesday 23			Wednesday 24
	PM	Night	AM	PM	Night	AM	PM	Night	AM	PM	Night	AM	PM	Night	AM	PM	Night	AM	PM	Night	AM
Rating (10 max)	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	1	0	0	1
Swell Height Map See all maps
Wave Height (m) & direction (?)	NNW	N	N	N	N	E	ENE	NE	NNE	NNE	NNE	NNE	NNE	NNE	NNE	NNE	NNE	NNE	E	NNE	NNE
Period(s) (?)	7	8	6	6	13	5	6	6	6	6	6	7	7	7	7	7	7	7	14	7	9
Wave Graph (?)
kJ (?)	77	29	6	6	3	18	97	144	222	284	272	317	372	248	277	306	293	227	476	705	1467
Wind (km/h)	WNW	WSW	SW	SW	S	ENE	NE	NNE	N	N	NNE	N	NNE	N	NNE	N	N	N	N	NNE	N
Wind State (?) onshore cross-onshore cross-shore cross-offshore offshore glassy	off	off	cross- off	cross- off	cross	on	cross- on	cross- on	cross	cross	cross	cross	cross	cross	cross	cross	cross- off	cross	cross	cross- on	cross
High Tide / height (m)	4:20PM 2.00		4:44AM 1.88	5:18PM 2.03		5:40AM 1.92		6:08PM 2.07	6:30AM 1.97		6:53PM 2.11	7:15AM 2.02		7:35PM 2.13	7:57AM 2.06		8:14PM 2.13	8:38AM 2.09		8:52PM 2.10	9:17AM 2.08
Low Tide / height (m)		10:50PM 0.46	11:08AM 0.36		11:47PM 0.40		12:02PM 0.34	12:36AM 0.34		12:50PM 0.31	1:20AM 0.28		1:34PM 0.29	2:00AM 0.24		2:15PM 0.28	2:38AM 0.23		2:55PM 0.30		3:15AM 0.23

	Thu 18		Friday 19			Saturday 20			Sunday 21			Monday 22			Tuesday 23			Wednesday 24
Sunrise	-	-	6:16	-	-	6:13	-	-	6:13	-	-	6:11	-	-	6:09	-	-	6:07	-	-	6:07
Sunset	6:14	-	-	6:15	-	-	6:15	-	-	6:15	-	-	6:16	-	-	6:17	-	-	6:19	-	-

Rain (mm)	2	1	1	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	1	2	5	8	9	18	6
Temp. °C	18	13	14	15	11	13	14	14	14	15	15	16	16	16	16	16	16	16	16	16	19
Feels °C (?)	13	9	9	10	8	8	8	8	8	9	10	11	11	12	11	12	13	14	13	11	15

Map Icons:
Break
Live Wave Height (m)
Live Wind Speed (km/h)
Surf Rating (10 Max)
Ocean Swells (m)
Wind Speed (km/h)

Recent Eyeball Surf Reports for Northland

Wind Update Cross-off wind 41 km from Mangawhai Heads has swung offshore (light winds from the W at Whangarei Aero Automatic Weather Station). 0.7m 6s windswell from the N to make surfable waves.
1 hour 25 minutes ago Mangawhai Heads
Wind Update Offshore wind reported 18 km from Shipwrecks Bay-Peaks (light winds from the SW at Kaitaia Airport 18 km from Shipwrecks Bay-Peaks). 2.3m 11s groundswell from the WSW with a 0.5m 17s long period groundswell from the SW. 2 swells combining to make bigger set waves.
1 hour 25 minutes ago Shipwrecks Bay-Peaks

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41 km away, 1 h 25 min ago

11 km/h

0.0

15.2

Air / Water (°C)

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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 Mangawhai 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 Mangawhai Heads Surf forecast

The above surf forecast table for Mangawhai Heads provides essential information for determining whether the surfing conditions will be good over the next 12 days. A general guide to surfing at Mangawhai Heads can be found by selecting the local surf guide option on the grey menu. Our Mangawhai 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 (Mangawhai 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 Mangawhai 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.

Mangawhai Heads is 46 km (29 miles) from the city of Whangarei. If you plan a holiday in Northland, look for hotels and other accommodation in Whangarei. Whangarei has rooms for a wide range of budgets as well as car hire and transport links.