Surf Forecasts:
Rockaway surf forecast from 19 Aug 2026:
- Best quality surf: Monday 24 Aug, 2AM (local time) - 2.5ft (0.7m), 6s period, SSE swell with offshore winds.
- Most powerful swell: Thursday 20 Aug, 8AM (local time) - 1.5ft (0.5m), 9s period, SE swell with 38 kJ wave energy.
- Next surfable swell (1★+): Monday 24 Aug, 2AM (local time) - 2.5ft (0.7m), 6s period with SSE swell.
Best Forecast Surf Conditions for Rockaway this week:
The surf forecast for Rockaway over the next 16 days: The first swell (rated 1 star or higher) is forecast to arrive on Monday (Aug 24) at 2AM. The primary swell is predicted to be 0.7m and 6s period with a secondary swell of 0.3m and 12s. The wind is predicted to be offshore as the swell arrives.
The most powerful waves expected at Rockaway in the next 16 days are 0.5m 9s and forecast to arrive on Thursday (Aug 20) at 8AM. Winds are predicted to be cross-offshore at the time the swell arrives. The largest open ocean swell (not directed at the beach) is 0.3m 2s period and expected on Friday (Aug 21) at 8AM.
| Wave Type | Time (EDT) & Date | Wave Height & Period |
|---|---|---|
| Next good surf (1 star+) | 2AM (Mon 24th Aug) | 2.5ft (0.7m) 6s |
| Best Surf | 2AM (Mon 24th Aug) | 2.5ft (0.7m) 6s |
| Most Powerful | 8AM (Thu 20th Aug) | 1.5ft (0.5m) 9s |
Table - best surf conditions forecast for Rockaway over the next 16 days.
The Lowdown
Alright, this is Rusty checkin’ in from the Rockaways, and I gotta be straight with you – it’s a rough stretch ahead for the New York shores. We’re staring down a long, flat spell of poor conditions that hardly even looks like surf for the next week or more. The energy just isn’t there, and when it does start to show up, it’s mushy and weak.
The first real window where you might want to even look at the water isn’t until Wednesday, September 2nd. That’s over a week away from now, with a whole lot of nothing in between. From Saturday, August 23rd all the way through Tuesday, September 1st, the combined swell energy is tiny – barely hitting 60 on a good day, and most of the time it’s down around 20-30. That’s flat. Water temp is nothing special, pretty average for this time of year, so no drama there.
Now, Wednesday, September 2nd morning, we finally see a pulse. A tiny 3ft swell from the south with a short, crumbly period of 5 seconds. The combined energy hits 71. It’s not big, but what makes it interesting is the wind: dead calm, glassy, zero wind. That’s a major positive because the water will be smooth as a lake. Rockaway faces the right way for that southerly direction, but with such a short period, expect it to be a bit gutless and close out quick on the beach. It’s not a standout, just the first real chance to get wet.
The only other glimmer comes on the afternoon of Tuesday, September 1st, when we get a glassy, still afternoon with a cleaner-looking 1.0ft swell from the southeast and a longer period of 14 seconds. The energy is still weak at 89, but that long period will give the tiny little waves a bit of push. That’s a groundswell pulse, and it might wrap around and show a cleaner face than the local wind slop, but it’s still very small. I wouldn’t call either of these a true standout. The best on offer might be the glassy Wednesday, September 2nd morning, just because of the total lack of wind and the 3ft bump, but it’s still only a 1 out of 10.
Honestly, if you’re thinking paddle surfing, you’re mostly out of luck for the next 10 days. The onshore winds and tiny, weak swell don’t add up to much. If you’ve got a kite and a big wind window, Saturday, August 23rd and the 24th have some consistent cross-onshore wind, which could be more interesting for a kite session than a paddle.
Hang tight, or find a lake. The ocean is on a long sleep.
Rusty.
Short Range ForecastSome drizzle, heaviest during Thu morning. Warm (max 28°C on Wed afternoon, min 21°C on Fri morning). Wind will be generally light. | Days 4-6 Weather SummaryLight rain (total 6mm), mostly falling on Sat afternoon. Warm (max 27°C on Mon afternoon, min 21°C on Sat night). Winds decreasing (fresh winds from the E on Sat morning, calm by Mon night). | ||||||||||||||||||||
Wednesday 19 | Thursday 20 | Friday 21 | Saturday 22 | Sunday 23 | Monday 24 | Tuesday 25 | |||||||||||||||
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) | SE 6 | SSE 6 | SE 9 | SE 9 | SE 8 | SE 8 | SE 8 | SE 8 | SE 8 | ESE 4 | ESE 5 | E 5 | SSE 5 | SSE 6 | SSE 6 | SE 12 | SE 12 | SE 11 | SE 11 | SE 11 | SE 11 |
Wave Graph  | |||||||||||||||||||||
 kJ | 21 | 23 | 28 | 36 | 24 | 11 | 18 | 18 | 18 | 19 | 31 | 33 | 5 | 12 | 33 | 22 | 21 | 30 | 18 | 18 | 18 |
Wind (km/h) | |||||||||||||||||||||
Wind State on-shore cross-onshore cross-shore cross-offshore off-shore glassy | cross-off | cross-on | cross-off | off | cross-off | glassy | cross | on | cross-on | cross-on | cross-on | cross-on | on | cross | off | off | cross-off | glassy | on | on | on |
High Tide | 1:18PM1.45m | 1:34AM1.18m | 2:06PM1.40m | 2:27AM1.12m | 2:58PM1.38m | 3:25AM1.09m | 3:55PM1.38m | 4:26AM1.11m | 4:51PM1.42m | 5:23AM1.17m | 5:44PM1.48m | 6:13AM1.24m | 6:29PM1.54m | ||||||||
Low Tide | 7:35PM0.33m | 7:34AM0.32m | 8:39PM0.36m | 8:36AM0.37m | 9:41PM0.35m | 9:37AM0.37m | 10:35PM0.31m | 10:32AM0.33m | 11:23PM0.25m | 11:22AM0.28m | 00:08AM0.18m | 12:09PM0.22m | 00:51AM0.11m | ||||||||
 | |  |  |  | | | |  |  |  | | |  |  | | | | | |  | |
 | 6:09 | — | — | 6:09 | — | — | 6:11 | — | — | 6:11 | — | — | 6:13 | — | — | 6:13 | — | — | 6:15 | — | — |
 | — | 7:47 | — | — | 7:45 | — | — | 7:45 | — | — | 7:43 | — | — | 7:42 | — | — | 7:39 | — | — | 7:38 | — |
mm | — | — | — | 1 | — | — | — | — | — | — | 3 | — | — | 1 | 2 | — | — | — | — | — | 2 |
Temp °C | 25 | 28 | 28 | 24 | 24 | 24 | 24 | 25 | 24 | 22 | 22 | 22 | 22 | 24 | 25 | 23 | 27 | 27 | 23 | 24 | 24 |
Feels °C | 25 | 26 | 27 | 24 | 26 | 26 | 22 | 24 | 23 | 21 | 20 | 21 | 24 | 26 | 26 | 21 | 24 | 24 | 23 | 21 | 23 |
Swell 1 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | SE 6 | SE 9 | SE 9 | SE 9 | SE 8 | SE 8 | SE 8 | SE 8 | SE 8 | SE 13 | ESE 8 | E 5 | SSE 5 | ESE 7 | SSE 6 | S 6 | S 6 | SSE 6 | SSE 6 | SE 11 | SE 11 |
| kJ | 21 | 14 | 28 | 36 | 24 | 11 | 18 | 18 | 18 | 7 | 6 | 25 | 4 | 10 | 33 | 12 | 13 | 13 | 7 | 18 | 18 |
Swell 2 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | SSE 10 | SE 9 | S 5 | SSW 3 | SE 9 | ESE 6 | SSE 5 | S 6 | S 5 | — | SE 13 | SSE 5 | E 4 | SE 12 | SE 12 | SE 12 | SE 6 | SE 11 | SE 11 | S 6 | ESE 5 |
| kJ | 9 | 14 | 1 | 1 | 12 | 3 | 2 | 3 | 2 | — | 7 | 2 | 4 | 6 | 22 | 22 | 5 | 30 | 18 | 3 | 3 |
Swell 3 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | NE 4 | — | — | — | SSW 4 | S 5 | SE 5 | SE 14 | SE 14 | — | SE 9 | ESE 8 | ESE 7 | SE 9 | S 6 | SE 5 | SE 12 | E 6 | E 6 | ESE 6 | ESE 6 |
| kJ | 1 | — | — | — | 1 | 2 | 1 | 8 | 8 | — | 3 | 6 | 5 | 3 | 1 | 5 | 21 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 3 |
Wind waves Height (m) Direction Period (s) | — | SSE 6 | S 3 | — | — | — | NNE 2 | SSE 5 | — | ESE 4 | ESE 5 | E 5 | — | SSE 6 | — | WNW 2 | — | — | E 3 | SE 5 | SSE 3 |
| kJ | — | 23 | 2 | — | — | — | 1 | 2 | — | 19 | 31 | 33 | — | 12 | — | 1 | — | — | 1 | 4 | 3 |
Nearest Offshore or Glassy | |||||||||||||||||||||
Distance (km) | 4 | 25 | 354 | 30 | 20 | 356 | 356 | 363 | 1204 | 356 | 757 | 249 | 263 | 13 | 177 | 30 | 39 | 24 | 20 | 570 | 241 |
Best forecast wave conditions in Long Island New York | |||||||||||||||||||||
Best forecast wave conditions in United States | |||||||||||||||||||||
Header Global | |||||||||||||||||||||
- Map Icons:
Break
Live Wave Height (m)
Live Wind Speed (km/h)
Surf Rating (10 Max)
Ocean Swells (m)- Wind Speed (km/h)
FREE! Surf-Forecast.com widget for your website
The surf report / weather widget below is available to embed on third party websites free of charge and provides a summary of our Rockaway 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 Rockaway Surf forecast
The above surf forecast table for Rockaway provides essential information for determining whether the surfing conditions will be good over the next 16 days. A general guide to surfing at Rockaway can be found by selecting the local surf guide option on the grey menu. Our Rockaway 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 (Rockaway) 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 Rockaway 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.
Rockaway is 11 km (7 miles) from the city of East New York. If you plan a vacation in Long Island New York, look for hotels and other accommodation in East New York. East New York has rooms for a wide range of budgets as well as car hire and transport links.
Nearest