San Mateo Surf Break

Lat Long: 0.95° S 80.83° W

San Mateo Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Issued: 12 am 02 Sep 2026 (local time)

Forecast update in  hr  min

Today's San Mateo sea temperature is
26.6°C
4.5° 

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


San Mateo surf forecast from 2 Sep 2026:

  • Best quality surf: Monday 7 Sep, 7AM (local time) - 3.5ft (1.0m), 13s period, SW swell with cross-offshore winds.
  • Most powerful swell: Friday 4 Sep, 7AM (local time) - 5.5ft (1.7m), 16s period, SW swell with 1,537 kJ wave energy.
  • Next surfable swell (1★+): Wednesday 2 Sep, 7AM (local time) - 3.5ft (1.0m), 12s period with SW swell.

Best Forecast Surf Conditions for San Mateo this week:

The surf forecast for San Mateo over the next 16 days: The first swell (rated 1 star or higher) is forecast to arrive on Wednesday (Sep 02) at 7AM. The primary swell is predicted to be 1.0m and 12s period with a secondary swell of 0.6m and 16s. The wind is predicted to be cross-offshore as the swell arrives.

The most powerful waves expected at San Mateo in the next 16 days are 1.7m 16s and forecast to arrive on Friday (Sep 04) at 7AM. Winds are predicted to be cross-shore at the time the swell arrives. The largest open ocean swell (not directed at the beach) is 0.9m 11s period and expected on Thursday (Sep 03) at 10AM.

Wave TypeTime (-05) & Date Wave Height & Period
Next good surf (1 star+) 7AM (Wed 2nd Sep)3.5ft (1.0m) 12s
Best Surf 7AM (Mon 7th Sep)3.5ft (1.0m) 13s
Most Powerful 7AM (Fri 4th Sep)5.5ft (1.7m) 16s

Table - best surf conditions forecast for San Mateo over the next 16 days.


The Lowdown

Alright folks, Rusty here. Let’s get into it.

The first decent shot of surf in the San Mateo area shows up on the morning of Wednesday, the 2nd of September. It’s a bit of a teaser, though, because the conditions get messy fast after that. We’re looking at a long stretch of afternoon onshores and cross-chop for most of the next two weeks, with only a few windows of cleaner stuff.

San Mateo is a point break, so it loves a good long-period groundswell. The opening morning on Wednesday the 2nd looks like the standout session. We’ve got a small 2ft swell pushing in from the SW, but the period is a solid 17 seconds – that’s proper groundswell energy. The wind is glassy, straight offshore from the NW, so your lines will be clean. The combined energy of all swells directed here is moderate at 389. This is a classic early-morning dawn patrol set-up before the seabreeze kicks in. Just a heads up, this spot can get crowded at times, so get in early.

The swell bumps up a bit on Thursday the 3rd and Friday the 4th, reaching 4ft to 5ft from the SW, still with those long 16-18 second periods. The combined energy climbs into the moderate-to-strong range (773 to 1173). The problem is the morning wind is cross-shore, not clean offshore. It’s rideable, but the quality is down. The afternoons are a no-go with that cross-onshore chop.

What’s really frustrating is the rest of the first week into the second week. From Saturday the 5th all the way through to the 17th of September, we’re looking at a daily grind. The mornings stay marginal with cross-shore winds, and the afternoons are just blown out. The swell stays small, hovering around 2ft to 4ft, with the period dropping into the 13-16 second range, so the energy is weaker. The combined energy drops to under 600 most days. There’s one morning on Sunday the 13th with a tiny 2ft, 19-second groundswell, but it’s so small and the conditions are just okay.

Honestly, if you’re looking for a decent paddle, that first Wednesday morning, the 2nd of September, is your only real bet. The rest of the 16-day window is a long, choppy grind. For the bigger swells on Friday the 4th, the wind is just too messy for clean surfing, but combined with the 5ft+ swell and the cross-onshore wind, it might actually look more interesting for a kite session than a clean paddle session.

Rusty.

Short Range Forecast

Mostly dry. Warm (max 27°C on Thu morning, min 24°C on Tue night). Wind will be generally light.

Days 4-6 Weather Summary

Mostly dry. Warm (max 27°C on Sat morning, min 24°C on Fri night). Wind will be generally light.

Wednesday
2
Thursday
3
Friday
4
Saturday
5
Sunday
6
Monday
7
Tuesday
8
AM
PM
Night
AM
PM
Night
AM
PM
Night
AM
PM
Night
AM
PM
Night
AM
PM
Night
AM
PM
Night
Rating
(10 max)
2
0
1
2
0
3
3
0
2
2
0
1
2
0
2
2
0
2
2
0
1
Swell
Height Map
Height Map
Height Map
Height Map
Height Map
Height Map
Height Map
Height Map
Wave
Height (m)
Direction
Period (s)
0.6
SW
17
0.7
SW
16
0.6
SW
19
1.1
SW
18
1.1
SW
18
1.5
SW
17
1.5
SW
16
1.6
SW
16
1.6
SW
16
1.6
SW
15
1.4
SW
14
1.3
SW
14
1.3
SW
14
1.1
SW
14
1
SW
13
1
SW
13
0.7
SW
18
0.8
SW
16
0.8
SW
16
1
SW
15
1.1
SW
15
Wave Graph
Metric surfscale
Energy kJ
222
248
296
758
702
1312
1123
1314
1170
1108
825
736
706
492
340
330
304
318
352
450
595
Wind (km/h)
5
NW
20
W
20
SW
15
SSW
25
SW
15
SSW
15
SW
25
SW
20
SSW
20
SSW
20
WSW
20
SW
10
SSW
20
WSW
10
SW
5
SW
20
WSW
15
SSW
15
SSW
25
SW
20
SSW
Wind State
glassy
on
cross
cross
cross-on
cross
cross
cross-on
cross
cross
cross-on
cross
cross
cross-on
cross
cross-on
cross-on
cross
cross
cross
cross
High Tide
6:43AM2.52m
7:12PM2.31m
7:26AM2.40m
8:03PM2.18m
8:18AM2.26m
9:06PM2.07m
9:24AM2.12m
10:26PM2.01m
10:46AM2.06m
11:52PM2.06m
12:10PM2.10m
1:06AM2.22m
1:21PM2.23m
2:04AM2.41m
Low Tide
1:02PM0.31m
1:14AM0.50m
1:49PM0.40m
2:05AM0.64m
2:46PM0.51m
3:10AM0.77m
3:58PM0.59m
4:33AM0.85m
5:20PM0.59m
6:02AM0.81m
6:37PM0.51m
7:16AM0.67m
7:40PM0.37m
part cloud
part cloud
part cloud
part cloud
clear
part cloud
part cloud
clear
part cloud
clear
clear
part cloud
part cloud
clear
part cloud
clear
clear
part cloud
part cloud
clear
rain showers
<span class="translation_missing" title="translation missing: en.weather_tables.sunrise">Sunrise</span>
6:20
6:18
6:18
6:18
6:18
6:18
6:18
<span class="translation_missing" title="translation missing: en.weather_tables.sunset">Sunset</span>
6:24
6:24
6:24
6:23
6:23
6:23
6:22
 mm
2
Temp °C
26
26
25
27
27
25
27
26
24
27
26
24
27
26
25
27
26
25
26
26
24
Feels °C
30
27
26
27
27
26
27
26
25
27
26
25
28
27
27
28
26
27
28
25
24
  • Map Icons:
  • Break
  • Live Wave Height (m)
  • Live Wind Speed (km/h)
  • Surf Rating (10 Max)
  • Ocean Swells (m)
  • Wind Speed (km/h)
Map placeholder
How to use the Wavefinder 
submit an eyeball surf report

Quick surf report for San Mateo:

join our community of surf reporters

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 San Mateo 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 San Mateo Surf forecast

The above surf forecast table for San Mateo provides essential information for determining whether the surfing conditions will be good over the next 16 days. A general guide to surfing at San Mateo can be found by selecting the local surf guide option on the grey menu. Our San Mateo 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 (San Mateo) 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 San Mateo 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 Manabi? If you are looking for accommodation near San Mateo, camping, hotels and holiday cottages in Manabi, consider staying in Manta which is 11 km (7 miles) away. Other places in and around Manabi where you can find information about places to rent, and car hire include Montecristi which is 21 km (13 miles) away, Portoviejo, Jipijapa and Sucre.

Nearest locationNearest