Surf Forecasts:
Surf City Pier surf forecast from 16 Aug 2026:
- Best quality surf: Monday 17 Aug, 11PM (local time) - 1.5ft (0.4m), 8s period, SE swell with cross-offshore winds.
- Most powerful swell: Tuesday 18 Aug, 2PM (local time) - 2ft (0.6m), 11s period, SE swell with 77 kJ wave energy.
- Next surfable swell (1★+): Monday 17 Aug, 11PM (local time) - 1.5ft (0.4m), 8s period with SE swell.
Best Forecast Surf Conditions for Surf City Pier this week:
The surf forecast for Surf City Pier over the next 16 days: The first swell (rated 1 star or higher) is forecast to arrive on Monday (Aug 17) at 11PM. The primary swell is predicted to be 0.4m and 8s period with a secondary swell of 0.2m and 6s. Another secondary swell of 0.7m and 4s is also forecast. The wind is predicted to be cross-offshore as the swell arrives.
The most powerful waves expected at Surf City Pier in the next 16 days are 0.6m 11s and forecast to arrive on Tuesday (Aug 18) at 2PM. Winds are predicted to be onshore at the time the swell arrives. The largest open ocean swell (not directed at the beach) is 0.2m 2s period and expected on Saturday (Aug 22) at 5AM.
| Wave Type | Time (EDT) & Date | Wave Height & Period |
|---|---|---|
| Next good surf (1 star+) | 11PM (Mon 17th Aug) | 1.5ft (0.4m) 8s |
| Best Surf | 11PM (Mon 17th Aug) | 1.5ft (0.4m) 8s |
| Most Powerful | 2PM (Tue 18th Aug) | 2ft (0.6m) 11s |
Table - best surf conditions forecast for Surf City Pier over the next 16 days.
The Lowdown
G’day, Rusty here. Alright, let’s be straight up. The 16-day window is looking pretty flat out there. Truth is, for a good chunk of this period, the surf is barely a ripple. We’ve got a long run of tiny, poor-quality waves and most of it is not worth paddling out for. We’re talking about Surf City Pier, a sandbar break that can be fun when it’s on, but it’s just not happening.
Right now, it’s a quiet start. Sunday the 16th and Monday the 17th are total write-offs with sloppy, weak 1ft SE windswell and onshore breezes. Not a chance.
Tuesday morning the 18th gives us a little flicker of hope. The swell bumps up to 1.5ft from the SE with a long 12-second period, and it is *glassy*. Dead calm wind. The combined wave energy is weak at 82, so the waves will be tiny, clean, and soft. It’s a beginner session, but if you just want to get wet, it’s the best we’ll see for a while.
From there it’s another long, flat run. Wednesday 19th through to Wednesday 26th August is almost all poor surf with ankle-biters, onshore winds, and weak energy. A lot of “light cross-onshore” or choppy conditions. There’s a glimmer on Wednesday morning the 26th with a clean 1.5ft SE swell and a light offshore breeze (cross-off), but it’s still tiny.
Now, here’s the standout. Thursday morning the 27th of August. The model lights up. We’ve got 2.5ft of SE swell running on a 13-second period, and the energy jumps to a moderate 213. The wind is light W, giving us a cross-off, clean surface. The description says “expect good surf conditions” and that’s a rare call in this forecast. The waves will have some shape, a bit of push, and be super clean. It won’t be huge, but for Surf City Pier, this is the one to aim for. Get on it early because the afternoon gets sloppy again with a cross-onshore.
The rest? Friday 28th through to Monday 31st August is back to cruddy, onshore, windy junk with tiny swell. A clean morning on the 31st with a light offshore and 1.5ft, but zero energy.
Honestly, if it’s not the 18th for a glassy knee-high knee-buster, or the 27th for a clean waist-high runner, there’s nothing else. The water temp is about average for the time of year, so no surprises there.
Keep an eye on the 27th. That’s the one.
Short Range ForecastModerate rain (total 10mm), heaviest on Sat night. Warm (max 34°C on Mon afternoon, min 26°C on Sat night). Wind will be generally light. | Days 5-7 Weather SummaryHeavy rain (total 27mm), heaviest during Tue night. Warm (max 32°C on Thu afternoon, min 24°C on Tue night). Wind will be generally light. | ||||||||||||||||||
Sunday 16 | Monday 17 | Tuesday 18 | Wednesday 19 | Thursday 20 | Friday 21 | ||||||||||||||
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 8 | SE 8 | SE 8 | SE 8 | SE 8 | SE 8 | SSW 5 | SE 12 | SE 11 | SE 10 | SE 9 | ESE 9 | SE 9 | SE 8 | SE 8 | SE 8 | S 5 | S 5 | S 5 |
Wave Graph  | |||||||||||||||||||
 kJ | 10 | 11 | 24 | 20 | 20 | 21 | 23 | 68 | 75 | 48 | 42 | 54 | 26 | 17 | 17 | 19 | 15 | 20 | 29 |
Wind (km/h) | |||||||||||||||||||
Wind State on-shore cross-onshore cross-shore cross-offshore off-shore glassy | glassy | cross-on | on | cross-on | cross | cross-on | cross | glassy | on | cross-off | glassy | on | cross | glassy | cross-on | cross-off | on | cross-on | cross-off |
High Tide | 10:20PM1.51m | 10:49AM1.50m | 11:04PM1.37m | 11:38AM1.47m | 11:49PM1.23m | 12:28PM1.42m | 00:36AM1.11m | 1:22PM1.38m | 1:28AM1.01m | 2:20PM1.35m | 2:27AM0.95m | 3:21PM1.34m | 3:30AM0.93m | ||||||
Low Tide | 4:29AM-0.04m | 4:57PM0.06m | 5:10AM0.02m | 5:49PM0.16m | 5:52AM0.10m | 6:46PM0.26m | 6:36AM0.17m | 7:47PM0.34m | 7:25AM0.23m | 8:53PM0.38m | 8:20AM0.27m | 9:58PM0.39m | |||||||
 |  |  | | |  | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
 | — | 6:31 | — | — | 6:31 | — | — | 6:31 | — | — | 6:33 | — | — | 6:33 | — | — | 6:35 | — | — |
 | 7:58 | — | 7:57 | — | — | 7:54 | — | — | 7:53 | — | — | 7:52 | — | — | 7:52 | — | — | 7:51 | — |
mm | 5 | — | 2 | 1 | — | — | 2 | — | — | 22 | — | — | 1 | — | — | 4 | — | — | 7 |
Temp °C | 29 | 29 | 28 | 28 | 32 | 34 | 30 | 31 | 33 | 29 | 29 | 30 | 29 | 31 | 32 | 30 | 29 | 30 | 29 |
Feels °C | 32 | 32 | 31 | 32 | 35 | 36 | 31 | 37 | 37 | 34 | 32 | 32 | 34 | 36 | 34 | 34 | 32 | 33 | 32 |
Swell 1 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | S 5 | S 5 | SE 8 | SE 8 | SE 8 | SE 8 | SE 8 | SE 12 | SE 11 | SE 10 | SE 9 | ESE 9 | SE 9 | SE 8 | SE 8 | SE 8 | SE 8 | SE 8 | S 5 |
| kJ | 8 | 4 | 24 | 20 | 20 | 21 | 21 | 68 | 75 | 48 | 42 | 54 | 26 | 17 | 17 | 17 | 10 | 11 | 18 |
Swell 2 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | SE 8 | SE 8 | S 4 | SE 4 | S 4 | E 6 | E 6 | S 5 | E 6 | ENE 3 | SSW 5 | SSW 5 | E 4 | S 4 | E 4 | E 6 | E 6 | SE 15 | SE 9 |
| kJ | 10 | 11 | 4 | 5 | 5 | 3 | 3 | 11 | 1 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 6 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 8 | 22 |
Swell 3 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | E 10 | — | — | E 5 | E 5 | — | SE 10 | E 6 | E 6 | S 4 | E 5 | E 5 | SSW 4 | E 4 | E 6 | — | E 15 | E 6 | SE 14 |
| kJ | 2 | — | — | 4 | 2 | — | 4 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 1 | — | 4 | 1 | 8 |
Wind waves Height (m) Direction Period (s) | ENE 3 | E 4 | E 4 | SSW 4 | SW 4 | S 4 | SSW 5 | — | S 5 | NE 3 | E 3 | E 3 | — | S 4 | SSW 4 | SSW 4 | S 5 | S 5 | S 5 |
| kJ | 3 | 7 | 7 | 6 | 4 | 10 | 23 | — | 7 | 3 | 2 | 2 | — | 10 | 11 | 19 | 15 | 20 | 29 |
Nearest Offshore or Glassy | |||||||||||||||||||
Distance (km) | 862 | 629 | 2593 | 299 | 436 | 245 | 33 | 0 | 583 | 0 | 0 | 878 | 410 | 245 | 532 | 59 | 80 | 629 | 0 |
Best forecast wave conditions in North Carolina | |||||||||||||||||||
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 Surf City Pier 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 Surf City Pier Surf forecast
The above surf forecast table for Surf City Pier provides essential information for determining whether the surfing conditions will be good over the next 16 days. A general guide to surfing at Surf City Pier can be found by selecting the local surf guide option on the grey menu. Our Surf City Pier 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 (Surf City Pier) 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 Surf City Pier 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.
Surf City Pier is 37 km (23 miles) from the city of Wilmington. If you plan a vacation in North Carolina, look for hotels and other accommodation in Wilmington. Wilmington has rooms for a wide range of budgets as well as car hire and transport links.
Nearest