The Cutting Surf Break

Lat Long: 38.41° S 142.52° E

The Cutting Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Issued: 9 pm 15 Jul 2026 (local time)

Forecast update in  hr  min

Today's The Cutting sea temperature is
14.5° C
0.5° 

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


The Cutting surf forecast from 15 Jul 2026:

  • Best quality surf: Thursday 16 Jul, 4AM (local time) - 11ft (3.5m), 15s period, SW swell with cross-shore winds.
  • Most powerful swell: Thursday 16 Jul, 1PM (local time) - 13ft (4.0m), 15s period, SW swell with 6,375 kJ wave energy.
  • Next surfable swell (1★+): Thursday 16 Jul, 4AM (local time) - 11ft (3.5m), 15s period with SW swell.

Best Forecast Surf Conditions for The Cutting this week:

The surf forecast for The Cutting over the next 16 days: The first swell (rated 1 star or higher) is forecast to arrive on Thursday (Jul 16) at 4AM. The primary swell is predicted to be 3.5m and 15s period with a secondary swell of 0.2m and 12s. The wind is predicted to be cross-shore as the swell arrives.

The most powerful waves expected at The Cutting in the next 16 days are 4.0m 15s and forecast to arrive on Thursday (Jul 16) at 1PM. 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 4s period and expected on Thursday (Jul 23) at 1AM.

Wave TypeTime (AEST) & Date Wave Height & Period
Next good surf (1 star+) 4AM (Thu 16th Jul)11ft (3.5m) 15s
Best Surf 4AM (Thu 16th Jul)11ft (3.5m) 15s
Most Powerful 1PM (Thu 16th Jul)13ft (4.0m) 15s

Table - best surf conditions forecast for The Cutting over the next 16 days.


The Lowdown

Alright, Rusty here. Let’s get into this one.

We’re looking at a single break, The Cutting, for the next 16 days. Right out of the gate, we’ve got a monster. The swell is huge – a solid 13ft to 15ft from the SW with a 15-second period. The combined energy numbers are off the charts (6960 to 5145), meaning there’s a ton of power in the water. The word is that this swell is predicted to be too big for the break. The wind is light, but it doesn’t matter. This is a spot exposed to the south, and for Thursday 16th and Friday 17th July, it’s a no-go unless you’re a big-wave charger. This is straight-up expert territory.

Saturday 18th July is where it all changes for the better. The swell drops to a much more manageable 8ft from the SW, with a 14-second period. The combined energy (2258) still screams quality. More importantly, we get a light offshore breeze from the NNW in the morning and a light cross-offshore from the WNW in the afternoon. The water will be clean. This is the standout window. This is excellent, powerful surf for those who know what they’re doing.

Sunday 19th July starts clean with a 5ft swell from the WSW and a light offshore wind. It stays in that zone through the afternoon at about 5ft. The rest of that week, from Monday 20th through Thursday 23rd July, the swell stays in a good range of 5ft to 8ft, mainly from the SW and WSW. The wind stays favorable – light to moderate offshore or cross-offshore – which means the face of the wave will be smooth. The period stays between 12 and 16 seconds, so the waves will have real push. Monday and Tuesday mornings are looking particularly stand-out for a clean, powerful session.

Things go pear-shaped on Friday 24th July. We get another big 12ft SW swell, but this time the onshore wind from the SW hits 18 mph, and conditions are described as poor. The combined energy (5020 to 5270) is still huge but it’s a messy, blown-out mess. Saturday 25th July is the same story: big 10ft to 12ft swells, but with strong onshore and cross-onshore winds. Stay home.

Sunday 26th July through Tuesday 28th July is a tough stretch. The swell is still huge – 10ft to 15ft – with very high energy numbers (9046 to 3459). While the wind does turn offshore on Monday and Tuesday, the swell is still listed as too big for the break. It’s clean but heavy. Expert-only stuff.

Wednesday 29th July offers a last-gasp opportunity. The morning has a clean 8ft SW swell with a cross-offshore wind. The big story is the afternoon: a 12ft W swell goes glassy calm. Zero wind. If you have the skills and the board for that size, that afternoon is a once-in-a-forecast special. The energy is massive (5409), but it’s perfect.

Thursday 30th July turns ugly again with a cross-onshore wind and a 10ft SW swell. The outlook ends on Friday 31st July with a 7ft WSW swell and a moderate cross-offshore wind. It’s clean, but the call is marginal.

So, the pick of the lot is Saturday 18th July morning. That 8ft SW swell with a 14-second period and a light offshore breeze is the best surf you're going to see in this window. The water temperature is about average for this time of year. This break can get crowded when it’s good, and it will be good, so expect some company. For the second week, the only other real call is Wednesday 29th July afternoon for the absolute big-wave specialists.

That’s the story.

- Rusty

Short Range Forecast

Mostly dry. Very mild (max 14°C on Sat afternoon, min 9°C on Fri morning). Wind will be generally light.

Days 5-7 Weather Summary

Mostly dry. Very mild (max 15°C on Tue afternoon, min 10°C on Sun night). Wind will be generally light.

Thursday
16
Friday
17
Saturday
18
Sunday
19
Monday
20
Tuesday
21
Wed
22
Night
AM
PM
Night
AM
PM
Night
AM
PM
Night
AM
PM
Night
AM
PM
Night
AM
PM
Night
AM
PM
Rating
(10 max)
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
4
4
4
4
3
4
4
4
3
4
4
4
4
3
Swell
Height Map
Height Map
Height Map
Height Map
Height Map
Height Map
Height Map
Height Map
Height Map
Wave
Height (m)
Direction
Period (s)
3.5
SW
15
4
SW
15
3.5
SW
15
3
SW
15
3
SW
16
3
SW
16
3
SW
14
2.4
SW
14
2.2
SW
13
1.8
WSW
13
1.5
WSW
13
1.3
WSW
12
1
SW
17
1.7
WSW
16
1.6
WSW
15
1.6
WSW
14
2
WSW
14
2.3
SW
13
2
WSW
12
1.8
SW
12
1.3
SW
12
Wave Graph
Metric surfscale
Energy kJ
5488
6206
5732
4343
5145
4688
3154
2258
1599
1100
679
517
542
1517
1087
969
1598
1750
1216
918
455
Wind (km/h)
15
W
10
WSW
10
WSW
10
N
10
NNW
10
WNW
10
NNW
15
NNW
5
WNW
15
NNE
15
N
10
NNW
15
N
25
NNW
20
NNW
15
NNW
15
NNW
10
NW
10
NNW
10
NW
10
WNW
Wind State
cross
cross
cross
off
off
cross-off
cross-off
off
cross-off
off
off
off
off
off
off
off
off
cross-off
off
cross-off
cross-off
High Tide
2:11PM0.98m
11:46PM0.51m
2:25PM0.94m
1:05AM0.58m
2:38PM0.89m
2:04AM0.64m
2:50PM0.85m
2:58AM0.67m
3:02PM0.81m
3:51AM0.68m
3:10PM0.78m
4:45AM0.67m
3:13PM0.75m
Low Tide
5:55AM0.03m
9:20PM0.49m
6:46AM0.04m
8:53PM0.44m
7:29AM0.09m
8:57PM0.35m
8:08AM0.17m
9:14PM0.27m
8:43AM0.27m
9:37PM0.19m
9:14AM0.38m
10:02PM0.15m
9:39AM0.48m
cloud
cloud
cloud
clear
clear
part cloud
part cloud
clear
clear
cloud
cloud
cloud
cloud
cloud
cloud
cloud
cloud
part cloud
rain showers
part cloud
part cloud
<span class="translation_missing" title="translation missing: en.weather_tables.sunrise">Sunrise</span>
7:43
7:43
7:41
7:41
7:41
7:41
7:39
<span class="translation_missing" title="translation missing: en.weather_tables.sunset">Sunset</span>
5:28
5:28
5:29
5:30
5:30
5:30
5:31
 mm
1
Temp °C
13
13
13
13
11
13
12
12
14
12
13
14
13
13
13
13
14
15
13
12
13
Feels °C
10
11
11
12
8
11
10
10
12
10
10
12
10
8
9
9
10
12
11
10
11
  • 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 The Cutting:

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 The Cutting 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 The Cutting Surf forecast

The above surf forecast table for The Cutting provides essential information for determining whether the surfing conditions will be good over the next 16 days. A general guide to surfing at The Cutting can be found by selecting the local surf guide option on the grey menu. Our The Cutting 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 (The Cutting) 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 The Cutting 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 Far West of Victoria? If you are looking for accommodation near The Cutting, camping, hotels and holiday cottages in Far West of Victoria, consider staying in Warrnambool which is 4 km (2 miles) away. Alternatively, find information about places to stay and car hire in Portland which is 80 km (50 miles) away

Nearest locationNearest