Surf Forecasts:
Thirroul surf forecast from 20 Aug 2026:
- Best quality surf: Monday 24 Aug, 1AM (local time) - 2.5ft (0.8m), 10s period, S swell with cross-offshore winds.
- Most powerful swell: Sunday 23 Aug, 10PM (local time) - 3ft (0.9m), 10s period, S swell with 158 kJ wave energy.
- Next surfable swell (1★+): Thursday 20 Aug, 7PM (local time) - 4ft (1.2m), 6s period with NE swell.
Best Forecast Surf Conditions for Thirroul this week:
The surf forecast for Thirroul over the next 16 days: The first swell (rated 1 star or higher) is forecast to arrive on Thursday (Aug 20) at 7PM. The primary swell is predicted to be 1.2m and 6s period with a secondary swell of 0.8m and 6s. Another secondary swell of 0.4m and 6s is also forecast. The wind is predicted to be glassy as the swell arrives.
The most powerful waves expected at Thirroul in the next 16 days are 0.9m 10s and forecast to arrive on Sunday (Aug 23) at 10PM. Winds are predicted to be cross-offshore at the time the swell arrives. The largest open ocean swell (not directed at the beach) is 0.4m 3s period and expected on Saturday (Aug 22) at 1AM.
| Wave Type | Time (AEST) & Date | Wave Height & Period |
|---|---|---|
| Next good surf (1 star+) | 7PM (Thu 20th Aug) | 4ft (1.2m) 6s |
| Best Surf | 1AM (Mon 24th Aug) | 2.5ft (0.8m) 10s |
| Most Powerful | 10PM (Sun 23rd Aug) | 3ft (0.9m) 10s |
Table - best surf conditions forecast for Thirroul over the next 16 days.
The Lowdown
Alright, let’s talk about what we’ve got on offer at Thirroul over the next couple of weeks. The water temp is sitting at a nice 64°, which is pretty much average for this time of year, so no shock to the system there.
The next few days are a bit of a mixed bag, nothing to really get excited about. The first real chance to wet a line comes Thursday the 20th in the morning. It’s small – around 2ft from the ESE – with a light cross-off breeze, so it’ll be clean, but pretty weak with only 68 units of energy. It’s surfable if you’re desperate, but it's ordinary.
Friday the 21st looks a little better. Morning brings a clean 3ft wave with a light offshore wind from the west. Then the afternoon turns glassy, almost flat at 3ft but with that dead-calm wind it’ll be pretty. Still, the energy is low.
Saturday the 22nd and Sunday the 23rd are tiny and basically not worth the walk. The weekend is a write-off for any real surf.
The next real hope pops up on the morning of Saturday the 29th of August. We’ve got a solid 7ft pulse from the NE, but the period is short at 7 seconds, so it’ll be crumbly and a bit messy. The cross-off wind keeps it looking ok, and the energy jumps right up to 649 units, which is significant. This swell is one of the standouts for the whole run, but that short period means it won’t have much shape – it's more of a messy peak, and at 7ft it's getting into the territory where it's not for beginners. Keep an eye on it.
Then into the first days of September, things start to look promising. Sunday the 30th of August morning comes through with a clean 4ft from the ENE, light offshore wind from the WNW, and good energy at 232. This is clean and fun, a proper morning session. The standout, though, looks like the morning of Thursday the 3rd of September. That session brings a nice 5ft ENE groundswell with a period of 11 seconds – that’s proper groundswell energy. It’s glassy, light airs from the NW, and the energy is a strong 454. This could be the pick of the bunch: solid, clean, and with enough period to give you some good shape on the bank. It’s a great day for intermediate to advanced surfers.
Overall, the first week is a bit of a slow grind with small, inconsistent waves. The real standout is that Thursday the 3rd morning, it’s got the best combo of size, wind, and energy across the whole outlook. The Saturday the 29th pulse is a close second, but that short period is a caveat.
Stay keen, it’s gonna come good.
Rusty.
Short Range ForecastMostly dry. Warm (max 22°C on Fri morning, min 11°C on Sat night). Wind will be generally light. | Days 4-6 Weather SummaryHeavy rain (total 28mm), heaviest during Tue afternoon. Warm (max 22°C on Mon morning, min 11°C on Tue afternoon). Winds increasing (calm on Sun morning, fresh winds from the SSW by Tue night). | ||||||||||||||||||||
Thursday 20 | Friday 21 | Saturday 22 | Sunday 23 | Monday 24 | Tuesday 25 | Wednesday 26 | |||||||||||||||
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) | ENE 6 | NE 6 | ENE 6 | ENE 7 | NE 6 | NE 6 | S 9 | S 8 | S 11 | SSE 8 | S 12 | S 10 | S 9 | S 10 | S 9 | S 9 | S 9 | ENE 9 | SSE 5 | SSE 6 | ENE 8 |
Wave Graph  | |||||||||||||||||||||
 kJ | 37 | 75 | 64 | 56 | 66 | 18 | 6 | 5 | 20 | 104 | 103 | 117 | 87 | 94 | 64 | 57 | 37 | 71 | 72 | 89 | 43 |
Wind (km/h) | |||||||||||||||||||||
Wind State on-shore cross-onshore cross-shore cross-offshore off-shore glassy | cross-off | cross | off | off | glassy | cross-off | cross-off | on | cross-off | glassy | cross-on | cross-off | cross-off | cross | cross-off | glassy | cross | cross | cross | cross | cross |
High Tide | 1:51PM1.26m | 2:26AM0.86m | 2:55PM1.25m | 3:47AM0.84m | 4:00PM1.27m | 4:57AM0.87m | 4:57PM1.32m | 5:49AM0.92m | 5:45PM1.38m | 6:31AM0.99m | 6:26PM1.45m | 7:08AM1.06m | 7:04PM1.50m | ||||||||
Low Tide | 8:49PM0.50m | 7:53AM0.53m | 10:06PM0.48m | 9:01AM0.55m | 11:09PM0.43m | 10:09AM0.54m | 11:58PM0.37m | 11:07AM0.49m | 00:37AM0.30m | 11:56AM0.43m | 1:12AM0.23m | 12:39PM0.37m | 1:44AM0.17m | ||||||||
 |  |  | | |  |  | | | | | | | |  |  |  |  | | | | |
 | 6:31 | — | — | 6:30 | — | — | 6:28 | — | — | 6:26 | — | — | 6:26 | — | — | 6:24 | — | — | 6:22 | — | — |
 | — | 5:28 | — | — | 5:29 | — | — | 5:30 | — | — | 5:30 | — | — | 5:30 | — | — | 5:31 | — | — | 5:32 | — |
mm | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 1 | 5 | 11 | 11 | 2 | — | — |
Temp °C | 21 | 19 | 16 | 22 | 21 | 16 | 19 | 18 | 13 | 16 | 17 | 15 | 22 | 20 | 17 | 13 | 13 | 12 | 13 | 15 | 14 |
Feels °C | 18 | 16 | 14 | 21 | 20 | 13 | 16 | 16 | 11 | 14 | 14 | 14 | 19 | 17 | 15 | 13 | 11 | 8 | 7 | 9 | 9 |
Swell 1 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | ENE 6 | ENE 6 | ENE 6 | ENE 7 | ENE 6 | NE 6 | NE 6 | S 4 | S 11 | SSE 8 | S 7 | S 10 | S 9 | S 10 | ENE 6 | S 9 | ENE 7 | ENE 9 | ENE 8 | ENE 8 | ENE 8 |
| kJ | 29 | 31 | 64 | 56 | 26 | 18 | 5 | 3 | 20 | 104 | 52 | 117 | 87 | 94 | 35 | 57 | 25 | 71 | 58 | 43 | 43 |
Swell 2 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | ESE 8 | ESE 6 | S 12 | S 11 | S 10 | S 10 | S 5 | ENE 6 | SSE 4 | NE 6 | S 12 | NE 5 | NE 6 | E 13 | S 9 | ENE 6 | S 9 | S 8 | SE 16 | SE 15 | S 5 |
| kJ | 37 | 15 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 3 | 6 | 103 | 24 | 33 | 3 | 64 | 20 | 37 | 12 | 10 | 9 | 20 |
Swell 3 Height (m) Direction Period (s) | E 11 | E 10 | — | S 11 | E 9 | S 6 | S 9 | S 8 | NE 6 | SSE 16 | — | ENE 9 | SSE 16 | E 13 | ENE 9 | NE 9 | ENE 9 | SE 16 | — | S 11 | ESE 6 |
| kJ | 2 | 7 | — | 2 | 1 | 1 | 6 | 5 | 5 | 26 | — | 8 | 26 | 3 | 8 | 22 | 32 | 10 | — | 2 | 18 |
Wind waves Height (m) Direction Period (s) | NNW 2 | NE 6 | — | — | NE 6 | WSW 3 | W 3 | — | — | — | ENE 9 | NE 5 | — | ENE 6 | SW 2 | — | S 3 | S 3 | SSE 5 | SSE 6 | — |
| kJ | 1 | 75 | — | — | 66 | 2 | 1 | — | — | — | 44 | 66 | — | 60 | 1 | — | 1 | 6 | 72 | 89 | — |
Nearest Offshore or Glassy | |||||||||||||||||||||
Distance (km) | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 157 | 338 | 468 | 37 | 0 | 94 | 0 | 0 | 51 | 0 | 0 | 11 | 245 | 209 | 140 | 11 |
Best forecast wave conditions in Illawarra | |||||||||||||||||||||
Best forecast wave conditions in Australia | |||||||||||||||||||||
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Information about the Thirroul Surf forecast
The above surf forecast table for Thirroul provides essential information for determining whether the surfing conditions will be good over the next 16 days. A general guide to surfing at Thirroul can be found by selecting the local surf guide option on the grey menu. Our Thirroul 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 (Thirroul) 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 Thirroul 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 Illawarra? If you are looking for accommodation near Thirroul, camping, hotels and holiday cottages in Illawarra, consider staying in Wollongong which is 12 km (7 miles) away. Other places in and around Illawarra where you can find information about places to rent, and car hire include Port Kembla which is 19 km (12 miles) away, Engadine, Cronulla and Caringbah.
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