Understanding your forecast
Quality, confidence and conditions describe different things.
Breaking surf versus offshore waves
Estimated breaking surf is our forecasting engine’s beach-level calculation. Offshore significant wave height describes the sea state at a model grid point. Neither promises the height of every individual wave or set.
The /100 rating
We display our forecasting engine’s existing 0–10 score multiplied by ten. Wave size, period, wind, tide and chop contribute where recorded. Tap the score for the saved breakdown. Changing units changes the display, not the prediction.
Your surf profile
The optional first-visit setup records your experience and, if you choose one, a maximum estimated breaking-surf height. Set or change it in Settings. The experience label does not assign a limit or change the quality score. The size comparison uses your chosen limit only; it cannot assess personal suitability or local hazards. Missing values remain unassessed, and delayed forecasts are labelled.
Weather icons
Hourly weather symbols use a saved WMO weather code. We prefer Met Office UKV 2 km data through Open-Meteo, then ECMWF IFS and DWD ICON Europe where the preferred model has no valid value. The selected hour names the icon source. UKV coverage and forecast length are limited; later days may use a fallback. Open-Meteo derives UKMO weather codes from Met Office model variables; these are not the Met Office’s own issued significant-weather symbols. This open-data feed can also lag the latest model run.
Day icons show the most common weather category in the saved daylight hours, not a promise for every hour. Where daylight weather codes include thunder, a thunder marker is retained even if another category dominates. Hover or focus a day card for sample coverage. Missing weather codes show unavailable; rainfall amounts are never used to invent a thunder or sunshine symbol. Temperature and rainfall fields retain the existing model blend. Weather icons do not alter surf quality scores.
Confidence is separate
Confidence and model agreement help you judge the supporting evidence. A high quality score with low confidence deserves more checking. Confidence is not a calibrated percentage chance that conditions will occur.
Buoys measure their own location
A reading offshore or along the coast helps validate the forecast, but is not a direct measurement at your beach. Check its distance, timestamp and whether the reported period is mean or peak. A current buoy reading does not validate a future hour.
Sea level and currents
Sea level is relative to mean sea level, not a local chart datum. Modelled currents do not identify beach rip currents. These fields are unsuitable for navigation or deciding that the water is safe.
Daylight and forecast range
Nearby recommendations currently use the saved sunrise and sunset for that beach and day. Full hourly forecasts include night hours, marked with a moon. Later forecasts have greater uncertainty; missing hours remain missing.
Before you paddle out
Check the beach, weather, local advice, tides and your own ability. A good rating is not a safety assessment or an instruction to enter the water.
Enable JavaScript to explore the cached hourly forecasts, charts and nearby surf windows. The spot directory and information links remain available below the forecast.