Florida Keys
Key West surf report
1.3ft
Small — 1.3 ft.
Thursday, August 13 · local time at the spot
Right now
Swell
1.3 ft
5 s · ESE107°
Wind
This buoy carries no anemometer, so there is no wind reading here.
Water temperature
87.4°F
30.8 °C
Daylight
7:00 AM
sunrise · sunset 8:02 PM
Tide
Currently rising — next high at 10:07 AM (2.438 ft)
| Time | Tide | Height |
|---|---|---|
| 3:32 AM | low | 0.321 ft |
| 10:07 AM | high | 2.438 ft |
| 4:43 PM | low | 0.068 ft |
| 10:53 PM | high | 1.693 ft |
Tide values are predictions. Wind, pressure and surge move the real water level, sometimes by a lot — see the disclaimer.
Forecast
Model output, not a measurement — NOAA WaveWatch III
| Day | Height | Period | Direction |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wed | 1.1 ft | 4.2 s | WNW 300° |
| Thu | 1.2 ft | 3.8 s | WNW 301° |
| Fri | 1.8 ft | 4.3 s | WNW 291° |
| Sat | 2.8 ft | 4.8 s | WNW 296° |
| Sun | 3.1 ft | 5.5 s | WNW 293° |
| Mon | 1.6 ft | 4.4 s | WNW 284° |
A model computes; it does not observe. Accuracy drops with range, and nearshore transformation is where it is weakest.
What to wear
At 87.4 °F (30.8 °C), most people at Key West are comfortable in a boardshorts or a swimsuit.
No suit needed
for 75 °F and warmer
Warm enough to surf with nothing on. A long session in the sun still costs you more heat than it feels like.
The temperature is measured. The suit recommendation is not — it follows the manufacturers' convention, which varies by a degree or two between brands, and it knows nothing about wind, session length or how you personally run. The full chart and what it leaves out.
Surf cam
No cam here yet. We operate no cameras of our own and embed only where the operator allows it — the rule is on the copyright page. Cam operators who would like a link are welcome to write.
The break
- Type
- Small, reef-sheltered breaks — surfing is rare here
- Best swell
- S groundswell, mostly wind-driven chop
- Best wind
- Offshore N
- Tide
- Mid tide
- Level
- Beginner
Hazards
- Coral reef close to shore
- Boat traffic
- Almost never has surfable waves — this page is mainly a water-temperature reference
Local knowledge, not a measurement. Conditions decide the day — check the National Weather Service for warnings and the lifeguards for whether to go in.
Every source behind this page
- Solunar computed · read 5:16 AM
- NOAA WaveWatch III 42095 model cycle 20260813 0z · model · read 5:16 AM
- NDBC 42095 buoy wave height · read 4:30 AM
- NOAA CO-OPS 8724557 tide predictions · read 5:16 AM
All of it is public NOAA and National Weather Service data, free for anyone to use. What we add is the pairing of this spot with these stations — see the terms.
Nearby spots
- Siesta Key 1.3 ft · 311 km
- Clearwater Beach 1.3 ft · 395 km
- Cocoa Beach 1 ft · 435 km
- Manhattan Beach 2.6 ft · 3681 km
- Ocean Beach 5.2 ft · 4106 km
Surf and beach conditions change faster than this page does, and nobody watches it in real time. When the water looks different from the numbers, trust the water and the lifeguards.