WindWatch

Live · 7-day forecast · 26 NZ regions · free

Live wind in NZ,
at a glance.

Check current wind speed, gusts and direction from 480+ New Zealand weather stations. See whether the wind is building, dropping or changing direction, then look ahead with a 7-day wind forecast.

Read your region on a colour-coded board or a live wind map, with tide times on the coast and alerts when the wind changes. Free, no sign-up, and it holds the last reading if your signal drops.

Open your region See what it does No account needed
Pick your patch

Live wind conditions by region

Ready-made boards for 26 regions, from the Cape to the Bluff. Open your region pre-populated with the staples, then customise the stations you want from the menu.

Northland →Cape Reinga, Cape Karikari, Kaitaia, Hokianga, Kaikohe and Opouteke. Bay of Islands →Kaeo, Purerua, Kerikeri, Okahu Island, Whananaki, Tutukaka and Marsden Point. Auckland & Hauraki Gulf →Rangitoto, Whangaparāoa, Tiritiri Matangi, Channel Island, Tāmaki Strait and Te Kouma. Coromandel →Channel Island, Great Mercury, Waikawau Bay, Te Kouma, Waihī Beach. Manukau / Kaipara →Puoto, Kaipara Harbour, Muriwai, Helensville, Manukau Head and Mangere Bridge. Raglan / Kāwhia →Muriwai, Manukau, Kariotahi, Pukeotahinga, Wainamu, Raglan and Taharoa. Tauranga / Waihī →Slipper Island, Golden Valley, Waihī, Tauranga A Beacon, Minden and TECT Park. Whakatāne / Hicks Bay →Tauranga, Rotoehu, Kawerau, Whakatāne, Ōpōtiki, Waihau Bay and Hicks Bay. Rotorua / Taupō →TECT Park, Rotorua, Kawerau, Galatea, Taupō and Tongariro. Gisborne East Coast →Tolaga Bay, Pouawa, Gisborne, Hicks Bay, Wharerata, Māhia and Cape Kidnappers. Hawke's Bay →Napier, Cape Kidnappers, Te Mata Peak, Māhia and more. Tongariro & Ruapehu →Tongariro, Desert Road, National Park, Waiouru and more. Taranaki & Whanganui →New Plymouth, Ōpunake, Waimarino and Whanganui. Kāpiti & Manawatū →Whanganui, Levin, Ōtaki, Paraparaumu, Kāpiti and Paekākāriki. Wairarapa →Castlepoint, Cape Palliser, Cape Turnagain, Porangahau and more. Wellington Harbour →Mt Kaukau, Wellington Airport, Seaview, Crane B and more. Wellington & Cook Strait →Brothers Island, Cape Campbell, Stephens Island, Baring Head and more. Tasman & Golden Bay →Farewell Spit, Whanganui Inlet, Tākaka, Mārahau and Nelson. Marlborough Sounds →Stephens Island, Kenepuru, Picton, Blenheim, Cape Campbell and Brothers Island. West Coast →Westport, Hokitika, Franz Josef, Haast and Milford Sound. Canterbury & Kaikōura →Kaikōura, Pegasus Bay, Banks Peninsula, Timaru and North Mole. Christchurch →Lyttelton, Godley Head, New Brighton and Naval Point. Otago →Oamaru, Moeraki, Taiaroa Head, Otago Harbour and Taieri Mouth. Queenstown & Wakatipu →Lake Wakatipu, Skyline Gondola, Walter Peak, Queenstown Golf Course, Jardines and Kingston. Fiordland →Haast, Milford Sound, Secretary Island, Manapouri and Puysegur. Southland →Nugget Point, Foveaux Strait, Riverton, Stewart Island and Ruapuke.
One app for the wind

Live wind, wind map and forecast in one place

Every regional board works on your phone, tablet or a screen at the nav station, and loads fast on a weak signal.

Live wind speed and gusts

Up to eight stations per board, each a big tile coloured by wind strength, with the average, the gust and a two-hour wind trend so you can see if it is building or easing. Switch between knots and km/h.

Live wind map of NZ

Switch any board to Map or Split view to see each station's wind speed and direction where it sits on the coast. Turn on Nearby to browse every other station and add it to your board from the wind map.

7-day wind forecast

Tap Forecast to slide your board through the next seven days of model wind: speed, gusts and direction, hour by hour for three days and every three hours after that, with a confidence marker on each step.

Wind alerts and notifications

Get an alarm, a flashing tile or a phone notification when the wind rises past your number or swings by a set angle. How wind alerts work.

Tide times

Coastal boards show official LINZ tide predictions, with high and low water and where the tide is now. Pick the tide point nearest your stations.

Wind direction arrows New

Direction arrows point downwind by default. Sailors can switch to an upwind, Windex-style vane that points into the wind, just like the one at the masthead. A 30-minute direction trail shows how the wind has shifted.

Watch for a change

Custom wind speed and direction alerts

Keep an eye on the stations that matter to you, with alerts for an individual station or the stations on your board.

Set your own wind threshold

Create an alert when wind speed goes above your chosen value, or when wind direction changes by a set number of degrees within a time window. Choose visual or audible board alerts and, on supported phones and browsers, turn on background notifications so the alert reaches you even when WindWatch is closed.

Choose a region to set alerts

See what triggered the alert

Open a regional board and select the bell to configure alerts. When a station alerts, select ACK on its tile to acknowledge it and see a short explanation of the wind change in that same tile.

WindWatch alerts follow live station observations, never the forecast. They are not official severe weather warnings; background delivery depends on notification permission, your device and connectivity.

Before you head out

Check local wind for sailing, kitesurfing and boating

Compare exposed and sheltered stations near your destination rather than relying on a single reading. Start with Auckland and Hauraki Gulf wind, Wellington Harbour wind, Hawke’s Bay and Napier wind, or Christchurch and Lyttelton wind. Coastal boards also show tide information where available.

How do I read wind speed and direction?

Choose knots or km/h in the station menu: 10 knots is about 18.5 km/h. Compare the wind speed with the gust reading to see how variable conditions are. Direction labels show where the wind comes from — a NW wind comes from the northwest — while the arrow points downwind.

Can the wind arrows point upwind like a Windex?

Yes. Open the station menu and switch the arrows to upwind. Every arrow on the board and the wind map becomes a Windex-style vane pointing into the wind, the way you read it at the top of the mast. The two arrow styles look different, so you can always tell which mode you are in.

Are these live observations or a wind forecast?

Both, kept clearly apart. The board opens on Live: the latest station observations, with a two-hour graph of recent wind history. Tap Forecast to see model wind for up to seven days ahead; forecast tiles are labelled, and the further out you look, the less certain it gets. Check the reading age on live tiles: station update intervals vary, and an offline board keeps its last available readings.

Is there a live wind map of New Zealand?

Yes. Every regional board has a Map view showing your stations' wind speed and direction on the coastline, and a Split view with the board and map side by side. Turn on Nearby to see the other stations around you.

Can I choose my own wind stations?

Yes. Open the station menu on any regional board to search for stations or pick them on the wind map. Zoom in to distinguish nearby stations, customise your board around the places you use, and give it your own name.

Does WindWatch show tide times?

Coastal boards show LINZ tide predictions for a nearby port or tide point, including high and low water times and the tide right now. Choose a different tide point from the station menu or the wind map.

Is WindWatch free?

Yes. You can use the regional boards and configure alerts without an account. Add WindWatch to your home screen for quick access on your phone.

Why WindWatch

Wind you can read in a second.

WindWatch turns live wind into a board you read in a second. Each spot gets a big colour-coded tile, so one look tells you the current wind situation in your region. Behind every tile, a two-hour trend line shows whether the wind is building or dropping, and a direction trail shows how it has swung over the last half hour. Tap a tile to replay that shift, and choose whether the arrows point downwind or upwind like a Windex.

Tiles sit in their real geographic positions, so the board matches the coast in front of you, and the live wind map puts every station on the coastline. Slide into the 7-day wind forecast to plan ahead. On the coast, a tide bar shows where the tide is right now. It loads fast on a weak signal and holds the last reading if you lose reception, so you're not left staring at a blank screen off the coast. Add it to your home screen and it opens like an app.

26regions
480+stations
Livewind, gust & direction
7-daywind forecast
Offlinekeeps your last reading
Rate & review

Leave a review

Your rating
Not a review? Send other feedback instead

Please don't send safety-critical reports here — always use official marine weather and safety channels. WindWatch is not for navigation or safety-critical decisions.