Coldest sea in Australia and Oceania

1,649 coastal locations in Australia and Oceania ranked by year-round average sea temperature, coldest first. The regional average is 23.5°C. The top of the list is where the water stays cold all year. The contrast list at the bottom shows the warmest coasts for context.

Coldest location

Heard Island

Year-round average 2.7°C in Australia

Regional average

23.5°C

across all 1,649 Australia and Oceania coastal locations

Coldest month

August

21.3°C region-wide average

Australia and Oceania monthly average 21.3°C to 25.5°C

Warmest month February 25.5°C
Coldest month August 21.3°C
Annual mean 23.5°C
Months above 20°C 12 of 12

Month by month across Australia and Oceania

Sea temperatures in Australia and Oceania swing from 21.3°C in August to 25.5°C in February on average across every coast we track. That spread of 4°C hides much bigger swings at individual locations.

Want a specific month? Pick one for a dedicated ranking:

Australia and Oceania sea temperature map

Today's pin colours show the latest daily reading at every Australia and Oceania location we track. Cool blues cluster around the high-latitude coasts.

Zoom in to see individual locations. Click a pin for water temperatures. View list →

°C -2 0 1 3 5 7 9 11 13 15 17 19 21 24 27 30 35

Top 50 coldest locations in Australia and Oceania

Coastal locations across Australia and Oceania sorted by year-round average, coldest first. Honest cold-water swimming country. Click any place for its 30-day chart, monthly profile, and 10-year history.

#	Location	Country	Annual mean	Latest
1	Heard Island Australian external territory	Australia	2.7°C	3.4°C
2	Macquarie Island Tasmania	Australia	5.7°C	6.3°C
3	Campbell Island/Motu Ihupuku - Perseverance Harbour New Zealand Outlying Islands	New Zealand	8.4°C	9.0°C
4	Auckland Island - Carnley Harbour Auckland	New Zealand	9.7°C	10.2°C
5	Kaka Point	New Zealand	12.2°C	12.3°C
6	Dunedin	New Zealand	12.3°C	12.7°C
7	Portobello	New Zealand	12.3°C	12.7°C
8	Snares Islands/Tini Heke - North East Island New Zealand Outlying Islands	New Zealand	12.4°C	13.3°C
9	Green Island Otago	New Zealand	12.6°C	12.9°C
10	Stewart Island	New Zealand	12.7°C	13.2°C
11	Port Chalmers Otago	New Zealand	12.7°C	13.1°C
12	Spit Wharf Otago	New Zealand	12.7°C	13.1°C
13	Nugget Point Otago	New Zealand	12.8°C	12.9°C
14	Port Adventure Southland	New Zealand	12.9°C	13.5°C
15	Ruapuke Island Southland	New Zealand	13.0°C	13.2°C
16	Waikawa Harbour Southland	New Zealand	13.0°C	13.1°C
17	Waipapa Point Southland	New Zealand	13.1°C	13.1°C
18	Oban Southland	New Zealand	13.1°C	13.4°C
19	Invercargill	New Zealand	13.1°C	13.1°C
20	Bluff Southland	New Zealand	13.1°C	13.1°C
21	Dog Island Southland	New Zealand	13.1°C	13.1°C
22	Oamaru Otago	New Zealand	13.2°C	13.1°C
23	Riverton	New Zealand	13.2°C	13.2°C
24	New River Entrance Southland	New Zealand	13.2°C	13.2°C
25	Easy Harbour Southland	New Zealand	13.3°C	13.9°C

Show 25 more ▸

26	Small Craft Retreat Southland	New Zealand	13.3°C	13.9°C
27	Riverton/Aparima Southland	New Zealand	13.3°C	12.9°C
28	Pahia	New Zealand	13.4°C	13.4°C
29	Yankee River Southland	New Zealand	13.4°C	13.4°C
30	Kawakaputa Bay Southland	New Zealand	13.5°C	13.2°C
31	Ernest Islands Southland	New Zealand	13.5°C	14.1°C
32	Solander Island (Hautere) Southland	New Zealand	13.6°C	14.2°C
33	Timaru	New Zealand	13.6°C	12.6°C
34	Christchurch	New Zealand	13.7°C	12.9°C
35	Lyttelton	New Zealand	13.7°C	12.9°C
36	French Bay Canterbury	New Zealand	13.7°C	13.0°C
37	Tikao Bay Canterbury	New Zealand	13.7°C	13.0°C
38	Port Craig Southland	New Zealand	13.7°C	14.1°C
39	Akaroa	New Zealand	13.8°C	13.1°C
40	Sumner	New Zealand	13.8°C	13.1°C
41	Kaikoura	New Zealand	13.8°C	12.9°C
42	Waitangi Chatham Islands Territory	New Zealand	13.8°C	—
43	Owenga Chatham Islands Territory	New Zealand	13.8°C	14.3°C
44	Kaingaroa Chatham Islands Territory	New Zealand	13.8°C	14.2°C
45	Chalky Island - Sealers Bay Southland	New Zealand	14.0°C	14.3°C
46	Coal Island - Fishing Bay Southland	New Zealand	14.0°C	14.3°C
47	Jane Coves Southland	New Zealand	14.0°C	14.3°C
48	Welcombe Bay Southland	New Zealand	14.0°C	14.3°C
49	Cape Campbell Marlborough	New Zealand	14.0°C	13.3°C
50	Recherche Bay Tasmania	Australia	14.3°C	14.9°C

Coldest countries in Australia and Oceania

Country-level averages across every coastal location in each country (minimum 5 locations to be listed), coldest first.

#	Country	Annual mean	Locations
1	New Zealand	16.3°C	245
2	Australia	22.9°C	954
3	New Caledonia	25.8°C	24
4	Tonga	26.7°C	7
5	French Polynesia	27.4°C	31
6	Cook Islands	27.8°C	9
7	Vanuatu	27.9°C	17
8	Fiji	28.0°C	39
9	Republic of Kiribati	28.8°C	41
10	Republic of the Marshall Islands	28.9°C	48
11	Northern Mariana Islands	29.0°C	12
12	American Samoa	29.1°C	12
13	Guam	29.1°C	14
14	Papua New Guinea	29.3°C	71
15	Micronesia	29.3°C	63
16	Palau	29.6°C	8
17	Solomon Islands	29.8°C	31

Warmest 10 in Australia and Oceania for contrast

Same data flipped. Useful if you want to know which Australia and Oceania coasts stay warmest year-round before you commit to a cold-water swim trip.

#	Location	Country	Annual mean
1	Kimbe Bay West New Britain Province	Papua New Guinea	30.2°C
2	Talasea West New Britain Province	Papua New Guinea	30.2°C
3	Tavanatangir Harbour East New Britain Province	Papua New Guinea	30.1°C
4	Eleonora Bay West New Britain Province	Papua New Guinea	30.1°C
5	Kimbe	Papua New Guinea	30.1°C
6	Soroken Bougainville	Papua New Guinea	30.0°C
7	Ambitle Island New Ireland Province	Papua New Guinea	30.0°C
8	Anewa Bay Bougainville	Papua New Guinea	30.0°C
9	Carteret Islands	Papua New Guinea	30.0°C
10	Torokina Bougainville	Papua New Guinea	30.0°C