Thanks for visiting “All Surf Magazines”. Currently have loaded over 20,000 covers of different surf magazines and other magazines with surf related covers as of December 2022. They cover over 40 different countries and around 70 titles. Excuse me for not updating more often.

This site contains the history of surfing publications including well over 20,000 surf magazine covers, surfing books, event programs, comics and non surf related magazines with surfing related covers all in my vast collection.

History of Surfing Magazine Publications

The following is a list of surfing magazines in the years they were first produced that are in the collection or are known of. There may be magazine titles not listed here and if you know of any we would appreciate details of them.

Early references to surfing are included in quite a few books and general interest magazines from the late 1800’s through the early 1900’s like “Harpers Bazaar” in 1873, “Outside” in 1908 and “Mid-Pacific” in 1911 but none dealt specifically with surfing.

The first known surf oriented publication was from Australia titled “The Surf” and was produced on Saturday, December 1st, 1917. In all there were 20 issues of “The Surf” published every week on Saturday from December 1st, 1917 until April 13th, 1918.

This publication was in newspaper style and print and the only known copy of these are in the Mitchell Library in Sydney, Australia. The weekly columns in the paper covered all aspects of beach life including board riding around Manly, a beach side suburb of Sydney and the venue for the first “World Surfing Titles” in 1964.

From 1918 until the 1954 there are no known surfing publications other than “Ye Olde Spin Drift News”, an illustrated multi-page newsletter that Doc Ball wrote and captioned, hand mimeographed, glued on individual photographic prints to each copy, and disseminated maybe 100 copies per edition to fellow members of the Palos Verdes Surf Club from mid-1930s to November 1941 (WW2 happened) I would guess he made maybe 30-40 or so issues during that span. A lot was also recorded in various publications including the “National Geographic” and “Paradise of the Pacific” during the mid 1930’s.

In 1954 the first Makaha International Surf Championships produced a program, which is widely recognized as the first full surf publication. These continued on until 1972 and they are highly collectible.

In June of 1960 in the USA a publication titled “Surfing-Voice of the Surfing World” was published in newspaper style and print. This was a monthly edition that lasted for four months until September. Meanwhile in August of 1960 a color covered monthly came on the market titled “Reef”, which lasted for three editions and is one of the most treasured surfing magazines for any collector as a lot of people think this is the first real surfing publication as the Makaha ones were programs.

During 1960 “Surfer” produced an annual with “Surfer” continuing on until 2019 and being the collection of collections to have stored on the bookshelf. Also that year Greg Noll produced the “Surfers Annual” and followed this up in 1961 with two more titles known as “Surfing Funnies” and “Cartoons”, while another cartoon publication titled “Ho Dads Beware” produced two issues during 1961 also.

1961 Australia produced “The Australian Surfer” based on the “Surfer” format. This was produced by John Cross but only lasted two issues. In early 1962 came Australia’s first major long term magazine titled “Australia’s Surfing World”, which is still in production today. In August of 1962 “Surfabout Australasian Surfer” was produced and this lasted until the spring of 1968. Late in 1962 December “Australian Sport and Surfriding” was produced and lasted 8 issues until June 1964.

1963 saw a heavy influx of titles in the US including “Petersen’s”, “So-Cal Surf News”, “Surf Guide” and “SI Surfing Illustrated”, which are all great collectibles.

1964 found more Australian titles being produced like a one off “Surf Scene” and “Australasian Boardrider” while France produced “Surf Atlantique” which lasted only three issues. In the US the current “Surfing” started in December and again is one of the very few magazines to last a long time until 2017.

In April of 1965 New Zealand entered the surfing mag countries with a production titled “New Zealand Surfer” but this quickly changed in the next edition in July to “New Zealand Surf Magazine”. Only five issues though until July 1966.

In the same year, 1965, South Africa produced “South African Surfer” while in the US the East Coast started up “Atlantic Surfing” and “Surfing East” while on the West coast “Petersen’s” started up “Surftoons” a collection of surfing cartoons, which lasted 15 issues until January 1969 and another paper style one off appeared titled “Surfing News”. Hawaii also produced “Surfing Hawaii”, which lasted two issues during this time.

1966 saw another US title “Competition Surf” being produced and a one off “Surfing Times” newspaper style production.

1967 Australia hit back with “Surf International” and the US East Coast started up their version of “Surfing News”. Japan had a one off “Surf Rider’s Japan”. Nothing else from Japan until 1975.

1968 NZ produced two titles “Surfing New Zealand” and “Surfriding in New Zealand” while most other titles continued on except the US “Surfing”, which failed to produce anything from volume 3#6 January until volume 4#2 in December except for a June volume 4#1 issue.

1969 saw Great Britain produce “Surfing UK” , 3 issues only, followed closely by “British Surfer” while the US “Surfing Action Around the World’ jumped in on “Surfing’s” failure to produce regular issues. By March “Surfing” was back in regular production and “Surfing Action Around the World” continued on for three years producing 15 issues in total. France also produced a one off titled “Surfing Cote Basque”.

1970 another comic style production came on the market in the US “Surf N Wheels”, New Zealand produced “Surf 70” and the Australian market was hit with “Tracks”, which is still in current production and was the first full monthly magazine to ever last more than a couple of issues.

1971 New Zealand continued on with “Surf 71” and Peru also produced “Tabla Hawaiiana”. South Africa produced a newsletter style “Southern Surfer” while in the UK “SYM” became available also in newsletter style.

1972 NZ produced “Surf NZ”, the UK “Surf Insight” and the USA “Sea Breeze”.

1973 saw the introduction in Australia of “Oceans” and “Breakway”, in NZ “Waves” and in the UK “Ripple”.

1974 NZ started the their version of “Tracks”, South Africa “Surf Africa”, UK “Shorebreak”, “Surf Chat” and “Surf” and the US “Surf Scene” and “Eastern Waves”.

1975 Australia had another new title “Backdoor”, while Brazil came into the surf mag times with “Brazil Surf”. Japan started “Surf”, UK “Lineup” and “Surf”, USA “Surf in East” and “Waverider”, Hawaii “MAC”.

1976 Australia starts up “Sunshine Fluid” and “Surf”, France “Surf Roll Skate”, Japan their version of “Surfing World”, South Africa “Down the Line” and USA “The California Wave” & “Easy Times”.

1977 Australia yet again with “Free Surf Press’, “Sea Notes”, NZ “Expressions” and “Wai-Ngaru”, South Africa “Zig-Zag” still in production today, USA “East Coast Surf”, “Pacific Lines” and “Surf by Mike Mann”.

1978 in Brazil “Quebra-Mar” and the USA “Skate and Surf”.

1979 Brazil “Surf Sul”, Japan went big time with “Drop Out”, “Surfer Japan”, “Surfin’ Life” and “Take Off” and USA “Breakout”.

1980 Australia “Southern Flyer”, “West Coast Surfer”, Brazil “Visual Esportivo”, Hawaii “Surf and Sea”, Japan “Surfing Classic”, NZ “Freebird” and “Aqualine Shredabout”, UK “Surf Scene” and “Tube News” while the US had nothing new.

1981 Australia “Lineup” and “Southern Flyer” and UK “Wavelength” still in production.

1982 Australia “Coastal Tubes” and USA “South Bay Surfer”, “Surfin and Ocean Sports”.

1983 Australia one offs “Pro Surf” and “Surfing into the 80’s”, Brazil “Fluir”, France “Spots Secrets Surf Skate”, Peru “Tabla”, UK “Groundswell” and USA “US Surf” and “Jacksonville Surfer”.

1984 Australia “Waves”, Brazil “Inside”, France “Spot” and USA “South East Surfer”, which was formerly “Jacksonville Surfer”.

1985 Australia “ASL Australian Surfing Life” still in production and “Wave Torque”, Brazil “Costa Sul”, “Staff”, “Surf News”, “Surf Week” and “Visual Surf”, NZ “New Zealand Surfing” still in production, Peru “Revista Tablista” and the USA “Wavelengths”.

1986 Australia “Off the Lip”, “Ocean Express” and “Wave Talk”, Brazil “Jornal do Surf”, “Surf Nordeste”, “Surf Noticias” and “Surf” photo annual, France “Spot” and “Surf Session” still in production, Hawaii “Wavelength”, Japan “Surfer Japan”, South Africa one off “Moments”, UK “Edge” and in USA the first of the modern longboard magazines “The Log”.

1987 Brazil “ASN”, “Surf Tress” and “Surfer Brazil”, Chile “La Quilla Loca”, France “Surf Mag”, Hawaii “Hawaiian Line” and “Local Surfer”, Portugal “Surf Magazine” and “Surf Portugal”, South Africa “Offshore”, Spain “Tres 60” later “3Sessenta”, UK “Channel Views” and “Woolacombe News”, USA “Shred” recently revived and “South Swell”.

1988 Costa Rica “Surf Guide”, USA “Ashley Poster Series”, “Hot Water” and “Kema”.

1989 Argentina “Surfista”, Australia “Free Surf”, Brazil “Backwash”, “Feserj”, “Hardcore”, “Now”, “Quiver”, Hawaii “H3O”, “Groundswell” and “Maui Surfing”, South Africa “Wet”, UK “Onboard Surf” and “Surfs Up” and in the USA “Beach N Waves” and “Beach Happy”.

1990 Australia “Get Wet News”, Brazil “Beach Break”, NZ “Kiwi Surf”, Spain “Marejada” and “Surfer Rule”, USA “FLA Surf” and Florida Surf”.

1991 Australia “Noserider”, Brazil “Green Surf”, “KSSINO”, “Adrenalina” and “The Surf Press”, USA “International Surf” and “Surf Crazed Comics”.

1992 Australia “Surf Adventures”, “Surf Rider Weekly”, “Waverider”, Brazil “Beach”, “Expresso”, “Surf Press”, Canada “Island Swell”, France “Surf Time”, Italy “Surf”, Peru “Tabla”, UK “URF”, USA “Eastern Surf”, “Surfers Journal” still in production, “Longboarder” and “Waves”, New Zealand “Ocean Action”.

1993 Australia “Crank”, “Pure Journey”, “Surf Avenge”, Brazil “Conexao”, “Folha do Surf”, “Informar”, “Wet Paper”, France “Radical Surf”, “Surf Saga”, Germany “Wax”, UK “Surfing Roots”, USA “Classic Surfboard Collector”, “Corpus Christi Breaks”, “Cross Step”, “Longboard”, “Modern Longboard Times”, “Surf Gear”, “Surf Beat”, “Wave Action”, Venezuela “S&N”, “Surf Caribe”.

1994 Australia “Australian Surfer”, “Surf Secrets”, “Underground Surf”, Brazil “Journal Paulista de Surf”, France “Surfers Journal” French version still in production and “Trip Surf”, Holland “Surf Sport and Style”, Italy “King Surfer”, “Surf News”, Japan “Surfaholic”, Mexico “La Ola Mexicana”, UK “Carve” still in production, USA “Surfwriters Quarterly”.

1995 Australia “Deep” , Argentina “Rad” became known as “Mondo Rad” produced in Puerto Rico, Brazil “Lineup”, Canary Islands “Rompeolas”, Germany “Surf Wave”, “Lineup” and “Surfers”, Japan “Flow” now known as “F+” and “Nalu” both still in production, South Africa “Soul Surfer”, USA “California Wave”, “Hapa”, “Wahine”.

1996 Australia “Mal Magic”, Brazil “Informe Surf”, “Jornal Extra Surf”, Canary Islands “Radical”, Costa Rica “Surfos”, France “Ride On”, Germany “Surf Wave”, Italy “Surf Latino”, Japan “Warp”, Portugal “Portugal Radical”, USA “Electric Ink”, “Locals Only”, “Rare Breed”, Soul Surf”, “Shred” and “The Juice”.

1997 Australia “Locals Only”, Brazil “Surf Link”, “Vertical Surf News”, Costa Rica “Planet Surf”, France “Free Surf”, Japan “On the Board”, “SWS Side Ways Stance”, NZ “Runt”, Peru “Tubos”, Puerto Rico “Surf in Rico”, UK “Surfers Path” still in production, Uruguay “Mareas”, USA “Surfing Girl”, “The Alternative Surf Connection”.

1998 Australia “Chick”, “Longboarding” and “Pacific Longboarder” still in production, “Shred Betty”, “Surfers Journal” Australian version and “Groundswell Qld”, Brazil “Alltas”, “Boards”, “Drop”, “Inside Now” a combination of “Inside”&”Now” magazines, “Surfar”, “Aloha”, Greece “3S”, Japan “Surf Trip”, South Africa “Back Door”, “The Noserider”, UK “Freeride”, USA “5 Star”, “California Surfers”, “Surfer Girl”, Venezuela “Surf Star”.

1999 Argentina “Allborde”, Australia “Core”, “Manly Surf Journal”, “The Glide”, Brazil “Boardsports Observer”, “Espirito Surf”, “Resgate”, “Surf City”, “Top Surf”, Chile “Demolicion”, Europe (France) “Surf Europe” in 5 different languages, Germany “Surf n Beach”, Hawaii “High Surf Advisory”, Indonesia “Surf Time”, NZ “New Zealand Longboarder”, Puerto Rico “Low Pressue”, South Africa “Saltwater Girl”, Spain “Surf Prest”, “Surfari”, UK “Malibu”, USA “Automatic”, “Happy” formerly “Beach Happy” and now “Bliss”, “North Coast Surf Press”, North East Surf News”, “Skim”, “Surf News”, “Transworld Surf”, Venezuela “Extremo”.

2000 Australia “Waves Surf Girl”, Brazil “Alma”, “Info Wave”, “Solto Na Vala”, “Surfboards”, Costa Rica “Global Surf”, Hawaii “Tiare Girl”, Italy “Surfers” Italian version of the German mag, UK “The Source”, USA “Carvin”.

2001 Australia “Rag”, Brazil “Mundo Rad” originally “Rad” from Argentina, NZ “Front Cyde”, Puerto Rico “Primera Ola”, Russia “Doski”, Tahiti “Tahiti Waves”, Germany “Surf n Beach”, Japan “Beach Girls”.

2002 Brazil “Nuts”, “X-Pression”, France “Beach Brother”, “Surfing France”, Germany “Free”, Hawaii “Board Stories”, “Scam”, Indonesia “Magic Wave”, NZ “South Surf”, Portugal “Get Wet Gazette”, Puerto Rico “Mundo Rad” formerly from Arg and Brz, Spain “Local Surf”, UK “Boardsport Source”, USA “Big Surf”, “Gulf Coast Surf”, “Inside Surf”, “Risen”, “Spare Change”, “SG”, “Surf Life for Women”, “Wet Sand” and “Water”, Japan “Surf Ride”.

2003 Australia “Gold Coast Surf”, Brazil “Gazeta Radical”,”Taking Surf”, France “Cosmic Tubes”, “Slide”, “Undercurrents”, Germany “Stoke”, “Tide”, Holland “Soul Motion”, Japan “Surf 1st”, Peru “X3 mag”, Portugal “Magnolia”, “On Fire”, South Africa “Amped”, Spain “Surf Limit”, Sweden “Transition”, UK “X-Elements”, USA “Longevity”, “Surf Shot”, “Underground”, “Ocean Mag”.

2004 Australia “Longbreak”,”Splash”,“Stab”, Belguim “Swell”, France “Girl Power”, “Surfie”, Hawaii “Nalu Underground”, “WSSM”, Ireland “Fins”, Mexico “Estilos”, “Planeta Surf”, New Zealand “Swell Lines”, UK “Pit Pilot”, USA “Foam”

2005 France “Fluid”, “Surf Time” restarted after 4 years of not being published. Germany “Slack”, Netherlands “6 Surfing Magazine”, Portugal “Girlz”, Spain “Glide”, USA “Salt”, “Garden State Surf”, UK “Cooler”, Switzerland “4 Riders”.

2006 France “Girl Power” changed to “Chick’s Power”, “Max”, “Enjoy”,”The Search Magazine”, New Zealand “Daily Surf”, “Curl”, Spain “Natural”, “Local Surf”, “Community”, “Mas Surf”, “Surf Vision”, “Cut Back”, “Hebe”. Australia “Surf West”, Canada “Drop”, Canary Islands “El Maquinola Radical”, Chile “Surfeando”, Costa Rica “Core”, Great Britain “Slide”, Italy “Surfers”, Japan “Surfers Mind”, Mexico “Central Surf”, Netherlands “Surf n Beach”, USA “Eze”, “Wet”, South Africa “African Surfrider”

2007 Australia “Curl”, “Sunshine Coast Surf”, Germany “Golden Ride”, Italy “Dreams”, “Girland”, Japan “Glide”, Mexico “Olas”, Morocco “Amouage”, Spain “Surf Limit Girls”, USA “Bliss”, “Deep”

2008 Australia “Southern Soul”, Ireland “Tonnta”, Sweden “NSM” & “Surfing”, Portugal “Free Surf”, Taiwan “Oceans”.

2009 Hawaii “Aloha Surf Guide”, “Goodtimes”, “Alii Nation”, “Contrast”, Indonesia “Lines”, New Zealand “Aotearoa Liquid”, South Africa “The Bomb Surf”, USA “Moresurf”, Brazil “Soul Surf”, Australia “Surfing Australia”.

2010 France “Surf FM”, Great Britain “Kook” and “Longboarding and Freeride”, Australia “Smorgasboarder”, “Soggy Bones” and “Kurungabaa”, USA “Super Stoked”, Thailand “Thailand Surfrider”, Brazil “Revista Long”, “Surf Bahia”, “Terral”, “Vaibe”, “Surfnalata”, Chile “Lineas”.

2011 Australia “Foam Symmetry”, Japan “F+”, Indonesia “Southern Swell”, France “Surf Tag”, Brazil “Onda”, “Mahalo Press”, USA “HBC”.

2012 Australia “Paper Sea” , “Kelp” and “White Horses”, Hawaii “Grom”, USA “Fluid”, “What Youth”, “Wax” , “Salted” and “Beached Days”, Brazil “Surfers Journal”, New Zealand “Damaged Goods”.

2013 Indonesia “Bali Belly”, Great Britain “The Point”, USA “Drop Zone LA” formerly “Drop Zone South Bay”.

2014 Brazil “Full Surf”, Japan “Core Surf Japan”,, USA “Santa Cruz Waves”, Australia “Sunshine Surf Girls”.

2015 Germany “Prime” formerly “Surfers”, Hawaii “Trim”, Great Britain “Real Surfing”.

2016 Japan “Glide” new version, Australia “Noosa Surfing”, Brazil “Santa Catarina Surf”, Costa Rica “Surf Nation”, “7 Mares”.

2016-2017 also were the years a lot of magazines ceased to exist. Among them Australia “Foam Symmetry”, “Waves”, Brazil “Fluir”, “Alma”, “Surfar”, Indonesia “Lines”, Japan “Surfing World”, Portugal “On Fire”, “Surf Portugal”, USA “Surfing”.

2017 Japan “Surf Club”, “Surf Magazine” new version, Wales “Tonnau”.

2018-19 No new titles.

2020-2022 a lot more titles collapsed due to Co-Vid, went digital or are in hibernation hoping for a return one day. Right now I only know of 26 publications in print.

They are: Australia- Surfing Life, Pacific Longboarder, Surfing World, Tracks, White Horses. France- Surf Session, Surfers Journal. Germany-Blue, Prime. Hawaii- Free Surf. Japan- Blue, Nalu, Surf Trip, Surfin’ Life, F+. South Africa- Board Talk, Zig-Zag. Sweden- NSM, UK- Carve, Surf Girl, Real Surfing, Surfers Path, Wavelength. USA-Surfers Journal.

Other titles of unknown start dates are:
Australia- “West Country Surf” and “Country Surf” (mid 70’s?) and “Surf Cartoons”, “Surfs Up” both late 60’s.
Brazil- “Barra Surf” (mid 90’s), “Vertical”, “Hightide”, “Costa Sul”(early 90’s), “Jornal Surf Informacao”, “Lazer”, “Tempo Esporte”, “Maneco”, “Nafaixa”, “Planeto Agua”, “Radical”, “Rio Surf”, “Sol E Mar”, “ Sport Session”, “Storm”, “Surf People”, “Surf Show” and “Vertical Surf News”. Most are all in the 90’s.
Equador- “Amigos del Mar” and “Radical”
Germany- “Brett”, “Stoke”
Israel- “Adrenalin” (2002 or 2003)
Italy- “Freezer” (2002?)
Japan- “Take Off” (1980’s)
New Zealand- “Surf Nelson” (90’s), “Wave Rave”.
Norway- “Fri Flyt”

Spain- “Surfing Spain”
Sweden- “Edge”
UK- “Shorebreak” (80’s) “Wight Water” late 70’s
USA- “Caribbean Trend”, “Inside del Mar”, “Island Surfing”, “Manic”, “Rage”, “Surf 42”, “Wave Lengths”.