How Long Should A beginner Surfboard Be – Depends on Your Height and Weight

Are you wondering what size surfboard to get in the UK, Australia, Canada, USA or wherever?

Well, you are not alone! When starting out, many people wonder: how long should a beginner surfboard be?

And here, we do what we do best and that is to bring you helpful information, so that you can choose the right surfboard or even stand up paddle board for a beginner.

So what is the proper surfboard size for a beginner? It depends on the height of the user and their weight too. For instance, 5.5 to 6.0 foot surfboards are best for children who are up to 4 feet tall and weigh up to 55KG. A 6 ft 3 man weighing 100KG or more needs a 9 foot 2 inch surfboard.

But knowing what size surfboard for a beginner is not so straightforward. There are other dynamics involved.

For instance, a longer surfboard can be hard to control. However, since you are a beginner, you can start with the long boards.

As you gain more experience, you can get a shorter board, which will be easier to control in the water.

Longer than your height by 3 feet – Rule of Thumb

All said and done, the rule of thumb for choosing a surfboard size for a beginner, you should make it 3 feet longer than your height.

Always! If you have been asking: what size longboard surfboard should I get? Just remember this simple rule.

In any article for surfboard dimensions explained, you will see that surfboard measurements always follow this rule.

Thus, if you are 6 feet tall, you should get a surf board that is 9 feet long. That is definitely a longboard. Making turns on a longboard will be hard, but you learn with time.

Besides, you can just use the board for learning and after that, exchange it for a shorter board.

Any surfboard size guide will also show you the volume. It is very important that your board have good volume so that it can float easily on the water.

When choosing a SUP board, you consider a 4 or 6 inch board. With surfboards, thickness starts at 3 inches.

If you are taller and heavier, you need more volume on the board. A youngster might work with a 2 5/8-inch board, but more volume is always better.

Best width of a beginner surfing board

When choosing a good surfboard for a beginner, length is not the only consideration. There is also the little matter of the nose shape or design as well as the width.

Starting with the width, we recommend that you get a board that is between 20.5 inches and 22.5 inches wide.

Please note that this width recommendation is for boards that are 7 to 8 feet long. If you are taller and you need a beginner surfing board that is longer than 8 feet, you might want to get a wider board.

About the shape of the nose, a rounded nose is better for a beginner surfboard than a sharp one. There is a good reason for this.

A sharp nose cuts through the waves and makes the board hard to control. Sharp noses are made for speed.

A blunt nose will catch the waves well and slowly too. As a beginner, you do not need speed. You need more control as your board rides the waves.

Beginner Surfboard Size Chart

Before you can buy your beginner longboard or shortboard, you need to refer to a beginner surfboard size chart.

You can find many depending on where you look. However, the best one is the one that comes with board recommendations based on height and weight.

Sample this:

Best beginner surfboard for children surfers

For kids who are 4 feet tall and below and they weigh up to 55KG of weight, the best surfboard length for them is 5.5 feet to 6.6 feet.

Thus, if you are looking for a board for your daughter or son who meets these measurements, you are looking for a shortboard.

For an older child who weighs up to 70KG and is up to 4.5 feet tall, the board length should be between 6 foot 8 inches and 7 foot 2 inches.

Best surfing board for women

Any shortboard size chart will include measurements for women. Women have smaller frames than men, so most of their boards fall within the shortboard range.

If a woman is 5 foot 3 inches tall and weighs up to 80KG, the best surfing board for her is between 7 foot 2 inches and 7 foot 6 inches long.

Beginner surfboards for men recommended sizes

If you are a short man, say, 5 foot 6 inches tall and weighing up to 85KG, the best length for your surfboard is 7 foot 6 inches to 8 foot 6 inches.

A man who is 5 foot 9 inches tall and weighs up to 90KG should get a surfboard within the 8 foot 6 inches and 9 foot 2 inches length range. This is definitely a longboard.

Then there are the really tall men of up to 6 foot 4 inches tall and weighing 100KG or more. In this height and weight range, you should get a longboard surfboard that is at least 9 foot 2 inches long.

Surfboard material for beginner surfboards

Knowing how to choose the right size surfboard should also include how to pick the best material.

Foam/foamies/surfboards

Now, the foam ones are affordable, but they tend to have too much buoyancy, so they can be hard to control.

The good thing is that they are soft, so they will not hurt people around you even when you collide with them.

Unfortunately, soft foam surfboards made of foam do not enable the user to progress in their skill range. So you might want to keep away from them.

Hard surfboards – epoxy or polyester

If you want a board that will last a long time and enable you to make good progress on your surfing skills, get an epoxy surfboard.

In addition, sometimes, you just buy a surfboard that you can use as a beginner and as an intermediate. In that case, a hard surfboard makes more progress.

Conclusion

From this write-up, we hope you have now gotten the answer to the question of: how long should a beginner surfboard be?

You can always check a surfboard size chart height and weight before you order yours. But if you want a surfing board for keeps, you should get a hard one, made of epoxy or polyester.

If you are looking for a good surfboard, you might want to buy the Wavestorm 8-Foot surfboard on amazon.com.