The SWELLFRAME Story
Developed in Ocean, for the Ocean.
Why Swellframe Exists
Co-founders Flo and Tommy
We are Flo and Tommy, the co-founders of Swellframe. We are surfers, we write code, and we are both dads to little ones. Between corporate jobs on the PC and everything else on the phone, we kept catching ourselves reaching for the screen when we should have been present, more often than we'd like to admit, just to check the surf.
That habit bothered us. So we started finding ways to put the phone down. It helped, but the surf forecast was still something we genuinely needed. We just didn't need all the noise that came with it.
That's where Swellframe started. We wanted something that meets us right where we are: tell us the surf report, not more, not less. A glanceable forecast on the wall that doesn't ask you to pick up a device. No app. No notifications. No rabbit hole. Just the information, always on, always ready.
So we built one. The how mattered just as much as the what, and we sweat every detail so your forecast stays simple, honest, and always on.
Swellframe is developed in Ocean Township, New Jersey, a coastal community where the surf forecast isn't just data, it's daily life. The design, the software and the forecast behind every frame come from here.
Sustainability as Foundation
Sustainability isn't a marketing line. It's why we exist. We build hardware that lasts, because the coastline we check every morning deserves better than disposable tech.
Twelve months or more on a single charge. The battery is where sustainability starts for us. The e-ink display only draws power when the forecast changes, and the frame sleeps between updates, so one USB-C charge keeps it on your wall for a year or more. Fewer charges, less energy, and a device built to stay in use for years, not replaced every season.
No plastic in the box. Every Swellframe ships in kraft paper packaging, with no plastic anywhere in it. It's recyclable, and it adds nothing to the burden on the beaches we surf.
Giving back to the ocean. When you refer a friend through our referral program, you can donate your share of the reward to the Surfrider Foundation, the nonprofit that protects the world's ocean, waves and beaches. Learn how referrals work.
As Swellframe grows, sustainability stays at our core. We want to keep helping to preserve the ocean and the environment we love, and to keep advocating for healthier, less digital habits: more time looking at the water, less time looking at a screen.
For Surfers, by Surfers
Swellframe isn't built by a tech company that discovered surfing. It's built by two surfers who happen to write code. That means the forecast data is curated the way you'd actually read it: swell direction, period, wind, tides. At a glance, on your wall, no app required.
Built with the Community, for the Community
Swellframe is a grassroots small business. Building a database of surf spots isn't easy. We've built the backend and knowledge base from surf trips across all five continents: Australia and New Zealand, Indonesia, the US, Africa, and Europe, and from countless conversations with other surfers along the way. That foundation got Swellframe off the ground, but to build it into the company it's meant to be, we rely on the surf community.
Let's build Swellframe together. If you don't see your local spot on Swellframe, submit a spot request. Share your local knowledge without putting your spot on the map for millions. Your input stays between us and helps make the forecast better for the surfers who actually paddle out there.