Weather apps range from national meteorological services to one-person studios, map vendors with developer APIs and ad-funded media sites.
This guide ranks twelve products on setup effort, the price once upgrades or licences are counted, how easily you can leave, independence of the vendor and who each is built for, starting with the smallest independent maker.
Vendors can pay for more visibility on this website, for example a higher place in a ranking or more room on a page. Commercial relationships can also affect which products we feature and how prominently. Every vendor link is marked the same, whatever the arrangement behind it. How that works.
In short
What weather apps software does
Weather apps deliver forecasts, radar, maps and weather warnings for chosen places to phones and browsers, and some vendors also license their data to developers through APIs.
Every weather apps tool was judged on five points in a fixed order: setup effort, cost in practice, how data is exported, how easily you can leave, and the buyer it was designed for. A challenger rule applies on top. Places 1 to 3 are kept for lesser-known vendors when the category has them; large brands rank from 4. Why those five, and why there is no score out of ten, is on the how we work page.
Snarky talking forecast app from a single independent developer
Ranked #1 of 12 in Best Weather Apps in 2026.
Free tierPublished pricingElsewhere
CARROT sells three subscription levels, from a monthly or yearly Premium up to a Family level that Apple's Family Sharing shares with up to five family members.
Customisation is the draw: a picker for hourly data points, a minutely view that switches between a precipitation chart and a mini radar map, and line charts. Platforms include iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch and Apple Silicon Macs. The studio sits near Philadelphia; no legal company name appears.
What stands out
One-person studio
Apple Watch
Tiered subscription
Where it costs you
Super-resolution radar is described for the U.S. only, so buyers elsewhere get less from the top tier.
The pricing page returned a 404, so the amounts we cite come from the press kit.
Right for
Phone and watch users who want choice of data sources and personality
Wrong for
Anyone who needs an official warning service for one country
Not stated by the vendorFree app with three optional subscription tiers, amounts listed in the press kit; 7-day trial
Ad-free forecast app from Tokyo that also sells weather photographs
Ranked #2 of 12 in Best Weather Apps in 2026.
Pricing on requestAsia-Pacific
The homepage lists GPS location search, hourly and 14-day forecasts, a weather map, air quality, golden hour times and severe weather alerts. A second business line lets photographers apply to sell pictures matched to the day's weather, with no commission percentage stated in the terms.
Prices differ by store: three monthly steps on iOS, rounded figures on Android. Japanese law governs the terms, with the Tokyo District Court as exclusive forum.
What stands out
No ads
Photo marketplace
Android and iOS
Where it costs you
The terms and about page name the company differently, as Weawow Corporation and Weawow Inc.
Photo licences are sold as Regular or Extended, and refunds are as a rule not offered.
Right for
People who want a quiet app without banners, with GPS search and widgets
Wrong for
Teams that need severe weather bulletins backed by a public agency
JapanMonthly subscriptions in three steps, amounts in the terms; voluntary donations unlock weather providers
Model-driven weather maps with a separately priced developer API
Ranked #3 of 12 in Best Weather Apps in 2026.
Published pricingElsewhere
Three API products carry separate price lists. Map Forecast Professional allows 10,000 sessions per day and lists six weather models with more than 40 layers and isolines.
Webcams Professional costs far more than the others and removes ads and the image size limit, extending image URL validity from 15 minutes to 24 hours. Support runs through a community forum section. The Webcams terms say the vendor does not guarantee the API is free of errors.
What stands out
Map forecast API
Webcams API
Yearly pricing
Where it costs you
Point Forecast cannot return historical forecasts, only the most recent values.
ECMWF is excluded from Point Forecast and is internal-use only on Map Forecast.
Right for
Developers and map readers who want model maps, wind layers and a priced API
Wrong for
Casual users who only want a tomorrow-at-a-glance forecast
Not stated by the vendorDeveloper API sold as three products, prices published per year; free testing keys
Animated global weather maps from a Plzeň meteorological company
Ranked #4 of 12 in Best Weather Apps in 2026.
Pricing on requestElsewhere
The map is the product: fifteen layer types from feels-like temperature to snow cover, plus a wind animation. Premium adds advanced notifications and radar on Apple Watch, and runs on iOS, Android and the web.
Paddle.com Market Ltd is the seller of record, and the subscription renews automatically but can be cancelled at any time. A sister portal, In-počasí, targets Czech readers and is named on the about page.
What stands out
Animated maps
Premium and Premium+
Device caps
Where it costs you
The Premium page shows blank placeholders instead of amounts, so the price cannot be compared.
Payment for the current period is non-refundable, per the Premium page.
Right for
Map readers who compare wind, rain and pressure fields across several models
Wrong for
Buyers who want a number for the subscription before registering
Czech RepublicYearly Premium and Premium+ subscriptions, auto-renewing; vouchers accepted
Forecast site with a 15-day view, calendar feed and weather API
Ranked #5 of 12 in Best Weather Apps in 2026.
Pricing on requestElsewhere
Foreca puts the forecast at the centre and the extras around it: a monthly view, a log of past observations, an option to add weather to a calendar, and unit settings for temperature, wind, visibility and pressure.
Business links in the footer cover media products, widgets and an API, but none shows terms. Compliance with the Finnish Data Protection Act is stated in the conditions, which is not the same as stating a seat.
What stands out
15-day outlook
Calendar feed
Weather API
Where it costs you
The terms disclaim liability for decisions based on content, so Foreca is no basis for safety-critical choices.
The homepage and terms name no country of establishment.
Right for
Planners who like a calendar feed and a longer outlook beside the map
Wrong for
Buyers who must compare API prices before contacting the vendor
Not stated by the vendorPrices not shown on the pages read; API, media products and widgets are listed
Basel forecast house using a many-model blend, now majority owned by Windyty
Ranked #6 of 12 in Best Weather Apps in 2026.
Pricing on requestEurope
In a list of weather apps, meteoblue stands out as a modeller more than an app maker. Its about page describes a blend of more than 40 models steered by artificial intelligence, and its navigation separates forecasts, maps, widgets, climate services and Weather APIs.
Documentation sits on docs.meteoblue.com. Commercial terms are the gap: the pricing page text shows no plans, so a buyer should ask about ownership and limits first.
What stands out
MultiModel blend
Basel
Windyty majority owner
Where it costs you
The API pricing and business pages render client-side, so the text we could read shows no prices or limits.
A majority stake taken by Windyty, S.E. in 2024 changes who a business buyer deals with.
Right for
Buyers who value a long-running Basel modeller and public documentation
Wrong for
Casual phone users who only want tomorrow's rain at a glance
SwitzerlandWeather API pricing page shows no figures in the text read; modules per business need
Official German warnings app with a one-time purchase upgrade
Ranked #7 of 12 in Best Weather Apps in 2026.
Free tierPricing on requestEurope
The free version covers favourites, notifications, light and dark themes and a customisable start page. Staff and volunteers of disaster relief and civil protection organisations can register for the full version at no cost.
One purchase works on several devices under the same account, though Family Sharing is limited to iOS. The German page confirms the full version is a one-off in-app purchase, found in the Apple and Google stores.
What stands out
Official warnings
Free tier
One-time purchase
Where it costs you
A Federal Court of Justice ruling restricts which content the free version may carry.
The English page does not state the upgrade price.
Right for
Residents of Germany who want warnings from the issuing authority
Wrong for
Travellers wanting a global forecast outside Germany and its warnings
GermanyBasic version at no charge; full version through one-time in-app purchase, amount not on the English page
Dutch national institute app with colour-coded warnings and open source code
Ranked #8 of 12 in Best Weather Apps in 2026.
Open sourcePricing on requestElsewhere
Save places under Mijn plaatsen and alerts follow: red and orange are on by default, yellow is optional. Radar runs two hours back and two hours ahead, and daily forecasts reach 14 days.
The explainer says location data is not shared, sold or disclosed to third parties, including for advertising or analysis. Site content is dedicated under CC0 with attribution as bron: KNMI. Android users find the app under the package nl.knmi.weer.
What stands out
National institute
Code on GitLab
Colour codes
Where it costs you
Hourly forecasts cover only today and tomorrow, so planning beyond two days relies on daily figures.
The privacy statement names no controller or postal address.
Right for
Dutch residents who want official warnings and the radar without tracking
Wrong for
Users wanting global coverage, long-range maps or customisable layers
Not stated by the vendorFunded from public money; the explainer page states no price and mentions no advertising
Norwegian broadcaster and met institute forecasts for ten million places
Ranked #9 of 12 in Best Weather Apps in 2026.
Pricing on requestEurope
The developer rules are unusually specific. Coordinates are truncated to four decimals, with five or more returning 403 Forbidden on newer products; clients must wait for the Expires header and use If-Modified-Since; deprecated versions are flagged with status 203 and are usually ended after about one month.
Access logs for api.met.no are kept in the operator's own data centre in Oslo. Apps exist for iOS and Android.
What stands out
NRK and MET Norway
Open data
Developer API
Where it costs you
The API terms promise no delivery guarantee and offer no option to obtain an SLA.
Traffic above 20 requests per second needs a special agreement.
Right for
Travellers and developers wanting open data with clear etiquette rules
Wrong for
Companies that require a contractual service level on forecast data
NorwayNo fee in the MET Weather API terms; open data under CC BY 4.0; custom data via ECOMET
French national weather service with vigilance alerts and 15-day forecasts
Ranked #10 of 12 in Best Weather Apps in 2026.
Pricing on requestEurope
Alerts matter most here: the APIC and VigicruesFlash services notify users about heavy rain in their commune and are described as free. Radar and satellite animations, favourite cities and widgets are listed.
The legal notice names ANTEMETA in Guyancourt as host of the main sites and OVH in Roubaix for overseas sites, which tells a data-conscious buyer where the pages are served from.
What stands out
Public agency
Vigilance alerts
Marine and mountain
Where it costs you
The homepage does not say which phone platforms the app supports or whether it has a paid tier.
The weather attestation for insurance claims lists no price.
Right for
French residents and sailors wanting official vigilance plus marine and mountain pages
Wrong for
Buyers needing an app description with platforms and tiers stated
FranceForecasts at no charge according to the homepage; insurance attestation service shows no price
Dutch rain radar owned by RTL with a two-hour precipitation widget
Ranked #11 of 12 in Best Weather Apps in 2026.
Pricing on requestEurope
The site offers maps, radar, satellite images, forecasts, a Netherlands and worldwide overview and viewer photos and video. Premium is bought through the App Store or Google Play, and web subscribers need an RTL account.
The FAQ asks whether the subscription renews automatically after the free month but the lines read give no answer. Privacy and cookie policies are hosted on privacy.dpgmedia.nl.
What stands out
RTL Nederland
Rain widget
Premium trial
Where it costs you
Free data is non-commercial only, and commercial use or apps need permission.
The FAQ does not show a Premium price or billing period.
Right for
Dutch commuters and cyclists who mainly want short-range rain timing
Wrong for
Developers planning a commercial app on the free data feed
NetherlandsAdvertising-funded site; Premium subscription with a trial period, amount not shown on pages read
Ad-supported US forecast site with radar, allergy and air tools
Ranked #12 of 12 in Best Weather Apps in 2026.
Pricing on requestNorth America
Today's page lists wind, humidity, dew point, pressure, UV index, visibility, moon phase and sunrise and sunset. Subscription terms bundle renewals, trials and bundles into one section, and the company works with its affiliates.
Data rights and privacy settings pages link from the footer to a Trust Center. As a large corporate publisher it ranks last for independence in this guide, not for the breadth of what it shows.
What stands out
The Weather Company
Allergy tracker
Auto-renewing plans
Where it costs you
Each paid subscription is limited to one individual user under section 7 of the terms.
The homepage names no app platforms and no publisher beyond the copyright line.
Right for
Readers wanting a mainstream site with health and allergy sections
Wrong for
Smaller buyers who want a transparent price list or a single-purpose tool
United StatesAdvertising on the site; paid subscriptions covered in the terms, no prices in the text read
Weather apps deliver forecasts, radar, maps and weather warnings for chosen places to phones and browsers, and some vendors also license their data to developers through APIs. These are the questions that actually differ between vendors, in the order we would ask them.
01
Check who publishes a price
10 vendors on this page sell by quote, while 2 publish a pricing model you can read today: CARROT Weather, Windy.
02
Look at where the vendor sits
Check the vendor's home market (Europe 5, Elsewhere 5, North America 1, Asia-Pacific 1), because that is where subpoenas and data requests arrive first, whatever region holds your files.
03
Decide if open source matters
Source code is available for KNMI. Running it yourself swaps the licence fee for your own upkeep.
Weather apps: national services, one-person studios and map vendors
Before comparing features, decide who produces the forecast you will rely on. DWD WarnWetter, KNMI, Yr and Meteo-France are run by public bodies, and their sites state forecasts as part of a public service. CARROT Weather is a one-man independent studio, and Weawow was begun as a solo project in 2016. Ventusky comes from InMeteo, a meteorological company in Plzeň, and Meteoblue is a Basel company with a majority owner since 2024.
The Weather Channel belongs to The Weather Company, LLC. Who runs the app decides what happens to your data and what happens if the product changes hands. Read the legal notice or terms page for a named entity, and note that several vendors here, such as Windy, Foreca and KNMI, do not state a country on the pages we read.
Find the legal entity named in the terms or imprint
Check whether the app has changed owner recently
Note which vendors do not state a country at all
What the paid tier of a weather app really unlocks
Most apps here are free to install and sell an upgrade, so look at what sits behind it. CARROT Weather has Premium, Premium Ultra and Premium Family, where Ultra holds the storm alerts and the U.S. radar. Ventusky sells Premium and Premium+ yearly, allowing 4 or 25 devices, though its page shows blanks where the price belongs.
DWD WarnWetter keeps official warnings in its free version and charges once for maps, a thunderstorm monitor and pollen counts. Weawow offers monthly subscriptions and donations that unlock weather providers. Buienradar names a Premium trial without a price. Ask which alerts you need before paying, because warnings often sit in the free layer while detailed maps and notifications do not.
List the alerts you need and see which tier carries them
Check device limits and family sharing before paying
Confirm whether a trial renews automatically
Weather API and data reuse: Windy, Yr, Buienradar and Meteoblue
A buyer who wants to put forecasts into a product meets licence terms before features. Windy splits its API into Point, Map and Webcams products with yearly prices and free testing keys that return shuffled data. The point product leaves out ECMWF and returns no past forecasts. Yr's MET Weather API is under CC BY 4.0 with no fee, but gives no SLA and limits each application to 20 requests per second.
Buienradar allows its free data for non-commercial use only. Meteoblue lists a Weather APIs section, yet its readable pricing text has no figures. KNMI content is under CC0 with attribution to KNMI. Decide whether you need a service level, history or commercial rights, since each product differs on those three.
Check the licence for commercial and app use
Look for a service level and a request cap
Ask whether historical forecasts are available
Warnings, radar range and local coverage in weather apps
A forecast app is only as useful as its range in the place you live. KNMI shows rain from two hours back to two hours ahead and warnings in three colour codes up to 48 hours in advance. Buienradar returns rain two hours ahead in five-minute updates. DWD WarnWetter covers Germany with warnings per municipality, while Meteo-France lists vigilance alerts plus marine, mountain and forest forecasts.
Foreca offers a 15-day outlook and Yr covers more than 10 million locations worldwide. Official national apps are strongest at home and thinner elsewhere, so pick a national service for warnings and a map vendor such as Ventusky or Windy for model fields. Test your own address before committing to either.
Test the app on your own address and nearby towns
Check how far ahead radar and hourly data run
Confirm that warnings come from the issuing authority
What goes wrong most often when buying weather apps software
Assuming a free app has no limits, when DWD WarnWetter keeps maps and thunderstorm tools behind a one-time purchase.
Building a commercial product on a feed such as Buienradar's free data, which is for non-commercial use only.
Taking a store subscription price from memory when Ventusky and Buienradar show no amount on the pages we read.
Relying on one app for warnings abroad, since national services such as KNMI and DWD focus on their own countries.
07
Frequently asked questions
7 answers
What is the best weather apps in 2026?
CARROT Weather takes first place among the 12 we reviewed. The press kit names Brian Mueller as developer, designer and writer and calls the business a one-man independent studio, the smallest vendor here.
The app is free to install; Premium, Premium Ultra and Premium Family add data sources, notifications and widgets. Rain, lightning and storm cell alerts sit in the Ultra tier, and its super-resolution radar is described for the U.S. only.
Which weather apps tools publish their pricing?
2 out of 12 state a price model on their own site:
CARROT Weather: Free app with three optional subscription tiers, amounts listed in the press kit; 7-day trial.
Windy: Developer API sold as three products, prices published per year; free testing keys.
Everything else on the list is priced on request.
Is there a free weather apps tool?
CARROT Weather, DWD WarnWetter offer a free tier or a free self-hosted edition.
Where are these weather apps vendors established?
Across 9 countries (Europe 5, Elsewhere 5, North America 1, Asia-Pacific 1):
CARROT Weather: Not stated by the vendor.
Weawow: Japan.
Windy: Not stated by the vendor.
Ventusky: Czech Republic.
Foreca: Not stated by the vendor.
Meteoblue: Switzerland.
DWD WarnWetter: Germany.
KNMI: Not stated by the vendor.
Yr: Norway.
Meteo-France: France.
Buienradar: Netherlands.
Weather Channel: United States.
Which weather apps tools are open source?
KNMI.
What should you use instead of CARROT Weather?
Look at Weawow (made for People who want a quiet app without banners, with GPS search and widgets) and Windy (made for Developers and map readers who want model maps, wind layers and a priced API), which hold places two and three.
Who should not buy CARROT Weather?
Anyone who needs an official warning service for one country. Super-resolution radar is described for the U.S. only, so buyers elsewhere get less from the top tier..
This list covers 12 weather apps products. A product we left out can be put to us by its maker, with a short note on its purpose and its customers; we decide on inclusion ourselves. The rules are under software advice.
