Staying informed about the weather keeps you prepared for your day and can even serve as a good conversation starter for small talk with strangers. Checking the weather on your phone makes it easier than ever.
While your iPhone includes the built-in Weather app, sometimes it doesn’t offer enough detailed data. If you want something more, there are a ton of options on the App Store. These are the best iOS weather apps we’ve found.
1. The Weather Channel
When it comes to weather, it’s hard to beat The Weather Channel.
The Weather Channel app for iPhone greets you with a simple interface that still manages to pack in a ton of detailed information. You’ll get the daily, hourly, and even a 15-day forecast, along with wind speed, humidity, and UV index information. The app also informs you of any weather-related road conditions in the area. It rounds out with news stories and videos about local and national storms, or scientific discoveries relating to weather and nature.
Think of The Weather Channel app as your go-to for all your weather needs, including related news. It’s free to download, with occasional ads. You can remove these ads through a $ 4 in-app purchase.
Download: The Weather Channel (Free)
2. Weather Radar
For those seeking even more detailed weather forecasts and radar maps, MyRadar is worth a download.
MyRadar is fast and super easy-to-use for anyone. It opens up to a full HD map that displays live radar of the weather in your general vicinity. In addition to the weather maps, you get an hourly and five-day forecast as well, with precipitation graphs, humidity, dew point, and visibility details.
All the data in MyRadar comes from raw NOAA weather radar data, which in turn comes from the National Weather Service (NWS). Thus, you know that the data reflected in MyRadar is as accurate as it comes.
The main download of MyRadar is free with occasional ads, and comes with all the basics you need. However, you can remove ads with a $ 3 in-app purchase. Other premium features, such as Hurricane Tracking, are available through in-app purchases.
Download: MyRadar Weather Radar (Free, in-app purchases available)
3. Dark Sky
When you want minute-by-minute weather forecasts, Dark Sky is your best bet.
Dark Sky has been around for some time, and has become a favorite among many weather nerds. It provides down-to-the-minute weather reports for your precise location, and even gives you weather predictions for the next hour. This is especially useful if there is rain or snow.
You can review the hourly forecast for the next 24 hours, as well as a seven-day forecast so you’ll stay informed of the upcoming week. The global maps in Dark Sky can show you precipitation or temperature through beautiful color-coded legends.
If you like, enable Weather Notifications for next-hour precipitation, daily summaries, severe weather alerts, and umbrella or sunscreen reminders. There’s also an option to create a custom notification for whatever conditions you want to know, so you’ll never be caught off guard.
Dark Sky is a paid app, but you don’t have to worry about subscriptions or any features locked behind an in-app purchase.
Download: Dark Sky ($ 4)
4. CARROT Weather
If you want an informative weather app with a mix of sarcasm, snark, and wit, then you should check out CARROT Weather.
CARROT features a gorgeous interface that still displays all the information that matters. You’ll find your current temperature, what it feels like, precipitation chance, wind direction and speed, plus an hourly and 7-day forecast.
The feature that sets CARROT apart from others is that you’re greeted with a snarky computer AI (named CARROT) every time you launch the app. She’s full of personality and will give you a random quip on launch, providing you with witty takes on current events or news in the tech industry.
CARROT Weather proves that weather apps don’t need to be boring. While CARROT Weather costs $ 5, it also offers is “The Premium Club.” This is a subscription that includes features like notifications, customization, alternative weather data sources, and background Apple Watch updates. The Premium Club costs $ 4 a year or $ 0.49 monthly.
If you like the idea of CARROT Weather, we’ve covered other entertaining weather apps too.
Download: CARROT Weather ($ 4)
5. Yahoo Weather
Yahoo Weather brings the weather to life with a stunning interface that focuses on actual photographs from where you are.
With Yahoo Weather, you get accurate hourly, five-day, and 10-day forecasts that will keep you prepared no matter what the weather brings. All the weather information is displayed as an overlay on top of a Flickr photograph of your location, which reflects the current weather conditions as well.
So if it’s raining right now, the photograph will display rain. This helps you visualize how it looks outside, making it feel more personalized.
True weather geeks can customize Yahoo Weather to display as much or as little information as you want. There’s the option to show live radar maps, precipitation information, sun and wind, and much more.
Download: Yahoo Weather (Free)
6. Weather Up
Weather Up is the revamped version of Weather Atlas. It’s great for those who want to personalize their weather data.
With Weather Up, you’re able to save multiple locations and give them a custom name and icon, making it easier to recognize your favorites. Hourly and 10-day forecasts keep you up-t0-date for the entire week. Weather Up also focuses on beautiful live weather maps that are easy to read and show you just how the weather looks at any time.
If you opt for a Weather Up Pro subscription, you’ll get even more useful features, including the Event Forecast. With this, you’ll be able to get the forecast for any upcoming events in your calendar, so you’ll know how to dress ahead of time. This feature alone makes the Pro subscription worth it, especially if you have a lot of outdoor events. Pro costs $ 2 monthly or $ 10 a year.
Download: Weather Up (Free, subscription available)
7. Weather Line
For those who want a simple and clean weather app that’s just as informative, Weather Line the way to go.
Weather Line is a weather app made specifically for quick glances throughout the day. You’re able to swipe through multiple saved location; each locale displays a line graph for the hourly, daily, and even monthly forecast. You’ll also get data such as humidity, precipitation, dew point, wind, UV index, and more. If it’s raining, there’s a graph that shows you how heavy the rainfall is for the next hour.
A feature that makes Weather Line stand out from the competition is that it keeps monthly averages, which helps make travel planning easier. All data in Weather Line comes from NOAA and Forecast.io, so it’s fairly accurate and precise.
Weather Line is another premium app, but it has no subscriptions or in-app purchases.
Download: Weather Line ($ 3)
Our Favorite Weather Apps for iPhone
You have are many options for getting the weather on your iPhone, but our personal favorites are Dark Sky and CARROT Weather. Dark Sky gives incredibly detailed up-to-the-minute forecast information, and CARROT has a beautiful interface and a ton of personality.
If these didn’t do it for you, we’ve also covered other great weather apps that are fun to check daily.
Read the full article: 7 Best Weather Apps for iPhone
