15 best weather apps and weather widgets for Android

Weather apps have become indispensable tools in our daily lives, providing us with real-time updates on the ever-changing atmospheric conditions. From planning outdoor activities to making important travel decisions, these applications offer invaluable insights. These days, you can also get some crazy good radars, even if Dark Sky doesn’t exist on Android anymore. In this article, we delve into the world of weather apps, exploring the features, accuracy, and user-friendliness of leading options. Whether you’re a casual user or a weather enthusiast, understanding the nuances of these apps can help you stay prepared and informed in any climate. 

For those who want something a little extra, here is a list of the best weather radars on Android that is entirely separate from this list.

The best weather apps and weather widgets for Android

1Weather: Best for creative widgets 

Price: Free, In-app purchases for $o.oo14 – $0.0093 

1Weather by OneLouder Apps has been around for a long time and is not only one of the most popular weather apps on this list but also one of the highest-rated. It comes with standard features like your daily and hourly forecast, along with access to additional information like humidity, etc. There are also some weather widgets available. The design is crisp and clean. It also comes with Android Wear support, weather tracking for up to 12 cities, and support for 25 languages. All of the features come in the free version with advertising. You can also pay $4 to remove advertising. The only issue we’ve encountered with this app is that the radar occasionally fails to load.

Flowx: Best app for Android

Price: Free, In-App Purchases for $19.99

Flowx is one of the popular weather apps. It typically includes all the features that a general weather app may contain. What sets it apart is that it features over 20 different types of forecast models and 30 distinct data types. And the best part? Flowx is absolutely ad-free, ensuring that you have uninterrupted access to your weather updates. 

Windy.com: Best for detailed weather insights 

Price: Free, In-App Purchases for $3.99-$79.99

Windy.com is an exceptional app providing comprehensive weather forecasts with detailed insights. It offers unique information such as wind gusts, snow depth, wave and tide forecasts, and more. Windy.com presents its weather data in a high-resolution, satellite format, though its interface might not be very intuitive. You can get your hands on some of its exclusive features by acquiring the premium version. However, we recommend trying the free version first.

Geometric Weather: Best for seamless app browsing

Price: Free

Geometric Weather is an excellent weather app, provided you don’t mind installing it from F-Droid. The app includes a 15-day forecast along with hourly forecasts for up to 24 hours. In addition, you get real-time conditions, a dark theme, allergen counts, sun and moon phases, global weather data, and more. You also get a choice between AccuWeather and OpenWeatherMap as your provider. The user interface is clean and easy to use. This was on the Play Store before but was removed for some reason. If it ever comes back, we’ll use the Google Play link instead of the F-Droid link.

Google Search, Discover, etc: Best for a quick weather update

Price: Free

Google Assistant isn’t one of the usual weather apps. But it can show you the weather. You simply ask Google for the forecast. You can ask for the current weather, weather alerts, and more. Just click on the weather card to get additional info on the web. It doesn’t have a lot of the features as these other weather apps, such as weather widgets or a built-in radar. However, it’s excellent for quick checks, quick updates, and severe weather alerts. It’s also entirely free. The app comes pre-installed on most Android devices. If it’s not already installed, you can easily add the web app to your home screen. 

MyRadar Weather Radar: Best for local weather forecasts

Price: Free, In-App Purchases for $3.99-$33.99

MyRadar is a simple app that shows you a weather radar. It offers a full range of features, including the ability to play animations so you can see if the rain is coming or going. The app itself is simple and you can buy additional features as in-app purchases. Some of the additional features include a hurricane tracker and additional radar features. The radar on this one is one of the best we’ve ever seen, and it’s the only one that even comes close to how good Dark Sky was. However, it works best in combination with another weather app so you can get the normal weather features as well.

NOAA Weather: Best for satellite weather imagery

Price: Free, In-App Purchases for $0.99-$9.99

NOAA Weather Unofficial is an app that sources information from the NOAA and National Weather Service. It provides features like the latest weather forecasts, hourly conditions, radar, and more. You can track several cities at once, and there are weather widgets to choose from. The only downside is that the app doesn’t support severe weather alerts. Both free and a paid version are available, but we recommend using the free one first.

Shadow weather: Best for smart weather conditions and notifications

Price: Free, In-App Purchases from $1.99-$12.99

Shadow Weather is among the most accurate weather forecast apps available on both Android and iOS. It offers multiple features such as minute, hourly, and daily forecasts, storm cell tracking, real-time lightning strike tracker, interactive radar, and more. One of the notable features of Shadow Weather is that you can link the app with the calendar on your phone to stay updated about the weather for upcoming events. Overall, it’s a commendable weather app and one of our top picks too. 

Today Weather: Best free app for Android

Price: Free, In-App Purchases for $0.99-$3.99

Today Weather was a pleasant surprise in 2017. It’s a clean, functional, and quick weather app with more than enough features for most people. The app includes the usual features such as weather forecasts, humidity, actual temperature versus perceived temperature, severe weather alerts, weather widgets, and other useful info like air quality index, moon cycles, and sunrise/sunset times. The radar is also one of the most gorgeous that we’ve seen. The app is free to download and use, with optional in-app purchases.

WeatherBug: Best for its radar

Price: Free, Subscription for $1.99/month or $10.99/year

WeatherBug is one of the older weather apps, featuring all of the stuff you’d expect from a weather app. This includes weather forecasts, temperature, radar, weather alerts, and more. Additionally, it also features 18 different weather maps, a lightning alert system, traffic conditions, and more. While there are weather widgets available, they require separate downloads. It’s a highly stable and dependable weather app with more than enough features for most people. The developers consistently keep the user interface at least relatively modernized. The free version is more than good enough for most people.

The Weather Channel: Best allrounder app

Price: Free, In-app purchases ($0.99 – $29.99 per item)

Weather Channel is easily among the most recognizable weather apps out there. Thankfully, it covers all the basics. That includes the current temperature, future forecasts, severe weather alerts, radar, and more. It also includes breaking news, lightning alerts, and pollen alerts. There are a variety of widgets, a separate tablet user interface, and additional stuff. It doesn’t cut any corners. That said, all of these features mean The Weather Channel app is one of the biggest ones on the list and is perfectly functional.

What The Forecast?!!: Best app for quirky weather forecasts

Price: Free, In-app purchases for $0.99 – $19.99

What The Forecast is one of the newer weather apps. You’ve probably seen screenshots of this app somewhere on social media. The app provides you with humorous quips that describe the weather outside. It features over 6600 phrases with an optional setting for profanity. Additionally, the app includes a seven-day forecast, integration with AerisWeather, current temperature, and the real feel, among other features. This is a fun weather app for those who need something basic but also unique. The profanity setting isn’t for everyone, but you probably know that already.

Yahoo Weather: Best for aesthetically pleasing weather forecasts

Price: Free

Yahoo’s weather app is probably their best app. It features a beautiful design, essential weather information, weather alerts, a radar, and more. The app can track up to 20 cities. It shows gorgeous imagery from sources like Flickr. That’s about all it does, though. It gives you the weather basics and looks flashy. That’s good if that’s all you need. However, those needing something more serious may need to look elsewhere. Yahoo Weather is free with no in-app purchases. It does have ads, though.

YoWindow Weather: Best for real-time weather forecast effects

Price: $0.99

YoWindow Weather is one of the more unique weather apps. It’s quite flashy, allowing you to move your finger across the user interface to see the weather at any given point in the day. Additionally, it covers the basics fairly well. While it may not be as powerful as some weather apps, simplicity has its benefits as well. This makes it a great weather app for those who need something simple yet aesthetically pleasing. You can access the app for $0.99, which is a reasonable price for what you’re getting.

Weather Underground: Best for hyper-local weather updates

Price: Free, Subscription for $3.99/month or $19.99/year)

Weather Underground underwent some significant changes when IBM bought the company a while back. It covers the basics well, including the current forecast, a weather radar, the future forecast, and similar features. The app augments the experience by adding things like an air quality metric, sunrise and sunset times, hurricane tracking, and weather news. Additionally, the radar is fairly customizable with plenty of layers. While the price is now a bit higher than it used to be, we understand if it’s too steep for you. However, the free version offers the same features but with ads, so it’s not too big of a deal to go with the free version.

If we missed any great weather apps or weather widgets for Android, tell us about them in the comments.