The Best Weather Apps To Switch To Now That Apple Owns Dark Sky

The Best Weather Apps To Switch To Now That Apple Owns Dark Sky

Last week, Apple acquired the popular weather-forecasting app Dark Sky, which means the end of Dark Sky on Android and an uncertain future for Dark Sky on iOS. (The app is expected to live on for now.)

Android users will definitely need to switch weather apps, and iPhone users might want to switch, too. Here are the best alternatives to Dark Sky on both platforms.


Appy Weather

We like the clean, card-based interface of Appy Weather, and the way it lets you search for your home location if you don’t want to give it location permissions. Apply Weather also presents information in a variety of ways—you can view daily forecasts as a long list or as a bar chart, for example, letting you see how temperatures are going to change over time.

The timeline view that appears when you first open Appy Weather is the best part about the app, because it shows you what the weather conditions are right now, how they’re going to change later on, and what time the sun sets. It’s the perfect at-a-glance overview of the weather for the day. Unfortunately, there’s no iOS version of Appy Weather.


Weather Underground

One of the oldest names in the forecasting business, Weather Underground remains one of the apps that other weather apps have to beat. It presents you with an absolute stack of information to work through, from charts to maps to dials. This isn’t necessarily the weather app to go for if you just need a quick glance at conditions for the next few hours.

Dark Sky fans will love the real-time maps of precipitation and temperature, while jumping between your saved locations and various parts of the app is straightforward. If you need even more data, the app includes links to weather reports, news stories, and videos from the Weather Underground network.


Geometric Weather

Another weather app that’s currently Android-only, Geometric Weather is all about the interface: You get an elegant succession of cards telling you what’s happening with the weather now and in the days to come, as well as a dynamic backdrop that illustrates the conditions in your chosen area (you can use this as an Android wallpaper, if you want).

Some of the most useful features inside the app include notifications for imminent precipitation and daily forecasts, an automatic dark mode, and a selection of well-designed widgets. It may not have the breadth of information as some of the other apps in this list, but you won’t find many that present the weather so beautifully.


Carrot Weather 

One of a growing number of apps-with-attitude in the Carrot collection, Carrot Weather presents its data in a more humorous and snarky tone than its rivals. If you enjoy a weather app that nags you to put sunscreen on or that makes references to needing a life raft during a heavy downpour, then Carrot Weather might just be the one for you.

In terms of actual weather data and customisation options, Carrot Weather sticks to the basics, but that’s enough for most people. The included blocky images that change as the seasons do are good value as well, and make the app a little bit more entertaining. Check out the secret locations game built into the app for some more weather-related fun.


Overdrop

It’s the look and feel of Overdrop that’s most impressive—the weather forecast is presented in a clean, clear way, with good use of text and images and a custom graphic showing the current conditions in your chosen area. If you’re using the app on an Android device, then there’s a decent selection of widgets you can play around with as well.

Despite the straightforward interface, you still get plenty of information from Overdrop, including temperature, pressure, the UV index, cloud cover, and humidity. The app offers a choice of well-designed themes to pick from, and you can set up forecast notificationsas well as put a persistent weather update in the notification area.


AccuWeather

Undoubtedly one of the big hitters when it comes to weather apps—several other apps use forecast data provided by AccuWeather—this app covers everything from radar maps to weather news reports, and has just about everything you could need. Like Dark Sky, AccuWeather is particularly good at showing you hyper-local forecasts throughout the day.

We like the weather summary that appears on the main screen of the app, giving you a quick and simple overview of what to expect for the next few days, and the alerts that tell you when you’re going to need an umbrella or a jacket. This is also an app that makes it easy to dig deeper into the forecast data when required, for a closer look at what’s coming.


Flowx

If it’s the mapping data in particular that drew you to Dark Sky, then Flowx is an excellent alternative on Android (an iOS version is in the works). You can sift through a huge range of visualisations and weather data—some 30 data types and 18 forecast models are included—so it’s a solid option if you really want to dig deep on weather conditions.

This app is designed to appeal to weather geeks who can’t get enough info, from maps to readings to graphs. With a simple swipe left or right on the main map you can see how data such as precipitation, temperature and wind speed is changing and might change over time, and you can stack various map layers on top of each other too.


1Weather

Another app that’s absolutely packed with weather data, from hour-by-hour breakdowns of the likelihood of rain, to 25 different layers of satellite data, 1Weather is undoubtedly one of the most comprehensive weather apps around. At the same time, it’s also good at presenting a simple overview of the forecast if you just want to get a quick update.

In addition to the usual data you expect from a weather app, you can also get detailed information about sunrise and sunset times, moon phases, wind speed, cloud coverage, and more. Our favourite part of the 1Weather app has to be the Radar tab, though, which can display the short-term weather forecast in an animated form that’s reminiscent of Dark Sky.


Today Weather

Today Weather combines an appealing and intuitive interface, reams of data, and some useful customisation options into one cohesive whole. However you like to see the weather visualized, whether it’s a chart, a map, a table or a single image, Today Weather has you fully covered—and there’s a neat little forecast sharing button included too.

You can get information on humidity, the UV index, visibility, air quality, pressure, and dew point from the app, as well as all the standard weather data points you would expect. If you’re on Android, there’s a good selection of widgets, too. The app lets you pick from a range of data sources, and also set up custom weather notifications.


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