Top 6 Best Free Weather APIs to Access Global Weather Data (Updated for 2020)

Weather impacts nearly every area of our lives – Weather conditions such as fog, rain, and snow impact commutes to work and travels to places in other parts of the world.

Weather impacts our health as it has a direct effect on the air we breathe (air quality), the water we drink, and the food we eat.

Weather impacts our safety as severe weather such as hurricanes, tornadoes, and floods often cause sudden mass destruction to homes, buildings, and other infrastructure.

Thanks to satellites, radar, remote sensors, and other weather monitoring technologies (such as National Weather Service alerts), we now have a better understanding of weather conditions and phenomena.

What is a Weather API?

Weather APIs are Application Programming Interfaces that allow you to connect to large databases of weather forecast and historical information.

Thanks to APIs and smartphones with built-in GPS, we have access to mobile applications that provide hour-by-hour forecasts, severe weather alerts, and other relevant weather information for just about every place we go.

This blog post highlights several of the best weather APIs developers could use to build innovative web and mobile weather applications. Check out a few scenarios for using a weather API.

What is the best weather API?

After reviewing over 22 weather APIs, we found these 6 APIs to be the very best and worth mentioning:

• OpenWeatherMap API
• Weatherbit API
• AccuWeather API
• Dark Sky API
• Weather2020 API
• ClimaCell API

Top 6 Best Weather APIs for 2020

Our Top Picks for the Best Free Weather APIs

When choosing a weather API, you'll want to make sure it satisfies all your requirements.

Here are a few of our top picks for the best free weather APIs:

1. OpenWeatherMap

The OpenWeatherMap API currently provides a wide variety of weather data including (but not limited to) current weather, forecasts, historical, weather stations, and weather alerts.

The API also provides current and historical air pollution data such as carbon monoxide (CO), ozone (O3), sulfur dioxide (SO2), and nitrogen dioxide (NO2). This feature is currently in beta and air pollution historical information goes back to November 2015.

The API documentation is comprehensive, easy to follow, and includes many examples of API requests and the responses returned. Numerous unofficial OpenWeatherMap API client libraries and wrappers are available on GitHub.

How to get an OpenWeatherMap API Key?

When connecting an API to a project or application, you must have an API key to authenticate your request. Creating an app within RapidAPI generates an API key (X-RapidAPI-Key) specific to that application. You can view analytics based on the API calls you make using this app key.

Learn how to use the weather API in python. Sign up today for free!

Example API Call (jQuery)

var settings = {
  "async": true,
  "crossDomain": true,
  "url": "https://community-open-weather-map.p.rapidapi.com/weather?q=san%20francisco%2Cus",
  "method": "GET",
  "headers": {
    "x-rapidapi-host": "community-open-weather-map.p.rapidapi.com",
    "x-rapidapi-key": "SIGN-UP-FOR-KEY"
  }
}

$.ajax(settings).done(function (response) {
  console.log(response);
});

Take a look of our detailed OpenWeatherMap vs Dark Sky API Comparison here.

Popularity Score: 9.7/10

---

Best ForWeather Forecast

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2. Weatherbit

The Weatherbit API provides basic access to the Weatherbit.io Weather API. With just latitude and longitude coordinates, you can get weather forecast data returned in JSON format.

The API has 5 endpoints:

• Current Weather Data
• 5 Day Forecast
• Severe Weather Alerts
• 48 Hour Forecast
• 16 Day Forecast

The Weatherbit weather API, while not completely free, does offer a freemium basic plan that allows developers 150 requests/day.

View the pricing page for more details.

Example API Call (Node.js)

var http = require("https");

var options = {
	"method": "GET",
	"hostname": "weatherbit-v1-mashape.p.rapidapi.com",
	"port": null,
	"path": "/current?lang=en&lon=37.7749&lat=122.4194",
	"headers": {
		"x-rapidapi-host": "weatherbit-v1-mashape.p.rapidapi.com",
		"x-rapidapi-key": "SIGN-UP-FOR-KEY"
	}
};

var req = http.request(options, function (res) {
	var chunks = [];

	res.on("data", function (chunk) {
		chunks.push(chunk);
	});

	res.on("end", function () {
		var body = Buffer.concat(chunks);
		console.log(body.toString());
	});
});

req.end();

Popularity Score: 9.1/10

---

Best For Weather Forecast & Alerts

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3. AccuWeather

AccuWeather currently provides a set of nine weather APIs which includes:

• Forecast API
• Current Conditions API
• Alerts API
• Imagery API

The AccuWeather API delivers detailed current, historical, and forecasted weather information for locations all over the world. Developers could build a wide range of innovative and engaging weather data-powered applications using AccuWeather.

There is even an Indices API that provides flight delays, mosquito activity, stargazing, and dozens of other daily index values for a specific location. The API documentation is nicely designed, comprehensive, and includes interactive documentation to try out API endpoints and see the responses (using the weather API key).

The free trial and paid plans include current conditions, 24-hour historical current conditions, forecasts, and indices.

AccuWeather API Pricing

Limited Trial		Standard		Prime		Elite
Locations		Locations		Locations		Locations
Current Conditions		Current Conditions		Current Conditions		Current Conditions
24-Hour Historical Current Conditions		24-Hour Historical Current Conditions		24-Hour Historical Current Conditions		24-Hour Historical Current Conditions
Forecast 5-day		Forecast 5-day		Forecast 10-day		Forecast 15-day
Forecast 12-hour		Forecast 12-hour		Forecast 72-hour		Forecast 120-hour
Indices 5-day		Indices 5-day		Indices 10-day		Indices 15-day
		Alarms 5-day		Alarms 10-day		Alarms 15-day
		Translations		Translations		Translations
				Tropical		Tropical
				Alerts		Alerts
				Imagery		Imagery
		Standard Pricing		Prime Pricing		Elite Pricing
50 calls/day Limit: 1 key/developer Free: Get started now!		Base Monthly Fee	CPM Rate	Base Monthly Fee	CPM Rate	Base Monthly Fee	CPM Rate
$25.00 per month	$0.12 CPM over 225,000 calls per month	$250.00 per month	$0.15 CPM over 1,800,000 calls per month	$500.00 per month	$0.22 CPM over 2,400,000 calls per month

The paid packages vary when it comes to the forecast in days/hours as well as indices, alerts, imagery, and other advanced weather features. An enterprise solution is available which provides historical weather data going back 60 years.

Example API Call (Python)

import http.client

conn = http.client.HTTPSConnection("accuweatherstefan-skliarovv1.p.rapidapi.com")

payload = ""

headers = {
    'x-rapidapi-host': "AccuWeatherstefan-skliarovV1.p.rapidapi.com",
    'x-rapidapi-key': "SIGN-UP-FOR-KEY",
    'content-type': "application/x-www-form-urlencoded"
    }

conn.request("POST", "/get24HoursConditionsByLocationKey", payload, headers)

res = conn.getresponse()
data = res.read()

print(data.decode("utf-8"))

Popularity Score: 8.3/10

---

Best For Weather Conditions, Images, Cyclones & More

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4. Dark Sky

Note: Dark Sky API is being deprecated, check alternatives here.

The Dark Sky app is one of the most accurate sources of hyperlocal weather information. The Dark Sky API (formerly Forecast.io) allows developers to access Dark Sky's weather data through the API (and was recently mentioned as one of the best weather APIs on reddit). The API provides:

• Current weather conditions
• Minute-by-minute forecasts out to one hour
• Hour-by-hour and day-by-day forecasts out to seven days
• Hour-by-hour and day-by-day observations going back decades
• Severe weather alerts in the US, Canada, European Union member nations, and Israel

Developers have two basic API requests to choose from, Forecast and Time Machine. The Forecast Request returns the current weather forecast for the next week, and the Time Machine Request returns weather conditions (observed or forecast) for a given date (past or future).

In some locations, historical weather data goes back 100 years. The API doesn’t come with any weather icons so that developers can use third-party icons or their own custom icons.

The one-page documentation is detailed, easy to follow, and includes several example requests in JSON. Developers can also find many unofficial Dark Sky API wrapper libraries on GitHub.

DarkSky API Pricing

The API pricing is very simple; the first 1,000 API calls per day are free. After that, calls are $0.0001 each. Enterprise volume discount pricing is also available at this time.

How to use the Dark Sky API with Node.js (JavaScript)

Example API Call (Java)

OkHttpClient client = new OkHttpClient();

Request request = new Request.Builder()
  .url("https://dark-sky.p.rapidapi.com/37.774929,-122.419418?lang=en&units=auto")
  .get()
  .addHeader("x-rapidapi-host", "dark-sky.p.rapidapi.com")
  .addHeader("x-rapidapi-key", "SIGN-UP-FOR-KEY")
  .build();

Response response = client.newCall(request).execute();

Popularity Score: 8.5/10

---

Best For Forecast & Historical Data

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5. Weather2020

The Weather2020 API is the most popular long-range weather forecast API that provides forecasts up to 12 weeks by:

• Latitude & Longitude
• Zip Code
• City & State

Used by popular mobile apps like 1Weather, and already serving over 10 million forecasts a day, the Weather2020 long range weather forecasts give you something new and unique for your weather, travel or outdoor applications.

The Weather2020 Basic freemium plan provides 1000 free API requests/day. View all pricing plans for more info.

Example API Call (C#)

var client = new RestClient("https://weather2020-weather-v1.p.rapidapi.com/zip/e8ecee8ff60c478f8a36280fea0524fe/94105");
var request = new RestRequest(Method.GET);
request.AddHeader("x-rapidapi-host", "weather2020-weather-v1.p.rapidapi.com");
request.AddHeader("x-rapidapi-key", "SIGN-UP-FOR-KEY");
IRestResponse response = client.Execute(request);

Popularity Score: 6.1/10

---

Best For Long Range Weather Forecast

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6. ClimaCell

ClimaCell has a popular weather API powered by its MicroWeather technology.

Optimized for low latency, high accuracy, and integration with our MicroWeather Operating System tools. Weather data optimized to solve complex business problems.

Use this API to:

• Get the right information
• Generate invaluable insights
• and drive actions

- in just a few lines of code.

Example API Call (Node.js)

var unirest = require("unirest");

var req = unirest("GET", "https://climacell-microweather-v1.p.rapidapi.com/weather/nowcast");

req.query({
  "fields": "precipitation",
  "unit_system": "si",
  "lat": "42.8237618",
  "lon": "-71.2216286"
});

req.headers({
  "x-rapidapi-host": "climacell-microweather-v1.p.rapidapi.com",
  "x-rapidapi-key": "SIGN-UP-FOR-KEY"
});


req.end(function (res) {
  if (res.error) throw new Error(res.error);

  console.log(res.body);
});

 

Popularity Score: 6.8/10

---

Best For Realtime, Short Term & Hourly Forecasts

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Which Weather API is the Best One for Your App?

While much of the weather data provided by these APIs are similar, there are differences in the days and time formats for weather forecasts, the number of years back for historical data, and the types of weather information provided.

While the weather APIs listed in this article have many capabilities, it might be worth combining or chaining these API requests with related geolocation APIs to get more accurate local weather conditions in your website or iOs/Android mobile app.

Free Weather APIs

All of the weather APIs highlighted in this post have a free or limited free plan (freemium) available so that developers can try them out, which is the best way to see which weather API is the best one for your application.

Weather API SDKs

All Weather APIs on RapidAPI are available in:

• NodeJS
• PHP
• Python
• Ruby
• Objective-C
• Java (Android)
• C# (.NET)
• cURL
• go
• Elixir
• Javascript

and produce JSON (and sometimes XML) responses. Learn more about RapidAPI SDKs.

Additional Info

FAQ

How to use Weather APIs

To get started with these Weather APIs, first sign up for a free account on RapidAPI.

Then navigate to any of the APIs and test out the endpoints in the programming language of your preference.

For getting started, check out this quick guide.

How to use the Yahoo Weather API

1. Navigate to the Yahoo Weather API page on RapidAPI
2. Sign up for a free RapidAPI account
3. Test the Endpoint
4. Integrate the API using the RapidAPI Request Snippets associated with your account

How to use Weather APIs in a website

There are multiple possibilities on how to integrate weather API data into your website.

A couple of examples include:

• showing the current weather for a specific region
• showing the weather forecast for a specific region
• create charts based on different weather metadata

The possibilities are endless!

Are there any Weather APIs that provide UV Index?

For APIs that provide UV Index, check out OpenUV.

The OpenUV API provides UV index data in real time (even hourly). This API requires an API key from the provider.

The UV Index provides a 14 day UV index forecast from cities all over the world.

The UV Index API is free up to 20 requests/month and then costs $0.04 per additional request.

How to get an API Key for Weather Underground?

Unfortunately, the Weather Underground API is no longer active. The Weather Underground API was a popular weather API, but as of 12/31/2018, the API is completely grounded.

Luckily, there are many Weather APIs available as an alternative to Weather Underground on RapidAPI. Check out the top weather APIs here.

How do I get an API Key?

If you want to begin using any of these APIs, you can head on over to RapidAPI and sign up for a free user account. With each account, you’ll be issued an API key to access all the APIs you subscribe to.

How do I find my AccuWeather API key?

1. Click “My Apps” in the main menu.
2. Click the “Add a new App” button.
3. Enter the required information and click the “Create App” button.
4. The new App will be active immediately. Click on the App name to view your API Key and details about your App.
5. Copy your API Key and paste it in the “API Key” section of the RapidAPI AccuWeather API Page.
6. Click “Test Endpoint” to test the endpoints right in your browser!

For more RapidAPI FAQ, click here.

Let's hear from you

What do you think is the best weather API? Which APIs are we missing? When you google weather APIs, what do you expect to see? Which weather company do you want to see release an API? Let us know in the comments below.

How to use a Weather API?

1. Find a Weather API

First, you'll need to pick an API. There are many weather APIs listed in this article that you could try.

2. Sign Up for a RapidAPI Account

After you've found the weather API that you'd like to integrate with, sign up for a RapidAPI. Why not? It's free.

3. Subscribe to a Plan

Once you have an account, navigate to the API page of your weather API and subscribe to one of the API's pricing plans. Hint: There's usually a free tier that allows for a few API calls.

4. Test the Endpoints

After subscribing, choose one of the API endpoints, enter all the required parameters, and the test the API right in the browser to make sure it's working correctly.

5. Copy the Code Snippet

Finally, choose the coding language of your preference, and click "Copy Code Snippet". Drop the code snippet directly in your website or app, and voila! You've successfully integrated with a weather API!

OpenWeatherMap vs Weatherbit vs AccuWeather vs Dark Sky vs Weather2020 vs ClimaCell

Complete List of the Best Weather APIs

• Tides - Global Tides API provides tidal heights predictions at any location of the World Ocean.
• AccuWeather - AccuWeather provides hourly and Minute by Minute™ forecasts with Superior Accuracy™.
• AerisWeather - An advanced weather API to power all of your business needs, from the basic to the most complex weather influenced solutions.
• Air Quality - Retrieve current, forecasted, and historical air quality for any point in the world.
• AirVisual - The world’s smartest air quality monitor helping you track, foresee, and take action against invisible threats in the air.
• Breezometer - Connect to the Breezometer Air Quality API to get global, local, real-time data on air quality. Test an API call and export the code snippet into your app.
• ClimaCell - The ClimaCell REST API provides access to high-quality weather data obtained using innovative techniques like microwave technology that make it quite accurate.
• Dark Sky - The easiest, most advanced, weather API on the web.
• Open Weather Map - Get weather and weather forecasts for multiple cities.
• OpenUV - Global Real-Time UV Index Forecast - The OpenUV Global UV Index Forecast API in JSON format provides Ultraviolet Radiation index data in real time. With the API, developers can build wearable apps, bots, and smart home assistants, based on data provided by The Royal Netherlands Meteorological Institute (KNMI), The National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research (NIWA) of New Zealand, Ozone data from OMI datasets, AURA Satellite, and NASA. It includes JSON responses and API Key.
• Simple Weather - Simple tool for get current weather
• Solcast - The Solcast API is a solar radiation and solar energy forecasting data service that is designed to be easy to use and to integrate with other systems that are looking for live solar radiation and solar PV energy output data.
• Storm Glass - The Storm Glass API gives developers access to global marine weather data from multiple sources using a single REST API. The API returns marine weather forecasts for the next 7 days in hourly resolution. Forecasts include swell height, swell direction, swell period, wave height, wave direction, wave period, wind speed, wind direction, and air temperature.
• Sunrise and Sunset - Get the sunrise and sunset information of a location by city, lat long or ip address.
• SurviveWeather - All rounded weather API.
• US Weather by Zip Code - Provides current weather information for US cities by zip code
• Weather - Current weather data API, and Weather forecast API - Basic access to the Weatherbit.io Weather API.
• Weather - Weather2020 is the most popular long range weather forecast API available! Used by popular mobile apps like 1Weather, and already serving over 10 million forecasts a day, the Weather2020 long range weather forecasts give you something new and unique for your weather, travel or outdoor applications. Created by famed meteorologist Gary Lezak, our forecasts are powered by the most accurate long range weather model known as the LRC. For the first time ever, give your users a reliable and accurate long range weather forecast!
• Weather by Location - Weather by location allows you to get weather information by ip, zipcode, lat lon coordinates. You can find weather information such as weather condition, current temperature, max temperature, min temperature, pressure, distance above sea level, humidity, wind speed & degree.
• Weather Channel API
• National Weather Service API - National Weather Service API (api.weather.gov) NOAA (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration) provides national weather data as well as past data.
• Weather Underground API - Get access to the world's most accurate, precise and trusted weather data

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