21 Weather Apps to Help Anyone Survive Boston (or Anywhere)
Bostonians complain about nothing more than they do the weather (okay, and traffic). One minute rain is pouring down sideways, then it is 70 and sunny, and the next day there’s two feet of snow.
Luckily, there are apps out there to help Bostonians of all personalities gain some control over their weather preparation.
The Nerd
For those who want to dominate office and elivator small talk, Weathertron provides all the information you could ever need to know about weather forecasts. The app, which uses 16 different sources to aggregate weather data, also includes a “narrative summary’’ of a seven-day forecast. Dazzle your acquaintances at the watercooler with a visual rundown of the atmosphere outside: clouds, snow,rain and temperature all on the same screen.
$1.99. iOS 6.0 or later.
The Populist
The populist is not into mainstream weather notifications, such as those from news outlets. The app Weather Underground is the independent alternative outlet for weather. It relies upon a network of more than 30,000 personal and amateur weather stations to deliver hyperlocal weather forecasting.
Free. iOS 7.0 or later. 4.0 and up
The Worrywart
The worrywart thinks every storm could be disastrous and always wants to be prepared. Nixle understands. A one-stop app for all alerts, Nixle pushes the latest advisories from more than 5,000 public safety agencies, including local police and fire departments.
Free. iOS 8.0 or later.
The Person With a Second Home in Florida
Or maybe you are the person whose parents have retired in Florida. Either way, hurricane season is important to you. Hurricane from the American Red Cross gives useful hurricane weather updates localized to your area, but its coolest features focus on safety procedures during the storm. It even lets you notify family that you are safe when the power is out.
Free. iOS 7.0 or later. 2.3 and up
The No-Nonsense Guy
No frills. No crazy graphs. No sleek design or fancy features. Just weather—and the weather right now. Yahoo’s weather app is simple to use, showing the images of your location with matching time of day and weather conditions, with the option to view detailed 5-day forecasts. The app also offers an interactive radar, heat and satellite maps.
Free. iOS 7.0 or later. 2.3 and up
The Person Who Always Forgets an Umbrella
We all have that friend who tries to huddle under your one-person umbrella, leaving you both half wet and fully unhappy. Don’t be that friend. The Minutely app can tell you the exact minute it will start raining in your location so you’ll know when to find shelter. It’s a bit more accurate than Karen’s rain predictions from Mean Girls.
Free. iOS 6.0 or later. 2.3 and up
The Storm Seeker
For those who get their kicks from dancing in the middle of a thunderstorm or chasing those possible tornadoes. Dark Sky provides precise times to expect rain or snow up to an hour in advance. No storm in your area? Use the radar maps of the globe to dream of REAL weather.
$3.99. iOS 7.0 or later.
The Sun Soaker
The sun soaker lives to catch rays whether it is summer or a balmy day in February. The soaker may even have a sun lamp by his desk in the winter because snow is that depressing. Sun Seeker 3D is your perfect tool for seeking sun, providing a flat view compass and an augmented reality camera showing the solar path, its hour intervals, its winter and summer solstice paths, and its rise and set times. Bronze on, baby, bronze on.
$6.99. iOS 6.0 or later. 2.3.3 and up
The MBTA Commuter
Rain or shine, the commuter is using public transportation to get to and from work—wearing polka dot rain boots with her dress pants haphazardly tucked in, designer heels in her oversized bag. Embark Boston T gives T Alerts that are especially helpful during woeful winters, like when the T is running late or new advisories and closures.
Alerts are available even when cell service is not.
Free. iOS 5.0 or later.
The Expressway Driver
Some of the worst human beings of humanity can be found during the rush hour commute, especially during any kind of storm. Don’t be that guy pulled over to side of the road because of monsoon rain conditions. If you had SigAlert, an app that constantly updates traffic reports and gives detailed road condition alerts, you would have known to leave for work an hour earlier.
Free. 4.3 or later. 2.0 and up
The Comedian
Bostonians are known for their frequent use of, let’s say, colorful language, so why shouldn’t your weather notifications also follow suit? The Effing Weather App provides brutally honest weather informationthat accurately conveys how you are most definitely feeling about the impending weather. You can also edit preferences to say “effing’’ or to use the actual f-bomb.
Free. iOS 5.0 or later.
The Animal Lover
When it’s raining cats and dogs, check in with the Weather Puppy or Weather Kitty apps. These apps not only update you on forecasts but also assign a puppy or a cat with each change in the weather. For the Weather Puppy app there are over 600 dog variations. In Weather Kitty, you might even be lucky enough to get an appearance from Grumpy Cat.
Free. iOS 6.0 or later. 4.0 and up
The Spirited Daytripper
Do average weather reports bore you to tears? Then Swackett may be just the app for you. Swackett makes weather fun by incorporating cartoons called “peeps.’’ The peeps are dressed to fit the day’s forecast to help you know if you should wear galoshes or pack some mukluks. There are also a few celebrities who have been created as peeps like Benedict Cumberpeep and Ellen DePeeperes.
Free. iOS 7.0 or later. 2.2 and up
The Ski Bum
The skier is one of few who actually smiles when snow is in the forecast. The app Ski and Snow Report provides snow information for over 2,000 ski resorts around the world. The app can be customized to send alerts if three or more inches fall at your favorite mountains. It integrates with Facebook and Twitter if you want to recruit ski buddies.
Free. iOS 5.0.1 or later.
The Casual Angler
For the casual fisher, fishing is more about the experience than the sport itself. Relaxing on a boat, drinking a beer, listening to the water and enjoying a beautiful day with nature. Catch a fish, don’t catch a fish. The only thing you really need to know is the best time to go. The app Tides Near Me sends alerts from nearby tide stations about current conditions. Spend less time looking up high tide and more time catching yourself some dinner.
Free. iOS 4.3 or later. 2.2 and up
The Professional Fisherman
The professional fisher needs to know more than just tidal information. They need to know sun and moon phases, and about the fish in their location at each time of year. Fishing Times Lite tells you the best time down to the hour to go fishing in your area based on these factors. A reel expert can tackle anything, but let Fishing Times Lite tackle planning your day.
Free. iOS 6.0 or later.
The Hunter
Get one up on nature and get this app to tell you when it’s prime time for hunting. The Best Hunting Times app calculates major feeding hours and animates solar and lunar locations. There’s also a handy compass.
$2.99. iOS 6.0 or later.
The World Traveler
Life is hard. Treat yourself to a vacation in a beautiful faraway place. But before you buy your plane ticket, download Seasonal Cities. The app does not give you day to day weather updates, but it does show seasonal weather climates for travel locations—and the fun things to do during those seasons.
Free. iOS 7.0 or later.
The Artist
For those out there who spend hours exploring Google Sky and refer to weather as “art,’’ Living Earth is the app for you. This app is a 3D simulation of current weather conditions in the world. You can spin the Earth graphic around and zoom in to different locations. Watch a real-time cyclone form over the pacific ocean. Watch live sunsets or sunrises on different sides of the planet. It’s like being Sandra Bullock’s character in “Gravity,’’ except without the trapped in space part.
$2.99. iOS 7.0 or later.
The Designer
The designer is not just looking for weather updates. He is looking for weather updates with sleek widgets and thought out design elements, like you find in1Weather. It’s aesthetically pleasing weather which makes the fact that it is raining and 42 degrees—again—slightly more bearable.
Free. iOS 7.0 or later. Varies with android.
The Werewolf
For the werewolves among us, the MOON app is ideal for keeping on schedule with the lunar cycle. There are notification warnings and countdowns to upcoming New and Full Moons with beautiful visuals. Never be left in the dark again.
Free. iOS 7.0 or later.
To comment, please create a screen name in your profile
To comment, please verify your email address
Conversation
This discussion has ended. Please join elsewhere on Boston.com