Why Weather vs OpenWindow
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Why Weather
This app goes beyond basic forecasts to explain the science and uncertainty behind weather. It features an AI meteorologist named Sky that answers your weather questions and provides daily narrative summaries of upcoming conditions. It highlights discrepancies between forecasts and real-time observations.
- AI meteorologist for answering weather questions
- Daily narrative weather stories
- Forecast uncertainty and disagreement flagging
- Ground truth badge for real-time observation discrepancies
- Animated radar and nowcast
- Morning weather story notifications
- Severe weather alerts
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Other weather apps give you the play-by-play. Why Weather adds the color commentary. Meet Sky, your AI weather guide. Sky pulls the models, the radar, and the forecaster's own notes into one weather story—and explains the why. Ask anything about your forecast, in plain words. FORECAST IN FLUX When forecasters flag doubt or the models split, you'll know—and see why. See how the model runs divide, and what the forecasters are saying. RADAR READ (PREMIUM) Sky watches the live radar and tells you what's actually happening: rain on its way, rain passing you by, or nothing close at all. It cross-checks nearby weather stations, and says so when the forecast and the radar disagree. ADAPTIVE GLANCE Quiet skies keep the forecast front and center. When something's brewing, the map eases up. When it's serious, the radar takes the lead. RAIN ON YOUR LOCK SCREEN (PREMIUM) Live Activities on your lock screen and in the Dynamic Island show what the rain is doing over the next hour. WIDGETS Home and lock screen widgets, with a daily headline from Sky. SKY ALMANAC (PREMIUM) How this week stacks up against 30 years of history—and the climate story behind it. THE AIR TODAY (PREMIUM) Humidity and pressure, translated. Sky turns the air's numbers into how your day will actually feel. ALSO INSIDE • Your weather story every morning • Radar, plus wind and temperature maps (Premium) • The next 24 hours and the days ahead, with how the week compares to normal • Severe weather alerts (US) and a heads-up before rain starts • Choose your source: NOAA, Foreca, Apple WeatherKit and more (Premium) FREE AND PREMIUM Why Weather is free to download, with 3 questions to Sky a day. Premium adds unlimited Sky, Radar Read, Live Activities, the Sky Almanac, The air today, wind and temperature maps, future radar, the full 10 days, and every forecast source. Available as a monthly or yearly subscription. Terms of Use (EULA): https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/
OpenWindow
This app provides clear, practical recommendations on whether to open your windows or go outside. It combines local weather and air-quality data into simple guidance for everyday decisions.
- Window and outdoor activity recommendations
- Hourly weather and air quality outlooks
- Local and manual location search
- Saved default location
- Unit preferences
- Light and dark mode
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OpenWindow helps you decide when the air outside is worth letting in. Check whether it is a good time to open your windows or go outside using local weather and air-quality conditions. OpenWindow combines temperature, humidity, precipitation, wind, visibility, UV, and air-quality data into clear, practical recommendations. Instead of making you interpret every weather metric yourself, OpenWindow gives you simple guidance for two everyday questions: - Is it a good time to open the windows? - Is it a good time to go outside? Features: - Current recommendations for windows and outdoor activity - Hourly outlooks so you can plan around better conditions - Weather and air-quality data powered by Open-Meteo - Current-location lookup with optional location permission - Manual location search if you prefer not to use device location - Saved default location for quick checks - Unit preferences for temperature, wind, visibility, and more - Light and dark mode support - No account required OpenWindow is built for quick, low-friction decisions: checking the room before opening a window, planning a walk, timing errands, or seeing whether air quality makes staying inside the better call. Location access is optional and used only to fetch local weather and air-quality data. You can always search for a location manually instead.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is in-app purchases: OpenWindow at none against Why Weather's 2. Why Weather's advantage is ratings volume (3 vs 1) and iOS requirement (15.0 vs 26.0). On price, rating, update cadence and ads there is nothing between them.
Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS
Both are free to download. Why Weather sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $4.99 per month. OpenWindow asks for nothing beyond the download.
On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 5.0 for Why Weather against 5.0 for OpenWindow. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 3 and 1 respectively.
Why Weather ships an update every 5 days, OpenWindow every 3 days. Both last shipped on November 5, 2026.
| Parameter | Why Weather | OpenWindow |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 5.0 (3 ratings) | 5.0 (1 ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 100.0% of reviews | — |
| Number of ratings | 3 — better | 1 |
| Update frequency | Every 5 days | Every 3 days — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | Yes | No — better |
| Monetization | Freemium | Free — better |
| Devices | iPhone, iPod | iPhone, iPad, Mac — better |
| Requires iOS | 15.0 — better | 26.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 15 MB | 18 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Christopher Edward Risdon | South Bay Compute, LLC |
Customer experience
Why Weather
OpenWindow
In-app purchases
Why Weather
- Why Weather Premium Monthly$4.991 Month
- Why Weather Premium Annual$29.991 Year
OpenWindow
No in-app purchases









