Hurricanes are the only bad reason to live on the shoreline. That’s probably why so many people live there and why they weather the storm. Hurricanes are a fairly common phenomenon, especially in the tropics or contiguous tropical regions of the world. They go by a few different names like typhoons, but they are all the same type of storm with high winds, heavy rain, and the characteristic eye in the middle of a storm. If anyone is on their way, hopefully one of these awesome storm apps can help. Please stay safe.
The best hurricane app for Android
1Weather and similar apps
Price: Free / $1.99
1Weather, along with most weather apps, works well for basic storm information. Most of them have a weather radar with zoom function. You can see where the storm is and where it’s headed. Also, these apps usually send severe weather warnings, rainfall forecasts, and stuff like that. They don’t work as well as dedicated storm trackers, but they’ll let you know if you really need them ahead of time. 1Weather is one of our favorite weather apps because of its non-subscription price tag and simple and effective UI. You can try it in the button above. Those looking for another weather app can hit our link for it in the little widget below the first paragraph.
The FEMA app is pretty decent for the impending disaster. The app notifies you when new things happen. You can also upload photos to help with FEMA disaster reports. Additionally, the app can help organize emergency supplies, create meeting points in case of separation, and other emergency tips and tools. The video below shows you how to find disaster resources, contact shelters, and more. It can basically be used all the time. You can get warnings of potential storm activity long before the storm with enough preparation time. However, one of the biggest complaints with this app is the issue with sending those alerts. Still, it’s very helpful.
My Storm Tracker
Price: Free
My Hurricane Tracker is an above average app for tracking hurricanes. It also works for tornadoes, tropical storms and other types of severe weather. Some of the features include NOAA forecast maps and satellite imagery, interactive maps, historical search for hurricanes in the past, and you can track any hurricane through the app. The UI is a little basic, but easy enough for anyone to use.
MyRadar
Price: Free / $9.99 per month / $24.99 per year
MyRadar is arguably the best weather radar app since Dark Sky is gone. It has an excellent storm tracking feature, lots of weather layers, and you can track storms from the app fairly easily. This removes a lot of the usual weather app stuff to focus more on the radar. This one has two different subscriptions. $9.99 per month unlocks all premium features of the app while $24.99 per year is a separate subscription for flight-specific features. We recommend checking out both to see what you want, but most of the features are available for free.
Sea Storm Storm Tracker
Price: $1.99
SeaStorm Hurricane Tracker is an excellent hurricane tracker app. It lies somewhere between Hurricane Impact and Storm Tracker from above. This app gives you a quick overview of any storm along with advisory information and expert analysis. Some of the other features include sea surface temperature, tropical surface analysis, and more.
This app is also useful for surfers, beachgoers and other situations. You can find things like wave height, seven-day forecast, and surfer-friendly details like peak swell periods. It costs $1.99 upfront without the free demo version. That’s why we recommend trying it within refund time!
Tropical Storm Tracker
Price: Free / $0.99 per year / $4.99 once
Tropical Hurricane Tracker is another simple app for tracking hurricanes. This one only really applies to US users as it tracks the Atlantic, Pacific near Hawaii, and Pacific near the western United States. This app includes NOAA forecasts, push notifications, historical data, and more. There’s also a global map, but we tested it in January when it had no glitches, so we’ll roll back to the feature later to see if it works properly. This app has a subscription of $0.99 per year to remove ads or a single payment of $4.99 to remove them forever.
Weather Channel App
Price: Free / Varies
The Weather Channel is a great resource for weather info. The main app does the basics of weather like weather forecast, temperature, radar and other stuff. It also has weather news. Hurricanes usually make headlines as they exist so it’s easy to find news and analysis about each storm. This is a great place for in-depth analysis and predictions about any hurricane that hits it.
Windy
Price: Free/Optional donation
Windy is one of the more unique hurricane tracker apps out there. Here is a map with wind information. You can see where the wind is going, where the wind is turning, and the resulting weather patterns. It’s not necessarily for hurricanes, but it’s definitely useful when tracking them. You can get forecast models from NEMS, ICON, and NAM all at once along with a total of 35 layers for radar.
It’s also one of the few that should work well in most parts of the world. It is supported in about 40 other languages and, as we mentioned, sources weather data from places around the world. This application is completely free. Those who really like it can donate with a one-time donation or a subscription-style donation plan. However, it doesn’t unlock any features, it’s completely optional.
Zello PTT Walkie Talkie
Price: Free / $0.99
Zello Walkie Talkie made a big splash during Hurricane Harvey. Many rescue crews use it to communicate with each other and with disaster victims with great success. Many great blogs and sites write about it, including us. It only helps increase the popularity of the app. We’ll pile it on even further. When it comes to communication, it helps when everyone is on the same page.
This app supports push-to-talk and works great as a walkie-talkie. It also supports chat rooms with up to 2,500 participants. It’s free to use with an optional $0.99 in-app purchase. There are public and private channels as well. We figure if it gets big during another storm it will be due to the function of the public channel. Hit the button to learn more on the official Zello website (don’t worry, they didn’t sponsor this article). This application is quite easy to find in the Play Store. Just look for Zello.
Your local news app or radio station
Price: Free
Keeping yourself informed is very important during an emergency. A national news outlet will not have the level of detail and frequency of updates that your local news outlet will (most of the time). Local radio, TV and news apps should have the latest weather updates, evacuation details, shelter information and more. We have a list of radio apps right below this box. That way you can listen on your phone. You’ll need to search Google Play for your local news app.
If we missed any great apps for hurricanes, let us know in the comments! You can also click here to see our list of the latest Android apps and games.
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