Severe weather alerts for every place you save
From tornado warnings to cold weather advisories, Hurricane covers the alert types the National Weather Service issues, for every place you save.
Ice Storm Warning
now
Erie County, PA. Ice accumulation up to a quarter inch expected.
Air Quality Alert
2h ago
Los Angeles County, CA. Sensitive groups should limit outdoor activity.
What is a severe weather alert?
A severe weather alert is an official notice from a weather service that dangerous conditions are happening or expected in a specific area. Hurricane for iPhone turns those alerts into a push notification for every location you save, with an icon and a sound that match the type of alert.
Watch
Warning
Advisory
Alert severity
Watch vs. warning vs. advisory: what the terms mean
Watch, warning, and advisory are the three severity levels used for a severe weather alert, and the difference is how certain and how urgent the event is. A watch means conditions are favorable for the event to develop and it has not happened yet. A warning means the event is happening, or about to happen, and you should act now. An advisory covers weather that is less serious than a warning but still worth adjusting your plans for.
A Winter Storm Watch means conditions could produce heavy snow or ice over the next day or two. A Winter Storm Warning means those conditions are happening or about to. The same watch-to-warning pattern applies across tornadoes, hurricanes, and most other alert types Hurricane tracks.
This is the terminology weather services use in the United States, where alerts are sourced from NOAA and the National Weather Service.
Term
What it means
Advisory
Less severe than a warning. Adjust your plans.
Watch
Conditions are favorable for the event to develop. Get ready.
Warning
Already happening, or about to. Take action now.
Tornado Warning
now
Dallas County, TX. Take shelter now, away from windows.
Hurricane Watch
12m ago
Miami-Dade County, FL. Hurricane conditions are possible.
Notification categories
Tornado & Thunderstorm
Hurricane & Storm
Tropical
Winter Alerts
Fire
Surge
Saved locations
Every place you save gets its own alerts
Home, work, a parent’s address, a place you are traveling to. Each saved location keeps its own notification settings, so you only hear about what matters where it matters.
These alerts cover tornadoes, hurricanes and tropical storms, severe thunderstorms, winter storms and blizzards, ice, extreme cold and heat, wildfire danger, and air quality. In the United States, alerts are sourced from NOAA and the National Weather Service.
Live radar
See the storm behind the alert
An alert tells you something is happening. Live weather radar shows exactly where, with every map layer combined on one view: wind, lightning, air quality, temperature, snow depth, and active fires.
Play the radar timeline forward to see where the rain is heading, before the next alert arrives.
See what live weather radar shows
Precipitation intensity
Light
Moderate
Heavy
Saffir-Simpson scale
Cat 1
Cat 2
Cat 3
Cat 4
Cat 5
Category 3 and above is classified as a major hurricane.
Hurricane tracking
Track the storm behind a hurricane alert
A Hurricane Watch or Warning traces back to a tropical cyclone with its own forecast path. The hurricane tracking map shows that path, its category, and where it is heading next.
Coverage is not limited to the Atlantic. Typhoon and tropical storm alert types are tracked the same way, and the wind layer and Radar Global work worldwide.
Explore the hurricane tracking map
Tornado
See the stormcell behind a tornado warning
A tornado warning is tied to a specific stormcell, not a whole state. The Stormcells layer shows which cell is rotating, so you can see exactly what the warning is about.
A watch means conditions could produce a tornado. A warning means one has been seen or picked up on radar.
See how tornado tracking works
What a tornado alert means
Tornado Watch
conditions could produce one
Tornado Warning
one has been seen or detected. Take shelter
What people say
I truly appreciate having access to this information when I need it. I am responsible for two senior care homes and this weather tracker helps me stay informed and in control.
mvlgg
App Store
Nicely integrates multiple wether elements, radar returns, wind, frontal boundaries to give a dynamic presentation of weather
daytexas
App Store
This app works great, accurate forecast, easy to view and understand, wonderful instant weather viewing
Chinger12
App Store
Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between a watch, a warning, and an advisory?
A watch means conditions are favorable for the event to happen, but it has not happened yet. A warning means the event is happening or is about to happen, and you should take action now. An advisory covers weather that is less serious than a warning but still worth adjusting your plans for. Hurricane applies this same three-level system across every alert type it tracks.
How many types of severe weather alerts does Hurricane cover?
Hurricane groups its alert types into categories such as tornadoes, hurricanes and tropical storms, typhoons, severe thunderstorms, fire weather, storm surge, and winter weather, plus hazards like air quality and dust storms. Within those categories, Hurricane supports close to 90 individual alert types defined by the National Weather Service, and each one gets its own icon and notification text.
Can I choose which alert categories I want to be notified about?
Yes. Notification settings are grouped by category, including Tornado & Thunderstorm, Hurricane & Storm, Tropical, Winter Alerts, Fire, and Surge, and you can turn each group on or off for every location you save.
Does an alert play a sound, or is it a silent notification?
It plays a sound. Alert sounds are a separate setting from the regular forecast notifications, so a warning does not get lost among routine updates.
Do I need the app open to receive an alert?
No. Once notifications are turned on for a saved location, alerts for that location arrive whether the app is open, running in the background, or closed.
What is the difference between a winter storm watch and a cold weather advisory?
A winter storm watch means conditions could produce heavy snow or ice over the next day or two. A cold weather advisory, previously called a wind chill advisory, means the combination of air temperature and wind will feel dangerously cold, even without snow falling. Hurricane tracks both as separate alert types, since one is about precipitation and the other is about temperature.
Get severe weather alerts before the weather reaches you
Hurricane is free to download. Premium features are available in-app.