How To Watch The Weather Channel Without Cable

With weather seeming to get more extreme every year, the Weather Channel is becoming a must-watch channel. However, you don’t need cable TV to keep up with the latest hurricane and weather-related information. You can stream The Weather Channel live using an internet connection and a subscription to a live streaming service with The Weather Channel in its channel lineup. You can watch The Weather Channel on your favorite streaming device, smart TV, mobile device, and even on the web.

Watch the Weather Channel Live

Currently, three live TV streaming services provide The Weather Channel in their channel lineup, frndly TV, fubo TV, and DIRECTV STREAM. Unfortunately, The Weather Channel isn’t available on Hulu Live TV or Sling TV.

frndly TV is a slimmed-down streaming service providing The Weather Channel, Hallmark Channel, Game Show Network, GAC Family, QVC, and a few other channels. A subscription to Frndly TV starts at $6.99 per month after a 1-week trial. Their $7.99 plan includes a cloud DVR and the ability to watch on multiple screens at once. FrndlyTV supports Roku, iOS, Chromecast, Android, Amazon Fire TV, and more. See our review of Frndly TV for more information.

fuboTV offers live streaming of the Weather Channel in their “Pro Plan” and over 100 other channels, including HGTV, ESPN, FX, AMC, and more. The streaming service also offers live local FOX, CBS, ABC, and NBC in many markets. fuboTV’s Pro Plan costs $69.99 per month after a 1-week free trial. If you cancel within the trial period, you will not be charged. The fuboTV Pro Plan includes a cloud DVR, stream up to 3 devices simultaneously, and works on Roku, Amazon Fire, Apple TV, and more. They even offer a no-risk. You can learn more in our full review of fuboTV.

DIRECTV STREAM is a live streaming service that is another way to watch the Weather Channel live. However, you must subscribe to their “Choice” package for $89.99 per month. You can sign up for a 5-day free trial and they don’t force you into a contract, so you can cancel at any time. The service also includes a cloud DVR service and allows you to stream to 20 devices simultaneously. DIRECTV STREAM is supported on Apple TV, Android TV, Roku, Amazon FireTV, and more. See our review of DIRECTV STREAM for more details on this streaming service.

YouTube TV also carries The Weather Channel in its channel lineup along with limitless storage space for recording your shows. Your library of recorded shows can be streamed anywhere.

YouTube TV provides:

• BBC America, Local Network Channels, and over 70 other channels
• unlimited cloud DVR storage
• stream on three devices at once
• YouTube TV supports Android, iOS, Apple TV, Fire TV, Chromecast, and more. The YouTube TV app has also returned to Roku devices after settling a dispute between the two companies. 
• Includes YouTube TV on-demand
• offers a 1-week free trial.

After a 1-week free trial, YouTube TV costs $64.99 per month. See our YouTube TV review for more details.

Watch The Weather Channel Live on Roku

To watch The Weather Channel on Roku, follow these instructions.

1. Subscribe to a streaming service that carries The Weather Channel (Frndly TV, FuboTV, or DIRECTV STREAM)
2. On your Roku Menu, navigate to “Search” and press “OK” on your remote
3. Enter the name of the streaming service you subscribe to in the search bar
4. Select the streaming service and press “OK.”
5. Select “Add Channel” press “OK” on your remote. If the channel is already installed, “Go To Channel” will be an option.
6. The App is now installed on your Roku. Open the app, and log in with the credentials you used to subscribe to the service. The Weather Channel will be a channel available through the apps live TV guide.

Watch The Weather Channel Live on Fire TV

To watch The Weather Channel on Fire TV, follow these instructions.

1. Subscribe to a streaming service that carries The Weather Channel (Frndly TV, FuboTV, or DIRECTV STREAM)
2. On your Fire TV Home screen, click on the search icon in the upper-left corner of the screen.
3. Enter the name of the streaming service you subscribe to in the search bar
4. Select the streaming service and press “OK.”
5. Select “Download,” and the channel will install
6. The App is now installed on your Fire TV. Open the app, and log in with the credentials you used to subscribe to the service. The Weather Channel will be a channel available through the apps live TV guide.

Watch The Weather Channel Live on Apple TV

To watch The Weather Channel on Apple TV, follow these instructions.

1. Subscribe to a streaming service that carries The Weather Channel (FuboTV or DIRECTV STREAM, Apple TV doesn’t support Frndly TV)
2. Scroll right to the search icon in the upper-left corner of the screen
3. Enter the name of the streaming service you subscribe to in the search bar
4. Select the streaming service click the cloud icon, and the channel will install
5. The App is now installed on your Apple TV. Open the app, and log in with the credentials you used to subscribe to the service. The Weather Channel will be a channel available through the apps live TV guide.

Streaming The Weather Channel Outside the United States

So far, the solutions I’ve covered to watch The Weather Channel only pertain to the U.S. However, if you are traveling or currently living outside the US, there may still be a way to watch The Weather Channel. Streaming Services that are only available in the US block viewing content for devices with IP addresses that originate outside the US. This technique is called geo-blocking. Technologies like a VPN can get around a streaming service using geo-blocking and make it appear your computer or smart device is located in whichever country the VPN server is located.

A VPN service like IPVanish allows you to join a Virtual Network in another part of the country or world. The service offers a fully refundable 30 day period, and you can sign up for less than $4 per month. IPVanish makes it appear as your computer is in that part of the world as well. This method will let you use a laptop to watch The Weather Channel through one of the services that carry the channel. (DIRECTV STREAM may want no work since it forces you to use your browser’s location services to determine location instead of IP geo-blocking)To watch a live stream of the Weather Channel outside the US, follow these steps

1. Download and install the IPVanish client. Go to this page and click or tap “Download Now. “It will automatically take you to the right download page based on whether you are using Mac, Windows, iOS, or Android. Then you can download the client for your device from that page.
2. Follow the install instructions provided on the page. It’s a normal “click next” type of install.
3. When you start the IPVanish client, you will need to log into your IPVanish account. If you haven’t signed up for IPVanish, you can sign up here.
4. Once signed in, the client starts, and it’s just a matter of picking a city and country you want to computer to appear to be in using the dropdown menus. Then click “Connect.“
5. The client will then connect you to the VPN, and your device will appear to be in that country.
6. Now your IP address looks like it is in the United States, and you can use one of the streaming services that carry The Weather Channel to watch. Keep in mind that streaming services like DIRECTV STREAM use GPS location and not IP Address, so those services will not work using this method.

The Weather Channel App

With the exception of FuboTV, The Weather Channel app doesn’t work unless you have the username and password to a cable provider account. However, The Weather Channel streams free local weather forecasts and information through the Local Now App. It also has a service that streams your local weather forecasts and information. It is one of the best ways to stream your live local weather online. Also, you can get local news, sports, and other short-form local information. As a bonus, you can also stream free movies and TV shows through the service. Although, you will have to watch some ads.

Local Now is available free through the “Local Now App” on Roku, Fire TV, Apple TV, and Android Devices. Local Now is free, but you can also watch Local Now on streaming services like FuboTV, Sling TV, Hulu+Live TV, and YouTube TV. 

For information on watching other TV channels online check out: How To Stream Specific TV Channels