Your iPhone can alert you if it’s going to rain or snow soon

The Weather app can help you avoid getting caught in the rain.

With iOS 15, Apple gave the Weather app a significant update by integrating a lot of the smarts it acquired when buying popular weather app Dark Sky.

Rain and snow alerts in the Weather app:

Turn on precipitation alerts
Turn on location services
Turn on notifications

As well as getting a design overhaul and weather maps, a super helpful feature the iOS 15 Weather app received was next-hour precipitation notifications.

As the name suggests, this feature alerts you when rain, snow, hail, or sleet is about to start or stop. The feature is currently supported for locations in the U.S., Ireland, and the UK and could prove really handy for a lot of folks. Here’s how to set it up.

How to turn on precipitation notifications in the Weather app

So, you want to be alerted if there’s rain or snow coming your way in the next hour? Here’s how to set up next-hour precipitation notifications in the Weather app for iPhone.

Open the Weather app.
Tap the List icon. This is located in the bottom right corner and looks like a bulleted list.

Tap on the ••• icon.

Tap on Notifications.
Toggle the status switches to green on position for the locations you wish to be notified about. This can just be your current location or a set region from your location list.

Tap Done.

You’ll now be alerted of upcoming precipitation for your current location or those in your locations list you turned the feature on for. Note that the feature is only available in the U.S., Ireland, and the UK so other locations won’t provide such notifications.

How to turn on location services for the Weather app

If you don’t have location services turned on for the Weather app, you’ll see the toggle for My Location greyed out when trying to turn on precipitation notifications. This is easily rectified in the Settings app.

Open the Settings app.
Scroll down and tap on Privacy.

Tap on Location Services.

Scroll down and tap on Weather.

Tap on Always.

Location services are now on for the Weather app. Note that you need to select the Always option if you want the Weather app to be able to provide notifications about your current location.

How to turn on notifications for the Weather app

Of course, in order to receive precipitation alerts, you’ll need to let the Weather app notify you. If you have notifications turned off for the Weather app, you’ll be prompted to turn them back on in Settings when following the above steps to turn on rain and snow alerts.

In case you need a little extra help, here’s how to manually turn on notifications for the Weather app.

Open Settings.
Tap on Notifications.

Scroll down and tap on Weather

Toggle the status switch next to Allow Notifications to on. You’ll then be able to customize the way that notifications appear with options for alert style, delivery timeframe, Lock Screen appearance, and more.

After following these steps, you should now be able to follow the initial steps in this guide when attempting to turn on precipitation alerts in the Weather app.

Always be in the know

With precipitation alerts, Apple’s Weather app is now one of the best iPhone tools for knowing when bad weather is coming your way.

The new alerts might give you enough time to get some cover if you’re out and about or change up the attire you were going to wear before you head out. It’s a handy update to the Weather app, and if you’re in a supported location, I highly recommend you turn it on.