Weather Channel smart TV app raises subscription to $5 a month
The app’s monthly price has risen from $3 to $5, while the annual plan now costs $50, according to Cord Cutters News and archived pricing.
By Maya Lindqvist · Senior Technology Correspondent
2 min read
The Weather Channel has raised the price of its standalone smart TV streaming app, increasing the cost for viewers who use it to watch the network without a cable or satellite package. Cord Cutters News first reported the change, which lifts the monthly subscription to $5 and the annual plan to $50.
The app previously cost $3 a month or $30 a year, according to pricing captured by the Internet Archive’s Wayback Machine as recently as April 2026. The new rates amount to a 66.7% increase for monthly subscribers and a $20 increase for those paying annually.
The Weather Channel TV app is available on Android TV, Fire TV, Roku and Samsung TVs, according to the service’s website. It carries a livestream of The Weather Channel’s broadcast network and also offers on-demand programming, local forecasts, maps, radar and news.
The app launched in May 2022, according to Ars Technica, giving viewers a way to watch The Weather Channel’s coverage without subscribing to a traditional pay-TV bundle. The service is separate from the Weather Channel mobile apps and Weather.com, which Ars Technica reported are owned by Francisco Partners.
Allen Media Group, which bought The Weather Channel in 2018, had earlier outlined a broader streaming plan. In a 2021 press release, the company said it planned to launch The Weather Channel Plus, a subscription service expected to include more than 50 news and entertainment streaming channels in the fourth quarter of that year.
That release also said Allen Media Group expected The Weather Channel Plus to reach 30 million subscribers in its first five years. Ars Technica reported that the planned service did not become available, leaving the current smart TV app as The Weather Channel’s direct subscription streaming product.
The new monthly price matches the $5 figure Allen Media Group cited for The Weather Channel Plus in the 2021 announcement. The current app, however, does not include the dozens of streaming channels described in that earlier plan, according to Ars Technica.
The increase comes as The Weather Channel competes with a wider set of weather information services than it faced during the height of cable television. Ars Technica cited local TV stations, weather websites, free and paid mobile apps, Weather.com, The Weather Channel mobile apps and smart home devices as alternatives for consumers seeking forecasts and alerts.
Ars Technica also reported that the network faces costs tied to technology, app development, licensing, user support, staffing and real-time weather coverage. Those costs sit alongside the challenge of persuading viewers to pay for a dedicated smart TV app at a higher price.
This story draws on original reporting from Ars Technica.