The British weather is renowned for its unpredictability. As a nation we’re well used to BBQing under a large golf umbrella and having to make a dash for the nearest tree when picnicking in the park. However, with a weather app on your smartphone it’s now a little bit easier to plan for any weather eventuality. Here are five of the best free apps for keeping up to date with the weather.

1Weather – Free for Android

This weather app lets you look a little further ahead with an extended forecast plus all the essentials like precipitation information and real time weather updates for almost every location. It shows animated sunrise and sunset times along with lunar phases and allows you to share weather information via text, Twitter, Facebook and email. To top it all off, it features a lovely woodgrain design!

Eye in Sky – Free for Android

This nifty app features 12 icon sets so is a great choice for people who like to customise their apps. It gives you detailed 48 hour forecasts, the outlook for the next 15 days and all the info you need on humidity, wind speed, dew point etc.

WeatherBug – Free for Android and iPhone

This super cool app has all the usual info you’d expect, but what really sets it apart is the live camera feed. One for those who like their apps with bells and whistles!

Yahoo Weather – Free for Android

This is a great app for creative types who like their visuals. It pulls images from Flickr and matches them up to the current weather at your current location. Very cool.

Weathermob – Free for iPhone

If you’re the type of person who likes to chat about the weather then this is the app for you. You can get talking to people in your area about the heatwave or monsoon you’re currently experiencing. Lovely design too.

And finally, a little bonus app for those who want their weather forecast in outfit form. Wevther is a Svpply-powered web app currently available in the US and should be making its way across the pond to the UK shortly.