CNN to launch dedicated weather app, part of new ‘lifestyle products’

CNN has confirmed plans that it will launch a standalone weather streaming app later in 2025.

The news, which was first reported by Axios, was later confirmed by the network.

The app is being billed as the first in a series of digital “lifestyle products” the network hopes to launch in the coming years to diversify its reach to consumers.

Plans call for the app, which will be called CNN Weather, to offer more in-depth, precise and real-time weather information in addition to what viewers see on CNN, including local forecasts and conditions. 

The app will also incorporate elements of live video and updates on severe weather events. CNN will also incorporate weather and climate news and information into the app. Earlier this year, CNN launched the Extreme Weather Center in Atlanta as it deepened its weather and climate reporting.

In many ways, it appears CNN is directly targeting, at varying degrees, apps offered by brands such as The Weather Channel, Accuweather and native OS apps.

With the new app, CNN hopes to being able to engage with viewers more frequently thanks to the daily habit of checking the weather, according to the network.

CNN will invest in a mobile-first design approach for the app, which it says will be free at launch but could eventually migrate to a subscription model. CNN has been making a big push into paywalled content, including on its website, and appears to also be exploring ways to bundle its subscription products together at various tiers, though no specifics were announced.