How to Pull AccuWeather Forecast Updates Using AccuWeather's API and Postman ☀️🚀

[ghostinhershell]

Whether you want to integrate live weather data into your projects, automate weather forecasts for your location, or just impress your colleagues at the watercooler, you're in the right place! This guide will show you how to use AccuWeather's API and Postman to get accurate weather updates—no fuss required.

🗒️ What You’ll Need

This beginner-friendly tutorial will guide you, step by step, through using Postman to pull weather data from AccuWeather's public API. Here's what you'll need to begin:

• ✅ AccuWeather API Key: Sign up at developer.accuweather.com/ to get your API key.
• ✅ Postman: Sign up for a Postman account at postman.com. Postman is a fantastic tool for testing and interacting with APIs without needing to write code. You can choose to download the app and go from there or use Postman directly from your web browser.
• ✅ A GitHub Account: Optional, but highly encouraged if you’d like to share your work or collaborate with others in the GitHub community 😉 sign up here: github.com/.

🏗️ Let's Get Started!

First, Get Your AccuWeather API Key

1. Sign up for an account or (if you already have an account), log in to your account the AccuWeather Developer Portal.

2. Navigate to "My Apps" and create a new app.
   

3. Fill out the form to create a new app. I'll include a screenshot of how that looks here:
   

4. Once you submit the form and your new app is created, click on the app name and copy your API key—you’ll need this in the next steps!
   

Next, Find Your Location Key

AccuWeather uses location keys instead of city names. In order to actually pull forecast data for your area, we will first need to get the location key for your city. You can do that via an API call. For this project, we'll use Postman to retrieve your location key and forecast data. Please make sure to sign up for a Postman account before proceeding!

1. First, let’s open Postman. Once opened, the very first page you see should be the Get Started page. On the Get Started page, click the New Request button:
   

2. Make sure that the HTTP dropdown is set to GET. In the URL box, enter the following URL:
   http://dataservice.accuweather.com/locations/v1/cities/search?apikey=YOUR_API_KEY&q=YOUR_CITY

3. Replace YOUR_API_KEY with your actual API key (got that in step 1) and YOUR_CITY with your location (e.g., newyork). Here’s an example of what that should look like:
   

4. Click "Send" to see the response, which will include a “Key” in the JSON response (line 4). Copy this key!
   

   • In my example, the location key for New York is 349727.

Last, Let's Get the Weather Forecast

1. Create a new GET request in Postman with this URL:
   http://dataservice.accuweather.com/forecasts/v1/daily/1day/YOUR_LOCATION_KEY?apikey=YOUR_API_KEY

2. Replace YOUR_LOCATION_KEY with the key we copied in step 2 and YOUR_API_KEY with the key we obtained in step 1. Here’s an example of how that should look:
   

3. Hit "Send" and you should see the weather forecast in the response!
   

Now that you’ve seen the weather forecast, you’re all set to plan your day accordingly! With just a simple click, you've accessed the information you need to stay prepared and informed.

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🚀 Pro Tip: Automate & Experiment with GitHub

• Automate with GitHub Actions
  You can set up a GitHub Action to call the AccuWeather API daily and push the forecast data to your repository. This is great for creating an automated weather log (any fellow gardeners in the house 👀) or powering a dynamic README with live weather data (because why not?).
• Create a Weather Data Repository
  Save your Postman collection and export it as a JSON file. Create a public GitHub repository where you can share this collection, along with a README explaining how others can use it.
• Collaborate with Issues & Discussions
  If you're building something cool with this data, start a GitHub Discussion in your repo or open Issues to get feedback and collaborate with other community members.
• Showcase with GitHub Pages
  If you visualize the weather data (e.g., with charts or a small web app), you can host it for free using GitHub Pages.

💪🏾 What’s Next?

I’d love to see what you do with this data! Whether you visualize it, automate daily alerts, or integrate it into a project, share your outcome in the comments. If you got stuck or had an “aha!” moment, let us know—your experience could help someone else.

Happy forecasting!

[ghostinhershell]

🚨 Heads up! 🚨

When sharing your weather data, be mindful of any sensitive info in your screenshots. Your API key is like a password—if someone gets hold of it, they could use it without your permission. Also, sharing your exact location can reveal more than you might intend. Before posting, be sure to blur or redact your API key and any personal location details. Stay safe and keep your info secure! 🚀

[adelekeogunsona]

Helpful. Thanks for sharing

[ghostinhershell]

Thank you for reading @adelekeogunsona! Have you tried it out yet?

[ghostinhershell]

Hey Community! 👋🏾

Got a companion piece in the works that will build on the skills that you've learned here in this post. Stay tuned!

[MIrelleBeads]

Very helpful for integration of automated daily alerts. Thanks

[ghostinhershell]

Agreed @MIrelleBeads! Thanks for reading 😄

[ghostinhershell]

Hey all! I've posted a companion piece to this project that should help you build upon the skills that you used in this how to. Check it out here! Automate Weather Alerts for Your Garden Using GitHub Actions and Copilot ☀️🌱