NASA POWER API vs Pirate Weather API

Two free Weather APIs compared on access, reliability and developer ratings, using data from our daily health checks.

The verdict

Choose NASA POWER API if you want faster responses.
Choose Pirate Weather API if its data fits your use case better; on access and reliability it's level with NASA POWER API.

	NASA POWER API	Pirate Weather API
What it does	Global solar and weather data for energy and agriculture.	Free weather API with forecast data similar to Dark Sky.
Provider	NASA POWER	Pirate Weather
API key	Not needed	Not needed
HTTPS	Yes	Yes
CORS (browser calls)	Yes	Yes
Status today	Online · 228 ms	Online · 419 ms
Uptime (30 days)	Up	Up
Developer rating	Not rated yet	Not rated yet
Price	Free / free tier	Free / free tier

Global solar and weather data for energy and agriculture.

POWER Documentation Site

Strengths

Free weather API with forecast data similar to Dark Sky.

Strengths

Prototyping or a tutorial? Pick the one that needs no API key (both qualify).
Calling from a web page? You need CORS. Otherwise route requests through your own server or a serverless function.
Going to production? Favour HTTPS, a strong uptime record and a provider with clear rate limits and terms. Check each API's docs before you commit.
Still unsure? Both are free to try: send one request to each and compare the data you get back.

Neither needs an API key; you can call both straight away.