Best Home Weather Stations in the UK for 2023

Our friends in the UK have visited us almost since the beginning. Unfortunately, most weather stations we recommend in the States are unavailable or very expensive, thanks to international shipping. We recently sat down and researched the best home weather stations in the UK and found several home weather stations that ship free.

You can find brands like Ambient Weather and Davis Instruments in the UK, but some models look similar to stations on sale in the States. As you’ll see below, Ambient Weather (and other brands) licence stations from Ecowitt. For example, the Ambient Weather WS-2000 is the same as the Ecowitt HP2551 weather station, except at the moment, Ecowitt doesn’t offer any smart home functionality.

Image Credit: Alex Segre - stock.adobe.com

FAQ

Are you thinking about purchasing a weather station? Here are some answers to frequently asked questions we hear from readers, some of which are unique to the UK.

Best Home Weather Stations in the UK

After much research, including comparing stations to their counterparts (or competitors) in the States, we’ve come up with this list of the best home weather stations in the UK.

The Ecowitt HP2553 is the company’s high-end weather station (and sold as the Ambient Weather WS-5000 in the US). With practically nothing different — save for the lack of smart home support — this station is our pick for international readers and one of the best home weather stations in the UK. Our tests of the American version of this weather station were stellar.

The HP2553 features a redesigned sensor suite from previous models and an ultrasonic anemometer, drastically reducing the number of moving parts. This should extend its useable life as the traditional anemometer requires ongoing maintenance to ensure trouble-free use. The sensors are more accurate in our tests than in previous Ecowitt stations, and you can add additional sensors, including air quality, soil moisture, water temperature, and lightning. The brilliant colour, easy-to-read LCD console looks great just about anywhere.

The company’s made it easy to share your data publicly through Weather Underground, Ecowitt.net, and many other networks, which is a nice touch and view station data from the Ecowitt app.

If the Ecowitt Wittboy reminds you of the WeatherFlow Tempest, that’s not a coincidence. The Wittboy sports all the features which made the Tempest so revolutionary, including the haptic rain sensor. Early customer reviews are mixed, so we’re a little leery of giving the Wittboy top honours at this time.

Ecowitt is third in our list of the best home weather stations in the UK with the HP2551. This model is similar to the Ambient Weather WS-2000 sold in the States. The HP2551 is Wi-Fi compatible and doesn’t require software to share data with Weather Underground and other services. Unlike the cheaper WS2910, the HP2551 is expandable.

Unlike most home weather stations in the US, there aren’t many options in the UK for those looking to integrate their home weather station with the smart home. However, French technology company Netatmo’s popular weather station provides one alternative if you want just that. We tested the Netatmo weather station several years ago, loved the app, and were pleasantly surprised with its accuracy.

The only negative to Netatmo’s weather station is everything is sold separately. The package above includes the base station and two temperature/humidity sensors. You’ll still need the optional rain gauge and sonic anemometer to complete the station, which costs an additional £150. However, it may be worth it if you are looking for a way to use weather data to control your smart home.

The Ecowitt GW1102 is a solid option for those looking for better accuracy from a budget home weather station. All parts are separate (much like the HP2553) but with lower-quality sensors. But you get all the benefits of more expensive stations, including expandability and the capability to share weather data online without much fuss natively.

If budget is an issue, we strongly recommend considering the GW1102 before any options below. You’ll get better performance and accuracy overall thanks to the capability to place each instrument in the best possible spot.

If you prefer an “all-in-one” sensor suite (especially with limited space), opt for the Ecowitt WS2910. It’s slightly cheaper than the GW1102 but includes the same sensor suite as the HP2551, just a more basic console. You lose the capability to expand. However, the WS2910 still features the Wi-Fi connectivity of more expensive Ecowitt weather stations.

Our personal preference is the GW1102, however, at this price point.

We were surprised to see Sainlogic offering a solid home weather station for the UK market. The company’s stations are on the budget side of things here in the States, and we haven’t made our lists in the US for best weather stations because of that. However, like Ambient Weather in the US, Sainlogic licenced technology from Ecowitt to produce this particular home weather station, which looks identical to the WS-2902C.

If you were looking at the WS-2902C, buy this instead and save yourself money. You get all the functionality the WS-2902C has in the States, except for the smart home functionality. Better yet, it’s competitively priced.

Home weather stations are expensive, so we wanted to offer a budget option. In the UK, that’s German company Bresser. Its weather station measures all the basics, including temperature, humidity, wind direction and speed, and rainfall. It also receives a radio timing signal from Frankfurt, meaning you’ll never have to update the clock.

Of course, you’re missing some functionality for such a low price. The Bresser weather station doesn’t have Wi-Fi support, and sensor quality isn’t as good as any of the five previous options. But it is affordable.

Wrapping Up

Again, we’d like to thank our UK readers for visiting us over the past year. We hope this list of the best home weather stations in the UK helps you make the right decision. Of course, you can always contact us if you have any questions. We’d be happy to help you find the perfect home weather station.