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Guides
When planning an outdoor adventure in Chamonix, the weather can make or break your day.
Whether you’re heading out for a ski tour, a climbing mission, or a casual hike, accurate weather information is essential. The unique microclimates of the Mont Blanc massif mean that the forecast in town can differ significantly from what’s happening at altitude, and your default weather app can often be in a state of confusion.
In this post, we’ll explore the best weather apps for Chamonix to help you plan your outings with confidence. From detailed avalanche forecasts to hour-by-hour breakdowns, these apps and websites are trusted by locals and visitors alike. Let’s dive in!
While the default weather apps on your Apple or Android device might be convenient, they often lack the precision needed for mountain environments like Chamonix. These apps typically aggregate generalised data that doesn’t account for the complex weather systems of the Mont Blanc region, and the Alps in general. As a result, their forecasts can be overly broad and unreliable. This is a warning - you WILL miss out on bluebird powder days if you stay in bed because your weather app tells you it'll be cloudy.
This would be a moment where your weather apps will forecast complete cloud cover - yes true - but only in the valley! Cloud inversions occur countless times in winter.
It's not just cloud that is misrepresented, but also precipitation and temperature. For example, whilst testing on a Google Pixel, we found that the temperature is always 3 degrees less than the real temperature, which makes a big difference for rain/snow limits.
We are extremely lucky in Chamonix to have local weather experts who freely provide weather forecasting, and do so every day without fail. Even the French avalanche reporting service (MéteoFrance) has gone on strike before, but we never seen these websites miss a day!
https://chamonix-meteo.com/ - updated in the morning, usually between 06:00 - 10:00. Gives hyper-localised forecasts for the valley specifically, gives snowfall predictions, detailed cloud cover information, etc. One thing to note, they usually overestimate snowfall predictions very slightly.
https://meteo-chamonix.org/ - updated in the evening, usually around 17:00 - 19:00. Gives a more general forecast of the Northern French Alps, and is also very reliable. They are more conservative regarding snowfall predictions, which usually turn out more accurate.
If you are a non French speaker, you can use the 'Translate' function in your browser to read in English. As with all translations there are some words that don't quite make sense after being translated by a computer, so to fully understand, here is a list of common 'computer translations' with their real English equivalent:
'Degradation' - referring to the start of a precipitation episode. Snow or rain.
'Kiss' (wind) - local word. North wind which is accentuated by the Lake Geneva.
'Veiled' (clouds) - a layer of high clouds which give the sky a milky tone.
'Getting bored' - a Google Translate mistake, it should be 'becoming more cloudy' or 'clouding over'.
We strongly recommend these sites as they give an excellent idea of the local forecast.
The Chamonix official website is also awesome for showing the weather - the best part about it is it shows a diagram which is super helpful for understanding the mountain weather.
As you can see, the temperature and wind values at different altitudes, as well as the cloud layer on the diagram is very helpful to understand how to best plan your mountain adventure, whether it be ski touring, resort skiing, climbing, whatever.
For example, whilst on the forecast says in the morning it is -11C in the valley, at the height of 2000m, which is most of the ski resorts in the valley, you gain an entire 12 degrees and will be in the sun. No need to wear 5 layers then.
Meteo Alpes Forecast - updated daily. Serves the Northern French Alps. Their snow quantity forecasts are usually on point.
Valle d'Aosta Forecast - updated daily. If the weather is bad in France, try Italy. Thanks to the huge Mont Blanc Massif, the weather can often be completely different, and you can have a bluebird day over there, with a rainy day over here, or vice-versa.
MeteoSwiss - this is theoretically a weather app, but it's made by the Swiss, and it takes into account mountain weather, so generally it can be very good. As Chamonix is right next to the Swiss border, this can be relevant.
SnowForecast - everyone knows SnowForecast. We see many screenshots when the system predicts hundreds and hundreds of centimetres - but that's the point - beware! This is an automated service, but it can give you a more precise idea of what the rain-snow limit is likely to do. We recommend using this only short-term. Humans can spot over-excited long range weather models; computers can't.
Windy.com - Windy is an automated service, but you can refine what you want to see very specifically. For example, you can view forecasts of cloud cover, altitude, cloudbase, wind speed, wind direction, wind gusts, as examples.
French Avalanche Report (MétéoFrance) - Select the Mont Blanc Massif to view the forecast. Generally updated around 16:00 the day before. This is only available in French, you must use your browser translator again if you are a non-French speaker. Here are the 'computer translated' terms and their English equivalent:
'Triggers caused' - Skier-triggered avalanches.
'Spontaneous departures' - Natural avalanches.
'Friable slabs' or 'Friable plates' - Crumbly wind slabs
'Bottom plates' - full depth slide avalanches.
Courmayeur Avalanche Report (AINEVA) - updated daily. Worth reading to understand how the weather has affected the Massif du Mont Blanc as a whole. This link brings you to Val Veny, which covers the Italian side of Mont Blanc and the Courmayeur ski resort - you are able to select a different location if you wish.
Swiss Avalanche Report - updated daily. Select the region where Martigny is marked to get a full understanding of the avalanche conditions on the Swiss side of the Massif du Mont Blanc.
Using the Oak app, you can get directly involved into a community in Chamonix of over 800 people at the time of writing. People use these group chats to discuss conditions and plan future ski tours. Want to know what the conditions are like on the Vallée Blanche? Or at other popular spots, like the Col des Dards, Col du Passon, the Argentière Glacier or the Buet valley exit? Just ask.
People also put conditions reports on their activities - you can review these and make more informed decisions.
