Compare · · By Matt Senter
Weatherling vs Snowhush: Weather on Your Mac Desktop
Weatherling and Snowhush both put weather on your Mac desktop and let it land on your windows. Snowhush is free and also runs on Windows and Linux. Weatherling costs $1.99 and does more kinds of weather at once. Here is how they differ, and which one fits you.
Who wrote this. I make Weatherling, so read this with that in mind. Everything about Snowhush comes from its website, its README and its public source code, checked on November 4, 2026 at version 0.7.0. I have not benchmarked it myself, and it is changing quickly. If you searched for Snow Hush, this is the same app: the name is one word.
The short answer
- Choose Snowhush if you want something free, use Windows or Linux as well, or mostly want snow you can push around with your cursor.
- Choose Weatherling if you want several kinds of weather at once, with fog, sunlight, grass, sound, your local weather, shareable templates and the Ling minigame.
- Not sure? Snowhush costs nothing to try, and the Weatherling home page has a live web demo.
Side by side
| Feature | Weatherling | Snowhush |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $1.99 once, no subscription | Free |
| Platforms | Mac (macOS 14.0 or later) | Mac (macOS 14.0 or later), Windows 10 or 11, Linux on Wayland |
| Where to get it | Mac App Store | Direct download |
| Effects | Rain, snow, autumn leaves, fog, sunlight, wind, grass | Snow, rain, autumn leaves, Halloween snow |
| Effects at once | Any combination, each with its own slider | One mode at a time |
| Snow on windows | Settles on window tops and moves with the window, then tumbles down when the window closes or is covered | Settles on window tops, the Dock and desktop widgets, slides off a dragged or shaken window, and drops when a window closes or minimizes |
| Cursor | Swipe through leaves to make them gust | Pushes snow aside and smears raindrops |
| Sound | Optional rain and snow ambience | None listed |
| Follows your local weather | Optional, through Apple Weather | Not listed |
| Invert local weather | Optional: rain outside brings sunshine to your desktop | Not listed |
| Extras | Ling minigame, Game Center leaderboards and achievements, saved and shared templates, custom colors | Variable snowfall through the day, melting drifts |
| Permissions | None for the weather. Location only if you choose to sync with your current location | None listed |
| App Sandbox | Yes | No entitlement in its source |
| Source code | Closed | Public, under the PolyForm Noncommercial license |
| Published resource use | About 3 to 3.75% of one core and 375 to 391 MiB (measured on version 1.3, M4 Max) | About 6% of one core and 65 MB (the developer's own figure) |
These performance numbers come from different machines and methods, so they are not a direct comparison. Even so, the difference in memory is large, and it favors Snowhush.
Where Snowhush is the better pick
Price is the obvious one: Snowhush is free, and Weatherling has no free trial. It is also the only one of the two for Windows and Linux, so it suits anyone who wants the same snow on every computer.
Its snow also reacts to more of your desktop. Your cursor pushes it around, and it collects on the Dock and on desktop widgets as well as your windows. Its source code is public too, so you can read how it works, though its license limits commercial use.
Where Weatherling is the better pick
Weatherling treats weather as a scene you build. Rain, snow, leaves, fog, sunlight, wind and grass can all run together, each at its own level, and you can save the result as a template and share it. Sync with Your Weather can set the scene from the conditions where you are, and optional sound can play along.
It also comes through the Mac App Store and runs inside the App Sandbox, so Apple handles the purchase and updates, and macOS limits what the app can reach.
It also has a game, which Snowhush does not. Lings are optional little visitors you can pick up and drop into boxes for points, with a collection to fill and, if you turn on Game Center, leaderboards and achievements.
What they ask of your Mac
Neither app lists a Screen Recording or Accessibility requirement, and I found no calls for either permission in the macOS source of Snowhush. Snowhush notarizes its releases and updates itself. Weatherling makes no network requests unless you turn on weather sync or Game Center.
Which should you choose?
If you mainly want snow on your windows this winter and do not want to spend anything, start with Snowhush. If you want your desktop to change with the seasons, or to mix weather into something of your own, Weatherling gives you more to play with for $1.99.