Windows 11's built-in Weather app has come under scrutiny after testing by Windows Latest, cited by PCWorld, Tom's Hardware, TechPowerUp, and Wccftech, found that the app consumes more than 1.2GB of RAM simply by being open, without any scrolling or interaction. Wccftech reported that usage can jump to around 1.5GB to 1.6GB during interaction such as zooming, though it can settle to around 500-600MB when idle. TechPowerUp noted the app uses nearly 1.2GB of RAM even without interaction.
By comparison, macOS's native Weather app uses far less memory. PCWorld reported the macOS app used 123MB on its own test machine, while citing Windows Latest's figure of 246MB. TechPowerUp, Tom's Hardware, and Wccftech all put macOS usage at under 250MB, with Wccftech and TechPowerUp both stating the Windows app uses roughly five times more RAM than the macOS version.
A key reason for the high memory usage, according to multiple sources, is that the Windows 11 Weather app is not a native application but a web wrapper. PCWorld and Tom's Hardware reported that Task Manager shows the app running as multiple separate processes—Tom's Hardware specified eight Chromium-based subprocesses—indicating it is rendered via WebView2 rather than built on Microsoft's native WinUI framework. Tom's Hardware noted that Microsoft is working to move native apps from Win32 and UWP to WinUI, though it's unclear if MSN-branded apps like Weather are included in that effort, and unclear whether ads would be removed as part of any such update.
All sources noted that the Windows 11 Weather app displays advertisements, unlike the ad-free macOS version. Tom's Hardware reported seeing ads for Adobe Acrobat, LendingTree, and Spotify while using the app. TechPowerUp and Wccftech both characterized this as disappointing or frustrating given that Windows is a paid operating system. Wccftech went further, describing the app as "nothing more than MSN adware."
The findings arrive as Microsoft has been emphasizing memory efficiency for Windows 11. TechPowerUp noted that Microsoft recently removed documentation recommending 32GB of RAM for new PCs, instead emphasizing that 8GB devices are optimized to run Windows 11 smoothly. TechPowerUp calculated that on an 8GB system, the Weather app alone would consume about 15% of available memory before any other processes run. Wccftech added that on 16GB or 8GB systems, running the app could cause performance issues and force the system to rely on SSD swapping, potentially confusing users unaware of the cause of slowdowns.
Multiple outlets suggested that Microsoft still has work to do to optimize Windows 11's built-in apps. Wccftech recommended uninstalling the Weather app or preventing it from running in the background as a workaround. TechPowerUp expressed hope that Microsoft would dedicate more resources to making built-in apps like Weather less resource-intensive and ad-free, while Tom's Hardware suggested that, for now, users might prefer checking weather on their phones.