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C4B vs Weather Spark

C4B vs Weather Spark for building design

Weather Spark is a fast, readable way to see what the weather is like in a place. When the question is how a building should respond to that climate, C4B goes further.

Last checked13 October 2026

C4B and Weather Spark at a glance

AspectC4BWeather Spark
TypeWeb app, in the browserConsumer climate website
PriceFree plan; paid plans from €59/month (cancellation takes effect after 12 billing cycles) or €599/year, with a 7-day free trialFree to browse; paid data download plans
Choosing the locationSearch an address or click the map; no weather file neededSearch for a named place
Weather dataNearest weather station file (Climate.OneBuilding.Org, usually TMYx) plus, in projects, EPW files built from site-specific reanalysis (ERA5 / ERA5-Land, CERRA, NORA3) at the exact coordinatesNASA MERRA-2 reanalysis and nearby airport stations, 1980 to 2016
PrecipitationMonthly totals and rain event intensity from NOAA rain gauges near the site; in projects, site-specific reanalysis at the exact coordinates and a rainfall record from 1941Charts of the daily chance of precipitation and of average monthly rainfall and snowfall
Future climateSSP1-1.9 to SSP5-8.5, any year from 2025 to 2100, in projects on paid plansNot stated on the pages we reviewed
Outdoor comfortUTCI outdoor comfort, including on the Free planNot stated on the pages we reviewed
Passive design strategies (indoor)Passive Design Strategies for Indoor Environments, with seven strategies per bioclimatic method, in projects on paid plans; the chart with the strategy zones drawn on it in the Designer module on Technical and EnterpriseNot provided
Energy analysisPreliminary hourly energy balance; orientation and aspect-ratio optimization and window shading recommendations (five fixed devices on eight facades) in projects on paid plansSolar energy overview
Design directionIndoor passive design strategies, outdoor comfort strategies, building orientation and aspect ratio, PV panel orientation and window shading recommendations, in projects on paid plansNot provided: its guidance is about the best time of year to visit
Accessibility of outputGraphics and data interpretation are targeted at laypeople, and can be read by architects and building developers, in addition to more technical personnelVery readable charts and plain text, made for trip and event planning rather than building design
OutputsInteractive charts; written readings on most charts in projects and a PDF report on paid plans; EPW downloads on Technical and EnterpriseWeb charts; paid data downloads and chart licences

Where Weather Spark is strong

  • Free to browse, instant and very readable for almost any place.
  • Covers many variables with clear seasonal charts.
  • Month-by-month views of temperature, cloud cover, precipitation and wind for each place, and a chart of average temperature by hour of the day through the year.

Where C4B takes a different approach

  • Built for building design: psychrometric chart, passive strategies, UTCI outdoor comfort, wind roses, sun path and energy balance.
  • Always shows the nearest weather station's typical year, and in projects builds the site's typical year from 15 complete years of reanalysis (ERA5 / ERA5-Land, with CERRA and NORA3 regionally; 2011 to 2025, or 2006 to 2020 where CERRA is used).
  • Adds Köppen-Geiger zones to 2100, future climate scenarios and a PDF report.

Weather Spark may suit you better if

  • You want a quick, free sense of a place's typical weather through the year.

C4B may suit you better if

  • You are designing a building or outdoor space and need design-specific analyses.
  • You need recent data, future climate or a report you can share with a client.

See your site's climate before design begins

Pin any location and get climate, comfort and preliminary energy insight your whole team can read. Start with a 7-day free trial, or book a 30-minute demo.

Free plan; paid plans from €59/month (cancellation takes effect after 12 billing cycles) or €599/year, with a 7-day free trial. No card required. If you add a card during the trial, the plan is charged when the trial ends; otherwise your account moves to the Free plan. See all plans.

start 7-day free trialbook a 30 min demo

Frequently asked questions

Is Weather Spark data suitable for building design?

Weather Spark is designed for general climate overviews, and its own pages describe its data period (1980 to 2016) and grid resolution. Building design usually needs hourly design analyses such as comfort, wind and psychrometrics.

What data does Weather Spark use?

Its climate reports combine NASA MERRA-2 reanalysis (on a grid of about 50 km) with temperature records from nearby airport stations, for 1980 to 2016.

What does C4B show that Weather Spark does not?

Design analyses such as the psychrometric chart and passive strategies, UTCI outdoor comfort, climate zones to 2100, future climate scenarios and a preliminary energy balance.

Is C4B free?

C4B has a free plan with climate and energy analyses on weather-station data, and paid plans from €59 per month (monthly plans are cancelled 12 billing cycles after notice) with a 7-day free trial.

Sources

Information about Weather Spark comes from its official website and documentation, checked on 13 October 2026. Products change, so check the official site for the latest details. Weather Spark belongs to Cedar Lake Ventures, Inc.; C4B is not affiliated with or endorsed by them.

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