Models

Overview

All models are accessed via the same endpoint — pass the model name in the model query parameter or as the {model} path segment in OGC routes.

Model ID	Full name	Provider	Resolution	Domain	Forecast range
`gfs`	Global Forecast System	NOAA	~13 km	Global	16 days
`ecmwf-ifs`	IFS HRES (Set I)	ECMWF	~9 km	Global	15 days
`hrrr`	High-Resolution Rapid Refresh	NOAA	3 km	CONUS	18 h
`nam`	North American Mesoscale	NOAA	12 km	North America	84 h
`icon-eu`	ICON-EU	DWD / ECMWF	6.5 km	Europe	120 h
`icon-global`	ICON-Global	DWD	~13 km	Global	180 h
`arome`	AROME	Météo-France	1.3 km	France + borders	42 h

GFS

Global coverage, updated every 6 hours. Best for worldwide applications and long-range planning.

Resolution: ~13 km (0.25°)
Update times (UTC): 00:00, 06:00, 12:00, 18:00
Forecast horizon: 384 h (16 days)
Temporal resolution: 1 h (0–120 h), 3 h (120–384 h)
Licence: NOAA open data — no restrictions

?model=gfs

ECMWF IFS HRES

The gold standard for medium-range global forecasts. ECMWF's highest-resolution deterministic model (Set I), 4 runs per day, data available under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 licence.

Resolution: ~9 km (0.1°)
Update times (UTC): 00:00, 06:00, 12:00, 18:00
Forecast horizon: 360 h (15 days)
Temporal resolution: 1 h (0–90 h), 3 h (90–144 h), 6 h (144–360 h)
Licence: CC BY 4.0 — © ECMWF
Dataset: ECMWF Open Data — Set I

?model=ecmwf-ifs

HRRR

Highest resolution over CONUS. Essential for severe weather, aviation, and energy applications.

Resolution: 3 km
Update times (UTC): Every hour (00:00–23:00)
Forecast horizon: 18 h (standard), 48 h (00/06/12/18 UTC runs)
Temporal resolution: 1 h
Licence: NOAA open data — no restrictions

?model=hrrr

NAM

North American regional model. Good balance of resolution and coverage for US/Canada/Mexico.

Resolution: 12 km (continental), 3 km (CONUS nest)
Update times (UTC): 00:00, 06:00, 12:00, 18:00
Forecast horizon: 84 h
Temporal resolution: 1 h (0–36 h), 3 h (39–84 h)
Licence: NOAA open data — no restrictions

?model=nam

ICON-EU

European regional model from DWD. High temporal frequency for European coverage.

Resolution: 6.5 km
Update times (UTC): 00:00, 03:00, 06:00, 09:00, 12:00, 15:00, 18:00, 21:00
Forecast horizon: 120 h (5 days)
Temporal resolution: 1 h
Licence: CC BY 4.0 — © DWD

?model=icon-eu

ICON-Global

DWD's global model. Covers the entire planet with high resolution and long horizon.

Resolution: ~13 km (icosahedral R02B07)
Update times (UTC): 00:00, 06:00, 12:00, 18:00
Forecast horizon: 180 h (00/12 UTC), 120 h (06/18 UTC)
Temporal resolution: 1 h (0–78 h), 3 h (81–180 h)

?model=icon-global

AROME

Highest resolution model available. Best for France, Benelux, Switzerland, northern Spain.

Resolution: 1.3 km
Update times (UTC): 00:00, 03:00, 06:00, 09:00, 12:00, 15:00, 18:00, 21:00
Forecast horizon: 42 h
Temporal resolution: 1 h
Licence: Météo-France open data

?model=arome

Choosing a model

Use case	Recommended model
Global coverage, any location	`gfs` or `ecmwf-ifs`
Best accuracy (medium-range)	`ecmwf-ifs`
Long-range forecast (> 10 days)	`ecmwf-ifs` or `icon-global`
High-resolution US/Canada	`hrrr` or `nam`
High-resolution Europe	`icon-eu` or `arome`
France, sub-2km precision	`arome`
Nowcasting / hourly updates	`hrrr` (US) or `icon-eu` / `arome` (EU)
Global with DWD methodology	`icon-global`

Data licences

Model	Licence	Attribution required
GFS	NOAA open data	No
HRRR	NOAA open data	No
NAM	NOAA open data	No
ECMWF IFS HRES	CC BY 4.0	© ECMWF
ICON-EU	CC BY 4.0	© DWD
ICON-Global	CC BY 4.0	© DWD
AROME	Météo-France open data	© Météo-France

When using Weather Ruse data in a public product, attribute as: "Weather data sourced via Weather Ruse — ECMWF/DWD data under CC BY 4.0"