Tanning has a speed limit.
Most apps don’t tell you.
A calmer way to read the sun. Real UV, hourly, from WeatherKit with an Open-Meteo fallback. Plan for lower-UV windows. Get reminded to flip, reapply sunscreen, and stop. Then close the app.
The current UV reading and the timer work for free; one subscription unlocks the planner. The microphone is never accessed. Sessions live on your phone.
What we do
- Hourly UV forecast for your location.
- A planner that finds lower-UV windows around your day.
- Reminders to flip, reapply, and stop.
- A history that lives only on your device.
What we don’t do
- No weekly subscription.
- No free-trial countdown.
- No FOMO notifications.
- No AI tan-time estimate.
- No third-party analytics.
How Honest Tan reads the sun.
This page and the app explain UV-index data and how the timer works. Honest Tan is not a medical device and does not tell you what is safe for your skin, give a personal exposure limit, or diagnose anything. If a skin condition, medication or other factor affects your sun sensitivity, talk to a dermatologist. Burns are not goals.
The UV index is a standard scale, defined by the World Health Organization and the World Meteorological Organization, for the strength of sunburn-causing ultraviolet radiation at ground level, running from 0 to 11 and above. Honest Tan turns that public data into a plan and a timer. Here is exactly what it does.
1, Read real hourly UV
Honest Tan pulls the hourly UV index for your location from Apple WeatherKit, and falls back to Open-Meteo forecast data if WeatherKit is unavailable. These are forecast values from established sources, not an estimate dressed up as certainty, and not a guess about your skin.
2, See the curve, find kinder hours
The day’s UV plots as a curve, so the peak is obvious. As the US EPA notes, ground-level UV is strongest in the hours around solar noon. Most days that leaves a lower-UV window before the peak and one after, the same minutes outside, against weaker UV.
3, Pick a time, start the timer
Choose a window that respects how the sun actually moves and start a session. The timer runs; when it ends, it ends. No streaks, no leaderboards, no nudge to stay longer.
4, Flip, reapply, stop
Optional reminders nudge you to flip over, reapply sunscreen, and step into shade. They are prompts you set, not medical instructions. An optional on-device photo-assisted shade estimate can make a routine summary more personal, it can be skipped, and it is not a diagnosis or a risk score.
Sources: World Health Organization UV Index, US EPA UV Index Scale, Apple WeatherKit, Open-Meteo. UV is a forecast, the sky has the final say.
Honest about the edges.
Honest Tan does
- Show the real hourly UV index for your location.
- Highlight lower-UV windows around the daily peak.
- Run a session timer that simply ends when it ends.
- Remind you to flip, reapply sunscreen and step into shade.
- Keep your sessions and history on your iPhone, no account.
Honest Tan doesn’t
- Tell you a “safe” tanning time or a skin-type exposure limit.
- Diagnose, treat or prevent any condition, it is not a medical device.
- Use AI to estimate a tan time or guarantee safe exposure.
- Sync to a cloud, require sign-in, or run a backend.
- Run third-party analytics, or ever access the microphone.
Straight answers.
What is the UV index and why does it matter?
The UV index is an international scale, defined by the WHO and the World Meteorological Organization, for the strength of sunburn-causing ultraviolet radiation at ground level, typically 0 to 11+. Higher numbers mean UV reaches a harmful level faster. Honest Tan shows the real hourly UV index for your location so you can see when it is high and when it eases off.
Where does Honest Tan get its UV data?
It reads the hourly UV index from Apple WeatherKit for your location, and falls back to Open-Meteo forecast data when WeatherKit is unavailable. These are forecast values from established weather sources, not an AI guess about your skin.
Does Honest Tan tell me how long I can tan safely?
No. It does not estimate a safe tanning time or a skin-type exposure limit, and it is not a medical device. It shows the UV forecast and runs a timer you set yourself. How long any person can be in the sun depends on skin, medication, history and other factors a phone cannot assess, that is a question for a dermatologist.
What does the lower-UV window planner do?
It plots the day’s hourly UV curve and highlights the windows around the peak where UV is lower, usually one before midday and one after. Spending time in those windows means less intense UV for the same minutes outside. The full hourly planner and tomorrow’s forecast are part of Honest Tan Pro.
Is Honest Tan private? Does it need an account?
It needs no account, sign-in or backend, and uses no third-party analytics. Your sessions and history stay on your iPhone. Location is used only to fetch the local UV forecast, and the microphone is never accessed.
How much does Honest Tan cost?
The current UV reading and the session timer are free. Honest Tan Pro unlocks the full hourly planner, tomorrow’s forecast, custom reminder intervals and unlimited history. Pro is an annual subscription that starts with a 7-day free trial, then $19.99/year until cancelled, with a $49.99 lifetime option also available. Prices may vary by region.
UV index guides.
Short, plain-language explainers on how the UV index actually works, so the number on your screen means something.
Read the sun, then close the app.
Location is used only for the local UV forecast; purchases go through the App Store; there are no third-party analytics. No account, no sign-in, no backend.
Honest Tan helps you plan around peak UV. It is not a medical device and cannot tell you what is safe for your skin. Burns are not goals.