Welcome to the OpenWeatherMap API Sample Collection.
\nThis project showcases how to send and document API requests using Postman. It is designed for learning and portfolio-building, particularly for aspiring API Technical Writers.
\nGet an API Key:
\nSign up at OpenWeatherMap and get your free API key.
\nSet API Key in Postman:
\nGo to Collection > Variables tab
\nAdd a variable called API_KEY
Paste your actual API key as the initial and current value
\nUse {{API_KEY}} in your requests instead of typing the key directly
✅ Get Current Weather by City
\n✅ 5-Day Forecast by City
\n✅ Forward and Reverse Geocoding
\n✅ Sample Error Handling (401, 404, 429)
\nThis is part of a beginner-friendly API writer portfolio project. Enjoy exploring and learning!
\n","schema":"https://schema.getpostman.com/json/collection/v2.0.0/collection.json","toc":[{"content":"🔰 Getting Started","slug":"getting-started"}],"owner":"43353117","collectionId":"7e32dd45-0f15-4dcb-8533-64efe28876a3","publishedId":"2sB2cd4J9g","public":true,"customColor":{"top-bar":"FFFFFF","right-sidebar":"303030","highlight":"FF6C37"},"publishDate":"2025-04-21T07:08:56.000Z"},"item":[{"name":"🔹 Current Weather","item":[{"name":"📍 Get Current Weather by City","id":"74e16775-360c-45ff-bf4c-685e52189f72","protocolProfileBehavior":{"disableBodyPruning":true},"request":{"method":"GET","header":[],"url":"https://api.openweathermap.org/data/2.5/weather?q=Trichy&appid={{}}&units=metric","description":"Endpoint:GET /data/2.5/weather
Query Parameters:
\nExample:https://api.openweathermap.org/data/2.5/weather?q=Trichy&appid={{API_KEY}}&units=metric
Contains requests to fetch real-time weather data based on city name. Returns temperature, humidity, and weather description.
\n","_postman_id":"98b1bffb-7933-48dd-a55d-8b8e4fe8d03b"},{"name":"🔹 Forecasts","item":[{"name":"🌤️ Get 5-Day Forecast by City","id":"6acc721f-25cc-4d04-a1fb-cfedde06852b","protocolProfileBehavior":{"disableBodyPruning":true},"request":{"method":"GET","header":[],"url":"https://api.openweathermap.org/data/2.5/forecast?q=trichy&appid={{API_KEY}}&units=metric","description":"Endpoint:GET /data/2.5/forecast
Query Parameters:
\nExample:https://api.openweathermap.org/data/2.5/forecast?q=London&appid={{API_KEY}}&units=metric
Includes 5-day weather forecast data in 3-hour intervals using city name as input.
\n","_postman_id":"84b6e1a6-9ad7-481f-aee5-200d391e2c2b"},{"name":"🔹 Geocoding","item":[{"name":"📍 Forward Geocoding by City","id":"ef3f7cdd-80f4-42c7-b91a-6682268a138a","protocolProfileBehavior":{"disableBodyPruning":true},"request":{"method":"GET","header":[],"url":"https://api.openweathermap.org/geo/1.0/direct?q=trichy&limit=1&appid={{API_KEY}}","description":"Endpoint:GET /geo/1.0/direct
Query Parameters:
\nExample:https://api.openweathermap.org/geo/1.0/direct?q=Trichy&limit=1&appid={{API_KEY}}
Endpoint:GET /geo/1.0/reverse
Query Parameters:
\nExample:https://api.openweathermap.org/geo/1.0/reverse?lat=10.7905&lon=78.7047&appid={{API_KEY}}
Allows converting city names to coordinates (forward geocoding) and coordinates to city names (reverse geocoding).
\n","_postman_id":"ff9381e9-8bb5-4952-a640-69e02c781c18"},{"name":"🔹 Error Handling","item":[{"name":"🔴 401 Unauthorized – Invalid API key","id":"4836e386-ebf3-44cf-b4a7-1a9cbef59324","protocolProfileBehavior":{"disableBodyPruning":true},"request":{"method":"GET","header":[],"url":"https://api.openweathermap.org/data/2.5/weather?q=Trichy&appid=INVALID_KEY&units=metric","description":"Endpoint:
\nhttps://api.openweathermap.org/data/2.5/weather?q=Trichy&appid=INVALID_Key&units=metrics
This simulates a user entering a Invalid API key.
\nExpected Response:
\n{
\"cod\": \"401\",
\"message\": \"Invalid API key. Please see https://openweathermap.org/faq#error401 for more info.\"
\n}
\n","urlObject":{"protocol":"https","path":["data","2.5","weather"],"host":["api","openweathermap","org"],"query":[{"key":"q","value":"Trichy"},{"key":"appid","value":"INVALID_KEY"},{"key":"units","value":"metric"}],"variable":[]}},"response":[],"_postman_id":"4836e386-ebf3-44cf-b4a7-1a9cbef59324"},{"name":"🔴 404 Not Found – Invalid City","id":"3f767b5d-7931-4f27-88dc-8a53856c6393","protocolProfileBehavior":{"disableBodyPruning":true},"request":{"method":"GET","header":[],"url":"https://api.openweathermap.org/data/2.5/weather?q=Fakecity&appid={{}}&units=metric","description":"Endpoint:https://api.openweathermap.org/data/2.5/weather?q=InvalidCity&appid={{API_KEY}}
Description:
\nThis simulates a user entering a non-existent city name.
\nExpected Response:
\n{
\"cod\": \"404\",
\"message\": \"city not found\"
}
\n\n","urlObject":{"protocol":"https","path":["data","2.5","weather"],"host":["api","openweathermap","org"],"query":[{"key":"q","value":"Fakecity"},{"key":"appid","value":"{{}}"},{"key":"units","value":"metric"}],"variable":[]}},"response":[],"_postman_id":"3f767b5d-7931-4f27-88dc-8a53856c6393"},{"name":"🔴 429 Too Many Requests","id":"2acd25e6-24ed-40d5-8413-8ba9cfb5529f","protocolProfileBehavior":{"disableBodyPruning":true},"request":{"method":"GET","header":[],"description":"<p ></p>
\n
**Endpoint:**Same as valid request
\nDescription:
\nThis error is returned when the API rate limit is exceeded.
\nTypical Response:
\n{
\"cod\": 429,
\"message\": \"You have exceeded the rate limit\"
}
Demonstrates how the API handles invalid input, including missing keys, wrong parameters, and rate limits.
\n","_postman_id":"fb72f929-40c4-4c14-a490-2c0e935c5d01"}]}