9 Best Free Apps For Identifying The Birds In Your Yard

We all have been there. You see a bird, but you don't know its name. You then take a picture or maybe record a video to ask your friends, but no one knows. Frustrating, right? Well, don't worry — those days are behind you. There are many apps for identifying the birds in your yard, and the best part? Some of them are completely free. And even the paid ones usually have a free version with limited access. Take, for instance, Merlin Bird ID, eBird, iNaturalist, BirdsEye, and ChirpOMatic. These apps can turn that "mystery bird" moment into a solid answer. They are great for hobbyists, ornithophiles, or even homeowners who enjoy the occasional bird sighting and want to learn more about these winged creatures.

With nearly 1,155 bird species existing in the US, who can remember them all? Well, that is exactly where these apps come in handy. Other than the name, some of these apps provide information about the birds, such as their habitat, diet, and behavior. The really awesome part is that certain apps can even identify the bird just from its song. So, you don't worry if the bird you are trying to learn about is hidden in the leaves.

First on the list is the Merlin Bird ID App, which is probably one of the best bird-identifying apps. It was developed by the people at Cornell University, which is one of the top 20 universities in the world. The app is available on both the Android and Apple app stores. The best part? It is free to download and use. All you have to do is upload the picture. If you don't have a picture, you can still identify a bird with just a sound recording. 

eBird is another project from Cornell University. However, it is far more sophisticated. It lets you record all your bird sightings, and the data is then used for research and conservation. And just like the Merlin Bird ID App, eBird is also free to download and use, and it's available on both Android and iOS devices. You just have to import a photo into one of eBird's checklists, and it will use the Merlin Bird App's data to identify and draw a box around each bird in the photo. Even the birds you do not want to see in your yard.

iNaturalist is another superb option for bird watchers. Although it is more than just an app. Instead, think of it as a biodiversity information sharing crowdsourced network, supported by the California Academy of Sciences and National Geographic. The data is used to help identify birds as well as other animals and plants. It is one of those apps that can help you identify a bird chirping in your yard and, at the same time, determine if the tree in your new backyard is invasive. Once again, the app is free and works on both Android and Apple devices.

The Audubon Bird Guide is basically a pocket field guide for North American birds. If you want something that functions like a book but works on your phone, this is the app you want. It can identify and provide information on more than 800 bird species found in North America. Furthermore, you can keep a record of all your bird sightings right within the app. It even lets you share your photos with other Audubon Bird Guide users. You can download it for free on both iPhones and Android devices.

If you are looking for a bird-identifying app for those "I can hear it, but can't see it" moments, you definitely have to check out the BirdNET Sound ID App. All you have to do is take out your phone and record a short snippet of a bird song or call. The app then uses AI and its computational models to provide instant identification suggestions, along with confidence scores for each, and alternative matches. The best part? It has data about more than 3,000 species. So, you can even use it to identify birds when vacationing outside of North America.

If you want an app you can use to identify birds not just on your mobile device but also on photos saved on your laptop or computer, go with this one. It works on all Windows, Mac, Android, and iPhone operating systems. Its database includes information about nearly 10,000 species. Plus, when you identify a bird, you can also learn about habitat, distribution, and diet. But what makes it really special is that it lets you organize your finds into collections and even has articles on how to attract a variety of birds to your yard.

Birda — Birding Made Better is like a birding app + social community in one place. Not only can you use it to ID birds from photos using its AI-powered identifier (which, by the way, works even if the pictures are a little blurry), but you can also use it to post unidentified sightings to let the bird enthusiast community help you nail it down, in case the identification fails. The best part? You can even import your bird-watching data from other apps like Merlin Bird ID and eBird, in case you don't want to start from scratch.

Smart Bird ID is another app, available on both the Google Play Store and the Apple App Store, that lets you identify birds both with pictures and sound. Just make sure you download the right version of the app if you live in North America, as it has regional versions for Australia and New Zealand. Once you download the correct version, you will get access to a large bird-watching community where people share their findings every day. The app is free to download and use, but it does have in-app purchases for additional features.

ChirpOMatic is another app with several region-based variants available for download on Google and Apple platforms. So, make sure you download the one for North America, or if you are planning a tour of Germany's Black Forest, the one for Europe. And as you might have already guessed by its name, it uses sound to identify the bird. Even if the sound recording has noise, like wind or traffic, or is just too distant, the app won't give up on you and will show you a ranked shortlist of birds most likely behind the sound.