Identify, Collect and Learn – Free. No Ads. Ever.
Smart Bird ID is the all-in-one bird identifier, bird song identifier, bird call identifier, bird sounds guide, and bird watching app for birders, families, photographers, and nature lovers.
Wondering “what bird is this?” Smart Bird ID helps you identify birds instantly from a photo or by recording bird songs and bird calls around you.
Explore a global bird identification guide, discover birds near you, and improve your skills through daily challenges, quizzes, mini-games, and expert-led courses in the Bird Academy.
Whether you are spotting backyard birds, hiking a trail, or traveling, Smart Bird ID turns every bird encounter into a fun learning adventure.
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IDENTIFY ANY BIRD BY PHOTO OR SOUND
Quickly identify birds using powerful AI bird recognition and bird song identification tools.
• Photo ID: Snap or upload a bird photo to instantly answer “what bird is this?” with fast, accurate identification
• Sound ID: Record bird songs and bird calls, even with background noise, and detect multiple species at once
• Bird sounds library: Explore thousands of bird songs, calls, and spectrograms
• Works offline and with Siri Shortcuts – just ask: “What bird is singing?”
• Global bird catalogue with expert photos, videos, recordings, and identification tips
Perfect for identifying backyard birds, garden birds, raptors, hummingbirds, shorebirds, and more.
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THE BIRD ACADEMY – LEARN WHILE YOU PLAY
Improve your bird identification skills through interactive learning.
• Daily bird challenges that test your identification skills
• Bird quizzes on songs, families, feathers, eggs, and habitats
• Mini-games that train your memory and listening skills
• Educational bird videos and courses created with field experts such as Chirp Nook and The Nature Educator
• Spectrograms and guided learning for bird songs and bird calls
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LOG AND TRACK YOUR BIRD SIGHTINGS
Build your personal birding history.
• Automatic bird journal with photos, sounds, and locations
• Life list, year list, and yard list synced across devices
• Interactive map to discover birds near you and track sightings
Your sightings become a living birding diary.
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COLLECT, COMPETE AND HAVE FUN
• Unlock thousands of animated bird stickers as you discover species
• Earn medals for your best bird photos, videos, and recordings
• Join real-time quizzes and seasonal bird counts
• Track your progress as a birder
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CONNECT WITH BIRDERS WORLDWIDE
• Discover bird photos, videos, and sounds shared by the community
• Like, comment, and follow other bird watchers
• Get your media featured on bird species pages
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WHY BIRDERS LOVE SMART BIRD ID
• 100% ad-free, even in the free version
• Powerful bird photo identification and bird sound recognition tools
• Beautiful design built by birders for birders
• Works offline for trails, forests, gardens, and travel
• Includes iMessage bird stickers
• Used by birders, families, nature clubs, and educators worldwide
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SMART BIRD ID PRO
Unlock the complete birding experience:
• Full access to the Bird Academy
• Cloud backup for sightings and media
• Share your birding journey with a public profile
• Collect every animated sticker and earn all medals
• Access the complete global bird catalogue
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MADE FOR BACKYARDS, TRAILS AND TRAVEL
From backyard feeders to wetlands, forests, and national parks across the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Australia, and India, Smart Bird ID helps you recognize bird songs, identify birds around you, and discover the birds of North America wherever you go.
Perfect for birdwatchers, photographers, educators, kids, and families who love learning about nature.
Identify birds near you, learn bird songs, and quickly answer the question “what bird is this?” using photo ID or bird song identification wherever you are.
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Privacy Policy: https://smartbirdid.com/privacy
Terms of Use: https://smartbirdid.com/terms
I’ve never been interested in birds really. But sitting outside on my deck this summer I kept hearing a bird that had a unique call unlike most I hear in my back yard. I said to my family, “Wouldn’t it be cool if there was an app like Shazam but for bird songs to help identify the species?” Next thing you know I’m in the Apple store buying this app! The next time I heard that bird I quickly whipped out the app and used the search feature with sound recording. It positively identified it as a California Quail (a bird I am familiar with but not the song/call apparently). In the app I played the male California Quail call and this bird left his perch from my neighbors tree and flew aggressively right at me! I think he was planning to take me on until he got a little closer and realized I was a bit bigger than him! He perched in the other neighbor’s tree and resumed his song. I went inside and had my daughter come out to see if it was just a fluke or what. I played the male call again and sure enough he left his perch and flew to our roof top just over the deck where we were standing and peeked over at us to be sure we weren’t another male quail invading his territory. Then he flew off. Super cool experience! Super cool app!
Developer Response
What an incredible story Tom! 😄 Going from “I’ve never really been interested in birds” to identifying a California Quail and watching its territorial behavior is exactly the kind of discovery we love. Sound ID has been completely rebuilt since then and is now free, unlimited and ad-free. Thanks for the 5 stars! 🐦
Now I love birds!!
Tugsie
Here’s my situation and it may be a minute or so long but I just wanted to thank some people!First off I was never looking for birds but my grandmother broke her wrist and came to live with me it’s been a couple months but a few weeks ago she started to ask about birds and bird feeders because we live in Phoenixville, PA That being said I have like 10 bird feeders,bird suet feeders and meal worm feeders hummingbird feeders and of course I did this all for her so I found this app and downloaded it next thing I know my wife and I are bouncing from window to window looking for birds and Identifying them with the app so needless to say there’s 3 bird watchers at my house and grandma is running in 3rd place but we all love it thanks so much great app and fully recommend it to anyone I even asked for help and got a ID back the next day after I sent the email so thanks so much just happy and amazing things for us!!
Developer Response
What a wonderful story! ❤️ We love that your grandmother’s interest in birds turned you and your wife into birdwatchers too. Knowing Smart Bird ID became part of something your family enjoys together means a lot to us. I’m also glad I could help when you reached out. Thanks for the 5 stars! 🐦
Smart Bird ID is awesome!
Flls59
This app is very helpful!After living in Hawai’i for the last 20 years ,moving back to Colorado after being gone for (40 years), my memory of the different birds in Colorado was definitely not the best- actually, I am surprised my interest in birds is so high. My husband (originally from upstate New York) is watching and feeding the birds daily and even with a Colorado backyard bird fold out poster we could not identify many.The Smart Bird ID is helping with photo, guide and even song ID’s…recently sitting on the front porch I recorded the sounds around me and the app identified a hawk before it was in view which had me aware and looking for it- a beautiful experience! What a JOY! I highly recommend this app and look forward to using it often at home and in the Colorado wilderness!Sincerely- Flora
Developer Response
Thank you so much, Flora, for sharing your wonderful story! It’s incredibly heartwarming to hear how Smart Bird ID has helped rekindle your connection to Colorado’s birds after so many years away — and how it's become a shared experience with your husband too. 🐦💛 We especially loved reading about the hawk moment — what a perfect example of how tuning in to the sounds around us can lead to unforgettable encounters with nature. If you haven’t already, be sure to explore the sticker collection and quizzes in the app. They’re a fun way to celebrate each new discovery and deepen your knowledge along the way. Wishing you many more joyful moments birdwatching in your backyard and beyond! 🌲🦅
Advertisements/Accuracy
Men Igna
This app is fun to use as I am a longtime bird enthusiast. My primary issue is every time I try to identify a bird either through song or by camera, I must watch a 30 second advertisement first. Usually the bird is long gone by the time the ad finishes.The accuracy of the bird identifier is about 50%. We had a bird singing all night, the app identified the song as a Mockingbird. Next day I saw the Mockingbird singing the same song. Today I saw and heard a crow clucking in a tree. I ran the song identifier and 30 seconds later it indicated the bird was either a Veery or a Marsh Wren, which is not even close. I attempted to use the camera ID but the bird was gone before the ad finished.I also find it annoying every time I search for information I need to visit the store.I use other bird identifier apps, as I am trying to determine which one I will spend money. This one is among the more accurate ones, but that is not saying much. I have no problem spending money on an app to rid the ads, but not if the app is not accurate. The search continues...
Developer Response
Thank you for the detailed feedback. You were right that ads and inconsistent IDs got in the way of birding. We’ve completely removed ads and rebuilt Photo ID and Sound ID from the ground up for much better accuracy. Both are now completely free and unlimited. We’d genuinely love for you to put them to the test again! 🐦
• All-new Photo ID: see the species in seconds, then its sex and age, with “Why we think so”.
• A redesigned New Sighting screen, with an automatic Backyard list for Smart Bird ID+ members.
• A new moment after saving that celebrates lifers and new stickers.
• Sound ID now works offline from the first launch, with no extra download.
• A much smaller download.
• Privacy: shared sightings now show an approximate area (about 1 km) and the town name, never your exact spot. Your journal keeps the exact location.
• Photos, videos and sounds you share no longer contain location data.
• My Stickers: “Collected” now shows only the stickers you’ve earned by finding the bird.
• Lifetime members: a cleaner Settings screen with only the options that apply to you.
• Updated bird data and Sound ID example recordings.
• Bug fixes and improvements.
Version 5.2.0
The developer, Yellow Cardinal Inc., indicated that the app’s privacy practices may include handling of data as described below. For more information, see the developer’s privacy policy .
Data Linked to You
The following data may be collected and linked to your identity:
Purchases
User Content
Identifiers
Data Not Linked to You
The following data may be collected but it is not linked to your identity:
Usage Data
Diagnostics
Privacy practices may vary, for example, based on the features you use or your age. Learn More
The developer indicated that this app supports the following accessibility features. Learn More
Supported Features
Larger Text
Information
Seller
Yellow Cardinal Inc.
Size
Up to 275.8 MB
Category
Education
Compatibility
Requires iOS 17.6 or later.
iPhone Requires iOS 17.6 or later.
iPad Requires iPadOS 17.6 or later.
Mac Requires macOS 14.0.0 or later and a Mac with Apple M1 chip or later.