# Shell Museum: Identify Shells — Sanibel Florida Seashell Guide

> AI-powered seashell identification and guide for Southwest Florida. (iPhone/iPad app by Shell Museum and Educational Foundation, Inc..)

- Source: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/shell-museum-identify-shells/id1451016485 (this page in markdown: same URL + `.md`)
- Developer: [Shell Museum and Educational Foundation, Inc.](https://appshunter.io/developer/1451016484)
- Category: Education, Reference
- Price: $1.99
- Rating: 2.30/5 from 54 App Store ratings · 34 written reviews indexed
- Age rating: 4+
- Requires: iOS 11.0 · 140 MB
- Released: 2019-03-02
- Data updated: 2026-06-10
- Monetization: free
- User reviews in markdown: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/shell-museum-identify-shells/id1451016485/reviews.md

## What is Shell Museum?

Instant shell identification using your phone’s camera. Full color shell guide. Learn from museum experts about shells. 

The Shell Museum App can identify most common shells found on Southwest Florida beaches using your cell phone.  Now you can learn about the shells you find while you’re at the beach, simply by snapping a picture!  In addition, the App provides an extensive shell guide with many images and descriptions of these same shells.

The Shell Museum App, created by the Nation’s leading shell experts at the Bailey-Matthews National Shell Museum is a revolutionary shell identification tool to help you instantly identify more than 65 common shells found on Southwest Florida Beaches.  And, the app allows you to learn more about each species from the in-depth guide.

From an initial set of over 35,000 shell images, the Shell Museum App uses deep learning and artificial intelligence to learn how to identify Southwest Florida shells.   And, you can help it learn!  Every photo you submit makes the Shell Museum App better by adding to its growing knowledge of shells.

Shell Museum App Features:

Identify Shells with Your Phone Camera
•	Open the Shell Museum app, snap a photo, and find out the name of your shell in seconds
•	Learn more details about the shell and see photos of the living animal that created it!

Browse a full color shell guide right on your phone
•	See full color photos of most common Southwest Florida Shells
•	Easily search for a particular shell with either a visual search or by typing part of the name

Follow the Daily Activities at the Bailey-Matthews National Shell Museum
•	Get information on Beach Walks and daily Tank Talks
•	Make reservations for upcoming activities
•	Learn about special events and programs

## Key features

- Instant shell identification via camera
- Full-color shell guide with descriptions
- Learn about shells from museum experts
- AI-powered identification
- Submit photos to improve identification
- Information on museum activities

## Recent user reviews (10 of 34)

All indexed reviews: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/shell-museum-identify-shells/id1451016485/reviews.md

### 2/5 — Not good for west coast

*2024-06-09*

I thought I’d give the app a shot since it’s the most talked about for shell identification on the internet but it’s not of much use for the Southern California coast. It couldn’t identify a close up of a living sand dollar… oh well. At least the shell listings might point me in the right direction if the shell here is in the same family….

### 1/5 — Doesn’t work

*2024-04-08*

Won’t open when I click on shell information

### 1/5 — Needs more data

*2024-03-19*

Could not identify a Common Nutmeg which has some pretty distinct features….

### 1/5 — Use google lens instead

*2024-02-10*

This app should not be used. I showed it a huge variety of shells (conical, bivalve, snail) and it produced the same list of possibilities almost every time. Google lens is actual AI and will always get it right. (Go to regular google and hit the square icon on the right side of the search box.)

### 1/5 — Can’t ID anything.

*2023-08-12*

Tried about 5 shells app couldn’t ID any.

Suggestion pictures weren’t even close

### 3/5 — Wish it had more

*2023-06-15*

I thought this would be a little more helpful. But since it main only has marine mollusk from Florida…it doesn’t really help for other regions or freshwater mollusk. 

But hopefully more improvements adds more functionality.

### 1/5 — Not very good

*2023-01-01, version 1.0.30*

I tried 3 different common shells in Hawaii. Didn’t identify any of them correctly. Oh well, 1.99 not too bad to throw away on this app.

### 1/5 — Does not do what it touts

*2022-11-23, version 1.0.30*

I downloaded this app after I went shelling on Tybee Island. It did not identify one single shell correctly. A total waste of money.

### 5/5 — Don’t bother

*2022-09-13, version 1.0.30*

I live in Florida and collect shells. This app has NEVER identified a shell from my photograph correctly. Even the most common simple shells were not identified correctly. Ridiculous. Don’t bother with this app. Also I could not post this unless I gave it more than 4 star. Ha what a joke.

### 1/5 — Doesn’t work at all

*2022-06-21, version 1.0.30*

Won’t identify anything correctly. Better luck just using google. And google is free unlike this terrible app.

## Frequently asked questions about Shell Museum

### What does the Shell Museum app do?

The Shell Museum app uses your phone's camera to instantly identify common seashells found on Southwest Florida beaches. It also provides a full-color shell guide with detailed descriptions and images, allowing you to learn more about each species.

### How does the shell identification feature work?

The app utilizes deep learning and artificial intelligence to identify shells from photos you take with your phone's camera. You can simply snap a picture of a shell, and the app will provide its name and details within seconds.

### Is this app free to use?

Yes, the Shell Museum app is free to download and use. There are no in-app purchases or advertisements mentioned in the provided description.

### What kind of shells can this app identify?

The app is designed to identify over 65 common shells found specifically on Southwest Florida beaches. Its AI is trained on a vast dataset of shell images to provide accurate identifications for this region.

### Can I use this app to identify shells from other regions?

The app is primarily focused on identifying shells found on Southwest Florida beaches. While it may recognize some common shells, its accuracy is optimized for the shells native to that specific geographic area.

## Version history (last 3 releases)

### 1.0.30 — 2020-10-07

This release contains a fix for missing shell photography

### 1.0.28 — 2019-06-20

This version contains a fix for missing shell photography and some performance improvements.

### 1.0.25 — 2019-02-28

No release notes.

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*Data collected daily from the US App Store and indexed by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/). User reviews are verbatim App Store reviews. Ratings, prices and chart positions refresh continuously; this snapshot is from 2026-06-10.*