# Nature Notes vs BirdNET

The clearest difference is rating: BirdNET at 4.0 against Nature Notes's 1.0. BirdNET also leads on in-app purchases (none vs 1) and ratings volume (212 vs 1). Nature Notes's advantage is update cadence (fortnightly vs every 3 months). On price, ads and device support there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Nature Notes sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. BirdNET asks for nothing beyond the download.

BirdNET holds the better App Store score, 4.0 against 1.0. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: BirdNET has 212 ratings behind it against 1, so its average is the more settled of the two.

Nature Notes ships an update fortnightly, BirdNET every 3 months. The most recent releases landed on September 24, 2026 and September 28, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Nature Notes | BirdNET |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | [1.0 (1 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/nature-notes/id1368239014/reviews) | **[4.0 (212 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/birdnet/id1541842885/reviews)** |
| Number of ratings | 1 | **212** |
| Positive reviews | — | 66.6% of reviews |
| In-app purchases | Yes | **No** |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | **Fortnightly** | Every 3 months |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | **Free** |
| Size | 172 MB | 98 MB |
| Requires iOS | 15.5 | **13.0** |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Kenneth Wahl](https://appshunter.io/developer/681454231) | [Stefan Kahl](https://appshunter.io/developer/1541842887) |

## What reviewers say

### Nature Notes

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/nature-notes/id1368239014)

Record and share notes, photos, and audio from your outdoor adventures. Advanced tools allow for photo merging from other cameras and interactive map integration. Organize trips into multiple hikes and share them via email, web pages, or custom files.

**Highlights:** Record notes, photos, and audio, Merge photos from other cameras, Interactive Apple Maps integration, Organize trips into multiple hikes, Share via email, web pages, or files, GPS tracking and export (KML/GPX)

**In-app purchases (1)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| English | $4.99 | one-time |


### BirdNET

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/birdnet/id1541842885)

Identify bird species by their sounds using AI. Record audio with your device and discover the birds around you. Contribute to conservation research by submitting your recordings.

**Highlights:** AI-powered bird sound recognition, Identify common North American and European species, Record audio with internal microphone, View probable bird species identification, Contribute to conservation research, Learn about local birds

**Features:** Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases:** none

**What reviewers like**

- 💚 Excellent bird identification accuracy
- 👍 Simple and intuitive interface
- 🔍 Helpful links to Wikipedia and other resources
- 🎉 Enjoyable and educational for bird enthusiasts
- 🗺️ Leverages location data to improve identification

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 App crashes or freezes on some devices
- 🔍 Struggles to identify multiple birds singing simultaneously
- 🔇 Unable to play back previous recordings in some cases
- 🗺️ Inaccurate or incomplete regional bird data
- 🤔 Questionable identification results in some cases

**Reported bugs**

- Crashes when trying to access observation history
- Recordings disappearing after app updates
- Inability to start a new recording without exiting the app
- Microphone not working on certain devices
- Incorrect or missing bird species in regional databases

**Requested features**

- Ability to manually select frequency ranges for analysis
- Option to delete individual observations or recordings
- Import/export functionality for recordings and observations
- Improved handling of background noise and interference
- More detailed feedback when multiple birds are detected


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Nature Notes free?

Nature Notes is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Is BirdNET free?

BirdNET is free to download, with no in-app purchases.

### Which has better reviews, Nature Notes or BirdNET?

BirdNET is rated higher. Nature Notes averages 1.0 out of 5 from 1 ratings, while BirdNET averages 4.0 from 212 ratings.

### Do Nature Notes or BirdNET have ads?

Neither Nature Notes nor BirdNET shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, Nature Notes or BirdNET?

Nature Notes ships an update fortnightly, and BirdNET every 3 months. Most recently, Nature Notes was updated on September 24, 2026 and BirdNET on September 28, 2026.

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*Compared by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/) from daily US App Store data. Review summaries are generated from verbatim App Store reviews.*