Project FeederWatch vs BirdNET Live
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Project FeederWatch
Easily report bird sightings from your feeder for scientific research. Track your statistics, access past counts, and learn about local feeder birds. Contribute to a large database that aids conservation efforts.
- Report winter bird sightings
- Track sighting statistics
- Access past count archives
- Contribute to bird population database
- Discover best food and feeder types
- Identify and learn about feeder birds
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Do you feed birds? You can report what you see for science. Project FeederWatch, a joint project of the Cornell Lab of Ornithology and Birds Canada, monitors winter feeder-bird populations in North America. The FeederWatch Mobile App is a new way for Project FeederWatch members to contribute their bird counts. Sign in to: •Report birds that visit your count site in winter (US and Canada only) •Track your sighting statistics in real time •Access your archive of past counts from all years •Contribute to North America’s largest database on feeder birds •Find out what food and feeder types work best for the birds overwintering near you •Identify and learn about feeder birds FeederWatch Mobile automatically syncs with the web version for seamless multi-platform support. Your data become immediately available for scientific research, education, and conservation. Thank you for helping birds!
BirdNET Live
Identify bird species by their songs and calls directly on your device, even offline. This app provides real-time spectrograms, species detections, and tools for structured bioacoustic research and surveys. Manage your sound library and contribute to scientific understanding.
- Offline sound identification
- Real-time spectrogram
- Species detection
- Structured survey modes
- Audio file analysis
- Sound library management
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BirdNET Live runs our most sophisticated sound ID model directly on your device — no internet connection required. Watch a live scrolling spectrogram, view species detections in real time, and manage your growing library of animal sounds right from your phone. BirdNET Live supports bioacoustic research and structured acoustic surveys across multiple workflows: - Live Mode — Real-time species detections with a live spectrogram - Point Counts — Structured timed sessions with live detections - Surveys — Record longer transects while tracking detections along your route - File Analysis — Analyze audio files from local storage - Batch Analysis — Process multiple audio files in bulk - ARU Mode — Schedule longer acoustic recording deployments BirdNET Live is designed for researchers and citizen scientists alike and offers extensive configuration and detection review options. This app is a joint effort by the Cornell K. Lisa Yang Center for Conservation Bioacoustics and Chemnitz University of Technology, in partnership with the Museum für Naturkunde Berlin. Development of this app is supported by the Deutsche Bundesstiftung Umwelt. For more information, consult our online user guide: https://birdnet-team.github.io/birdnet-live-app/user/
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is review sentiment: BirdNET Live at 100% against Project FeederWatch's 33%. BirdNET Live also leads on rating (5.0 vs 3.0) and update cadence (weekly vs every 2 months). Project FeederWatch's advantage is ratings volume (68 vs 6). On price, ads, in-app purchases and device support there is nothing between them.
Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS
Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
BirdNET Live holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 3.0. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Project FeederWatch has 68 ratings behind it against 6, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 33% of Project FeederWatch's written reviews are positive against 100% of BirdNET Live's.
Project FeederWatch ships an update every 2 months, BirdNET Live weekly. The most recent releases landed on October 7, 2026 and October 3, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Project FeederWatch | BirdNET Live |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 3.0 (68 ratings) | 5.0 (6 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 33.3% of reviews | 100.0% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 68 — better | 6 |
| Update frequency | Every 2 months | Weekly — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Ad-supported | Free — better |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod — better | iPhone, iPad |
| Requires iOS | 15.0 — better | 16.6 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 63 MB | 346 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Cornell University | Stefan Kahl |
Customer experience
Project FeederWatch
BirdNET Live
Bugs and requests
Project FeederWatch
Reported bugs
40 issues- Birds saved then disappear
- Counts get lost
- Entries not saved consistently
- Part of data not recorded
- App deletes counts
Show 35 moreShow fewer
- App freezes/hangs regularly
- Connection fails repeatedly
- App is slow to respond
- Opens to a blank black screen
- App doesn't recognize submitted through browser
- Entering total observation doesn't work
- Freezes after entering most data
- Frequent freezes and server problems
- App freezes when coming up
- App freezes frequently on iPad Pro
- Forced to close and reload app
- No way to enter data offline
- App freezes after using for 2 minutes
- Login problem fixed but causes freezing
- Login fails, incorrect password/account not activated
- Cannot alter/fix incorrect bird count
- Cannot delete sightings
- Cannot zero out a bird count
- Account not activated message
- Latest update doesn't work
- Server doesn't want to connect
- App doesn't connect
- Screen goes all black
- Logins become a nightmare for months
- App goes to a totally black screen after appearing to be launching
- Lost bird count due to black screen lock up
- Regularly fails to recognize login
- Zero observations reported initially
- Cannot log in, account not activated
- App doesn't work at all after update
- App directs to log in on website, but still doesn't load data
- Can't enter dates correctly
- App doesn't report a problem with version, but newer version exists
- Repeatedly freezes to the point of needing to power off/on
- Froze if left open too long
Requested features
19 requests- Fix data loss issues
- Improve app stability
- Resolve login problems
- Add offline data entry
- Provide taxonomic sort option
Show 14 moreShow fewer
- Enable data entry by alpha code
- Fix blank black screen on launch
- Allow alteration/deletion of incorrect counts
- Add French language version
- Improve iPad functionality
- Make app more robust for all users
- Ensure consistent data saving
- Fix server connection issues
- Update app more frequently
- Improve user interface for better screen utilization
- Fix issues with switching between apps
- Allow editing of submitted counts
- Improve handling of large counts
- Ensure all species counts are saved
BirdNET Live
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
In-app purchases
Project FeederWatch
No in-app purchases
BirdNET Live
No in-app purchases
Questions
Is Project FeederWatch free?
Is BirdNET Live free?
Which has better reviews, Project FeederWatch or BirdNET Live?
Do Project FeederWatch or BirdNET Live have ads?
Which is updated more often, Project FeederWatch or BirdNET Live?
Other comparisons
