BirdNET vs BirdWeather
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
BirdNET
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.
- 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
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How can computers learn to recognize birds from sounds? The BirdNET research project uses artificial intelligence and neural networks to train computers to identify nearly 3,000 of the most common species of North America and Europe. You can record a file using the internal microphone of your iOS device and see if BirdNET correctly identifies the probable bird species present in your recording. Get to know the birds around you and help us to collect observations by submitting your recordings. BirdNET is a joint project of the K. Lisa Yang Center for Conservation Bioacoustics at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, and Chemnitz University of Technology.
BirdWeather
Identify bird species through sound with this bioacoustics app. It connects to a specialized device to detect and display real-time species information from a vast database. Explore global wildlife activity and gain insights into nature's soundscapes.
- Real-time species recognition
- Global community insights
- Quick device setup
- Bioacoustics management
- Species detection database
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BirdWeather: Your Gateway to Nature's Soundscapes Discover the power of bioacoustics with BirdWeather, the all-in-one app designed to manage your PUC (Physical Universe Codec). PUC is an AI-driven bioacoustics platform, packed with advanced features like dual microphones, WiFi/BLE connectivity, GPS, environmental sensors, and a built-in neural engine—all housed in a rugged, weatherproof enclosure. Capture nature's audio effortlessly, and let BirdWeather help you explore the world of species detection and real-time monitoring. Key Features: - Quick Setup: Start recording in minutes with our step-by-step instructions for setting up your PUC device, connecting it to your Wi-Fi, and configuring essential settings. - Real-Time Species Recognition: With over 6,000 species in its database, BirdWeather provides a real-time view of the latest species detections as they happen. - Community Insights: Explore the detections recorded by other PUC stations worldwide, gaining deeper insights into local and global wildlife activity. Transform your understanding of nature with BirdWeather — the ultimate tool for bioacoustic monitoring and wildlife discovery.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is update cadence: BirdWeather at fortnightly against BirdNET's every 3 months. BirdWeather also leads on rating (4.3 vs 4.0). BirdNET's advantage is review sentiment (66% vs 55%) and ratings volume (215 vs 24). On price, ads, in-app purchases and monetization model 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.
BirdWeather holds the better App Store score, 4.3 against 4.0. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: BirdNET has 215 ratings behind it against 24, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews complicate that: 66% of BirdNET's written reviews are positive against 55% of BirdWeather's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.
BirdNET ships an update every 3 months, BirdWeather fortnightly. Both last shipped on October 24, 2026.
| Parameter | BirdNET | BirdWeather |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.0 (215 ratings) | 4.3 (24 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 66.5% of reviews — better | 54.5% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | 215 — better | 24 |
| Update frequency | Every 3 months | Fortnightly — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Free | Free |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod — better | iPhone, iPad |
| Requires iOS | 13.0 — better | 16.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 98 MB | 196 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Stefan Kahl | Scribe Labs Inc |
Customer experience
BirdNET
BirdWeather
Bugs and requests
BirdNET
Reported bugs
5 issues- 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
5 requests- 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
BirdWeather
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
In-app purchases
BirdNET
No in-app purchases
BirdWeather
No in-app purchases
