# BirdNET vs BirdWeather

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.

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.

## The numbers

| Metric | BirdNET | BirdWeather |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | [4.0 (215 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/birdnet/id1541842885/reviews) | **[4.3 (24 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/birdweather/id6446207088/reviews)** |
| Number of ratings | **215** | 24 |
| Positive reviews | **66.5% of reviews** | 54.5% of reviews |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | Every 3 months | **Fortnightly** |
| Monetization | Free | Free |
| Size | 98 MB | 196 MB |
| Requires iOS | **13.0** | 16.0 |
| Devices | **iPhone, iPad, iPod** | iPhone, iPad |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Stefan Kahl](https://appshunter.io/developer/1541842887) | [Scribe Labs Inc](https://appshunter.io/developer/967419448) |

## What reviewers say

### 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


### BirdWeather

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/birdweather/id6446207088)

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.

**Highlights:** Real-time species recognition, Global community insights, Quick device setup, Bioacoustics management, Species detection database

**Features:** macOS Compatibility, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases:** none


## Frequently asked questions

### Is BirdNET free?

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

### Is BirdWeather free?

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

### Which has better reviews, BirdNET or BirdWeather?

BirdWeather is rated higher. BirdNET averages 4.0 out of 5 from 215 ratings, while BirdWeather averages 4.3 from 24 ratings.

### Do BirdNET or BirdWeather have ads?

Neither BirdNET nor BirdWeather shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, BirdNET or BirdWeather?

BirdNET ships an update every 3 months, and BirdWeather fortnightly. Most recently, BirdNET was updated on October 24, 2026 and BirdWeather on October 24, 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.*