# Audubon Bird Guide vs Costa Rica Birds Basic

The clearest difference is price: Audubon Bird Guide at Free against Costa Rica Birds Basic's $2.99. Audubon Bird Guide also leads on ratings volume (4.5K vs 3) and update cadence (every 3 weeks vs every 2 months). Costa Rica Birds Basic's advantage is review sentiment (100% vs 64%) and ads (none vs shown). On rating, in-app purchases and device support there is nothing between them.

Audubon Bird Guide is free to download; Costa Rica Birds Basic costs $2.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.3 for Audubon Bird Guide against 4.3 for Costa Rica Birds Basic. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Audubon Bird Guide has 4.5K ratings behind it against 3, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews are what separate them: 64% of Audubon Bird Guide's written reviews are positive against 100% of Costa Rica Birds Basic's.

Audubon Bird Guide ships an update every 3 weeks, Costa Rica Birds Basic every 2 months. The most recent releases landed on November 6, 2026 and November 2, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Audubon Bird Guide | Costa Rica Birds Basic |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | **Free** | $2.99 |
| Rating | [4.3 (4.5K ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/audubon-bird-guide/id333227386/reviews) | **[4.3 (3 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/costa-rica-birds-basic/id1072427641/reviews)** |
| Number of ratings | **4.5K** | 3 |
| Positive reviews | 64.2% of reviews | **100.0% of reviews** |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Ads | Yes | **No** |
| Update frequency | **Every 3 weeks** | Every 2 months |
| Monetization | **Ad-supported** | Paid |
| Size | 355 MB | 265 MB |
| Requires iOS | 16.6 | **9.0** |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad | **iPhone, iPad, iPod** |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [National Audubon Society](https://appshunter.io/developer/1007642225) | [Patrick ODonnell](https://appshunter.io/developer/1863275756) |

## What reviewers say

### Audubon Bird Guide

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/audubon-bird-guide/id333227386)

Identify North American birds with a comprehensive field guide. Features include real-time bird identification, detailed species information, and sighting logs. Connect with a community of birdwatchers and conservationists.

**Highlights:** Real-time bird identification tool, Detailed species profiles with photos and audio, Personalized bird sighting logs and life lists, Nearby birding hotspots and sightings, Community photo sharing, Conservation news and action opportunities

**Features:** Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases:** none

**What reviewers like**

- 🚀 Great app
- 👍 Easy to use
- 🔍 Helpful for identifying birds
- 🎶 Useful bird calls and sounds
- 📍 Provides location-based bird sightings

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Buggy and crashes
- 🔄 Confusing interface changes
- 🔒 Requires account creation
- 📍 Limited location-based features
- 🗺️ Outdated or incomplete range maps

**Reported bugs**

- Crashes when opening settings
- Incorrect sighting location recording
- Unreliable login and account features
- Compatibility issues with newer devices
- Syncing and data loss problems

**Requested features**

- Add photo ID and sound ID features
- Improve location-based bird sightings
- Expand coverage to more regions/countries
- Allow offline access to field guide
- Provide more detailed bird information


### Costa Rica Birds Basic

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/costa-rica-birds-basic/id1072427641)

A field guide to common Costa Rican birds, featuring images, vocalizations, and detailed descriptions. It includes search filters, personal lists, and note-taking capabilities, with options to record GPS and email sightings.

**Highlights:** Bird identification with images and vocalizations, Range maps and detailed descriptions, Comprehensive search and filtering, Personalized target lists, Note-taking with GPS recording, Similar species comparison

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

**In-app purchases:** none


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Audubon Bird Guide free?

Audubon Bird Guide is free to download, with no in-app purchases.

### Is Costa Rica Birds Basic free?

Costa Rica Birds Basic costs $2.99, with no in-app purchases.

### Which has better reviews, Audubon Bird Guide or Costa Rica Birds Basic?

Costa Rica Birds Basic is rated higher. Audubon Bird Guide averages 4.3 out of 5 from 4.5K ratings, while Costa Rica Birds Basic averages 4.3 from 3 ratings.

### Do Audubon Bird Guide or Costa Rica Birds Basic have ads?

Audubon Bird Guide shows ads; Costa Rica Birds Basic does not.

### Which is updated more often, Audubon Bird Guide or Costa Rica Birds Basic?

Audubon Bird Guide ships an update every 3 weeks, and Costa Rica Birds Basic every 2 months. Most recently, Audubon Bird Guide was updated on November 6, 2026 and Costa Rica Birds Basic on November 2, 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.*