Audubon Bird Guide vs Birdwise
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Audubon Bird Guide
Identify North American birds with this comprehensive field guide. Features include a bird ID tool based on observations, detailed species information with photos and audio, and a personal sightings log. Discover nearby birding locations and connect with conservation efforts.
- Bird identification tool
- Detailed species profiles
- Bird song and call audio
- Sightings log and life list
- Nearby birding hotspots
- Photo sharing
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The Audubon Bird Guide is a free and complete field guide to over 800 species of North American birds, right in your pocket. Built for all experience levels, it will help you identify the birds around you, keep track of the birds you’ve seen, and get outside to find new birds near you. With over 2 million downloads to date, it is one of the best and most trusted field guides for North American birds. KEY FEATURES: ALL-NEW: BIRD ID It's now easier than ever to identify a bird you just saw. Enter all you were able to observe—what color was it? How big? What did its tail look like?—and Bird ID will narrow down a list of possible matches for your location and date in real time. LEARN ABOUT THE BIRDS YOU LOVE Our field guide features over 3,000 photos, over eight hours of audio clips of songs and calls, multi-season range maps, and in-depth text by leading North American bird expert Kenn Kaufman. KEEP TRACK OF ALL THE BIRDS YOU SEE With our completely redesigned Sightings feature, you can keep a record of every bird you encounter, whether you're hiking, sitting on the porch, or simply catching a glimpse of birds out the window. We'll even keep an updated life list for you. EXPLORE THE BIRDS AROUND YOU See where the birds are with nearby birding hotspots and real-time sightings from eBird. SHARE PHOTOS Post your photos to the Photo Feed so other Audubon Bird Guide users can see your best bird shots. GET INVOLVED WITH AUDUBON Keep up with the latest news from the world of birds, science, and conservation. Find an Audubon location near you to go birding. Or see where your voice is needed and take action to protect birds and the places they need, right from your app. Have any questions or need help? Contact us at audubonconnect@audubon.org About Audubon: The National Audubon Society protects birds and the places they need, today and tomorrow, throughout the Americas using science, advocacy, education, and on-the-ground conservation. Audubon’s state programs, nature centers, chapters, and partners have an unparalleled wingspan that reaches millions of people each year to inform, inspire, and unite diverse communities in conservation action. Since 1905, Audubon’s vision has been a world in which people and wildlife thrive.
Birdwise
Enhance your bird identification abilities with interactive decks of bird images and audio. Engage in various modes like Ranked, Training, and Learn to test and improve your knowledge.
- Bird image and audio decks
- Ranked mode for timed challenges
- Training mode for accuracy checks
- Learn mode for guided study
- Improve bird identification skills
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Improve your bird ID skills by training with decks of bird images and audio Modes: - Ranked: Get as many right as you can in 60 seconds and see your rank - Training: Answer cards to check your accuracy - Learn: Flip through cards while seeing the correct answer Terms of Use (EULA): https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is rating: Birdwise at 5.0 against Audubon Bird Guide's 4.3. Birdwise also leads on review sentiment (100% vs 64%) and ads (none vs shown). Audubon Bird Guide's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 1) and ratings volume (4.5K vs 4). On price, update cadence, monetization model 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. Birdwise sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Audubon Bird Guide asks for nothing beyond the download.
Birdwise holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.3. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Audubon Bird Guide has 4.5K ratings behind it against 4, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 64% of Audubon Bird Guide's written reviews are positive against 100% of Birdwise's.
Audubon Bird Guide ships an update every 3 weeks, Birdwise fortnightly. The most recent releases landed on October 1, 2026 and September 8, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Audubon Bird Guide | Birdwise |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.3 (4.5K ratings) | 5.0 (4 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 64.3% of reviews | 100.0% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 4.5K — better | 4 |
| Update frequency | Every 3 weeks | Fortnightly — better |
| Ads | Yes | No — better |
| In-app purchases | No — better | Yes |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free with in-app purchases |
| Best chart rank | #120 — better | — |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad | iPhone, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 16.6 | 15.1 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 358 MB | 62 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | National Audubon Society | Trevor Pennington |
Customer experience
Audubon Bird Guide
Birdwise
Bugs and requests
Audubon Bird Guide
Reported bugs
5 issues- 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
7 requests- 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
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- Improve sorting and filtering options
- Sync sightings with other platforms
Birdwise
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
In-app purchases
Audubon Bird Guide
No in-app purchases
Birdwise
- Birdwise pro$11.99
Questions
Is Audubon Bird Guide free?
Is Birdwise free?
Which has better reviews, Audubon Bird Guide or Birdwise?
Do Audubon Bird Guide or Birdwise have ads?
Which is updated more often, Audubon Bird Guide or Birdwise?
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