The best smart bird feeders we tested
Best smart bird feeder: Bird Buddy Smart Bird Feeder
Bird watching has been on the rise as a fun, affordable and accessible way to enjoy the outdoors. And while many of us can visit our local city parks or nature centers with a pair of binoculars, installing one of the best bird feeders at home makes bird-watching even more convenient. And because just about everything is available in a “smart” version these days — humidifiers, doorbells and even refrigerators — it’s no surprise there are now quite a few bird feeders with cameras and AI recognition on the market.
To help you find the best smart bird feeder overall, I put five popular models to the test. Because my mother’s home sits on an acre of land with over fifty trees and dozens upon dozens of birds, it seemed like the perfect place to test the feeders. I mounted some of them on top of bird feeder poles, clamped some to the sides of poles and even strapped a few onto trees.
Over the course of a spring shower-filled month, I regularly checked on the feeders to see how well they stayed mounted in position, whether squirrels or other critters attacked them, and then took them all down to clean and re-mount again. I downloaded all of the feeders’ accompanying apps and obsessively checked them, saving the best photos and videos of the bunch. After all my testing, only one stood out as the best.
The Bird Buddy was the best smart bird feeder we tested thanks to its sturdy, attractive build, solid AI recognition and streamlined app. While it’s pricey, it performed better than any other feeder we tested in nearly every single test.??
Best smart bird feeder: Bird Buddy Smart Bird Feeder
The Bird Buddy Smart Bird Feeder outperformed nearly every other bird feeder we tested in nearly every category and quickly attracted a variety of birds. It wasn’t uncommon for cardinals, house sparrows, dark-eyed juncos, goldfinches, black-capped chickadees, brown-headed cowbirds, white-breasted nuthatches, robins and house finches to all feast at the feeder on a single day.?The base model already attracted more species than the other models I tested, but you can get even more birds if you invest in Bird Buddy’s more expensive kit, which has more attachments for birds to land on.
The Bird Buddy is sturdy, attractive, easy to assemble, easy to use, and easy to refill and it comes with all the parts you need to hang it on a tree branch or install it on a wall, fence or the top of a bird feeder pole. Several models are available at different price points depending on whether you want just the basic feeder, or if you also want a solar roof and/or various attachments. Even the basic model comes with more helpful attachments than other feeders we tested, and it is one of the easiest to install.
The solar panel costs an extra $60, but we think it’s well worth the price. During the short, dark days of winter, I charged the battery every few weeks, but during the longer, sunnier springtime, the solar roof has been able to power the camera for months at a time. Though several other models do offer solar panels like the Wasserstein Bird Feeder Camera Case, Soliom and Netvue Birdfy Feeder, the Bird Buddy’s solar panel stood out because it was so much easier to install and didn’t require any additional components to be drilled into trees or attached separately on a bird feeder pole.
Best smart bird feeder: Bird Buddy Smart Bird Feeder
One feature I really loved about the Bird Buddy is that it takes fewer photos and videos (dubbed “postcards”) than some of the other AI bird feeders I tested, and it has a delay when sending you postcard notifications. Instead of immediate alerts, Bird Buddy first filters pictures and videos through its server, where AI determines not only what type of bird it is, but also whether the images are worth sending. Personally, I preferred receiving fewer better photos and videos on the Bird Buddy (typically a few dozen per day) versus hundreds of mediocre or nearly identical photos and videos, as was the case with the Soliom and Technaxx.
While the Bird Buddy’s easy installation, ability to attract a wide variety of birds and quality of photos already build a strong case for it as our winner, its companion app made it shine above the others. It was intuitive to use and made it easy to save and sort photos. If you’re buying a smart bird feeder, you want easy access to the photos and videos it captures but with other apps, I would save videos I liked but then not be able to find them in the app later. In The?Bird Buddy’s app, however, I could easily find my saved photos by clicking on “collections.”
A free, standard subscription is included with Bird Buddy, which gives you access to picture postcards and videos and allows you to add two additional guests to view your feeder. This subscription also lets you know when the feeder is low on food, when the feeder needs to be cleaned and when the solar-powered roof needs to be recharged (if you have one). Netvue and Soliom also offer free subscriptions, but Bird Buddy’s app (both the free and pro versions) is better organized and offers superior bird identification.
The Bird Buddy Pro subscription is also well worth its $60 annual price tag (50% off if you upgrade within the first 48 hours of pairing). With it, you get higher-resolution videos than you do with the standard subscription, the ability to add up to 10 guests to your feeder and the ability to mute and ignore species. Because some birds began visiting our feeders multiple times per day, the apps became filled with dozens of pictures of the same species every day. Bird Buddy is the only feeder that allows you to mute and ignore a species (as long as you purchase the pro subscription), which meant that I could clean up my feed and only receive alerts about the species I wanted to see (which was everything except the ever-present dark-eyed juncos and house finches).
As for the AI identification, while the Bird Buddy occasionally mislabeled a house sparrow as a chipping sparrow and a red-winged blackbird as a crow, it was accurate most of the time. And unlike other apps, it never labeled a bird as a human or a pet.
The Bird Buddy is simply better than all the other smart bird feeders I tested in nearly every measurable way. It attracts the most birds, does the best job identifying them, has the easiest app to use, can be mounted in numerous ways and offers various attachments to attract even more birds. If you want a bird feeder that connects to your phone, get the Bird Buddy.
How we tested
To determine which smart bird feeders are worth adding to your yard, we put five top-selling models through a series of tests, evaluating them on their design, performance, ease of use and maintenance. Here are all the tests we ran for each bird feeder:
Setup
- Assembly: After unboxing each feeder, we assembled them according to the manufacturer’s instructions. Some arrived fully or nearly fully assembled, while others needed to be screwed, strapped or slapped together and/or charged before use. For those requiring setup, we considered how clear and easy-to-follow the instructions were and whether any specialized tools were needed.
- Ease of filling: For most of the feeders, we used a fruit and nut mix that’s popular with most birds, but for the two feeders strapped to trees (which made them more susceptible to squirrels), we used a spicy anti-squirrel mix. While filling the feeders, we looked at whether it was easy to pour the seed inside the feeder and how much seed spilled during the process. If the lid or other parts of the feeder had to be removed to refill it, we also considered if it was easy to remove and then put it back on.
Design
- Capacity: We compared the maximum capacity of each bird feeder, noting how much seed it could hold and how often it needed to be refilled.
- Mounting options: For all of the feeders, we considered the range of mounting options they offered, including whether and how they could be mounted on a wall, pole or tree, or hung from a rope or hook. We also considered whether the feeders came with all the required parts for the various mounting options or if they had to be ordered separately.
- Solar panel: For all of the feeders with solar panels, we considered whether the solar panel came with the feeder or if it was sold separately. We also noted how easy it was to install, for instance, whether it could be easily slid onto the roof or if it had to be strapped onto the pole separately or drilled into a tree or wall.
- Camera tilt: We compared how easily a camera angle could be adjusted, if at all, to customize the best angle to view birds.
- Material quality: We evaluated the quality and build of each bird feeder, noting the thickness of the material and whether they were made from metal, plastic or another material.
- Attachments: For each bird feeder, we considered not just the attachments that came with the feeder but what fun and helpful additional attachments were included or could be purchased separately. Potential attachments include perch extenders allowing for larger birds, suet balls, water reservoirs and containers for fruit and jelly.
Performance
- Accuracy of AI identification: The effectiveness of a smart AI recognition bird feeder is only as good as its AI identification so we evaluated how well the feeders identified birds. Some feeders did an excellent job identifying species while others often miscategorized birds or labeled them as humans or pets. Two feeders took photos and videos of birds but didn’t identify them.
- Ease of use of the app: Over a month, I monitored the apps of each bird feeder (usually daily) to view birds, confirm accurate identification and save, sort and organize pictures. In addition to the ease of use, I also considered special features the app might offer such as ignoring species or viewing birds at the feeders of other owners (often known as the “community”).
- Quality of pictures: For each feeder, I considered the quality of the pictures and videos taken. I noted how sharp the image quality was and how clear you could hear the birds chirping and singing in the videos.
- Durability: I noted how sturdy the materials were on each feeder and how well they held up to the outdoors. I considered whether they fell off their mount or perch and, if they did, how intact they remained. I also compared whether the feeders were attacked by squirrels and how bad the destruction was.
Ease of cleaning
- Disassembly: To prevent the spread of diseases, it’s essential to keep a bird feeder clean, so I disassembled each model and cleaned it. Some designs were simple to open (thanks to hinges and removable parts), and easy to clean, (thanks to wide, curved angles). Others proved difficult or impossible to fully disassemble and wash because of hard-to-reach corners that caught food.
Everything to know about smart bird feeders
To choose the best smart bird feeder, it’s important to understand the various types, how they work and what features they offer.
Aside from obvious considerations like price, you’ll want to consider where you’d like to install the bird feeder and how you plan to mount it. Some feeders come with multiple mounting options, whereas others are only designed to be mounted one or two ways. If you already know you can’t or don’t want to drill into your siding or deck, opt for a feeder designed to be strapped to or mounted on a pole or tree. Conversely, if you don’t have anywhere to install or don’t want a pole, avoid models designed specifically for poles.
The choice between pole, fence, wall and tree isn’t just about aesthetics. Rather, it can also impact how many critters find your feeder. In our yard, we have deer, squirrels, raccoons, opossums and even a groundhog we named Levi, so I believe it’s only a matter of time before they take down even the best tree- and wall-mounted feeders. Spicy anti-squirrel bird seed can help deter critters, but I saw squirrels happily eating it in several tree-mounted feeders.
Bird feeder poles with baffles are often the best way to prevent animals from getting to your feeder (where they can eat the feed and damage the feeder). If you choose the pole and baffle route, make sure the feeder you’re purchasing can be mounted on the top or side of the pole. While the Bird Buddy and Soliom both come with bottom mount attachments that allow them to be mounted on the top of a bird feeder pole, some of the bird feeders cannot be mounted on a pole at all or they can only be mounted on its side via straps or clamps.
If you go the side-mounted pole route, ensure there’s enough room between the top of the pole and the baffle below it. If the space from the baffle to the top of the pole is small and the feeder is large, there may not be sufficient space to strap it on, let alone also strap on the solar roof, which I found to be the case with the Netvue Birdfy feeder.
Many smart bird feeders send photos and videos through an accompanying app and let you live stream. If it’s important to see and save photos, consider an AI bird feeder with a high-quality camera and an app that can save and easily organize photos. Some bird feeders, like the Soliom and the Netvue Birdfy Feeder, take hundreds of pictures daily but their apps don’t let you sort, filter, save and organize photos and videos as easily as the Bird Buddy.
Other smart bird feeders we tested
The biggest feeder we tested also has a powerful camera, but we couldn't get past the extreme volume of notifications the Soliom sent — even on its lowest sensitivity.
This feeder attracted a wide variety of birds immediately so it went through feed quickly. It has the largest feeder of the bunch (2.7 liters), and it was the easiest to install. The camera, which can be tilted downward, takes very sharp, clear photos and videos that capture birds’ chirping and singing really well. While the images were sharp, its AI lacked, as it frequently identified some birds as pets and people.
The biggest reason it didn’t make our top cut though, is the sheer number of notifications it sent. I was getting over 300 videos and alerts per day, which was highly annoying. Even when I lowered the sensitivity, it averaged around 80-100 videos daily, which was still too many.
Simple cleaning was the biggest plus of the Netuve, but we didn't love the fish-eye appearance its camera creates.
The Netvue Birdfy feeder’s camera can be tilted down and its videos were clear and crisp, but they had a sort of fish-eye look that appeared unnatural and unattractive. While it has night vision capabilities, no birds ever visited during dark hours so I couldn’t test this feature. The AI identification was fairly good but overall, this feeder attracted a smaller variety of birds despite coming with a perch extender.
Its easy-to-remove parts and curved surfaces made it the easiest of all the feeders to clean. Though it can be mounted on a pole, wall or tree, it is better suited to be mounted on a wall or deck, which leaves it more prone to squirrels, which can easily chew or knock off the antenna.
Because this feeder doesn't have a built-in camera, it's a great option if you already have a home security camera setup like Ring. Just pop in a camera and integrate it with the rest of your ecosystem.
The main draw of this feeder is its low price, however, when you consider you have to purchase a camera and solar roof separately, you find that it costs nearly as much as the Bird Buddy, yet has far fewer features and doesn’t offer AI identification. This feeder has one benefit over the rest: if you already use Ring security cameras, it could be convenient to integrate it into your existing system.
We tested it with the Ring Stick Up Cam Plug-In, which produces clear and crisp videos. However, because it’s not specifically designed for birding, the camera focuses on the distance so you see your home, street or far-away trees and cars but the birds up close remain blurry. The Ring app is clunky and is a lousy option for bird enthusiasts because it doesn’t offer any bird identification.
If you don't want to mess with AI or download a new app to your phone, Technaxx's Birdcam does the basics by, well, just taking pictures of birds.
This affordable, low-tech feeder could be a good option for seniors or other tech-averse birders who don’t need bird identification and don’t want to fuss with a companion app. Despite a very intense manual that labels 31 different parts and buttons, the feeder is not difficult to assemble, though the materials seem lower quality than other feeders I tested. There is no bird feeder pole attachment so you must hang it from the hole in the top (though no hanging attachment is included), drill it into a tree, wall or deck, or strap it to a tree, which leaves it prone to critters.
Because you can’t get updates on an app, you won’t know if something (like wet seed) is obstructing or blurring the camera unless you go out to check. Additionally, because the camera doesn’t send pictures through a companion app and no light goes off to alert you that the camera is working, it’s hard to know if it’s on and taking pictures of birds. Furthermore, while low-tech users may appreciate that this feeder runs on four AA batteries, the instructions discourage you from using rechargeable batteries, which would be a more convenient and eco-friendly option.
