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About Merlin Bird ID by Cornell Lab

What's that bird? Ask Merlin—the world’s leading app for birds. Just like magic, Merlin Bird ID will help you solve the mystery. Merlin helps you identify birds you see and hear. Merlin is unlike any other bird app—it's powered by eBird, the world’s largest database of bird sightings, sounds, and photos. Merlin offers four fun ways to identify birds. Answer a few simple questions, upload a photo, record a singing bird, or explore birds in a region. Whether you’re curious about a bird you’ve seen once or you’re hoping to identify every bird you can find, the answers are waiting for you with this free app from the renowned Cornell Lab of Ornithology. WHY YOU’LL LOVE MERLIN • Expert ID tips, range maps, photos, and sounds help you learn about the birds you spot and build birding skills. • Discover a new bird species each day with your own personalized Bird of the Day • Get customized lists of birds you can find where you live or travel - anywhere in the world! • Keep track of your sightings—build your personal list of the birds you find MACHINE LEARNING MAGIC • Powered by Visipedia, Merlin Sound ID and Photo ID uses machine learning to identify birds in photos and sounds. Merlin learns to recognize bird species based on training sets of millions of photos and sounds collected by birders at eBird.org, archived in the Macaulay Library at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology. • Merlin delivers the most accurate results thanks to experienced birders, who curate and annotate sightings, photos, and sounds, who are the true magic behind Merlin. AMAZING CONTENT • Merlin has bird photos, songs, and calls, and identification help for anywhere in the world, including Mexico, Costa Rica, South America, Europe, Africa, the Middle East, India, Australia, Korea, Japan, China, and more. The Cornell Lab of Ornithology’s mission is to interpret and conserve the Earth’s biological diversity through research, education, and citizen science focused on birds and nature. We are able to offer Merlin for free thanks to the generosity of Cornell Lab members, supporters, and citizen-science contributors.

Merlin Bird ID by Cornell Lab details

Merlin Bird ID by Cornell Lab is a free Reference app for iPhone, iPad and iPod touch, developed by Cornell University. It is rated 4.9 out of 5 from 112,839 ratings on the App Store, requires iOS 18.0 or later, is 311 MB to download and is available in 30 languages. It was first released on December 11, 2013 and last updated on August 24, 2026.

Category
Reference
Rating
4.9 / 5 (112,839 ratings)
Price
Free
Current version
4.1.1
Size
311 MB
Requires
iOS 18.0 or later
Compatibility
iPhone, iPad, iPod touch
Languages
English, Afrikaans, Arabic, Danish, Dutch, French, German, Hebrew and 22 more
Age rating
4+
Released
December 11, 2013
Last updated
August 24, 2026
Developer
Cornell University

Ratings breakdown

5 stars 91% (103,202) 4 stars 6% (6,813) 3 stars 1% (1,135) 2 stars 1% (569) 1 star 1% (1,120)

What’s new in Merlin Bird ID by Cornell Lab

Birds have different sounds throughout the year. Merlin now highlights seasonally relevant recordings, so you can learn how birds sound during breeding season, migration, and beyond. Sound ID continues to improve and expand, and now includes hundreds of new species across Central and South America, Australia, Asia, and Africa. Nearby places now include photo thumbnails, making it easier to browse and recognize birding hotspots near you.

Version 4.1.1 · Updated August 24, 2026

Merlin Bird ID by Cornell Lab app privacy

The developer, Cornell University, reported these privacy practices to Apple.

Data Linked to You

The following data, which may be collected and linked to your identity, may be used for the following purposes:

  • Identifiers: User ID

Used for: App Functionality

Data Not Linked to You

The following data, which may be collected but is not linked to your identity, may be used for the following purposes:

  • Contact Info: Email Address
  • Location: Coarse Location
  • Usage Data: Product Interaction

Used for: Developer’s Advertising or Marketing, Analytics, Product Personalization, App Functionality

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Merlin Bird ID by Cornell Lab vs. alternatives
App Rating Price Last updated
Merlin Bird ID by Cornell Lab 4.9 / 5 (112,839 ratings) Free August 24, 2026
Bird Sounds Identifier Call ID 4.7 / 5 (13,902) Free Sep 4, 2026
Audubon Bird Guide 4.3 / 5 (4,519) Free Sep 11, 2026
Picture Bird: Bird identifier 4.7 / 5 (40,239) Free Mar 6, 2026
Birda - Bird Watching, Birding 4.7 / 5 (2,256) Free Sep 24, 2026
Seek by iNaturalist 4.8 / 5 (30,912) Free Jul 27, 2026
iNaturalist 4.1 / 5 (680) Free Sep 23, 2026