Credit:
Reviewed / Timothy Renzi
Recommendations are independently chosen by Reviewed's editors. Purchases made through the links below may earn us and our publishing partners a commission. Prices were accurate at the time this article was published but may change over time.
Credit:
Reviewed / Timothy Renzi
Reviewed's mission is to help you buy the best stuff and get the most out of what you already own. Our team of product experts thoroughly vet every product we recommend to help you cut through the clutter and find what you need.
Learn more about our product testing
This excellent all-around smart bird feeder stands up to squirrels and takes crystal clear pictures and videos of backyard birds while they feed. Read More
Bird Buddy combines good looks with functionality that's on point. Its excellent bird ID software outweighs a few minor negatives. Read More
This sturdy smart bird feeder won't let squirrels or raccoons take it down. Camera offers a clear picture, and solar panel charges nicely. Read More
A nice, wide perch welcomes birds to feed. We love that it comes with extras, and we recommend this model to anyone without wildlife in their yard. Read More
This smart bird feeder trades a low price for semi-shoddy construction. The camera is good though, and it mounts sturdily to a tree. Read More
Welcome to my backyard. To find the best smart bird feeders on the market, my impact driver and I tangled with solar panels, wall-mount brackets, some solid trees, and a few bird feeder poles. I also charged a lot of batteries, messed around with AI recognition, and set up enough security cameras to rival the CIA.
Testing smart bird feeders did not go as planned. At the outset, I had imagined this would be an idyllic experience rife with birdsong and soaring cardinals and bluebirds. What I got was a battle of wills with a hungry raccoon and squirrels unphased by alarms, bright lights, and cayenne pepper. Yes, I did capture numerous feathered friends on my array of bird feeders with cameras. I also learned that there are some definite quirks and annoyances to this new-fangled spin on old-fashioned bird-watching.
Winging to the front of the flock is the Netvue Birdfy Feeder (available at Amazon) , which wins our Best Overall award for its sheer plethora of ways to mount it and feed birds, and provide a clear picture both day and night. Netvue has also priced this nicely. For newbie birdwatchers who want to identify the tweeters in their backyard, Bird Buddy (available at Bird Buddy) offers the best AI recognition of the smart feeders we tested.
The Netvue Birdfy is easy to load up with birdseed, whether you’re using black oil sunflower seeds or a nut and berry mix. You simply flip open the roof and pour the seed in.
So many reasons contributed to the Netvue bird feeder winning the top spot in our guide to smart bird feeders.
First off, it comes with a solar panel. This means you don’t have to remove the camera to charge it. The camera’s 1080p picture quality is quite clear day and night. Wi-Fi is simple to connect.
Netvue’s exclusive smart security app comes free or with a $4.99 monthly fee depending on whether you buy the AI version, which we tested, or the Lite version of the feeder. It sends alerts when birds land to feed, and you can stream live video. The app will even try to identify the type of bird, although the Netvue’s attempts at this were not as accurate as the Bird Buddy or the Soliom—and honestly, some guesses made us laugh out loud.
From a practical standpoint, the Netvue is easy to load up with birdseed, whether you’re using black oil sunflower seeds or a nut and berry mix. You simply flip open the roof and pour the seed in, which slides down into a tray.
When mounting the Netvue, there are three options. The feeder includes a bracket to mount to a wall, a strap to wrap around a tree or post, and hose clamps for mounting to a pole. We used the strap method. It is the easiest to use for all the smart feeders we tested.
While its build is adequate, it isn't as sturdy as the Soliom BF08 or the Bird Buddy. While the feeder stood strong, including its durable perch, it, unfortunately, didn’t take long for squirrels to demolish its Wi-Fi antenna—although it still worked even though it ended up just dangling.
In the Netvue app, you can look at your Birdfy smart camera, and see all notifications for a particular date. There is also an AI function that identifies your bird visitors.
The Netvue is the only smart bird feeder of the test group that comes with a baffle, but it doesn't execute well. The hole is small, the snaps are tough to secure, and too narrow to stop squirrels from climbing right around it.
Despite a few negatives, our overall experience with the Netvue Birdfy AI was excellent! Read our full Netvue Birdfy review.
High quality camera
Multiple ways to mount
Bonus attachments
Inaccurate AI recognition
As our choice for the Best AI Recognition, it should come as no surprise that Bird Buddy’s app and ID software is spot on.
We first heard about Bird Buddy at CES back in January of 2022, and have been dying to try this bird feeder with a camera ever since.
What appealed to us first is the adorable, contemporary design—sorta Scandi in style. It comes in either a sunny yellow or bold teal color. Compared to other smart bird feeders on the market right now, the feeder is small. It’s constructed well, and there are no delicate attachments that could be destroyed by backyard critters. Plus, you can fill it with seeds easily thanks to a cup that’s included. This may seem silly but is a huge boon.
As our choice for the Best AI Recognition, it should come as no surprise that Bird Buddy’s app and ID software is spot on. We didn’t experience any mislabeled birds, even on rainy and gray days, despite water spots occasionally popping up on the camera lens.
Bird Buddy’s exclusive app is a delight to use, especially for freshman birders, as it “unlocks” new species and puts them into your “collection.” The app takes still photos and videos. It doesn’t double as a smart home security app as the others do, so you don’t have to wade through extra features and functions in search of your American goldfinch pics and videos. Unfortunately, the camera goes to sleep in the dark and does not include night vision.
I had two gripes with Bird Buddy. Firstly, we tested the base model, which does not include a solar panel. While you can buy a solar roof for an additional cost of $70, all the other smart feeders we tested included a solar panel with their base price. This means that you have to detach the feeder’s camera and bring it inside to charge it (via included USB-C cable) every week or so—during testing, it never lasted up to the 15 days as listed on Bird Buddy’s website.
In the Bird Buddy smartphone app, you can see all your bird visitors clearly labeled and identified on the Collection screen, while all new visitors pop right into your inbox.
Our second issue revolved around mounting the Bird Buddy feeder itself. What a pain! Among the testing pool, it is the only feeder that mounts from the bottom, instead of the back. The included plastic mount base easily screws on using four included screws. Bird Buddy indicates that a standard-size bird feeder pole will fit into the mount, but after a lot of searching, we could not locate a pole, PVC pipe, wooden dowel, or metal pole at our local Home Depot and Lowe’s to fit into the hole.
Finally, we took the mount and the feeder to a local birder store where we were able to get a standard mounting pole and jam it in to fit properly. (Bird Buddy also includes a rope so you can hang the feeder if you choose, but it was too mobile and the birds in our yard hated it.)
If you can find a standard mounting pole and you can afford to sport for a solar roof, the Bird Buddy makes an excellent choice of smart bird feeders.
High-quality camera
Excellent AI bird identification
Easy-to-use app
Modern design
No night vision
Mounting options need improvement
Solar roof not included
Made of metal and acrylic, the Soliom smart bird feeder features a roof locks in and both it and the perch screw on tightly.
Clear camera picture
Comes with lots of extra attachments
No bird ID
Not as sturdy against raccoons
Camera detaches from unit for charging
Mounting equipment included
32G micro SD card included
No way to secure perch
No bird ID
Can't use on 5GHz network
Camera options align with popular smart home security brands
Fills easily
Clear picture quality
Flimsy build
No bird ID
I’m Leigh Harrington, executive editor of the Home team. When I’m not editing articles or pursuing other projects for Reviewed, I like to spend time in my backyard gardening, relaxing, and watching birds. Yep, I’m a middle-aged bird nerd, which is why I staked a claim for this assignment testing smart bird feeders. And, boy was it wild!
Mounting the bird feeders to trees or poles is the only physical activity you need to do to enjoy this hobby!
There was nothing super scientific about these tests.
We mounted each smart bird feeder per its included instructions, synced the camera to a Wi-Fi connection, charged up the batteries, and filled each feeder with food. Then we waited for the birds to come.
We also looked at special features like whether or not the bird feeders with cameras could run off solar power, and each smart bird feeder’s app. We looked at battery life, how easily birds could access the bird food, and whether or not the feeder was critter-proof.
After a couple of weeks of near-constant birdsong, $200 worth of bird food, and some nightly visitors, we had our answers. Not to mention an insider’s perspective into New England bird species!
Consider your environment and the location of your home before buying a smart bird feeder, otherwise, you’ll have complete anarchy on your hands.
We tested smart bird feeders in a suburban neighborhood that leans slightly more toward rural than urban on scale. We had about four days of bird euphoria during our three weeks of testing before critters infiltrated the feeders. Unfortunately, we can’t say we were surprised.
Of the half dozen feeders that we tested, raccoons and squirrels vandalized them all.
Four of the feeders mount to a vertical surface with flat, metal bracket mounts. Essentially, this means that your options for mounting locations include the wall of your house or a tree. Neither are ideal, the former because no one wants to screw into expensive siding on a permanent structure and the latter because, well, critters live in and climb trees.
The remaining two feeders we tested allow for other options—Bird Buddy can mount on top of a pole or it can hang; Netvue Birdfy can mount vertically with brackets, but it can also mount on a pole. Squirrels do climb poles, but baffles can prevent their access and you can buy a baffle at any home improvement or bird store. Unfortunately, you can’t use a baffle on a vertical surface or around a tree, which means nothing is preventing a squirrel and raccoon feast. And that means you’ll spend a fortune on bird food.
All of the feeders include an array of critter deterrents, including alarms, sirens, bright white lights, and/or two-way communication so you can scream at them—and we did. These tactics rarely worked during our testing, and the squirrel would be back for more minutes later.
Make sure you have a plan before you spend $200 to $300 on a smart bird feeder, or you will regret it.
The smart feeders we tested were no match for raccoons and squirrels. Damage included broken solar panel attachments, detached Wi-Fi antennae and bent mountings.
Most models we tested included solar panels with the price of purchase of the smart bird feeder. While these solar panels are great for keeping the feeders’ batteries charged up, they’re also frequently manhandled or sat upon by visiting raccoons and squirrels.
Only one of the solar panels didn’t break permanently in some way during our three weeks of testing. Critters also broke the fragile Wi-Fi antennas often and left them hanging, literally.
With smart cameras, including outdoor security cameras, video doorbells, and bird feeders with cameras, come privacy concerns, especially when you're using a camera around your home that can record visitors, neighbors, and passers-by without their knowledge. Be mindful of where you place it in your yard, and the content of any clips you post publicly.
While each bird feeder camera is going to have its own privacy practices, make sure to read the fine print on the one you purchase. In the case of the Bird Buddy, the camera range is as good as an outdoor security camera, but it doesn't come with the same privacy features, like motion or privacy zones; these let you define what areas the camera does or does not record and are fairly common with video doorbells and most cameras from big brands, which would, actually, apply to the Ring, Blink and Wyze options for the Wasserstein feeder). Bird Buddy uses end to end encryption for recordings, which means that technically no one else can view or access the clips when it's being processed from the camera to the storage server. This keeps it more secure. We can also offer many tips to keep your smart home safe and secure.
A smart bird feed is a bird feeder with a camera that connects to Wi-Fi and streams video, captures photos, and performs other tricks. It allows the user an extremely close-up view of local bird species, their feeding habits, and, in some cases, can identify a bird for you.
Most feeders mount on poles, trees, or other surfaces, but are too heavy to hang as more traditional bird feeders do. All have apps, some of which are exclusive and some of which link into existing smart home security platforms, like VicoHome.
Just like a smartphone, the cameras need to charge and do so through a USB-C cord. All of the feeders we tested have solar panels or solar roof options to keep the battery going for longer.
After charging the camera, pop it right into the Bird Buddy. Other feeders come with camera's permanently installed, but they also come with solar panels for easy charging.
In basic terms, the camera on a smart bird feeder connects wirelessly to your home’s internet. It can detect motion, and when it does, it turns on, capturing the image that’s directly in front of it. Most apps allow the user to select the level of detection, from low to high.
Most cameras capture 10-second video clips, although some allow you to select a different length.
As for the bird-feeding features of the feeder, it’s pretty simple: Fill it with food and the birds (and squirrels) will find it.
It depends. All of the smart bird feeders that we tested offer some sort of app functionality for free. A few are completely free, included as part of the purchase of the smart bird feeder, as in the case of Bird Buddy’s app, which is exclusive.
Others, as in the case of Birdkiss and Soliom, use VicoHome, a security camera app that offers real-time streaming but requires a monthly or annual subscription to save more than the most recent 72 hours of video footage.
Reviewed’s chief scientist David Ellerby, Ph.D., has done years of bird physiology research and is eager to answer some of the birdwatching world’s most popular questions, starting with how birds will know if there is a new feeder in your yard.
“Birds have excellent eyesight, and that's how they track down new food sources,” he explains. “If your feeder is hidden away, it will take birds a while to find it.”
So, if you want birds to show up ASAP, place feeders where birds can see them easily.
“Even so,” says Ellerby, “it could still take birds a few days to learn there's a free meal available in your yard.”
Identifying birds can be tricky, and depending on where you live in the world, will include a variety of species.
Your best bet is to invest in a birding guide, of which there are many.
Ellerby cautions, “Some guides assume you know roughly the type of bird you're dealing with, but if you don't know a finch from a sparrow, that's not much help.”
If you're a beginner, Ellerby recommends the National Audubon Society as a great resource, particularly their helpful app.
“The app takes basic information like the location, time of year, and size and color of the bird to narrow down a list of likely species,” he says. But when the app examines the feeder’s pictures of birds to identify them, it’s not always that accurate.
If you prefer a book, field guides for the whole country contain an overwhelming number of species. Guides specific to your region or state are much less intense.
Ellerby’s favorites are by the author Stan Tekiela. “He has user-friendly guides for most states that take a simple appearance-based approach to walk you through the bird ID process,” he says.
Leigh Harrington has more than 20 years experience as a writer and editor for myriad print and digital publications.
At USA TODAY and Reviewed, Harrington oversees large appliances, including refrigerators, dishwashers, ranges, and laundry, and manages Reviewed's overall home content, including areas of focus like home improvement, cleaning, gardening, cooking, and parenting. She focuses on writing, but mostly editing, consumer ed content and product reviews.
Harrington is also an experienced travel writer, and has authored books including Fodor's Boston, 100 Things to Do in Boston Before You Die, and Colorful Boston, an adult coloring book.
Our team is here for one purpose: to help you buy the best stuff and love what you own. Our writers, editors, and lab technicians obsess over the products we cover to make sure you're confident and satisfied. Have a different opinion about something we recommend? Email us and we'll compare notes.
Shoot us an email
