Finest Chook Feeders With Cameras, Examined and Reviewed (2025)

A decrease upkeep technique to get pleasure from birds in your yard, this recycled-plastic birdbath comes outfitted with a dual-lens digicam sending 1080p photographs and 2K video by way of the Birdfy app and using the app’s AI for chicken identification. With the IP66-rated birdbath’s sturdy steel base (you may purchase it for much less with out) and solar-powered battery and fountain pump, all I needed to do was be sure that the three.5-liter, 1.65-inch reservoir was topped off with water. Theoretically. In actuality, it solely took 24 hours for me to understand this new toy was not really serving as a birdbath in my yard however as a heavy-traffic hand-washing station for raccoons. This nonetheless would have been an entertaining expertise had it not been for a similar downside that plagued Birdfy’s Professional Duo feeder: a continually dropping digicam connection. Even when the birdbath was stationed straight exterior the wall the place my router was, the digicam would go offline at the very least as soon as a day—generally a number of occasions a day. Rebooting remedied the problem for one more 12 hours or so, however then it went proper again offline. Just like the Professional Duo, that is an in any other case quality-made and -engineered product, and I am hoping Birdfy can work out the digicam kinks.

Birdfy’s flagship improve for 2025, winner of this yr’s CES Innovation Award and an American Good Design Gold Award, is exclusive in its class. There’s one dual-lens front-facing digicam (2-MP/1080p broad angle and 3-MP/2K portrait) and one 2-MP/1080p aspect digicam, and each seize sharp, extremely detailed video with high-quality sound. The front-facing digicam will even pan and crop to make sure it is centered on a chicken. (Notice that there is additionally a less expensive, single-camera model of the Feeder 2 that we have not examined.) The feeder’s IP66-rated plastic physique, which has held up very nicely up to now in Pacific Northwest winter climate, is wall-, pole-, or tree-mountable. An auxiliary photo voltaic panel and lifelong AI chicken identification are each included. The reservoir holds barely much less seed than the unique plastic Birdfy, at 42 ounces vs. Birdfy 1’s 50 ounces, which is simply as nicely, as this feeder appears to be a magnet for squirrels who wish to chew on it and steal the seed. I had fixed hassle with the rodents chewing off the perimeters and compartment dividers throughout my two months of testing. Like the unique Birdfy, there have been some points with non-bird motion triggering the digicam, however general I used to be impressed with each the picture high quality and the Birdfy app’s up to date AI identification. That mentioned, there are some severe flaws that stored this digicam from incomes prime billing. Each cameras repeatedly dropped connections through the two-month testing interval, although I used to be utilizing the required 2.4-GHz Wi-Fi community (Birdfy cameras can’t run on 5 GHz). The photo voltaic panel, which should be mounted individually, additionally did not hold the cameras persistently charged in cloudy climate. I additionally didn’t love that the cameras didn’t work in tandem—they do not supply views in the identical app window as with the Birdfy Hum, under. Birdfy says this can quickly be rectified with an app replace, so potential patrons might wish to wait till Birdfy works out some extra kinks.

The Beako is likely one of the extra thoughtfully designed chicken feeders I’ve examined. The plastic seed reservoir is detachable from the IP65 physique for refilling, so you do not have to take the entire thing down; the 3-watt photo voltaic panel can mount onto the again for pole set up; and the 8-MP photographs and 4K HD video are significantly better high quality than you will discover from rivals. The entire setup is absolutely practical with no subscription, although one is critical to entry all options. I additionally like that the movies document so long as a chicken is doing one thing attention-grabbing, even when it is a number of minutes lengthy. The one draw back is that the photo voltaic panel stopped working after about six weeks. I used to be nonetheless in a position to cost the battery, however the battery cost was simply brief sufficient to make this process really feel inconvenient.

This Amazon feeder’s app leaves a lot to be desired, however it does get main factors for staying absolutely charged for 2 months with its 3-watt built-in roof photo voltaic panel, regardless of getting little or no solar in my Pacific Northwest winter yard. Like many cheap feeder cameras, a lot of the Harymor’s marketed options—corresponding to AI identification and the flexibility to take 2K video—are hidden behind a subscription paywall ($4 a month, or $48 a yr), on this case within the VicoHome app. Nonetheless, even when the subscription is activated, the AI is unsuitable extra typically than it is proper.

From the identical makers because the Harymor chicken feeder, above, the Sehmua is sort of equivalent to the Harymor, however with out the built-in photo voltaic roof. The panel it comes with must be mounted individually. I used to be particularly amused by the field it arrived in, which encompasses a hummingbird. (That is, in fact, a seed feeder.) In contrast to different feeders that additionally require an auxiliary photo voltaic panel, the Sehmua has a bizarre USB-C dongle that hangs off the again; it’s not detachable, and it’s used for charging the digicam as nicely. What the Sehmua does have going for it over the Harymor, although, is way improved AI, which additionally hyperlinks to a chicken species’ Wikipedia web page and offers choices for corrections. It’s additionally absolutely usable out of the field with a yearlong free-trial subscription—a rarity amongst chicken feeders on this worth vary—by way of the user-friendly Ubox app. Specs for the digicam weren’t offered, however the photograph and video high quality are fairly stable, although not as sharp as Chook Buddy’s or Birdfy’s. The sphere of view can also be respectable, at 140 levels. There is a lifetime free subscription model for $10 extra, which Sehmua’s rep assures me is in any other case precisely the identical. I additionally like that this one’s app labels all captures with a chicken ID, so you may scroll down the day’s listing and instantly see what’s price clicking on.

Former WIRED reviewer Medea Giordano examined the FeatherSnap Scout when it debuted in June 2024, and I retested it in early 2025. It is obtained a twin feed bay (4.2 cups either side, for a complete of 8.4 cups capability), built-in photo voltaic panel, expandable perch, and fairly stable 4 MP photograph decision, the readability and high quality of which had been on par with costlier cameras just like the Chook Buddy. There’s additionally an choice to view video in 0.5-speed slo-mo. As with a lot of the cheaper cameras, nonetheless, lots of the options (like AI identification and video) are hidden behind a subscription. I didn’t discover the ornithologist-trained AI identification to be tremendous correct, and the app was general cumbersome to make use of, taking some time to load after which requiring a number of steps to interact the AI function. I additionally did not like that customers should make an account that requires an tackle and cellphone quantity simply to make use of the feeder, even when they’re not shopping for a premium plan. And in the event that they are shopping for a premium plan, they’ll’t do it by way of the app retailer. They must undergo Feathersnap’s web site, which requires coming into uncooked bank card information—no different pay choices like PayPal or Apple Pay—and their tackle as soon as once more. I additionally discovered it routinely charged my bank card on the finish of the monthlong subscription function with out warning, and there was no choice to cease the recurring cost aside from deleting my account.

FeatherSnap simply launched its new HD-camera hummingbird feeder in Could 2025, however just like the Scout, it solely helps nonetheless photographs and a dwell feed with no subscription, which is a trouble to join and tough to cancel. It additionally holds as much as 4 cups of nectar, however there are not any directions on how lengthy one ought to depart liquid within the feeder (hummingbirds can change into in poor health and die rapidly from spoiled nectar), and that quantity appears extreme for a number of days’ price. That mentioned, that is in any other case a sturdy and well-made feeder with a number of mounting choices, an ant moat on prime, and a handy built-in photo voltaic panel that does a terrific job of holding a cost, even throughout prolonged cloudy durations. Regardless of the effort with FeatherSnap’s subscription state of affairs, described above, this feeder skilled no connectivity or different points throughout my testing interval.

One of the vital unique-looking sensible feeders in the marketplace, the PeckPerk sports activities a teardrop form impressed by a weaver chicken nest, fronted by a 5-inch-long perch styled to appear to be twigs. Of specific curiosity to me, a few of its early internet copy promoted it as “squirrel proof.” I couldn’t work out why this is perhaps till 7 am one Saturday morning, once I heard what seemed like a tinny burglar alarm ringing someplace past the bushes exterior my front room window. I went exterior, and lo and behold, a squirrel was sitting on the PeckPerk, munching away at a sunflower seed whereas a high-pitched alarm blared proper in its face. I might inform this was not the primary time this had occurred (sorry, neighbors!), because the squirrel was fully unfazed. PeckPerk does get factors for making an attempt, although. (And it must be famous this alarm is definitely disabled.) It additionally will get factors for being exceedingly straightforward to fill, being one of many few feeders that may mount nicely on a tree or on a tripod, and having stable night time imaginative and prescient with its 2K digicam. Nonetheless, not solely does it require a subscription to document video and the mounting of an auxiliary photo voltaic panel, limiting the place it may be positioned, the app interface was extraordinarily rudimentary in contrast with different feeders’ and in no way intuitive.

I anticipated this hummingbird feeder to look considerably like its seed-feeder sibling, above, however aside from its additionally utilizing the VicoHome app, it bears completely zero resemblance. It’s obtained a humorous little purple umbrella-shaped prime, and the field, which encompasses a vaguely Asian-themed font, has no model title listed. I do like that it comes with a giant bottle brush and a smaller brush for the flowers, and that it has interchangeable lavender and bluish-purple flowers to go together with the usual yellow. I used one in all every to see if there was one our resident Anna’s hummingbirds most popular, however they appeared indiscriminately inquisitive about all of them. Just like the seed feeder, there are solely nonetheless photographs and dwell feed with out an extra subscription, and I didn’t love what number of false alarms gave the impression to be recorded. There’s an indentation on the lid that holds water for an ant moat, however because the photo voltaic panel should be mounted individually, ants might simply use the wire to succeed in the feeder.

Birdfy’s Hum Feeder Duo is the hummingbird feeder model of the Duo seed feeder, above. Each variations of the Hum include a transparent, BPA-free, anti-mold bottle that screws right into a purple base with a trio of plastic flowers. The duo has two 3-MP 2K cameras—one front-facing and one side-facing. The cameras cost collectively and work collectively to supply a side-by-side view within the app. I had zero issues with setup—after an in a single day cost, the feeder was up and operating in about 10 minutes. One cost lasted somewhat over per week in Pacific Northwest November temperatures, although for $20 extra you may spring for the photo voltaic panel add-on with a patented ant moat (I’ve not tried this but). I respect that the app reveals battery life alongside temperature and humidity, which is useful for gauging when to interchange the liquid, though a extra specific notification like Chook Buddy’s can be useful. Just like the seed feeder above, nonetheless, my testing interval was not with out difficulty. Actually, I solely had the Hum up for a pair weeks earlier than the sensor appeared to have failed, sometimes capturing wind-driven movement however failing to register any birds. It is also at present flagged on Amazon as a regularly returned merchandise as a result of charging points.

This feeder sports activities the identical normal development as fairly just a few different Amazon feeders—IP65 housing, twin seed bays, photo voltaic panel that must be mounted individually. A subscription is required ($3 to $10 a month) to see something aside from nonetheless photographs or a dwell view. Just like the Harymor, it makes use of the VicoHome app. The advantage of the IsYoung, although, is the stable photograph high quality and wide-angle lens. The included equipment (a suet ball, somewhat hummingbird nectar cup, a water dish) are additionally sturdier than different Amazon manufacturers. Like different feeders of this form, it was too unwieldy to be tree-mounted, because it leans too far ahead. The advertising and marketing supplies tout its chicken identification, however once more, a subscription is required to entry this function, in addition to video seize, which on the time of testing was not clearly said on the field.

It is a stable, well-constructed IP65 feeder that is usable with no subscription, and I favored the loop on the prime for straightforward hanging from a shepherd’s hook. It additionally has as squirrel sensor that makes comical hawk noises when it spots a rodent (it even works on rats, as I discovered one unlucky night). However the photograph decision just isn’t good regardless of being marketed as 1080p, the AI is abysmal, and the photo voltaic panel did not cost and even complement the battery on two check fashions I attempted. There are significantly better feeders on the market for half the value.

This good-looking antibacterial-bamboo feeder from the makers of the steel squirrel-proof feeder we like (above) has the identical respectable 1080p image high quality and long-lasting battery, however it’s not squirrel-proof, encompasses a separate-mount photo voltaic panel, and the “Birdty” app is irritating to navigate. It additionally requires a subscription to make use of all its options, together with AI identification, which was unsuitable extra typically than it was proper and gave the impression to be calibrated for a subtropical local weather. In the event you just like the look of a wooden feeder, Birdfy has a new one which we’re testing now that solely prices $25 extra. That app is great and Birdfy as a model is extra established, guaranteeing the app’s contined assist.

This was the primary sensible hummingbird feeder I examined with a glass globe, which not solely offers higher insulation for nectar, to maintain it recent for longer, however it received’t fade or crack over time like plastic. I additionally favored that the hook has an ant moat. It took some trial and error to get the little bird-shaped 2K HD digicam to sit down on the proper angle to seize the birds, however my essential grievance with this feeder—aside from the Birdty app, which I don’t look after, and the separate-mount photo voltaic panel—is how tough it was to wash in contrast with different sensible hummingbird feeders. It comes with its personal bottle brush, however the brush isn’t lengthy sufficient to wash the curvy sides of the 26-ounce globe, the opening for which is just one inch broad. There’s additionally a gasket that must be cleaned, together with a two-part base and the three plastic flowers. Notice that, for some motive, an equivalent feeder physique is out there on Amazon underneath the “BBPECO” title for half the value, and that fashions from established manufacturers like Birdfy and Chook Buddy are the identical worth or much less.