Have you ever seen a beautiful plant and felt curious to know its name? With the right apps, you can identify plants quickly and easily using just your phone.
In this article, you will learn how these apps work, which are the best options available in 2025, and how to choose the right one for you. Check it out!
Why Use a Plant Identification App?
Benefits for Nature Lovers
If you enjoy plants, gardening, hiking, or are simply curious about the environment, plant identification apps are incredible tools to learn more about the flora around you.
Perfect for Hikes, Walks, and Gardening
These apps help not only those who take care of plants at home but also anyone who enjoys outdoor activities, allowing you to identify species instantly during your walks or travels.
Learning and Curiosity for Everyday Life
Besides satisfying your curiosity, these apps serve as great learning tools about native species, exotic plants, and even how to care for each one.
How Do Plant Identification Apps Work?
Artificial Intelligence and Large Databases
These apps use artificial intelligence combined with massive botanical databases. They analyze photos of the plant and compare them with thousands of cataloged images.
Works Through Photo, Camera, or Image Upload
You simply take a picture of the leaf, flower, stem, or even fruit, and the app searches for the most likely matches.
Limitations and Accuracy of the Apps
Most apps are highly accurate, but factors such as photo quality, lighting, and focus can affect the results. Not all apps work fully offline.
Best Apps to Identify Plants
PlantNet
PlantNet is a free, ad-free option, perfect for anyone looking for a simple and efficient tool. Maintained by scientists and botanical communities, the app provides a highly reliable database, especially focused on native and wild plants.
Although its interface is a bit basic, it is very straightforward and functional. It’s an excellent choice for anyone wanting to identify plants quickly without having to pay or deal with ads.
PictureThis
PictureThis stands out for its precision, reaching an accuracy rate of over 98%. It also has a beautiful, modern, and very intuitive interface, which greatly enhances the user experience when identifying plants.
The app provides care tips, plant information, and even pest alerts. The free version has some limitations, and to unlock all features, it’s necessary to upgrade to the premium version.
iNaturalist
iNaturalist is a collaborative project developed by National Geographic in partnership with the California Academy of Sciences. In addition to plants, it also helps identify animals, fungi, and other elements of biodiversity, connecting users to a global community.
One of the app’s main strengths is its validation system, with experts and an active user network reviewing identifications. However, it requires users to register and be somewhat familiar with its interface, which may be a bit complex for beginners.
Seek by iNaturalist
Seek by iNaturalist is a simplified version of iNaturalist, perfect for nature explorers. It’s ideal for hiking and works partially offline, allowing identification even in areas without an internet signal.
A fun feature is its gamification system, where users earn badges as they register new species. Additionally, no account is needed to use the app, although it may have some limitations when identifying very specific plants.
Google Lens
Google Lens is an extremely versatile tool capable of recognizing plants, animals, objects, text, landmarks, and much more. It’s free and already integrated into most Android devices, offering a quick and practical solution for identifying elements around you.
While it works well for plant identification, it is not exclusively focused on plants. Therefore, results can sometimes be more generic, depending on the image quality or the context.
Flora Incognita
Flora Incognita is an app developed by academic institutions in Europe, focused on identifying plants from that continent. It provides detailed descriptions and scientific information about each species, making it an excellent choice for those seeking deeper knowledge.
In addition to being completely free and ad-free, it performs best when identifying plants from the Northern Hemisphere. Even so, it works well in other regions, especially for more common species.
How to Choose the Best App for You
Free or Paid
If you’re looking for maximum accuracy and extra features, PictureThis (premium) is ideal.
For a free and collaborative experience, PlantNet, Seek, and iNaturalist are excellent choices.
What’s Your Goal?
- Home gardening: PictureThis or Google Lens.
- Hiking and nature walks: Seek by iNaturalist.
- Study and research: iNaturalist or Flora Incognita.
Important Extra Features
- History of identified plants.
- Offline access, crucial for hikes.
- Care tips, common and scientific names.
- Community participation and forums.
Technology That Brings You Closer to Nature
With the right apps, identifying plants becomes a simple, fun, and educational experience. Whether in your garden, a public park, or out on a trail, you can discover the name of every plant around you.
