Have you ever had one of those moments when you spot this beautiful plant, and you know what it is but just can’t come up with the name? Nope. Me, neither!

It drives me insane every single time. It’s especially troublesome when I’m in the woods and don’t know if that itchiness came on because I got tangled up in something like poison sumac or something else that I’m not sure if it grows here or not.

That’s exactly what plant identifier apps are for. Whether you’re in the woods trying to avoid poisonous plants, going through an ancient garden that your grandmother kept, or just curiously wondering what that crazy flower is that you spotted on vacation, these apps will help you figure out what that plant is with a photo or two.

Plant Lens

Image credits: Plant Lens via Google Play

Downloadable on iOS for free, the Plant Lens app is pretty darn cool. You can identify plants and flowers using the app’s image recognition technology. It also enhances its own learning capabilities through machine-learning algorithms that help you explore the plant easier all the time.

LeafSnap

Image credits: LeafSnap via Google Play

Also available on both Android and iPhone for free, LeafSnap has a user-friendly interface that makes it super easy for you to discover the name of every plant known to the app. The app can identify about 90% of tree and plant species by photos containing parts of the plant like the leaf, fruit, bark, or flower. If it isn’t 100% of the plant by the smaller part, it will list the plants it could be.

iNaturalist

Image credits: iNaturalist via Apple Store

Available as a free app on iOS and Android, iNaturalist is backed by over 400,000 renowned scientists and enthusiasts developing the content over time, providing plant information, etc. It’s perfect for gardeners, in particular, for discovering new plants and tips on growing them.

Plantix

Image credits: Plantix App via Google Play

Plantix, available on Android for free, is all about identifying plants and the diseases that might affect them. It does this by looking at patterns on plants that specific diseases leave behind. The app also offers solutions to the concerns, thanks to the community of like-minded users and international experts providing feedback and knowledge on the app.

Agrobase

Image credits: Agrobase via Google Play

Popular among both iOS and Android users for free, Agrobase leans more toward the farmer-side of plant-like things. The app allows users to identify crops, leaves, plants, weeds, pests, and plant diseases through its vast database of information.

SmartPlant

Image credits: SmartPlant via Google Play

Available for free to Android users, SmartPlant is filled with expert-based information rather than community-based apps. You upload an image of whatever plant you’re trying to identify and up pops the answer from the app’s team of expert horticulturalists with precise, accurate data.

PlantNet

Image credits: PlantNet via Google Play

A free app for both iPhone and Android users, PlantNet allows you to identify plants by photographing and uploading the image. You can use images from the flowers, leaves, fruit, bark, or other parts to identify the plant. With a database of over 20,000 plants, you’ll likely find the exact plant quickly. While using the app, you can also explore plants in the same genus or family, map your observations, and read up from links to numerous fact sheets.

FlowerChecker

Image credits: FlowerChecker via Google Play

Useable by both iPhone and Android users for $0.99, FlowerChecker is a great paid plant identification app. You can take pictures of plants, fungi, moss, lichen and get a response from international experts as quickly as possible. The developers claim that among their experts and the existing database on their app, you can identify 90% of the known plants in the world.

Smart Plant Home

Image credits: SmartPlantHome via Apple Store

A free app available to iOS users only, Smart Plant Home helps you identify plants, pests, and diseases alike. You simply take a photo and upload it to the app. Then an expert tea will identify the item and tell you how to care for or grow the plant or rid yourself of the pest or disease.

Plantifier

Image credits: Plantifier via Google Play

Useful for both Android and iOS users, Plantifier has become a popular app for gardeners and plant enthusiasts over the world. Simply upload the image of an unknown plant and let the community help you identify it.

You can also use the web-based version at Plantifier.com. The app is free.

Garden Answers

Image credits: Garden Answers via Google Play

Garden Answers is available on Google Play and at the Apple Store for free. The app has more than 20,000 plants on the database and provides you with accurate and detailed information on every plant. You can also use the app to identify pests and diseases and ask for expert advice on how to deal with those.

Picture This

Image credits: Picture This via Google Play

For both iOS and Android users for free, Picture This is an intelligent app that lets you snap or upload pics for easy identification. The app is known for working quickly and sending back accurate results.

PlantSnap

Image credits: PlantSnap via Google Play

On both Android and iPhone for free, PlantSnap – not to be confused with LeafSnap – is a handy little identifier app with a huge plant database and artificial intelligence to help you figure out exactly what plant you’re looking at. In the blink of an eye, the plant will be identified from either a photo or a snap of the camera. The app works for outdoor plants, various flowers, trees, houseplants, succulents, mushrooms, herbs, and more.

You Don’t Have to Be an Expert Anymore

While you’ll find benefits to memorizing plants and being able to identify the many species, these apps afford you amateur status without concern. So, grab that phone, hit the trail, and find some amazing plants to identify! 

Even though the apps are doing the work, you’ll still learn a lot about the plants, where they grow, and what they’re used for throughout the world.