Camera or gallery
Live, or from a photo you already have
Identify what is on the windowsill now, or the thing you photographed in the garden last week.
Bug identifier by photo
Photograph the bug. Know what it is doing there.
One photo gives you the name, what it should look like, and its role: pollinator, predator, harmless visitor or pest. Most of the time the answer is that you can leave it alone.
Free to download. Works from one photo, live or from your camera roll.
Det. from one photograph
Ladybug
- Other names
- Ladybird, lady beetle
- Family
- Coccinellidae
- Appearance
- Dome-shaped; typically red or orange with black spots
- Role
- Beneficial. Eats aphids and other soft-bodied pests
Bug guides
Termite or ant? Ladybug or the other one?
The pairs people mix up, set side by side with sizes from university extension services, and the household regulars explained.
- LookalikesTermite vs flying antThree features separate them.
- LookalikesAsian lady beetle vs ladybugBoth are lady beetles.
- LookalikesWasp vs hornet vs yellow jacketSize, color and the nest separate them.
- LookalikesWater bug vs cockroachWater bug is a nickname, not a species.
- In the houseCarpet beetleCarpet beetles are small oval beetles, 1/16 to 1/8 inch long, that Kentucky extension describes as black or mottled with white, brown, yellow and orange.
- LookalikesBugs that look like bed bugsSize sorts most of it.
- In the gardenStink bugThe brown marmorated stink bug is a shield-shaped brown bug about 17 mm, or two thirds of an inch, long and almost as wide as it is long.
- In the gardenBoxelder bugA boxelder bug is a black true bug with thin red lines, about half an inch long, that gathers in numbers on the sunny side of a wall in autumn.
How it works
One photo, a name, a verdict
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Photograph the bug
From above, in focus, as close as your phone will hold it. A coin beside it helps you later. You can also pick a photo you already took.
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Read what it is, and what it does
Common name, other names, scientific name and classification, what it looks like so you can check the match, and its role: pollinator, predator, nuisance or pest.
What is in the app
A field guide that starts from your photo
A name is only useful if you know what to do with it. Every result says what the insect is and what it is up to.
Names
The name your neighbor uses, and the real one
Common name, the other names it goes by, and the scientific name, so you can look it up anywhere.
Appearance
A description you can check against
The result says what the insect should look like. If yours does not, you know to take a better photo.
Role
Friend, nuisance or pest
Most insects indoors are harmless passers-by, and many in the garden are working for you. The role tells you which.
Classification
Order, family, genus
Where it sits in the insect world, which is often the fastest way to understand what it eats and how it lives.
Collection
Every scan, kept and dated
A running record of what you have found, with the photo, so a summer of bugs becomes a list you can scroll.
Questions
Before you scan
What can it identify?
Insects and their close relatives from a clear photo: beetles, true bugs, flies, ants, wasps, moths, butterflies and more. Many species can only be separated under a microscope, so some results come back at the family or genus level, which is usually what you need.
Can it tell me what bit me?
No. A bite or sting mark cannot be traced to a species from a photo, by an app or by a doctor. If you have the insect, photograph that. For a reaction to a sting or bite, contact a doctor.
Will it tell me how to get rid of it?
It tells you what the insect is and what it does, which decides whether you need to do anything. For treatment, your local university extension service gives advice for your region, and a licensed professional handles infestations. This site gives no pesticide advice.
Is it free?
Free to download.
The next bug you find has a name.
Free on iPhone. Point, photograph, read.
Free to download