Knopf

The Sibley Guide to Birds

Name: The Sibley Guide to Birds, 2nd Edition
Brand: Knopf
Price: 20.84 USD
Availability: InStock

The modern industry-standard guide.

86Bird

4.8· 2,868 Amazon ratings

$20.84

Price checked Oct 22, 2026

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Our verdict

HSReviewed by the BirdingPath team · Hilly Shore LabsUpdated Oct 22, 2026Price checked Oct 22, 2026

Synthesized from public specs and 521 buyer mentions. We research and analyze — we don't lab-test.

Get it if

Serious North American birders wanting the comprehensive standard: 923 species across 624 illustrated pages.

Skip it if

You want a light pocket guide; at 624 pages some find it dense and unwieldy afield.

Region

North America

Format

Hardcover

Art style

Illustrations (paintings)

Species covered

923 species

Buyers praise

Informative
Bird Information
Illustrations

Compare it with the closest picks

Owner ratings come from Amazon; BirdingScore is our separate research score.

Compare two picks

Tap an unselected chip to compare it with your current right-hand pick — all 5 picks available.

RecommendedThe Sibley Guide to Birds

4.8 Amazon· $20.84

Budget pickKaufman Field Guide to Birds

4.8 Amazon· $12.99

BirdingScore

86/100

93/100

Skip it if

You want a light pocket guide; at 624 pages some find it dense and unwieldy afield.

You prefer painted plates or an exhaustive reference; this favors edited photos and portability.

Region

North America

Format

Hardcover

Paperback (compact)

Art style

Illustrations (paintings)

Photos (digitally edited)

Species covered

923 species

—

Pages

624

—

Best for

Comprehensive ID reference

Beginners / portable field use

Buy on Amazon· $20.84 Buy on Amazon· $12.99

Show buy options for all 5 picks

The Sibley Guide to Birds Buy on Amazon

Kaufman Field Guide to Birds Buy on Amazon

What It's Like to Be a Bird Buy on Amazon

Peterson Field Guide to Birds Buy on Amazon

Nat Geo Field Guide to Birds Buy on Amazon

The Sibley Guide to Birds compared

Compare all 5 picks across 6 specs, scores & buyer sentiment · # is each pick’s rank in Field Guides & Books

Prices & Amazon ratings checked Oct 25, 2026

	This pick · #4 Recommended The Sibley Guide to Birds 4.8(2,868)	#1 Budget pick Kaufman Field Guide to Birds 4.8(1,034)	#2 Recommended What It's Like to Be a Bird 4.8(6,748)	#3 Recommended Peterson Field Guide to Birds 4.8(1,245)	#5 Recommended Nat Geo Field Guide to Birds 4.5(132)
Buy	Buy on Amazon $20.84	Buy on Amazon $12.99	Buy on Amazon $13.38	Buy on Amazon $18.55	Buy on Amazon $23.49
BirdingScoremethodology →	86/100 Owner satisfaction93 Field value69	93/100 Owner satisfaction93 Field value94	94/100 Owner satisfaction93 Field value95	88/100 Owner satisfaction93 Field value76	65/100 Owner satisfaction67 Field value60
Buyer sentiment	InformativeBird InformationIllustrations Buyers praise informative, bird information and illustrations. Based on 521 buyer mentions	Bird IdentificationContentQualityField Guide Buyers praise bird identification, content, quality and field guide. Based on 504 buyer mentions	ContentInformativeIllustrationsReadability Buyers praise content, informative, illustrations and readability. Based on 1,013 buyer mentions	ContentIllustrationsBird IdentificationMap Quality Buyers praise content, illustrations and bird identification. Mixed feedback on map quality. Based on 128 buyer mentions	ContentInformativeIllustrationsBird GuidesReadabilityMap QualityReliability Buyers praise content, informative, illustrations and bird guides. Mixed feedback on bird identification. Some flag readability and map quality. Based on 81 buyer mentions
Skip it if	You want a light pocket guide; at 624 pages some find it dense and unwieldy afield.	You prefer painted plates or an exhaustive reference; this favors edited photos and portability.	You need a pocket ID guide; this is a behavior-focused book, not a field reference.	You want photographs or the most current, exhaustive species treatment; this leans illustration and tradition.	You rely on range maps or easy readability; buyers flag map quality and small type.
Region	North America	North America	North America	North America	North America
Format	Hardcover	Paperback (compact)	Hardcover	Paperback / hardcover	Paperback
Art style	Illustrations (paintings)	Photos (digitally edited)	Illustrations (paintings)	Illustrations	Illustrations
Species covered	923 species	—	—	—	—
Pages	624	—	—	—	—
Best for	Comprehensive ID reference	Beginners / portable field use	Understanding bird behavior	Beginner-friendly ID	Detailed field ID reference