Binoculars are a birdwatcher's best friend. They allow you to get close-up views of distant objects without having to actually get close. Some birders use spotting scopes and others use cameras with telephoto lenses, but you may be hard-pressed to find a serious birder without a pair of binoculars at the ready.
There are plenty of advantages of binoculars for birders over the other optics available. While all binoculars, often shortened to "bins", perform the same basic functions, not all binoculars are good for bird watching. Features like build-quality, optical quality, and lens coatings all play a role in determining whether a pair of binoculars is good for birding.
In this guide, we're going to cover the features that make for a great pair of birding binoculars, including the basics to look for when you're starting out. We'll also recommend some of our favorite pairs, including the best options for birders on a budget, those looking to upgrade, and the best pair overall.
Lots of Options
Binocular buyers are immediately confronted with several purchasing decisions. Not only are there numerous brands of binoculars on the market, but they also come in different shapes, sizes, colors, and feature options. Not every feature is ideal for birders, so we've narrowed down what you should look for when shopping.
For an in-depth look at some of the concepts below, we've written a Binoculars Buying Guide that dives deep into what you will find on the shelves of the B&H optics department and on the SuperStore website when searching for a pair of binoculars. Luckily, if your mission is viewing birds, purchasing options can be narrowed a bit. For this article, we will focus here on what specifications birders should consider when binocular shopping, and some great options that fit those specs.
What to Look For
Size
Whether you're staking out a migration hot spot or trekking up a mountain to find a specific species, you may find yourself holding a pair of binoculars up to your eyes for extended periods of time. The physical size, weight, and balance of the binocular should be considered when picking a pair for yourself. Where your hands fit on the pair can greatly affect the feel and balance of the binocular as well.
Binoculars come in two basic configurations: porro prism or roof prism. There can be a huge price disparity between one another, even when sharing many of the same specs. Why is that you may ask? A traditional porro prism design is less expensive to produce, and therefore a more affordable option, though this does come at a cost to size.
Roof prism binoculars are smaller and overall slimmer in design. Their relatively compact size makes them more popular for birders across the board. Due to their straight barrels, these are also easier to weather seal, meaning you'll find more water and fog proof options among roof prism binoculars.
Consider your style of birding and whether you'll be planting yourself down in one spot for hours or if you plan on hitting the trails and covering miles of territory. Odds are you'll benefit most from a portable pair, but because Porro prism binoculars are typically more cost effective to produce than roof prisms, you will often be able to get a higher-quality and/or larger-objective Porro model for about the same price as a comparable roof prism one.
Magnification
The first decision a birder needs to make when buying binoculars is what magnification binoculars to get. When looking at binoculars, you usually see two prominent numbers. These refer to the magnification and objective diameter. An example is: 8x42. This indicates the magnification of the binoculars is 8x power and the objective (front) lens is 42mm in diameter.
First, the magnification. The natural tendency for most people new to binoculars is to get the most powerful binoculars they can find. After all, the idea is that you want to get a view as close to the bird as possible. However, there is a drawback to high-powered viewing. That would be magnified image shake. The higher the magnification, the more vibrations and movements will be translated into your image.
For this reason, most birders prefer a magnification between 7x and 10x, with 8x being the magic number for almost any birding use case. It is just long enough to get a good close-up view, but not too long as to introduce too much shake to our viewing experience. Some brands do offer bins in an 8.5x magnification for a little added punch, but these are few and far between.
If you have steady hands and good tracking techniques, 10x may be the perfect choice. We would advise against going beyond that. Higher magnifications also make locating our quarry more of a challenge. Many birders prefer 10x optics for shorebirds and other skittish species that don't allow us to get as close. If you can only have one pair of binoculars, 8x is the best choice.
Zoom Binoculars
Some binoculars have variable magnification. At first, this seems like the best of all worlds, but, in reality, you lose a lot of optical quality for the price point with zoom lens binoculars. If you ask around, you will be hard-pressed to find anyone who endorses zoom binoculars for birding. In fact, the Cornell Lab of Ornithology says succinctly, "Avoid 'zoom' binoculars."
Objective Lens
As mentioned earlier, the second number in binocular naming convention refers to the diameter of the front element in our binocular, better known as the objective lens. The larger the objective lens, the more light gathering power the binoculars have. This is especially important to factor into our decisions when considering that some of the best birding occurs in the first and last hours of the day, when available light is at its lowest.
Obviously, bigger is better in this case, but there are some downsides. Most notably that larger lenses are heavier. A difference of a few ounces on a specifications sheet might not look like much until you are several hours into your hike and the weight of the binoculars is starting to make an impression on your neck and shoulders.
Birders tend to gravitate towards binoculars with a 42mm objective lens, as they provide ample light-gathering capabilities and without weighing you down. For that reason, 8x42 and 10x42 binoculars are the ideal choices for birding. Another advantage of the larger objective diameter is a larger exit pupil at the rear element of the binoculars, where your eyes are focused.
Exit Pupil
The exit pupil refers to the size of the focused light that reaches your eye. Exit pupil diameter is determined by the objective lens and magnification. To find out what the exit pupil is for a particular binocular, you should divide the objective lens diameter by the magnification. If we take a 10x42 binocular and divide 42 by 10, we find that our binocular has a 4.2mm exit pupil diameter. Therefore, an 8x42 binocular will have a larger exit pupil than an 8x35 binocular. A larger exit pupil generally means a more comfortable viewing experience.
Your exit pupil should always be larger than the pupil of your eye. It's important to note that the pupil of the human eye ranges from 1.5mm in bright light to 8mm in the dark. Why is this important? If the exit pupil is smaller than your pupil, it'll appear as if you're looking through peepholes.
Optical Quality, Coatings, and More
The better the glass, the better the viewing experience. No matter if we're casually enjoying the hobby or spending hours in the field for scientific field work, optical quality in binoculars should be of great importance. Anti-reflective coatings and specialized glass will make for brighter, sharper images and in some cases, fatigue-free viewing. This is important for longer outings as any duration looking through glass can lead to eye strain.
You know the feeling. Similar to the feeling you get when staring at a screen for too long, eye strain can make our vision focus or even keep our eyes open harder. Some higher end binoculars take this into account and maximize the amount of light that can travel through the entire optical path and ultimately to your eyes. Some brands even offer droplet and scratch resistant coatings to make for easier cleanings.
Minimum Focus Distance
One aspect of binoculars often overlooked by birders is minimum focusing distance (or close focus). The binocular brings the distant bird visually closer to the birder for observation and analysis, but what happens when a bird comes unusually close? This occurs more often than you'd expect, especially in city parks.
Birding can also involve observations of other aspect of the natural world, from foliage to insects which can all appear as close as a few feet away and binoculars with higher magnification will, in general, have longer minimum focus distances.
Some pairs will allow you to focus as close as 5' away. The significance of this feature depends greatly on your style of birding. If you prefer to count migrating hawks over Cape May, then this might not be a deal breaker for you. However, if you're the type of birder who likes to explore local parks, you may find this feature useful when spring warblers are foraging in some trailside shrubs.
Build Quality
Nowadays, binoculars are made of reinforced polycarbonate, aluminum, or the more durable magnesium-alloy. While polycarbonate can be strong, its components can wear down with time. The results could be a loose bridge hinge or even wobbly lens elements. Magnesium is the better material for long-term durability. The weight is comparable to polymers but significantly more robust. It'll hold up to years of abuse and as a bonus, is corrosion resistant. The rubber coatings on most binoculars will also protect the chassis from scuffs and scratches.
Weather Resistance
Most binoculars on the market today have some form of weather resistance. Additionally, the objective lenses are generally fog proof. This is accomplished by filling the space between the optics with nitrogen or argon gases and sealing the housing with O-rings. It's worth mentioning that some pairs are weather-resistant while others are fully waterproof to a certain depth. While not designed to be submerged, accidents happen.
A weather-sealed pair will allow you to use your binoculars worry-free during light to moderate rainfall. A fully waterproof pair can survive a deluge and can also survive being dropped in the water up to a certain depth. Consider when and where you'll be birding and check the rating of the pair you're looking into.
The Best Binoculars
Binoculars are an investment, and we should consider all of the aforementioned qualities when picking one. Remember, a good pair of binoculars will last a lifetime and you can pass them along to your children—many even have lifetime warranties against defects and failures.
Without exception, every birding expert will say the same thing: "Get the best pair of binoculars you can afford." The best binoculars are the ones you fall in love with and the ones that keep you excited about birding. To find that pair, do your homework, evaluate the options, try before you buy, and get the best pair your budget allows. Once you get your pair, we look forward to seeing you smiling beneath your binoculars out in the marsh, woods, or local nature walk!
If you find you need even more reach, consider reading our Guide to Spotting Scopes for Birding. To learn more about birding in general, binoculars, and the other optics used to safely observe them like spotting scopes, check out our other articles and guides on the B&H Explora site.