Best Bluebird Houses

The best bluebird houses get five things right: an entrance sized for the bluebirds in your area, a floor roomy enough for a full clutch, vents and drainage, a door that opens without disturbing the nest, and a body that holds up outdoors for years. We compared six on those points: four cedar boxes (three from Nature’s Way, one from Woodlink) and two recycled-plastic boxes from Kingsyard and Birds Choice. Only three of the six state their hole size, and only the Woodlink lists the 1 9/16-inch opening that both the North American Bluebird Society and Cornell’s NestWatch program give for Mountain Bluebirds.

Specs come from each house’s Amazon listing or, where we found the same model, the maker’s product page, and the table says which. Bluebird-specific guidance comes from the society’s nestbox recommendations (NABS) and from NestWatch. Where a listing leaves out a basic number, we say so instead of filling the gap.

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Our Top Bluebird House Picks

• Best Cedar House with a Viewing Window: Nature’s Way Cedar Bluebird Nesting House with Observation Window. The only cedar house here with a clear panel for nest checks; its listing also describes a raised wire mesh floor and fledgling kerfs.
• Best Two-Door Design: Birds Choice Recycled Poly Bluebird House. The only house here with separate side doors for cleaning and for viewing through plexiglass, per Birds Choice, which also confirms the 1.5-inch hole and predator guard.
• Best Side-Opening Cedar House: Nature’s Way Cedar Bluebird House with Side Panel. The only cedar box here whose listing puts the hinged access panel on the side, with vents in both the walls and the floor.
• Best for Mountain Bluebirds: Woodlink Cedar Bluebird House. The only house here that lists a 1 9/16-inch hole, the size NABS and NestWatch both give for Mountain Bluebirds; it arrives assembled, according to the listing.

This guide has no Best Overall. The Nature’s Way CWH3 sits first in the list below, but Nature’s Way’s online store does not list that model number, and we do not give the top pick to a house whose production status we could not confirm with its maker; the same is true of the ACH4. The CWH3 and the Kingsyard Bluebird House carry no title because no measurable feature sets either apart here: the CWH3 listing does not state its hole size, and the Kingsyard shares its 1.5-inch hole and recycled body with the Birds Choice.

Bluebird Houses Compared

How We Chose

Our search covered Amazon US listings for bluebird houses, cedar bluebird boxes, and recycled-plastic nest boxes. A house stayed in only if its listing named bluebirds as the target bird, it was sold new, its brand was on our reviewed list for birdhouses, and it carried at least 15 owner ratings averaging 4.0 out of 5 or better. Two bluebird listings fell out because the manufacturer they named was a different company from the brand, and a Woodlink cedar box fell out because its listing showed no rating count. That left four cedar houses and two plastic ones.

Each listing was then read against the maker’s page for the same model. Kingsyard and Birds Choice both list their houses, and each page disagrees with its Amazon listing on something: where the Kingsyard opens, and how large and heavy the Birds Choice is. Nature’s Way’s online store does not list the CWH3, ACH3, or ACH4 model numbers, though it sells a cedar bluebird box with a viewing window as the CWH4. Woodlink’s website returned an access-denied error to our request, so the Woodlink specs come from its listing alone. The ACH4 listing shows exactly the same rating and number of ratings as Nature’s Way’s older CWH4 listing, so those ratings are likely pooled across the two models, and its FeederBirdLab Score is lowered by 0.2 for that.

With no top pick, the list follows our ranking rule for this category: houses backed by a larger pool of owner ratings come first, and within each group the higher average comes first. The FeederBirdLab Score on each card plays no part in that order (how the score works), and the full process is on our How We Review page.

How to Choose the Best Bluebird Houses

NABS no longer approves specific nestbox designs and warns that some boxes sold with a “NABS approved” logo do not follow its guidelines, so judge a bluebird house by its features rather than a seal.

Match the hole to your bluebirds

NABS says a 1 9/16-inch round hole suits all three bluebird species and that Eastern Bluebirds can also use 1 1/2 inches. For the two western species the sources split. NABS says Western and Mountain Bluebirds prefer 1 9/16 inches and that the larger hole is the choice where ranges overlap. NestWatch’s Mountain Bluebird page agrees for that species, but its Western Bluebird page lists 1 1/2 inches, and Kingsyard says its 1.5-inch hole is a standard size for Eastern and Western Bluebirds. If you host Mountain Bluebirds, the Woodlink is the only house here built to the size both sources give. If you host Western Bluebirds, NABS suggests asking experienced bluebirders near you, and its affiliate groups offer regional advice. The larger hole has a cost: NestWatch notes that 1 9/16 inches is the smallest hole European Starlings can fit through.

The three Nature’s Way listings describe an extended guard or shield at the entrance but give no diameter, so measure the hole when the box arrives, while a return is still easy. No bluebird hole keeps out House Sparrows, which NestWatch says can use a hole as small as 1 1/4 inches, so dealing with sparrows is a separate job from choosing the box.

Check the floor and the depth below the hole

NABS puts typical ideal floor sizes between 4 x 4 and 5 1/2 x 5 1/2 inches and says Western and Mountain Bluebird hosts generally use the larger end; NestWatch’s bluebird pages list a 5 1/2 x 5 1/2 inch interior. NABS also recommends 4 1/2 to 6 inches from the bottom of the hole down to the floor, which leaves fledglings a stretch of wall to climb. None of the six listings gives an inside floor size or that depth. Outside sizes are only a rough guide: the ACH3 is listed at 5.19 inches wide on the outside, the narrowest listed width here, and its interior will be smaller once you subtract the walls.

Cedar or recycled plastic

For wood, NABS asks for solid boards 3/4 to 1 inch thick and says cedar can be left natural because it weathers well. Recycled plastic is on its list of materials that have worked for some bluebird monitors; metal, clay, and ceramic are not, because of heat. None of the six listings gives wall thickness. The Birds Choice listing says its poly lumber is made from recycled plastic jugs and bottles, and one owner bought that house after squirrels and weather destroyed their wooden boxes; another owner of the same house says the bluebirds in their yard nest only in cedar.

Weight is the practical difference. The three Nature’s Way houses are listed at 2.05 to 2.7 lb, while Birds Choice gives 6 lb for its plastic house and the Kingsyard listing gives 3.99 lb, so plan on a sturdier mount for a plastic box. NABS also favors light exterior colors, such as earth tones or white, to reflect sunlight. The ACH4’s product title mentions a black roof, and one CWH3 owner in Florida paints that model’s roof white and adds vent holes on each side for the heat.

How the box opens

NABS calls it essential that a nestbox opens for monitoring and cleaning and treats the choice of opening panel as personal preference, with one exception: no bottom-opening boxes. The ACH3 swings open on a hinged side panel, the Birds Choice has two side doors, the Woodlink listing describes an easy-open front, and one CWH3 owner turns a small metal clip to open the front. The Kingsyard is described two ways, a side opening in its listing and a front door with a metal latch on Kingsyard’s product page, and its listing also mentions a removable bottom panel; use the door, not the bottom, for nest checks. NABS also recommends cleaning the box after each brood fledges, so expect to open it several times a season.

Vents, drainage, and the floor

NABS wants vents high on the side walls under the eaves and drainage through cut-off floor corners or 1/4 to 1/2 inch holes. Every house except the Woodlink has ventilation described by its listing or maker, but in different places: walls and floor on the CWH3 and ACH3, the sides on the ACH4, unspecified vents on the Birds Choice, and the bottom panel on the Kingsyard listing, though Kingsyard’s answer to a buyer places them under the roof overhang on the sides. One Kingsyard owner who found nothing up high added a row of small holes near the top of each side and a few more across the floor; another describes a metal tray that raises the nest slightly off the floor.

Three houses list a raised wire or screen floor: the ACH4 and CWH3, per their listings, and the Birds Choice, whose maker says it reduces blowfly infestations. NABS does not include a mesh floor in its recommendations, and it warns against hardware cloth as a climbing surface because birds can catch their feet in it. One CWH3 owner, after reading complaints about the wire, cut plastic needlepoint canvas to fit over it so small feet would not get caught.

Predator guards and mounting

Five of the six listings mention an entrance guard or shield; the Woodlink does not. NABS says wooden guards over the hole do not stop raccoons, though a wooden guard or metal plate can keep squirrels or woodpeckers from enlarging it. Where raccoons, cats, or snakes climb, NABS says the box needs a predator-resistant device such as a wobbling baffle or a Noel guard fitted around the hole, and none of these houses includes one.

NABS prefers a smooth, sturdy metal pole, such as 1/2 to 3/4 inch electrical conduit, over a tree trunk, so check how each box attaches. The three Nature’s Way houses list pole or flush mounting, and Birds Choice says its house goes on a post or on a pole with a flange; one owner screwed it to a metal conduit pole driven into the ground. Kingsyard designs its box for a flat surface with two keyholes and suggests an adapter plate or flange for a 1-inch pole, and one owner could only drive screws through the top of the back panel. The Woodlink listing says the house is ready to mount but not how. Height and facing direction are placement decisions rather than buying ones, and NABS covers both in the same factsheet.

Who Should Look Elsewhere

Mountain Bluebird hosts should pass on the Kingsyard and Birds Choice houses, which are built around a 1.5-inch hole, and measure any Nature’s Way box before mounting it. If you want every spec confirmed by the maker, only the Kingsyard and Birds Choice have product pages we could check. If your boxes will stand in strong afternoon sun in a hot climate, look twice at a dark roof and at a box whose listed vents sit near the floor. If none of these matches the floor size or door style you want, building a box from published bluebird plans lets you set every dimension. And if the birds nesting in your yard are wrens or chickadees rather than bluebirds, look through our Birdhouses section for houses built for other cavity nesters.

Bluebird House FAQ

What are fledgling kerfs, and does a bluebird house need them?

Kerfs are shallow horizontal grooves cut into the inside of the front wall below the hole. NestWatch says the interior wall below the entrance should be rough to help nestlings climb out, and NABS says to cut kerfs if that surface is smooth. The three Nature’s Way listings mention kerfs; the other three do not describe the inside wall, so check it when the box arrives.

How should a bluebird house door stay shut?

NABS says a screw or a down-angled nail in a pre-drilled hole should hold the door closed, and where vandalism or tampering is a concern it suggests galvanized screws, ideally ones that need an uncommon bit. Among these houses, Kingsyard describes a metal latch on its door, and one CWH3 owner describes a small metal clip.

How long will a bluebird house last?

None of the makers here gives a service life. One Kingsyard owner in Virginia says the wooden bluebird boxes on their farm lasted about five years each, and Birds Choice says its recycled poly lumber is guaranteed never to crack, split, or fade. Whatever you buy, NABS advises checking that the hole has not been enlarged and repairing or replacing cracked or rotten wood.

Does a bluebird house need different features in a cold or buggy climate?

It can. NABS says vent holes may not suit colder northern climates or places where gnats are a serious problem, and that vents can be plugged during exceptionally cold or wet weather. It also describes a double roof, with foam, a wood block, or an air gap between two layers, to keep the inside from getting too hot or too cold. None of the six listings describes a double roof, so in a cold region favor a box whose vents you can reach and plug.

Final Thoughts

Settle the hole size for the bluebirds in your area first, then look for a door that opens easily, vents near the top, and a way to fix the box to a metal pole. Where each pick fits:

• Best Cedar House with a Viewing Window: Nature’s Way Cedar Bluebird Nesting House with Observation Window. Measure the hole on arrival, since the listing does not give it.
• Best Two-Door Design: Birds Choice Recycled Poly Bluebird House. A 1.5-inch hole for Eastern Bluebirds, on a post or a flanged pole.
• Best Side-Opening Cedar House: Nature’s Way Cedar Bluebird House with Side Panel. Vents in the walls and floor, and a side panel for quick checks.
• Best for Mountain Bluebirds: Woodlink Cedar Bluebird House. Add your own predator guard and confirm the item count before ordering.

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