Wingspan Bird Card Tier List – Version 2.5.1
This is our Wingspan Bird Card Tier List covering all expansions. What’s changed from the previous version? Check out the updates here: Wingspan Bird Card Tier List Update
WINGSEARCH is a great companion page to go with this list, as it will give you all of the card details.
God Tier | Tier 0 | Tier 1 | Tier 2 | Underused Tier |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Common Raven | Abbot's Booby | American Crow | American Avocet | Acorn Woodpecker |
| Chihuahuan Raven | Atlantic Puffin | American Redstart | American Bittern | American Goldfinch |
| Franklin's Gull | Audouin's Gull | American Robin | American Coot | American Kestrel |
| Killdeer | Barn Swallow | American Woodcock | Ash Throated Flycatcher | American Oystercatcher |
| Bonelli's Eagle | Baya Weaver | Anna's Hummingbird | Asian Emerald Dove | American White Pelican |
| Eastern Imperial Eagle | Black Headed Gull | Asian Koel | Australian Magpie | Anhinga |
| Black Throated Diver | Australian Ibis | Barrow's Goldeneye | Australasian Pipit | |
| Blue Rock-Thrush | Australian Raven | Belted Kingfisher | Australasian Shoveler | |
| Brambling | Australian Reed Warbler | Black Drongo | Australian Owlet Nightjar | |
| Chipping Sparrow | Azure Tit | Black Swan | Australian Shelduck | |
| Common Chiffchaff | Baird's Sparrow | Bobolink | Australian Zebra Finch | |
| Common Yellowthroat | Bald Eagle | Brewer's Blackbird | Barn Owl | |
| Eurasian Coot | Baltimore Oriole | Broad Winged Hawk | Barred Owl | |
| Galah | Bell's Vireo | Bronzed Cowbird | Bearded Reedling | |
| Great Crested Grebe | Black Chinned Hummingbird | Brown Headed Cowbird | Bewick's Wren | |
| Great Indian Bustard | Black Crowned Night Heron | Budgerigar | Black Bellied Whistling Duck | |
| Mandarin Duck | Black Noddy | Bullfinch | Black Billed Magpie | |
| Maned Duck | Black Redstart | California Quail | Black Necked Stilt | |
| Mourning Dove | Black Tailed Godwit | Canada Goose | Black Shouldered Kite | |
| Mute Swan | Black Tern | Carolina Wren | Black Skimmer | |
| New Holland Honeyeater | Black-Naped Oriole | Cedar Waxwing | Black Stork | |
| Noisy Miner | Blue Grey Gnatcatcher | Chestnut Collared Longspur | Black Vulture | |
| North Island Brown Kiwi | Blue Winged Warbler | Coal Tit | Black Woodpecker | |
| Pied Billed Grebe | Bluethroat | Cockatiel | Blue Grosbeak | |
| Purple Martin | Blyth's Hornbill | Common Buzzard | Blue Jay | |
| Red Avadavat | Bushtit | Common Goldeneye | Brahminy Kite | |
| Red Breasted Merganser | Carolina Chickadee | Common Kingfisher | Brant | |
| Rose Ringed Parakeet | Carrion Crow | Common Moorhen | Brolga | |
| Rosy Starling | Cassin's Finch | Common Starling | Brown Falcon | |
| Ruddy Duck | Cassin's Sparrow | Common Swift | Brown Pelican | |
| Ruddy Shelduck | Cerulean Warbler | Coppersmith Barbet | Brown Shrike | |
| Ruff | Clark's Grebe | Count Raggi's Bird of Paradise | Burrowing Owl | |
| Scaly-Breasted Munia | Common Chaffinch | Crested Ibis | California Condor | |
| Snow Bunting | Common Cuckoo | Crimson Chat | Canvasback | |
| Spangled Drongo | Common Grackle | Dark Eyed Junco | Cetti's Warbler | |
| Spotted Dove | Common Iora | Desert Finch | Chimney Swift | |
| Sri Lanka Blue-Magpie | Common Myna | Downy Woodpecker | Clark's Nutcracker | |
| Twite | Common Nightingale | Dunnock | Common Blackbird | |
| White Stork | Desert Wheatear | Eastern Bluebird | Common Green Magpie | |
| White Throated Dipper | Eastern Phoebe | Eastern Screech Owl | Common Little Bittern | |
| Wood Duck | Eurasian Nutcracker | Eurasian Collared Dove | Common Loon | |
| Eurasian Sparrowhawk | Eurasian Eagle-Owl | Common Merganser | ||
| European Goldfinch | Eurasian Golden Oriole | Common Nighthawk | ||
| Fish Crow | Eurasian Hobby | Common Sandpiper | ||
| Forster's Tern | Eurasian Hoopoe | Common Tailorbird | ||
| Golden Eagle | Eurasian Kestrel | Common Teal | ||
| Golden Headed Cisticola | Eurasian Magpie | Cooper's Hawk | ||
| Golden Pheasant | Eurasian Marsh-Harrier | Corsican Nuthatch | ||
| Graceful Prina | Eurasian Nuthatch | Crested Lark | ||
| Grandala | European Robin | Crested Pigeon | ||
| Grasshopper Sparrow | Gould's Finch | Dickcissel | ||
| Gray Catbird | Gray Wagtail | Double Crested Cormorant | ||
| Great Blue Heron | Great Spotted Woodpecker | Eastern Kingbird | ||
| Great Egret | Great Tit | Eastern Rosella | ||
| Great Hornbill | Greater Adjutant | Eastern Whipbird | ||
| Great Horned Owl | Greater Prairie Chicken | Eleonora's Falcon | ||
| Greater Roadrunner | Green Bee-Eater | Emu | ||
| Green Pheasant | Green Heron | Eurasian Green Woodpecker | ||
| Grey Teal | Grey Headed Mannikin | Eurasian Jay | ||
| Grey Warbler | Grey Heron | Eurasian Tree Sparrow | ||
| Griffon Vulture | Greylag Goose | Eurasian Treecreeper | ||
| Himalayan Monal | Hermit Thrush | European Bee Eater | ||
| Hooded Warbler | Hooded Crow | European Honey Buzzard | ||
| House Crow | Hooded Merganser | European Roller | ||
| House Finch | House Wren | European Turtle Dove | ||
| House Sparrow | Inca Dove | Ferruginous Hawk | ||
| Ibisbill | Juniper Titmouse | Fire-Fronted Serin | ||
| Indian Peafowl | Kea | Forest Owlet | ||
| Indigo Bunting | King Rail | Goldcrest | ||
| Kakapo | Lazuli Bunting | Great Cormorant | ||
| Large-Billed Crow | Lewin's Honeyeater | Great Crested Flycatcher | ||
| Laughing Kookaburra | Little Egret | Greater Flamingo | ||
| Lesser Frigatebird | Little Grebe | Green Pygmy Goose | ||
| Lesser Whitethroat | Little Pied Cormorant | Grey Butcherbird | ||
| Little Penguin | Long Tailed Tit | Grey Shrikethrush | ||
| Little Ringed Plover | Malleefowl | Hawfinch | ||
| Magpie Lark | Mississippi Kite | Horned Lark | ||
| Mallard | Moltoni's Warbler | Horsfield's Bronze Cuckoo | ||
| Many Colored Fruit Dove | Mountain Bluebird | Horsfield's Bushlark | ||
| Masked Lapwing | Northern Bobwhite | Indian Vulture | ||
| Mountain Chickadee | Northern Cardinal | Kelp Gull | ||
| Northern Flicker | Northern Shoveler | Kereru | ||
| Northern Goshawk | Olive-Backed Sunbird | Korimako | ||
| Northern Mockingbird | Orange Footed Scrubfowl | Lincoln's Sparrow | ||
| Oriental Bay-Owl | Oriental Magpie-Robin | Little Bustard | ||
| Osprey | Painted Bunting | Little Owl | ||
| Painted Whitestart | Philippine Eagle | Loggerhead Shrike | ||
| Peaceful Dove | Plains Wanderer | Major Mitchell's Cockatoo | ||
| Pheasant Coucal | Plumbeous Redstart | Mistletoebird | ||
| Pileated Woodpecker | Princess Stephanie's Astrapia | Montagu's Harrier | ||
| Prothonotary Warbler | Purple Gallinule | Musk Duck | ||
| Red Breasted Nuthatch | Red Backed Fairywren | Northern Gannet | ||
| Red Junglefowl | Red Cockaded Woodpecker | Northern Harrier | ||
| Red Knot | Red Eyed Vireo | Pacific Black Duck | ||
| Red Legged Partridge | Red Headed Woodpecker | Parrot Crossbill | ||
| Red Winged Black Bird | Red Winged Parrot | Peregrine Falcon | ||
| Rhinoceros Auklet | Red-Crowned Crane | Pesquet's Parrot | ||
| Rook | Red-Wattled Lapwing | Pine Siskin | ||
| Roseate Spoonbill | Regent Bowerbird | Pink Eared Duck | ||
| Ruby Throated Hummingbird | Ring Billed Gull | Pukeko | ||
| Rufous Owl | Rock Pigeon | Purple Heron | ||
| Savi's Warbler | Rose Breasted Grosbeak | Pygmy Nuthatch | ||
| Scaled Quail | Ruby Crowned Kinglet | Rainbow Lorikeet | ||
| Scissor Tailed Flycatcher | Sacred Kingfisher | Red Backed Shrike | ||
| Silvereye | Sandhill Crane | Red Bellied Woodpecker | ||
| Small Minivet | Sarus Crane | Red Capped Robin | ||
| Smew | Savannah Sparrow | Red Crossbill | ||
| Spotted Owl | Say's Phoebe | Red Kite | ||
| Spotted Sandpiper | Short Toed Treecreeper | Red Necked Avocet | ||
| Stubble Quail | Snowy Egret | Red Shouldered Hawk | ||
| Trumpeter Finch | Southern Cassowary | Red Tailed Hawk | ||
| Trumpeter Swan | Splendid Fairywren | Red Wattlebird | ||
| Violet Cuckoo | Spotted Towhee | Red-Vented Bulbul | ||
| Wedge Tailed Eagle | Sprague's Pipit | Royal Spoonbill | ||
| White Backed Woodpecker | Tawny Frogmouth | Rufous Banded Honeyeater | ||
| White Bellied Sea Eagle | Tree Swallow | Rufous Night Heron | ||
| White Breasted Nuthatch | Tufted Titmouse | Satyr Tragopan | ||
| White Faced Ibis | Verditer Flycatcher | Snowy Owl | ||
| White Throated Swift | Violet Green Swallow | Song Sparrow | ||
| White-Headed Duck | Western Meadowlark | South Island Robin | ||
| Whooping Crane | Western Tanager | Spoon-Billed Sandpiper | ||
| Wild Turkey | White Breasted Woodswallow | Spotless Crake | ||
| Willow Tit | White Wagtail | Squacco Heron | ||
| Wilson's Snipe | White-Crested Laughingthrush | Sri Lanka Frogmouth | ||
| Woodstork | White-Throated Kingfisher | Stellar's Jay | ||
| Wrybill | Willet | Stork-Billed Kingfisher | ||
| Wilson's Storm Petrel | Sulphur Crested Cockatoo | |||
| Yellow Billed Cuckoo | Superb Lyrebird | |||
| Yellow Headed Blackbird | Swainson's Hawk | |||
| Yellowhammer | Thekla's Lark | |||
| Tui | ||||
| Turkey Vulture | ||||
| Vaux's Swift | ||||
| Welcome Swallow | ||||
| White Crowned Sparrow | ||||
| White Faced Heron | ||||
| White-Browed Tit-Warbler | ||||
| Willie Wagtail | ||||
| Yellow Bellied Sapsucker | ||||
| Yellow Bittern | ||||
| Yellow Breasted Chat | ||||
| Yellow Rumped Warbler | ||||
| Zebra Dove |
Wingspan Tier List Revision History
Version 1.1
Version 1.2
Version 1.3
Version 2.0
Version 2.1
Version 2.2
Version 2.3
Version 2.4
Version 2.5
Version 2.5.1
Tier List Definitions
God Tier: Traditionally, these cards can facilitate a runaway win on their own (The Power 4). As the metagame evolves and more expansions are released, this tier may have to grow to accommodate cards such as Bonelli’s Eagle and Eastern Imperial Eagle, which facilitate huge point swings without the need for food and can be played off of the free actions granted by birds such as Yellowhammer and the birds like it.
Tier 0: Could be considered “The Best of Tier 1” or “The Bottom of God Tier”. More effective, efficient, and/or game shaping than Tier 1 cards but not necessarily as impactful as God Tier birds.
Tier 1: Effective, efficient, and game shaping cards. These are among the best cards in the game and represent some of the best general qualities and/or powers. These will be the bread and butter of the best games.
Tier 2: Cards that have desirable general qualities and/or powers that can be useful in the right circumstances. These cards could be a key component of a combo or engine and might not otherwise be very effective on their own. Canada Goose is a good example of this type of card.
Underused Tier: These are cards that don’t see play at our table often due to “better” options being available most of the time. Being in this Tier doesn’t necessarily mean that a card is bad. It just means that they may consistently lose out in head-to-head decisions made between one card or another. These end up being prime Tuck/Discard fodder.
Check Out These Links for More Information
Advanced Wingspan Strategy Guide :
- Understanding The North American (Core Set) Metagame
- Understanding The European Expansion Metagame
- Understanding The Oceania Expansion Metagame
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Feels like the common moorhen should be way higher on the list. I’d put it tier 1, since it’s somewhat dependent on getting other decent water birds, and having a decent food supply (since each bird you play with it essentially has its cost increased by 1), but for a couple of the best games I’ve had, the moorhen was super important
Hello sharpChed,
I’m glad you’ve had some good games with the Moorhen. In my personal experience, and in talking with other players in the competitive tournament community, the Moorhen just doesn’t make much of an impact and it doesn’t produce high scoring games. It’s expensive for a three point bird. It does have a great six egg star nest but that alone doesn’t convince people to play it. It can be pretty difficult for a wetland engine to produce the extra food for the Moorhen’s power without also handing some out to your opponents, which is a two edged sword.
Would love to see some bird rankings within a specific category/for a specific purpose. Top 7 late game point bombs and why. Best early forest birds. Top pink powers.
Grey/gray is spelled 2 different ways throughout the list. Was this intentional?
A quick look at Wingsearch reveals that there are seven Grey birds and 3 Gray birds.
Thanks for your interesting bloc. Where can I read your criteria for each of the tiers? Also would be helpful to show which pack the birds belong to?
Hello Dalene,
Thanks for checking out the list. Wingsearch makes a great companion for this list, as it has all the card detail you could be looking for.
Curious why Sandhill Crane and Canada Goose are not in the higher tiers? They are good scoring point birds?
These birds can certainly be powerhouses when they have the correct support. That support often takes specific cards and specific timing to make a significant impact. It’s been my experience that the more support or micromanagement a bird needs, the less powerful it becomes in practice. The Canada Goose archetype of birds can have high highs and low lows in practice.
Check out my Canada Goose/Sandhill Crane playlist on YouTube to see these birds in action.
Wondering about the criteria that you used to organised the bird tiers? I can see the definitions, but would love to read some more detail about criteria?
Hello Dalene,
The tier definitions pretty much summarize my ranking criteria. If you read through all of the tier list revision history posts, you will see more of my thought process for moving birds up or down. You might also want to check out this article I did a while back about Objectively Ranking Birds.