Description
iNaturalist is an open, citizen science platform that enables users around the world to record, share, and identify biodiversity observations. Active scientists can share photos, audio, and geolocation to the platform. Through community participation and AI-assisted identification, the platform intends to contribute to global biodiversity monitoring, conservation, and education by connecting people with nature and contributing open data to the scientific community.
Technology
The citizen science platform runs as a desktop and mobile application. The system integrates image recognition, geolocation, and machine learning to provide automated species suggestions and validation upon submission of observations. Users can explore flora and fauna with information on the date and location the observation was recorded, where members of the online community can assist in identifying the species observed. Meanwhile, the platform also showcases leaderboards demonstrating the most active users and contributors.
Target
The platform is particularly beneficial to citizens, researchers, and academic institutions worldwide. As of October 2025, there is a total of 9 355 881 individuals who signed up to the citizen science platform. With 4 million monthly active users and 400 thousand monthly active contributors, each month iNaturalist generates over 6 million observations of over 100 thousand distinct species.
Business model
iNaturalist operates as a nonprofit organization funded through grants, donations, institutional partnerships and revenue from their online shops. The platform is free and open source, with no paid services or advertisements.
Impact
As of October 2025, there are around 282 344 441 observations that were recorded on the platform, wherein 539 172 species have been properly catalogued. iNaturalist also continuously share their findings with other scientific data repositories such as the Global Biodiversity Information Facility.
Partners
California Academy of Sciences & National Geographic Society, University of California
Four Betters
Better environment
