I have never been a big “bird person”. I think they’re nice, and I like to hear them chirp. However, a couple years ago I bought this little teeny tiny 2 oz hummingbird feeder just on a whim. (I think it was after we visited Colorado and saw tons and tons of hummers). To my surprise the hummingbirds CAME and stayed, and come back year after year.
I have had such fun over the last few years watching the hummingbirds and I’ve gone through quite a few feeders. Here’s what I found to be the best hummingbird feeder.
This is my first hummingbird feeder. (and my first attempts at hummingbird photography) 
it tended to drip which meant I had way more ants than hummingbirds in my feeder. That feeder didn’t last long.
After doing some research I found out you can get a feeder with an ant guard ~ which is basically a mote filled with water that the ants won’t be able to cross to get to the nectar.
I cleaned up the porch, made sure I got all the hummingbird food drips off of it and then went in search of a new hummingbird feeder.
What I found was the Hummzinger. Touted by many to be the best hummingbird feeder, which is why I chose it. It’s definitely one of my favorites and the birds love it too. It has multiple feeding areas ~ but that doesn’t seem to matter. They all seem to want to eat out of the same one and chase each other around and away from the feeder.
I hung this out on a shepperd’s hook in the middle of a little garden right off my porch. The hummers were confused at first, since it was in a different place than the original feeder, but they quickly found it and started feeding there. The ants have never found this feeder, so I haven’t kept the ant mote filled. I think it’s because the feeding holes face up so it doesn’t drip. It also has a nice little bar for the birds to stand on so they don’t have to fly the whole time they eat.
I have also planted plants that hummingbirds like so they are not getting all their nutrition from the hummingbird syrup in the feeders ~ they’ve got hollyhocks, and roses, and trumpet vine. Lots of yummy stuff for the Hummers.
Photo credit: Hanna
After I moved the Hummzinger out of the window and into the garden I realized I really missed having the hummers come right to the window to distract me while I’m working enjoy. I decided to get another basic feeder, with an ant mote to put back in front of the window. I like this feeder and the birds seem to like it as well, but the wasps really liked this feeder. I don’t know what it is about it, they didn’t mess with the other two at all, but this feeder was filled with wasps every time it was full.
The butterflies also seemed to like this feeder ~ as you can see in this photo (taken by my 4 year old on a mission with the camera).
I haven’t kept this one filled all summer because the wasps got so bad they were chasing off the hummingbirds. We have enough problems with wasps around here I didn’t need to give them another free food source.
The birds still come to the window and check the feeder. They sometimes stop and look at me like they’re saying “Hey Lady! There’s no food in here ~ get with it!” then they fly to another feeder.
For last Mother’s day Hanna got me yet another hummingbird feeder. This one looks like a large red wine bottle. It has 4 feeding areas with small spaces for the birds to stand while they’re eating. The hummers really seem to enjoy this feeder. I do too. I’ve put it up a little farther from the window but close enough I can still watch them throughout the day while I’m working.
We’ve stuck with very basic feeders here and the birds seem really happy. There are gorgeous decorative glass hummingbird feeders ~ my mom has a few at her house, but the birds don’t seem to eat out of them. They kind of look at them and then fly away.
If you’re just getting into watching and feeding hummingbirds I definitely recommend the Hummzinger. It’s a great feeder, has an ant mote, holds up even in strong winds and storms and allows for multiple birds to feed at once. It’s definitely my top pick for best hummingbird feeder.
Right now in my area (Kansas) the hummingbirds are starting their migration, so it’s a perfect time if you don’t have a feeder up to get one. From my experience, if they find a feeder during migration they’ll come back to your place next year in the spring.
I’d love to hear about your Hummingbird experiences, please, tell me in the comments.
