Every other state in this series has a story about which hummingbird is rare. Arizona flips that story on its head: Ruby-throated — the common backyard bird practically everywhere else east of the Rockies — is the one species Arizona's own bird records committee still requires documentation for. Everything else on this page, all 15 other species, is officially Regular.

This guide sorts out who's who across Arizona's real diversity — 16 species with a measurable presence, more than any state except Texas. For feeder setup, native plants, and pest-safe care, see our how-to-attract guide. For exact timing by region, see the Arizona hummingbird calendar.

Species grouped by frequency of sightings and official Arizona Bird Committee status, statewide eBird data 2016–2025.

The Hummingbirds You're Most Likely to See

Anna's Hummingbird

Arizona's single most common hummingbird, and it isn't close. Anna's is present in every week of the year, statewide — low desert, sky islands, and even high-elevation Flagstaff, though at much lower numbers there. Arizona State Parks calls it simply "one of the most common species encountered in the state." Adult males show an iridescent rose-red crown and throat that can look nearly black without direct light — the only U.S. hummingbird with color on the crown itself. Females and immatures are green above with a paler throat, sometimes showing a few red flecks.

Broad-billed Hummingbird

An Arizona specialty most common in oak-studded canyons of the southeast, and genuinely one of the state's top species overall — but nearly absent from the Phoenix area and essentially unrecorded near Flagstaff. Adult males are unmistakable, with an orangish-red bill tipped in black and an iridescent blue-green throat and body. Females are duller, grayish below with a more subdued bill color.

Black-chinned Hummingbird

One of the most adaptable hummingbirds in the country, found from high mountain meadows down into the low desert. Genuinely seasonal, completely absent in winter statewide, then arriving fast every spring and common through September. Adult males show a velvety black throat with a thin band of violet-purple that only flashes in direct light. Females and immatures are plain whitish below, very similar to female Ruby-throated.

Costa's Hummingbird: Arizona's Spring Specialist

A true desert specialist, common around Phoenix, Tucson, and the Kofa National Wildlife Refuge. Unlike almost every other Arizona species, Costa's genuine statewide peak comes in March, not summer or fall — it times its nesting to the desert's earliest bloom, then largely disperses by early summer. Adult males have a dramatic, flared iridescent purple crown and throat that extends out past the head like a mustache. Females are green above with a clean whitish throat.

Ruby-throated vs. Black-chinned: Where Identification Actually Breaks Down

Adult male Ruby-throated and Black-chinned Hummingbirds are usually easy to tell apart in good light — one shows a red gorget, the other a black one edged in violet-purple. But Cornell Lab's own species comparison is blunt about the rest: females and immatures of the two species are close to identical in the field. The one reliable field mark on a perched bird is wing-to-tail proportions — Ruby-throated has a longer tail that extends visibly past the wingtips at rest, while Black-chinned has longer wings that reach the tip of the tail or extend just slightly beyond it. Some birders also watch for tail-pumping: Black-chinned habitually pumps its tail while hovering, Ruby-throated tends to hold its tail still.

Given that Ruby-throated is the one species on Arizona's list that still requires documentation, an unusual-looking female hummingbird here is genuinely worth a second look — even though Black-chinned remains the far more likely explanation by a wide margin.

Arizona's Sky Island Specialties

Southeastern Arizona's "sky island" mountain ranges — the Huachucas, Chiricahuas, and Santa Ritas — hold seven more species with a real, if thinner, regular presence. All are officially accepted as Regular by the Arizona Bird Committee, not accidental.

Rivoli's Hummingbird (formerly Magnificent Hummingbird)

One of the largest hummingbirds in the country, and genuinely common within its limited southeastern range despite its size. Adult males are dark overall with a glittering green throat and a violet crown visible in good light. Females are green above and grayish below, notably larger than most other Arizona species.

Violet-crowned Hummingbird

Genuinely distinctive and easy to identify even at a distance: a clean white throat and belly, unusual for a hummingbird, paired with a shining violet-blue crown and a red bill with a black tip. Sexes look alike — both show the same white underparts and violet crown, an uncommon trait among North American hummingbirds.

Blue-throated Mountain-gem

Genuinely one of the largest hummingbirds found in the United States. Adult males show a striking, solid blue throat patch bordered by white facial stripes. Females lack the blue throat but share the same bold white eye-stripe and large size, which alone helps separate this species from nearly everything else in the state.

Lucifer Hummingbird

A genuine Chihuahuan Desert specialist, reaching the United States only in extreme southern Arizona, New Mexico, and west Texas — a "highly sought-after species among avid birders," per Cornell Lab. Adult males show a dramatic, flared magenta-purple gorget and a distinctly curved bill, with a deeply forked tail characteristic of the "sheartail" hummingbird group. Females lack the gorget but share the same curved bill.

Berylline Hummingbird

An overall coppery-green species best identified by its wings and tail: rich rufous patches on the wings and a rufous-edged tail, visible even when the bird is perched. Both sexes look broadly similar — green overall with that same diagnostic rufous flash.

White-eared Hummingbird

Named for its most reliable field mark: a bold white stripe behind the eye, visible on both sexes. Adult males add a striking violet-blue crown and throat, with a red bill tipped in black. Females are duller but keep the diagnostic white ear stripe and red-based bill.

Plain-capped Starthroat

A genuinely rare, large, and unusually drab hummingbird for the family — per Cornell's Birds of the World, its "glistening red throat" is often the only real splash of color, and even that can appear blackish in poor light. Look instead for the reliable marks: a very long, straight black bill, a bold white stripe behind the eye, a broad white "mustache," and a white patch above the rump. Sexes look similar. Unlike most hummingbirds, it spends much of its time flycatching for insects from high, exposed perches rather than working flowers.

Migrants and Winter Visitors

Rufous Hummingbird

Not a breeder here, but a reliable traveler with a genuine double season: a smaller spring passage in March and April, then a much bigger surge from July through October as birds head south from Pacific Northwest breeding grounds. Adult males are unmistakable — fiery coppery-orange overall with an iridescent orange-red throat — and famously aggressive, chasing off other hummingbirds regardless of size difference. Females and immatures are trickier: green-backed above, with rufous-washed flanks and a rusty patch at the base of the tail.

Calliope Hummingbird

The smallest breeding bird in the United States, with a compact, hunched posture that makes it look even tinier than its roughly 3-inch length. Adult males have a truly unique field mark: a gorget of magenta streaks radiating out from the throat like a starburst, a pattern no other North American hummingbird shows. Females and immatures are far plainer — green above, peachy-washed underparts, with fine dark stippling on the throat rather than solid color.

Rufous vs. Allen's: A Problem Even Banders Struggle With

This is Arizona's hardest identification call. Adult male Allen's Hummingbird can be told from Rufous by a solid green back with no rufous feathering at all — if a bird shows any solid-rufous feathers on its back, it is not an Allen's. Beyond that one clean field mark, it gets genuinely difficult: females and immatures of the two species are, per Audubon's own field guide, "almost impossible to separate... without close examination." Reliable separation of the two typically requires a bird in hand and a licensed bander measuring specific feather and wing dimensions — not something achievable from a photo alone. If you're hosting an unusually orange hummingbird this fall, the honest answer to "which one is it" is often "we won't know for certain unless someone bands it."

The One True Rarity: Ruby-throated in Arizona

Ruby-throated Hummingbird is common practically everywhere else east of the Rockies — it's the only hummingbird that breeds anywhere in the eastern half of the country. In Arizona, that same bird is the genuine outlier: the single species on the state's official checklist that the Arizona Bird Committee still requires individual documentation for. Adult males show the familiar red gorget; females have a plain whitish throat, essentially identical to female Black-chinned. If you're confident you're looking at a Ruby-throated in Arizona, a photo and a report are genuinely worth the effort.

Arizona Hummingbirds at a Glance

Statewide peak weekly frequency, eBird checklist data (Cornell Lab of Ornithology), 2016–2025.

Frequently Asked Questions

How many species of hummingbirds are in Arizona?

Sixteen species have a real, measurable presence in Arizona, per eBird checklist data — more than any state except Texas. Fifteen of them are officially classified Regular by the Arizona Bird Committee; only Ruby-throated is a genuine review species requiring documentation.

What is the most common hummingbird in Arizona?

Anna's Hummingbird, by a wide margin. It's present in every week of the year, statewide, from the low desert to high-elevation Flagstaff, and Arizona State Parks describes it as simply "one of the most common species encountered in the state."

Is Ruby-throated Hummingbird rare in Arizona?

Yes, genuinely. Ruby-throated is common practically everywhere else east of the Rockies, but in Arizona it's the single species the state's own bird records committee still requires individual documentation for — a real reversal from its status almost anywhere else in the country.

How do I tell Ruby-throated and Black-chinned Hummingbirds apart?

Adult males are the easy case: Ruby-throated shows a red gorget, Black-chinned shows a black throat with a thin violet-purple band at the base. Females and young are effectively inseparable in the field — Cornell Lab points to wing-to-tail proportions as the one useful field mark.

How do I tell Rufous and Allen's Hummingbirds apart?

Reliably? Often you can't, without a bander in hand. The one usable field mark is the back: adult male Allen's shows a solid green back with no rufous feathering, while any bird with solid-rufous back feathers is a Rufous, not an Allen's. Beyond that mark, females and immatures of the two species are nearly identical in the field.

For feeder setup, nectar ratios, and native plants that support these species, head back to our how-to-attract-hummingbirds-in-Arizona guide. For region-by-region arrival and departure windows, see the Arizona hummingbird calendar.

Sources

• Arizona Bird Committee. Source for official species status (Regular, review species) for every hummingbird on Arizona's state list.
• All About Birds, Anna's Hummingbird Identification and Arizona State Parks, Arizona Hummingbirds. Source for Anna's plumage detail and abundance framing.
• All About Birds, Similar Species (Cornell Lab of Ornithology). Source for the Ruby-throated/Black-chinned wing-to-tail field mark.
• All About Birds, Lucifer Hummingbird Identification (Cornell Lab of Ornithology). Source for Lucifer plumage detail and range.
• Birds of the World, Plain-capped Starthroat (Cornell Lab of Ornithology). Source for Plain-capped Starthroat plumage and behavior detail.
• Audubon Field Guide, Allen's Hummingbird. Source for the female/immature Rufous-Allen's identification difficulty.

Why We Created This

Pop's Birding has been helping hummingbird lovers for three generations. One of the questions our customers ask most often is "What hummingbirds are actually in my state?" — and for Arizona, most answers online lean on the state's famous diversity without ever explaining the genuine surprise buried in it: Ruby-throated, common practically everywhere else, is Arizona's actual rarity. We built this page to give a direct, sourced answer — the complete, officially documented list, with real identification detail for every species, including an honest account of where field ID simply isn't reliable (Rufous vs. Allen's) rather than pretending every hummingbird can be confidently named from a photo.

How We Created This

We pulled eBird bar chart data for Arizona statewide, 2016 through 2025, to establish which species show a real, measurable presence. Sixteen species cleared that bar. We cross-checked every species' status against the Arizona Bird Committee's own official checklist rather than relying on eBird frequency alone — the genuine finding that fifteen of sixteen species are classified Regular, with only Ruby-throated requiring documentation, came directly from that cross-check, not an assumption.

The Rufous-versus-Allen's section required going beyond a simple field guide summary: reliable separation of the two typically requires a bird in hand, not a photo, which is a genuinely different standard than most casual identification content applies. We held Arizona's own species to that same standard rather than softening it.

For arrival and departure timing by region, that's a separate, original analysis on our Arizona hummingbird calendar page.