The Ploceidae, or Weavers, are small passerine birds related to the finches.

These are seed-eating birds with rounded conical bills, most of which are from Sub-Saharan Africa, with fewer species in tropical Asia. A few species have been introduced outside their native range. The weaver group is divided into the Buffalo, Sparrow, Typical, and Widow Weavers. The males of many species are brightly colored, usually in red or yellow and black, some species show variation in color only in the breeding season.

Weaver birds, also known as weaver finches, get their name because of their
elaborately woven nests (the most elaborate of any birds'), though some are notable for their selective parasitic nesting habits. The nests vary in size, shape, material used, and construction techniques from species to species. Materials used for building nests include fine leaf-fibers, grass, and twigs. Many species weave very fine nests using thin strands of leaf fiber, though some, like the buffalo-weavers, form massive untidy stick nests in their colonies, which may have spherical woven nests within. The Sparrow Weavers of Africa build apartment-house nests, in which 100 to 300 pairs have separate flask-shaped chambers entered by tubes at the bottom. Most species weave nests that have narrow entrances, facing downward.

Many weaver species are gregarious and breed colonially. The birds build their nests together for protection, often several to a branch. Usually the male birds weave the nests and use them as a form of display to lure prospective females. The weaver bird colonies may be found close to water bodies. They sometimes cause crop damage, notably the red-billed quelea, reputed to be the world's most numerous bird.

Genus Bubalornis
White-billed buffalo weaver, Bubalornis albirostris
Red-billed buffalo weaver, Bubalornis niger
Genus Dinemellia
White-headed buffalo weaver, Dinemellia dinemelli
Genus Sporopipes
Speckle-fronted weaver, Sporopipes frontalis
Scaly-feathered weaver, Sporopipes squamifrons
Genus Ploceus
Black-chinned weaver, Ploceus nigrimentus
Baglafecht weaver, Ploceus baglafecht
Bertram's weaver, Ploceus bertrandi
Slender-billed weaver, Ploceus pelzelni
Loango weaver, Ploceus subpersonatus
Little weaver, Ploceus luteolus
Lesser masked weaver, Ploceus intermedius
Spectacled weaver, Ploceus ocularis
Bannerman's weaver, Ploceus bannermani
Bates's weaver, Ploceus batesi
Black-necked weaver, Ploceus nigricollis
Black-billed weaver, Ploceus melanogaster
Strange weaver, Ploceus alienus
Bocage's weaver, Ploceus temporalis
Cape weaver, Ploceus capensis
Eastern golden weaver, Ploceus subaureus
Holub's golden weaver, Ploceus xanthops
Príncipe weaver, Ploceus princeps
Orange weaver, Ploceus aurantius
Golden palm weaver, Ploceus bojeri
Taveta weaver, Ploceus castaneiceps
Southern brown-throated weaver, Ploceus xanthopterus
Northern brown-throated weaver, Ploceus castanops
Kilombero weaver, Ploceus burnieri
Rüppell's weaver, Ploceus galbula
Heuglin's masked weaver, Ploceus heuglini
Northern masked weaver, Ploceus taeniopterus
Vitelline masked weaver, Ploceus vitellinus
Southern masked weaver, Ploceus velatus
Katanga masked weaver Ploceus katangae
Lufira masked weaver, Ploceus ruweti
Tanzanian masked weaver, Ploceus reichardi
Village weaver, Ploceus cucullatus
Giant weaver, Ploceus grandis
Speke's weaver, Ploceus spekei
Fox's weaver, Ploceus spekeoides
Vieillot's black weaver, Ploceus nigerrimus
Weyns's weaver, Ploceus weynsi
Clarke's weaver, Ploceus golandi
Black-headed weaver, Ploceus melanocephalus
Juba weaver, Ploceus dichrocephalus
Golden-backed weaver, Ploceus jacksoni
Cinnamon weaver, Ploceus badius
Chestnut weaver, Ploceus rubiginosus
Golden-naped weaver, Ploceus aureonucha
Yellow-mantled weaver, Ploceus tricolor
Maxwell's black weaver, Ploceus albinucha
Nelicourvi weaver, Ploceus nelicourvi
Sakalava weaver, Ploceus sakalava
Streaked weaver, Ploceus manyar
Baya weaver, Ploceus philippinus
Asian golden weaver, Ploceus hypoxanthus
Finn's weaver, Ploceus megarhynchus
Black-breasted weaver, Ploceus benghalensis
Dark-backed weaver, Ploceus bicolor
Preuss's weaver, Ploceus preussi
Yellow-capped weaver, Ploceus dorsomaculatus
Usambara weaver, Ploceus nicolli
Olive-headed weaver, Ploceus olivaceiceps
Brown-capped weaver, Ploceus insignis
Bar-winged weaver, Ploceus angolensis
São Tomé weaver, Ploceus sanctithomae
Yellow-legged weaver, Ploceus flavipes
Compact weaver, Ploceus superciliosus
Genus Malimbus
Red-crowned malimbe, Malimbus coronatus
Cassin's malimbe, Malimbus cassini
Gola malimbe, Malimbus ballmanni
Rachel's malimbe, Malimbus racheliae
Red-vented malimbe, Malimbus scutatus
Ibadan malimbe, Malimbus ibadanensis
Red-bellied malimbe, Malimbus erythrogaster
Blue-billed malimbe, Malimbus nitens
Crested malimbe, Malimbus malimbicus
Red-headed malimbe, Malimbus rubricollis
Genus Anaplectes
Red-headed weaver, Anaplectes rubriceps
Genus Brachycope
Bob-tailed weaver, Brachycope anomala
Genus Quelea
Cardinal quelea, Quelea cardinalis
Red-headed quelea, Quelea erythrops
Red-billed quelea, Quelea quelea
Genus Foudia
Red fody, Foudia madagascariensis
Red-headed fody, Foudia eminentissima
Comoros fody, Foudia eminentissima
Forest fody, Foudia omissa
Mauritius fody, Foudia rubra
Seychelles fody, Foudia sechellarum
Rodrigues fody, Foudia flavicans
Genus Euplectes
Yellow-crowned bishop, Euplectes afer
Fire-fronted bishop, Euplectes diadematus
Black bishop, Euplectes gierowii
Black-winged red bishop, Euplectes hordeaceus
Northern red bishop or orange bishop, Euplectes franciscanus
Southern red bishop or red bishop, Euplectes orix
Zanzibar red bishop, Euplectes nigroventris
Golden-backed bishop, Euplectes aureus
Yellow bishop, Euplectes capensis
Fan-tailed widowbird, Euplectes axillaris
Yellow-mantled widowbird, Euplectes macroura
White-winged widowbird, Euplectes albonotatus
Red-collared widowbird, Euplectes ardens
Marsh widowbird, Euplectes hartlaubi
Montane widowbird, Euplectes psammacromius
Long-tailed widowbird, Euplectes progne
Jackson's widowbird, Euplectes jacksoni
Genus Amblyospiza
Grosbeak weaver, Amblyospiza albifrons
Genus Anomalospiza
Parasitic Weaver Anomalospiza imberis