The handsome black-headed grosbeak is the western counterpart to the East’s rose-breasted grosbeak, and the 2 even occasionally hybridize where they come into contact in the western Great Plains.

Males in most plumages unmistakable. Plumage of females and first-fall males is very similar to plumage of female black-headed grosbeak. Call: a sharp eek, squeakier than the black-headed’s.