Only one of these is the mold people mean when they say "black mold" — and several harmless species look exactly like it. This is why identification is a laboratory question, not a visual one. Every entry below is drawn from published mycology; each links to its Wikipedia record.
The species people mean by "black mold". A slow grower that competes poorly with other molds, so it usually appears only where damp has gone unaddressed for a long time.
A water-damage indicator that often grows alongside Stachybotrys on the same wet drywall, and is frequently mistaken for it.
One of the most common dark molds in homes, and the species most often confused with Stachybotrys because both read as black patches.
The most frequent cause of invasive aspergillosis in people with weakened immune systems. Thermotolerant, so it thrives at body temperature.
Best known as a food-crop contaminant, but it establishes readily in damp indoor dust and stored goods.
A very large genus, ubiquitous indoors after water damage. Fast-spreading, and a common driver of the musty smell people notice first.
The most commonly identified airborne mold worldwide, and another dark species routinely mistaken for black mold.
Enters from outdoors in enormous numbers and settles wherever there is moisture. Its spores are large and heavily allergenic.
The black film on bathroom caulk and window frames. Often starts pale and darkens as the colony matures.
Requires a great deal of water, which makes it a reliable marker of a real and continuing leak rather than casual humidity.
Aggressive on wet wood and cellulose, and capable of degrading the material it grows on.
Unusual in that it grows in cooler, consistently wet conditions, including in standing water.
Begins as a small moist colony and dries to a fine powder. Frequently found inside building systems rather than on visible surfaces.
A fast-growing mold with thick, visible growth that can cover a damp surface within days.
The familiar bread mold, and another reason a dark fuzzy patch tells you nothing definitive on sight.
Not an indoor air mold in the usual sense but a wood-destroying fungus. It can carry moisture across masonry to reach new dry timber.
Species descriptions summarise published mycological and public-health sources, including each organism's Wikipedia record. Nothing here is a diagnosis: visual identification of mold species is not reliable, which is why sampling and laboratory analysis exist.
Air and surface sampling identifies the species and the spore count, analysed by an accredited independent laboratory. Results in writing, usually within 48 hours.