After checking zoning and laws in your area, you decide to take the plunge into backyard chicken ownership. Your goal is having fresh eggs from your very own chickens. Beyond researching chicken care and what supplies they need, likely one of the biggest considerations is choosing the breed or breeds to get.
So which chickens are the best backyard chicken breeds for laying those precious eggs? Is there a difference in chicken laying by breed?
Best Chicken Breeds For Egg Laying
With hundreds of chicken breeds to choose from, you need a plan to find the breed or breeds that work best for your situation. An internet search reveals many opinions on the best chicken breeds for eggs. Those mentioned more frequently include: Leghorn, Rhode Island Red, Plymouth Rock, Australorp, Orpington, Sussex, Wyandotte, Ameraucana, Golden Comet, and ISA Brown.
Happy, healthy chickens produce roughly 150 to 300 eggs per year for a few years, depending on their breed and other factors. The number decreases each year. To get a general idea of the expected number of eggs per year, check out Cackle Hatchery’s chart of chicken breeds with their estimated egg production. The top five? California White, Golden Comet, White Leghorn, Red Jungle Fowl, and Brown Leghorn — all expected to produce at least 220 eggs or more per year. Although the list is only for the nearly 200 breeds the hatchery offers, it does include many of the breeds frequently cited as top egg layers.
Choosing Backyard Chicken Breeds For Eggs
Selecting based solely on egg production, however, is not the best way to choose backyard chicken breeds that lay eggs. Other factors to consider include climate, breed temperament, housing space, type of egg desired, ease of care, and budget.
Climate:
Backyard chickens are kept in the backyard, so your climate affects your choice of chicken breed. This is because some chickens do better in certain climates. Usually, larger breeds with more feathers and small combs and wattles are more cold-tolerant than smaller breeds with fewer feathers and large combs and wattles. Much like a rabbit’s big ears or a rat’s long tail help the animal cool off, the larger combs and wattles help chickens cool off in hot weather. But these important parts of chicken anatomy are prone to frostbite in cold weather. Despite this, some chicken breeds tolerate hot or cold weather rather well. Egg-laying breeds that tolerate both hot and cold weather include, but are not limited to, Plymouth Rock, Rhode Island Red, Sussex, Delaware, and Orpington. Chickens usually do best in temperatures from 55 to 75 degrees Fahrenheit. Temperatures above or below that require that you take added precautions to ensure their comfort.
Breed Temperament:
Much like dogs, it’s perfectly fine to have more than one type of chicken breed. But temperament does matter. Some chicken breeds are more domineering and some more submissive, and mixing the two could end with the submissive breed or breeds being bullied. Rhode Island Reds can be bossy and Sussex can be submissive, so those might not be a good mix. However, chickens are individuals and might defy their stereotype. Temperament is also important for how chickens behave. If you want a friendly chicken that’s more like a pet, then nervous or flighty breeds like the Leghorn aren’t a good choice. Maybe opt for the friendly Orpington instead. Activity level and noise are other personality traits to consider. Backyard chickens are divided into classes based on the breed origin. Those classes are American, Continental, English, Asiatic, Mediterranean, and All Other Standard Breeds (AOSB). These classes are for standard breeds only, not hybrids. Asiatic breeds are considered more quiet, with Mediterranean breeds being more noisy. The other classes are moderate.
Housing Space:
Do you have acres of property, a large yard, a small yard, or barely more than a patio? The space you have dictates the size of chicken coop and run you can offer your flock. The recommended space is 3 to 4 square feet per chicken in the coop and 8 to 10 square feet per chicken in the run. Chickens are social animals. A flock at bare minimum should consist of three birds, although six would be better. Your HOA, city, county, or state might have laws limiting the number. The more space, the better. Height of the coop is also something to consider. Most backyard chickens prefer to roost off the ground anywhere from 2 to 4, 6, or even 8 feet. And you need to be able to work inside the coop without bashing your head. So with 3 chickens minimum, that means your yard needs to hold a coop and run of at least 33 square feet that you can easily move around inside.
Type Of Egg Desired:
Color and size are the main choices here. What do you want for your eggs? Taste and nutrition really doesn’t vary as long as the chickens are happy, healthy, and fed nutritious food. Egg colors range from white to cream to brown to green to blue to other various colors. The other various colors come from the hybrid Easter Egger breed. Egg size can be small, medium, large, extra large, or jumbo! Check out the Livestock Conservancy guide to heritage chicken breeds for a comparison of egg colors and sizes.
Ease Of Care:
Animals are complicated, some more than others. Think about your level of experience in caring for chickens. Are you ready for a breed that’s thought to need advanced experience, beginner level experience, or something in between? Some backyard chicken breeds good for egg laying that only require novice-level experience include: Australorp, Dominique, Orpington, Plymouth Rock, Rhode Island Red, Sussex, and Wyandotte.
Budget:
Beyond the expected cost of supplies, which includes a coop and run, other costs affect your budget. If you choose a hybrid breed, they usually only produce for one to two years and have a shorter life span than heritage breeds, which often produce for a few more years and live longer. If you choose a larger breed, they usually require more feed. If you choose a rare breed, they likely cost more and might be more difficult to find.
What To Expect
Once you choose the breed or breeds for your flock, know that you do not need a rooster in order for hens to lay eggs. Lack of a rooster only means that the eggs will never be fertilized, and chicks won’t be produced. In some areas, roosters are outlawed because of the noisy way they greet the day.
You wanted a flock to have your own eggs, but egg production will vary. Depending on the breed, chickens start laying around 4 or 5 months of age. Usually the first two years are peak egg-laying years, with production dropping roughly 20% each year. Egg size also gets a bit larger as chickens age. Eventually, egg laying ceases, likely around 2 or 3 years of age for hybrid or production breeds or 4 to 6 years of age for standard or heritage breeds. Plan for this.
Always Keep It Clean
Friendly Reminder: Good hygiene is a must to keep both you and your backyard chickens happy and healthy. Wash your hands well before and after tending to your chickens or touching eggs. When heading out to visit your chickens, change into a pair of outdoor-only shoes that you can easily wash, such as garden clogs or boots, and take them off before going into your home.
