Want how much it costs to raise backyard chickens? Wondering if selling eggs makes a profit or if your chickens are just expensive pets? Many of us get into homesteading with the goal of becoming self-sufficient and saving money on groceries by growing or raising most of our own food. But at the same time most of us weren’t raised on farms and don’t know how a homestead economy balances out on paper and in our bank accounts. So how much does it cost to raise backyard chickens? We’ll share how we learned to calculate the expenses and share a tool to help you do the same.
How to calculate chicken-keeping costs
Starting January 2021, we began tallying eggs laid each day and noting what we spent on feed and coop bedding for the entire calendar year. (We promise it isn’t a lot of work! We’ll share our favorite tool for quickly and efficiently tracking these numbers with a busy schedule in a few paragraphs or skip ahead here)
Next, we determined the value of a dozen farm fresh eggs in our local market to have a number to compare with our expenses. While we don’t sell all of our yummy eggs, we do count the cash we don’t spend on buying local eggs as part of our “income” from our backyard flock. They save us a few bucks off our grocery bill every week.
Our goal with our farm animals is that they (at a minimum) break even or earn a little bit for the privilege of unlimited food and cozy housing. So collecting these numbers helped us determine if the Cottage Farmstead chickens were saving money, making money, or if we were bleeding cash. Having chickens as pets is totally okay! But if you are considering adding them to your homestead with the intention of saving you money, it’s good to know your numbers.
Sample Flock for Calculations
At the beginning of the year we had 14 hens of various breeds ranging from 5 months to 5 years old. Recognizing that several of our ladies were aging, we decided to allow one of our broody mamas to hatch seven chicks. Bad luck for us as 6 out of the 7 were boys! Oops! The period of time that we had chicks and the regular flock meant an increased feed expense for a few months.
Sadly, two of our older ladies passed away and one of our middle-aged ladies had a mortal wound that led to her untimely death…and then four of the boys were consumed by the local wildlife. So we ended this year with 12 chickens in total. So, we started and ended the year with nearly the same size flock. Works out decently for our calculations for the cost to raise backyard chickens for a year as it averages out in the end.
Background Numbers
Farm fresh eggs around here go from $3-7 per dozen depending on raising practices. We’re fairly middle of the road, so we price ours right in the middle at $5 a dozen. How much farm fresh eggs cost in your areas will determine the number you can plug into the formula to determine how your flock is earning/saving you. Similarly, cost of living varies by location, so your feed and bedding costs will probably differ some in either direction from what is available in our region. For us feed ranges from $16-20 and pine shavings usually run about $7 a bag.
cost to raise backyard chickens per month?
On average, our backyard flock of 14-ish chickens cost about $33 per month to maintain this past year. So this breaks down to nearly $2.50 per chicken a month. Granted there is some economy in scale when it comes to bulk feed purchases, but for this year we strictly purchased 50-lb bags available at Tractor Supply and another local feed shop.
2021 Chicken Keeping Numbers
Total eggs for 2021: 1160 eggs
Total value of 2021 eggs: $483.33
Chicken Expenses for 2021: $331
Net 2021 Profit: $153.33
Yay! Our sample flock made a small profit this year. As you can see, selling eggs is not the *most* profitable homesteading enterprise, but it is an excellent way to fund your own chicken flock. Managed well, they are able to financially support their upkeep, repairs to coop, and purchase a few new chicks each year. All while providing you with delicious and nutritious eggs right out the back door.
How you can easily track your eggs and chicken expenses
But without keeping track of eggs laid and expenses, there’s no way to know if you just have fancy feathered pets or valuable contributors to your homestead income. To help you track your own flock’s numbers, we have created printable egg and expense tracker worksheets.
With minimal time input, you’ll be on your way to understanding just how much your backyard chickens are serving and saving your family. A simple tally mark for each egg laid and a quick note when you make a feed store trip is all that is needed. Easy peasy! We hope this helps you keep track of the cost to raise backyard chickens in your neck of the woods.
