How Much Feed Do Backyard Chickens Need Per Day?
About a quarter pound per hen per day. But how you feed matters as much as how much. Here's the practical breakdown.
A standard laying hen eats about a quarter pound of feed per day — roughly 100 to 120 grams, or about half a cup. For a flock of six hens, you’re looking at around 1.5 pounds of feed per day, or about 10 pounds per week.
That’s the number. Here’s why it’s more complicated than it looks.
Free choice vs. scheduled feeding
Most backyard keepers feed free choice — feeder is always full, hens eat when they want. That works well as long as the feeder stays stocked and you’re not inadvertently training the flock to fill up on scratch or treats before they get to the layer feed.
One thing that helps free choice feeding work better: a hanging feeder that reduces waste and keeps feed off the ground. Hens are messy eaters and a poorly positioned feeder means a surprising amount of feed ends up scratched into the bedding.
Recommended: Hanging chicken feeders on Amazon →
For a more complete setup — feeders, waterers, and accessories built for backyard flocks — Hatching Time carries equipment worth looking at. First-time customers get $10 off orders over $250 with code 9ZBJ2QIOTETAYYO4AFF.
When they eat less than expected
Hens naturally eat less in hot weather. They eat more in cold weather because they’re burning energy to stay warm. If your hens are eating noticeably less than a quarter pound each per day and it’s not hot, that’s worth paying attention to.
The treats problem
Treats — scratch, fruit, kitchen scraps, mealworms — should make up no more than 10% of a hen’s daily diet. That’s about 10 to 12 grams, which is less than you think. When treats become a significant portion of the diet, you’re diluting the feed and the nutritional math stops working. The scratch and treats guide has the full breakdown.
Waterer math
Hens drink roughly twice the volume of water as feed. Clean, fresh water is as important as any feed decision.
The right feed matters as much as the right amount
Quarter pound per hen is the baseline. What you put in that quarter pound depends on your flock’s setup. Our guide on layer feed vs all-flock feed walks through how to pick between them.
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Getting the quantity right is the easy part. Getting the type of feed right for your specific flock — ages, ranging situation, climate, egg goals — is where most backyard keepers have a gap. The quiz figures that out in three minutes.
Your flock's diet matters more than any single treat.
Get a feeding plan built for your actual hens — not generic advice from the internet.
Take the Feed Quiz60 seconds · Built by keepers, not marketers.