Best Backyard Chicken Breeds and How to Choose the Right One
Raising chickens is an exciting experience! But, with hundreds of different backyard chicken breeds, it can be hard to pick the kind you want. That’s why we’re going to help take the guesswork out of it for you!
If you’re thinking about raising backyard chickens or if you already do and want to bring home a new breed, it’s important to consider their different traits and what you’re looking for. Today, we’re going to share with you different types of breeds: egg-laying chicken breeds, chicken breeds for meat, docile chicken breeds, and unique chicken breeds. We’ll also share some tips for helping you decide.
What Type of Chicken is Best for Backyard?
There are tons of great backyard chicken breeds! Here’s a quick rundown of some of the best options:
- Ameraucana
- Anconas
- Brahmas
- Bresse
- Buttercups
- Campines
- Cochins
- Cornish Cross
- Faverolles
- Hamburg
- Leghorn
- Minocra
- New Hampshire Red
- Onagadori
- Orpington
- Plymouth Rock
- Polish
- Welsummers
- Wyandotte
Keep reading to learn more about each of these breeds!
Egg Laying Chicken Breeds
Many chicken owners raise backyard chickens for their delicious, fresh eggs! If that’s you, you’ll want to bring home the best chicken breeds for egg-laying. While all hens lay eggs, their egg production varies.
These are some of the best egg-laying chicken breeds:
| Chicken Breed | Egg Size and Color |
| Ameraucana | large blue/green eggs |
| Anconas | large white eggs |
| Brahmas | large brown eggs |
| Buttercups | medium-sized white eggs |
| Campines | medium-sized white eggs |
| Cochins | small brown eggs |
| Hamburg | medium-sized white eggs |
| Leghorn | large white eggs |
| Minocra | large white eggs |
| Welsummers | large dark brown eggs |
Check out these egg stamps you can use to decorate your fresh eggs!
Chicken Breeds for Meat
If you’re interested in knowing exactly where your meat is coming from, you may want to produce your own. Chicken is the most popular meat for people to breed at home. Chicken breeds for meat specifically are often referred to as ‘broilers.’ Broilers grow faster than egg-laying chickens, which is why they’re great for meat.
Here are the best backyard chicken breeds for meat:
| Chicken Breed | Traits |
| Cornish Cross | most popular, great growth rate and taste |
| Bresse | large, excellent taste, pricey |
| New Hampshire Red | docile temperament, lean meat |
Note: If you’re looking for chickens that can lay eggs and produce meat, leghorn, buckeye, and australorps are popular dual-purpose breeds.
Docile Chicken Breeds
If your main priority is to have chicken breeds that are easy to get along with, especially if you have children who want to be involved, you’ll want to consider temperament. The best backyard chicken breeds for families are docile – calm, passive, and obedient.
Let’s take a look at some popular docile chicken breeds. Each of these breeds is dual-purpose, laying eggs and producing meat.
| Chicken Breed | Traits |
| Plymouth Rock | good mothers, don’t mind cold weather |
| Wyandotte | great exhibition birds, cold weather hardy |
| Orpington | excellent egg-laying birds, also good for meat |
Tip: If you want an especially laid-back flock, you may want to avoid roosters as they are naturally more aggressive than hens.
Unique Chicken Breeds
While all novelty chicken breeds may not be the best at producing eggs and meat, they’re beautiful to look at. If you’re interested in unique chicken breeds, there are a few you may want to add to your backyard flock.
| Chicken Breed | Traits |
| Buttercups | Mediterranean, orange with black markings, great for producing eggs |
| Onagadori | American breed, white and black, adapts well to various climates |
| Faverolles | French breed; odd look with a beard, feathered feet, and 5 toes; produce plenty of eggs |
| Polish | European breed; wild, feathered hairdo; excellent for egg-producing |
Tips for Choosing the Right Breed
Possibly the most critical part of raising chickens is choosing the right breed. It’s important to consider several factors to ensure you’re happy with your choice and that your chickens are happy, too.
When you’re trying to pick the best backyard chicken breeds for you, consider these questions:
- Do you want a lot of eggs?
- Do you care about egg color?
- Is a meat-producing flock important?
- Are you interested in fancy-looking chickens?
- Do you want chickens that will get along with young children?
- What kind of climate do you live in?
As long as you choose a chicken breed that works best for you, your home, and your family – any choice is a great one!
Final Thoughts
With hundreds of backyard chicken breeds, it’s easy to find one that fits exactly what you’re looking for. Whether you prefer docile chickens, ones that produce a lot of eggs, both, or something else, we hope this list has helped you narrow it down.
Owning backyard chickens is one of the most rewarding experiences! Learn more about training chickens in our guide to teaching fun tricks!
