For New Chicken Keepers: Choosing Chicken Breeds

For New Chicken Keepers: Choosing Chicken Breeds

October 10, 2021


(My Rhode Island Red and Buff Orpington gazing at the outdoor scenery!)


What's the best chicken breed?

This a tough question to answer because there really IS no one best breed.

There are best-laying breeds, best-looking breeds, most cold-hardy, most heat-hardy, prettiest egg layers, best foragers, best breeds for kids...and the list goes on. 

Basically the best breed (or breeds) for YOU are those that will fufill the specific reasons why YOU want to start raising chickens.


Breeds I Have Raised:

  • French Copper Maran
  • Buff Orpington
  • Rhode Island Red
  • Production Blue
  • Silver Laced Wyandotte
  • Easter Egger

Best Egg Laying Breeds:

  • Anconas
  • Australorps
  • Golden Comets
  • Leghorns
  • Minorcas
  • Plymouth Rocks
  • Rhode Island Reds
  • Sussex 
  • Wyandottes

Best Cold-Hardy Breeds:
  • Ameraucanas
  • Araucanas
  • Australorps
  • Barnevelders
  • Barred Plymouth Rocks
  • Brahmas
  • Buckeye
  • Buff Orpingtons
  • Cochins
  • Dominiques
  • Easter Eggers
  • Faverolles
  • Jersey Giants
  • Marans
  • New Hampshire Reds
  • Plymouth Rocks
  • Rhode Island Reds
  • Sussex
  • Welsummers
  • Wyandottes

Best Heat-Hardy Breeds:
  • Ameraucanas
  • Anconas
  • Andalusians
  • Araucanas
  • Buff Orpingtons
  • Easter Eggers
  • Hamburgs
  • Lakenvelders
  • Leghorns
  • Penedesencas

Best Broody Breeds:
  • Australorps
  • Brahmas
  • Buff Orpingtons
  • Cochins
  • Columbian Wyandottes
  • Dark Cornish
  • Partridge Rocks
  • Silkies
  • Speckled Sussex

Best Non-Broody Breeds:
  • Andalusians
  • Campines
  • Lakenvelders
  • Leghorns
  • Orloffs
  • Penedesencas
  • Rhode Island Reds
  • Sicilian Buttercups

Best Docile Breeds:
  • Australorps
  • Brahmas
  • Buff Orpingtons
  • Cochins
  • Faverolles
  • Plymouth Rocks
  • Silkies

Best Foraging Breeds:
  • Ancona
  • Andalusians
  • Buff Orpingtons
  • Marans
  • Minorca
  • Penedesenca
  • Rhode Island Reds
  • Welsummers

Prettiest Egg Laying Breeds:
  • Blue - Ameraucanas, Araucanas, Cream Legbars, Easter Eggers
  • Pink - Australorps, Easter Eggers, Silkies, Sussex
  • Chocolate Brown - Marans, Penedesencas
  • Cream - Easter Eggers, Faverolle
  • Green - Easter Eggers, Olive Eggers
  • Speckled - Cuckoo Marans, Welsummer
Note: For a more comprehensive list of breeds sorted by the egg color they lay, click here.

For y'all new chicken keepers out there, I hope this helps you narrow your choices down to the breeds that are best for YOU. Thanks for reading!

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