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You may be asking yourself, “how much coop and run space do my chickens need?” Seeing those cute little chicks at the farm store can beckon you to make an impulse buy. Keeping backyard chickens is an exciting adventure! However, this is a great question to ask yourself before you purchase those cute baby chicks. Before you purchase your birds, you need to consider how you are going to house them.

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In this post you will learn:

Important Questions to Ask Yourself

Some of the most important questions you will want to consider ensure your chickens have enough space to be happy and healthy are:

Do you plan to keep them cooped up full time with an outdoor chicken run or will you let your chickens free range?
What is the bare minimum square feet of space for your coop?
If you already have a coop, what is the square feet of that coop space?
What is the bare minimum square feet of run space you will need?
What is the number of chickens you plan to keep?
What type of chicken breed do you plan to keep? Small, medium or large breed?
What is the temperament of the breed you plan to keep?
What is your climate? Do you have hot summers and cold winters?
How much roost space you will need?
How many nest boxes you will need?
Do you have access to clean water or will you have to haul it?
Do you have access to electricity?

How Much Coop Space Do My Chickens Need?

First, let’s consider the size of your coop in order to make sure your chickens have enough room to be happy and healthy. The size of coop you choose will determine the size of your chickens and how many chickens you can keep.

If you already have a backyard chicken coop, measure it to find the square footage. This will pre-determine the amount of chickens you can keep. Other things you may need to consider with this option is if you will need to add roosting bars and nest boxes or an outdoor run. If you need to add any of these features, it will naturally have an added cost.

If you want to “press the easy button,” there are many pre-fab backyard chicken coops available. Some of them even have nest boxes and run space included. These tend to be on the smaller side and will really limit the amount of chickens you can have. They also tend to be fairly lightweight. This can be a positive if you want to move your coop around or a negative if you live in an area with high wind. You should anchor it down if this is the case. You can also find handy pre-made coops that are on wheels made to move around your yard.

If you plan to build one, there are many great books and websites that offer you plans and supply lists. In general, these types of coops are more stationary. However you can custom build a coop that is made to move around your yard. These types of coops will most likely be made from more heavy duty materials. Also another thing to consider if you choose this option is to build it in such a way that you can use deep bedding (see note below). In this case you may want to think about not having it anchored to a foundation so you can move it off to clean it more easily.

The Bare Minimum Square Feet of Indoor Space You Need

You will want to offer plenty of space for your hens to be happy and healthy. Overcrowding can cause your chickens to be stressed, exhibit aggressive behavior, pecking, parasites, or even egg laying problems. Another thing to consider is if you have a rooster(s), you will want a bit more indoor space. Roosters tend to chase the hens around so you will want to give the hens plenty of room to get away from the rooster if she wants to. A good rule of thumb for coop space for standard chickens is 5 square feet of floor space. This will give them adequate space to be happy and healthy.

For small breeds of chickens (ie. Bantams, Silkies, or Serama), the minimum amount of space is 2 square feet of floor space per chicken.
For medium-sized chickens (ie. Australorp, Rhode Island Reds, or Plymouth Rock), the minimum amount of space is 4 square feet of floor space per chicken.
For large breeds of chickens (ie. Jersey Giants, Buff Orpingtons, or Cornish Game), the minimum amount of space is 6 square feet of floor space per chicken.
Here is a handy chart to help you decide on your chicken breed.

How Much Run Space Do My Chickens Need?

Chickens in outside chicken run with electric poultry netting

You will want to offer plenty of outdoor space for your chickens to get fresh air, sunshine, and to forage for bugs. A few things to consider when thinking through this outdoor area is if you are going to cover your outdoor run or not, providing shade, or perhaps if your chickens will be free-range.

First, let’s take a look at the benefits and drawbacks of covering or not covering your outdoor run. We have always used electric poultry netting for our outdoor run. This has its benefits and drawbacks. The benefits are that the poultry netting is a fast and inexpensive way to build a chicken run. Another benefit is that it is easily movable to guide the chickens to different parts of your yard. Finally, the poultry netting detours predators from getting in and chickens from getting out.

One drawback to poultry netting I will note, this would apply to any open fence, is that when it is in the open, your chickens become an easy target for hawks. We once had this problem and didn’t know what was killing the chickens until we saw it happen one day. When we figured it out, we moved the fence under a tree for cover and shade. Then, the raccoons were able get in the tree via another tree and building that was nearby. They used them as a ladder to get down inside the pen. Ugh! More dead chickens. If you choose an open chicken run, make sure to provide your chickens with some sort of shade or cover, maybe just not a shade tree that can be accessed from outside the pen!

A chicken run that is closed on the top can alleviate many of these problems. One drawback would be that it adds additional cost to your initial setup.

You may want to have free-range chickens. There are positives and negatives to this option as well. Free-range chickens can enjoy foraging for a wide variety of plants and bugs. However, this opens them up to predator attack during the day and possibly at night. We have found the hens wake up early and want to head outside. The coyotes and bobcats are still up hunting during the morning hours, so we have had to make them wait until later in the morning to get outside! Possibly you get home late one evening and don’t get them locked up in time, the raccoons can decimate a whole flock! Ask me how I know…

The Bare Minimum Square Feet of Outdoor Space You Need

For regular-sized chickens you will want to plan 8 to 10 square feet of personal space per bird.

How Much Roost Space Do My Chickens Need?

It is a natural instinct for laying hens to want a place to roost at night. They will look for a high spot to do this, whether it be the nesting boxes or some other place where you do not want them to roost. So, provide them with roost bars to perch on at night. Heavy breeds or fast growing meat chickens should not have a place to perch. They can cause fractures in their legs or hip joints from jumping down off the roost.

A ladder type roost that is angled and leans against the wall is a good option. For the roosting boards, a 2 x 2 inch board works great. Place the roosting boards 1 foot apart going up the rung and starting at 18 inches off the coop floor. Be sure not to use a thin, slippery, round material such as plastic or metal pipe as it will make it hard for your chickens to be stable when sleeping at night.

Another tip would be to secure your roost to the wall, however make it so you can remove the roost in order to easily clean the soiled bedding underneath.

The Number of Lineal Inches of Roost Space You Need

For regular-sized chickens you will want to plan on 6 to 8 lineal inches of roost space per bird.
For large chickens you may want to plan on 10 to 12 lineal inches of roost space per bird.

How Many Nesting Boxes Do My Chickens Need?

Chickens can be picky about where they lay their eggs, so you will want to think through this space in your coop. Chickens like to lay eggs in a private, clean, darkened space. Make the nesting boxes visible from the door, but away from the roost space. Do not place the nesting boxes on the floor or in high traffic areas as this can encourage egg eating. Something you do not want to get started as it is difficult to break this habit! Provide clean soft bedding in the boxes. You can even put a fake egg in there to help your new layers understand where to lay their eggs. Make your own nest box, or perhaps, you can buy a fancy nest box that lets the eggs gently roll down to a safe space that you can easily gather from.

Amount of Nesting Boxes You Need

The general rule is 1 box for every 4-5 hens.

A Few Other Things to Consider When Picking the Perfect Coop and Run Space

You will want to consider the climate you live in. If you live in a cold climate and access to outdoor space is limited, you will definitely want to increase the amount of indoor space your chickens have. If you have hot summers, make sure the chickens have shade or a place to get out of the sun.

You will want to have access to electricity. If you have cold winters, you will need a heated waterer so the water doesn’t freeze. If you have hot summers, you may want to put a fan inside the coop for air circulation.

You will want to have easy access to clean fresh water. Chicken waterers seem to get dirty fast and need to be refreshed every day! You will not want to haul water a long way on a frigid winter morning or during an evening shower.

Don’t face your coop door or the chickens access door to the North. I learned this the hard way one winter when there was a sheet of ice in front of the door, which made it difficult to access the coop with a heavy bag of feed on my shoulder. If you can, it would be best to face your door to the South (If you live in the Northern Hemisphere).

A Note on Deep Bedding

I noted the option of creating a coop with deep bedding earlier when I mentioned building your own chicken coop. This is a good idea for those of you who have limited space or really anyone looking to decrease workload and increase the health of your chickens. Deep bedding helps to provide a clean, healthy, and an odor free environment for the chickens. When you are ready to clean it out, you have the added benefit of using the bedding material as compost.

Make the base of your chicken coop at least 24 inches high with something solid like sheet metal. Then apply at least 8 inches of some sort of carbon bedding material. You do not have to add a floor to your coop as it works best to put the bedding down on the ground. The material can be sawdust, wood chips or perhaps straw (although this is not the best option unless you shred it first). I prefer sawdust or fine wood shavings as it doesn’t clump and the chickens love scratching around in it.

When the chickens scratch and churn the material, they help to aerate the floor material. The chickens do all the work to clean their own coop! If it is deep enough, it will be odor free. However, if it starts to smell just add a little more bedding material on top. Do not use hay as it has a higher carbon to nitrogen ratio that will cause more ammonia. Also do not use cedar or other aromatic wood as they have oils that are harmful to your chickens.

The deep bedding method also reduces pathogens from taking over. As the chickens scratch around in the bedding material, it helps to aerate it. This process helps to control the pathogens. The “good bugs” eat the “bad bugs”. When you need some compost for your garden, you can move aside the top layer and scoop up the rich bottom layer to spread on your garden. The deep bedding method also works great in an outdoor chicken run space. It is low maintenance because you may not need to clean it out but once every 1 to 2 years.

Finally

When planning to raise backyard chickens, you will ensure success by first making sure they have adequate space to thrive. Your flock will be happy and healthy, which will make you happy and healthy! So when planning your coop space, keep in mind how many chickens you plan to keep. Consider the breed of the chicken and adjust your plans accordingly. Finally make sure to evaluate where you will put your coop and you will have a successful and exciting adventure keeping backyard chickens!

Lamentations 3:22-23 The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.

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