A cost analysis of owning backyard chickens

Creativity brings about inexpensive coops Photo J. Levin

I know folks out there are wondering about the true economic impact of having their own chickens to provide the household eggs. What's the cost of that first egg- after you've bought the chicks, the coop, grown the birds for 5 or 6 months, fed, watered, cleaned, provided litter, and so on?

I've heard tales of the gorgeous two story Victorian coop that cost $2000 (Ok, full disclosure is that I have one, too, but mine remains unfinished because it's 100% found materials and I'm still in need of windows and doors). I've seen some of the most gorgeous coops imaginable, with custom woodwork and $400 rare colored breeds. There are lots of extremes, but it's not the average case.

It takes longer to build from found materials. Photo by Renee Caldwell

 So, for some there are the coops that were exorbitant prior to the very first egg, but our motivations for having our flocks vary: for others, there is a very real need to keep costs low and provide food without raising any other bottom line. There are others chicken-keepers in-between.

So, what if it's as much about saving money as it is about ethically providing for oneself or just keeping chickens?

The break-even point can be changed by your involvement.

MBA Joshua Levin recently wrote a piece for the Good Eater Collaborative in which he dissected the cost of his own backyard flock in Brooklyn, NY. He went about breaking down his costs so those toying with the notion of urban chickendom could see for themselves how the endeavor might or might not serve their finances. 

Obviously the costs can vary depending on your location. Levin has to have his feed shipped to him, whereas in the Kansas City area we have feed stores galore! In some areas of the country organic feed may be very easy to get, while in Lawrence it's a 30 minute drive to the nearest supplier of organic feed. The Midwest is centrally located and thus the grains have far less traveling to make it to our stores to begin with, while other regions have travel costs before being stocked in the stores.

If you haven't time to read it right now, I'll offer a spoiler: the break even point can come as early as the first year- assuming you work toward that goal. Levin sums it up nicely:

"At the end of the day, it would be completely irrational to decide whether or not to acquire backyard or urban chickens based on this financial analysis.  For example, in the first month alone I spent something approaching 70-80 hours setting up their coop and run, chasing them through neighbors’ yards, and just watching them, none of which I included in this calculation.  Obviously, no one would perform such an analysis in order to determine whether or not to get a dog – and they don’t even lay eggs!  But given that you may be coming down with a case of chicken fever, this analysis can help us to better understand our own practices and where our energies are best spent when trying to contain costs."