A field guide, kept by people who keep chickens
Find your perfect chicken breed.
Tell us what you want from a flock and we’ll match it against 15+ breeds. Every figure is cross-checked against the poultry authorities.
Where most keepers start
Silkie
Fluffy, fur-like plumage that cannot fly, a crest, feathered legs, five toes, and black skin/bones.
Buff Orpington
Large, deep-bodied bird with soft, profuse golden-buff plumage.
Easter Egger
Not a breed but a hybrid carrying the blue-egg gene.
Polish
Famous for a large pom-pom crest of feathers on the head, sometimes with a beard.
Plymouth Rock
The Barred Rock variety has crisp black-and-white barring.
Brahma
One of the largest chicken breeds, a towering, heavily feathered bird with feathered legs and feet.
Lavender Orpington
An Orpington in the sought-after self-blue (lavender) color, with soft grey plumage.
Wyandotte
Rounded, full-bodied bird known for striking laced plumage (silver-laced, gold-laced, blue-laced red).
Just got chicks? See when the eggs will come.
Choose the breed and hatch date and we’ll give you a realistic window. Hens rarely read the calendar.
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How we do this
Every breed profile starts from the recognized standard, then we reconcile the numbers against the Livestock Conservancy, Oklahoma State, and the breed clubs, and we flag it when the sources disagree.
- The Flockpedia editors