New chicken keepers always ask for a cup measure, and honestly, it is a fair ask. You stand in the feed aisle, the bags say 50 pounds, and nothing on the label tells you how much lands in the feeder each morning. Here is the number to memorize: a standard laying hen eats about 4 ounces of feed per day, roughly a quarter of a pound, or about half a cup.
That is the planning number. Over a week it becomes 1.5 pounds per bird. Over a month, about 7.5 pounds. In money terms, at a typical $22 per 50 lb bag, that is roughly 11 cents a day per hen, or about $3.30 a month. Feed is the cheapest part of keeping chickens, which surprises almost everyone.
What moves the number up or down
The quarter pound is a standard laying hen, confined or yarded, in mild weather, eating a complete layer feed. Real birds vary:
| Bird type | Per day | Why it differs |
|---|---|---|
| Standard layer (Leghorn, Rhode Island Red) | 4 oz (1/4 lb) | The baseline |
| Dual-purpose (Orpington, Wyandotte) | 5 oz | Bigger body to maintain |
| Bantam | 2 oz | Small bird, small appetite |
| Broiler at finishing weight | 6 oz or more | Bred to convert feed fast |
Then the conditions shift things further. Winter pushes intake up 15 to 30 percent as birds burn calories staying warm. Good free-range pasture pulls it down 20 to 30 percent in the growing season, though birds on range still need free-choice layer feed for calcium and balanced protein. And waste: a bad feeder in the rain can throw 10 to 20 percent of what you buy on the ground, where it feeds sparrows instead of hens.
Why most keepers do not measure at all
Here is the practical part. Healthy laying hens self-regulate on a complete layer feed, so the standard practice is free-choice feeding: keep the feeder full all day and let the birds eat what they need. They go to bed with a full crop and lay better for it. You do not need to portion out four ounces per bird at dawn like a medication.
The measuring matters in two places. One, when feed costs look wrong, weighing a day's usage tells you whether you have a waste problem, a rodent problem, or a wild bird problem. Two, when budgeting: four ounces a day per bird is how you turn a flock plan into a feed bill before you buy a single chick.
What actually causes overeating is not the feed. It is treats. Kitchen scraps, scratch grains, and cracked corn are candy to chickens, and they will happily fill up on them instead of their layer feed. Keep treats under 10 to 15 percent of intake. Birds stuffed on scratch lay fewer eggs with thinner shells, because they are missing the calcium and protein balance the layer feed was formulated for.
The short answer
A laying hen eats about 4 ounces, or half a cup, of layer feed per day. Call it 1.5 pounds a week and 7.5 pounds a month per bird. Budget more in winter, less on good pasture, and fix the feeder before you blame the birds. The rest is detail.
Want the full math for your flock, with breed, season, and cost worked in? How Long Does a 50 lb Bag of Chicken Feed Last? has the five-flock breakdown, and the week-by-week growth chart is in Chicken Feed Intake Chart by Age. See also What It Costs to Feed Chickens Per Month in 2026.
Run your exact flock size, bird type, and bag price: Chicken Feed Calculator gives you daily, monthly, and per-dozen-egg costs.
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