Whether you are raising chickens for meat or eggs, you’ve got to feed them daily. They don’t eat that much, so it’s easy enough to do if you have a small flock, but if you’ve got a big one or plenty of other chores to do on your homestead besides, it will take time. Time that might be better spent on other things!
A better solution for most of us is to invest in a zero-waste chicken feeder or two. These feeders cut down on the amount of feed that will be lost into the dirt and mud, ruined by moisture, or carried away by pests and other birds.
This will save you money, and because they hold many pounds of food at once, you won’t have to bring fresh feed to your chickens every day. If you’re always on the go, or if you travel regularly, they are good to have…
Keep reading and I’ll be giving you a detailed review of 6 of the best in this article.
Do I Really Need a Feeder for My Chickens?
No, strictly speaking. You don’t have to have one. Plenty of folks still feed their birds by scattering feed for them or placing it in bowls, trays, saucers, and so forth. This is the way it’s been done pretty much forever, and it’s still viable today.
Still, there are many drawbacks. For starters, chickens will invariably tip or flip over these containers, dumping the feed into the mud or dirt. The feed will also be exposed to feces, rain, pests, and other hazards which will ruin it or contaminate it.
All these outcomes result in wasted money and, potentially, sick birds. It is always best if your chickens are able to eat only dry, fresh, and clean feed.
A chicken feeder, especially a good one, might seem like an optional expense that you are better off avoiding, but their advantages really do add up. I think they’re totally worth it, and I’d recommend that any chicken owner, including you, invest in one!
Which Type is Best?
The best type of feeder for you is largely dependent on your chicken coop, run, and other lifestyle variables that affect your flock.
For instance, if you have a tall, covered run that your chickens hang out in all day, you can make a great case for a tall, pipe-style feeder that could be bolted onto a post or riser.
Similarly, if you allow your chickens to free-range as a matter of course, an automatic feeder that is covered when the chickens aren’t feeding and uncovered when they are is your best bet for protecting the feed from rain and pests alike.
If you are constantly repositioning a chicken tractor, a jug-style portable feeder or two might be the perfect solution. It all just depends!
Think about how your typical day goes when you’re interacting with the flock, and what your future plans are concerning their coop or other habitation, and you’ll be able to pick out the picture-perfect feeder for them.
With that in mind, let’s get on to our list.
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Grandpa’s Feeders Automatic Chicken Feeder
- Pros: the Cadillac of automatic feeders, keeps pests and water out easily.
- Cons: very expensive, only allows two adult chickens to eat comfortably at one time, requires periodic maintenance for continual function.
One of the best and coolest automatic feeders on the market, this model from Grandpa’s Feeders is the one to beat.
Made from weatherproof galvanized steel and aluminum, this clever design uses a top-loading hopper to hold feed and a swing-open cover that is activated by a large pedal in front of the trough.
When the birds step up and onto the paddle, their weight will easily swing open the lid to allow them to feed easily. When they step off or aren’t on it, the lid shuts instantly, keeping out rain, pests, and debris.
It works like a charm, but it does take a little bit of time for chickens to get used to the process, and it can be startling for them until they are comfortable with it.
This clever design also holds plenty of feed, and can provide your flock with anywhere from 10 days to 2 weeks of food at a time. However, even though the mechanism is simple, it still requires periodic maintenance to ensure proper function. Rust, dents, and other damage will impede operation and potentially prevent your yardbirds from eating.
Also, it is very expensive compared to other models on our list!
Royal Rooster 7-Pound Vertical Feeder with Rain Cover
- Pros: simple design, easy to install and clean, highly weather-resistant, includes matching waterer.
- Cons: relatively low capacity, single opening can lead to squabbles.
Sometimes simplest is best, and if you want an easily installed feeder with ample capacity that won’t set you back much money, this vertical tube-style feeding station from Royal Rooster is just the ticket. It even includes a matching waterer to cover all of the needs of your flock.
This design holds seven pounds, which is plenty for keeping a large flock fed for several days or a smaller flock of three to five chickens good for about a week.
The top cap is easily removable for filling, and it pops back on easily with a generous rim to prevent water from running down the sides and then wicking under the seam. It also has an oversized hood at the opening to keep out rain.
Speaking of openings, that’s the only real downside of this design. It’s easy for one, maybe two adult birds to stick in their heads and eat, but if you have a hungry flock, there will be plenty of squabbles over food unless you get multiples to install at different points.
If it had a 360° or even 180° access, this could have been prevented.
OverEZ 50-Pound Inside-Outside Chicken Feeder
- Pros: excellent capacity, sturdy, very easy to clean when soiled.
- Cons: not as waterproof as I would like, inadequate protection from precipitation, still some tendency to spill feed.
If you have a large flock or just despise going out for regular refills and feedings, this jumbo 3-port 50 lb feeder from OverEZ is a great choice. Made from BPA-free and virtually indestructible plastic, it will withstand plenty of attention from even the rowdiest flock of chickens.
Holding an impressive 50 pounds of feed with a large, top-loading port for easy refills, if you have a flock of between 3 and 10 chickens you might only have to refill every 2 to 6 weeks.
The flow-through design makes it easy for them to eat at a comfortable height, and they are raised off the ground enough that dirt and debris won’t get in, but the design of the ports means that chickens are also likely to pull excess feed out, meaning this design suffers from some problems with waste.
Nonetheless, it’s a great all-around design for large flocks or folks who don’t want to go through the trouble of regular refills.
Harris Farms Free-Range Hanging Poultry Feeder
- Pros: Sturdy, 360° feeding, very affordable, can work with adults or chicks
- Cons: a little small for adult birds, not weather resistant.
It’s hard to go wrong with a classic design, and this gravity-fed 360° feeder from Harris Farms is very much a classic…
Utilizing a jug-style hopper that will let feed trickle down under the force of gravity into a feeding dish with 360° access, this is the ideal solution for feeding multiple birds at once.
Made of BPA-free plastic, it is both safe and really easy to clean, and versatile thanks to its straightforward loop that is used for hanging.
Keeping the feeder up off the ground slightly will reduce intrusion from pests and also cut down on contamination while making it easier for your birds to eat.
The downside is that this design is really optimized for chicks even though it’s advertised for adult chickens too. It can get a little crowded if you have more than eight birds or so.
Also, it has no provision whatsoever for keeping rain from getting into the feeding trough which will then start to ferment and ruin your feed, so it’s a no-go for free-ranging unless you have a covered feed station.
Still, it’s one of the most affordable options out there, and something of a standby for good reason!
RentACoop 6-port Feeder with Rain Hoods
- Pros: excellent capacity, can easily feed six adult chickens.
- Cons: heavy, flat top allows chickens to perch and roost, prone to denting.
Another super-capacity feeder for lazy keepers or just very large flocks, this galvanized metal six-port can-style feeder can let up to six adult chickens eat with ease.
With three ports on either side, there is plenty of room for your flock to spread out, and short rain hoods help keep moisture out, though I don’t know if I would trust this design in a downpour.
Holding a whopping 65 pounds of feed, you won’t have to refill this one very often unless you have more than 20 birds in your flock. When the time comes, refilling is easily accomplished by removing the galvanized lid.
One shortcoming is the fact that the flat top easily allows chickens to sit on top of it or even start roosting, something you don’t want.
And the sheet metal construction, though it does make it attractive and mostly weatherproof, means the lid and walls are thin and prone to being bent and dented if you aren’t careful.
A relatively minor concern unless you are worried about aesthetics rather than performance, but I do wish this thing was more resilient overall.
Tgeyd Portable 10-Pound Feeder
- Pros: highly portable, multiple hanging options, affordable.
- Cons: very limited capacity, only good for small flocks, poor water resistance.
One of my favorite small flock designs on our list, this 10-pound chicken feeder from Tgeyd has 3 ports, one each on three of its four facings.
You can fill up the bucket-style reservoir and then leave it in the run or elsewhere for your flock to feed, or install it using one of multiple installation methods, including included S-hooks, a permanently attached wall bracket, or a hanging bracket design to go over a fence rail.
This is the perfect design if you keep your flock on the go or rotate them around various points of your property. Your feeder can be as adaptable as you are!
Though weather resistant and very easy to clean thanks to its plastic construction, the major downside is the low capacity, as it holds only 10 pounds of food at most.
Large flocks will quickly deplete it and also squabble for access, and even a smaller flock consisting of just a few birds will still require regular refills.
Also, sadly, this design just doesn’t hold up well under precipitation, with water leaking in around the feeding ports. If you are willing to keep it in a covered area or just retrieve the feeder before bad weather arrives, it’s still a fine choice…
A Quick FAQ to Help You Decide
What Size Chicken Feeder Do I Need for 3 Chickens?
A good rule of thumb when sizing your feeders is to assume your adult birds will eat about a quarter pound of food a day.
So if you have three chickens, that’s three-quarters of a pound of feed daily. Weekly, that comes out to roughly 5 pounds, so a 5-pound feeder is sufficient to help minimize refills.
Are Hanging Chicken Feeders Rodent Proof?
Generally, yes, as long as they’re hung at the correct height.
Rodents of all kinds like rats, squirrels and mice can climb, and climb well. But if they cannot reach or jump to the feeder from ground level or a nearby obstacle, it is unlikely that they will find a way to shimmy down the chain, string, or wire you’ve used to hang the feeder.
Should Chicken Feeders Be Off the Ground?
Yes, if possible. Getting your feeder up off the ground keeps the feed even safer from moisture and other contamination, and also makes it easier for your chickens to eat.
Cleaner feed means less chance of transmitting disease to your birds, which makes for a healthier flock overall!
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Tom has lived and worked on farms and homesteads from the Carolinas to Kentucky and beyond. He is passionate about helping people prepare for tough times by embracing lifestyles of self-sufficiency.