How much feed does a broiler chicken eat per day, per week and to 7 weeks
A broiler eats about 4.3 oz (121 g) of feed a day in week 5, 1.87 lb that week, and about 10.26 lb (4.7 kg) from hatch to the end of week 7, 3.4 oz (95 g) a day averaged (University of Kentucky Extension ASC-191, How Much Will My Chickens Eat? (2012), 2026-09-19). Intake rises every week as the bird grows, so a batch of 25 broilers needs about 257 lb (116 kg) of feed to 7 weeks, 5.1 (buy 6) bags of 50 lb. The calculator below works out the day and the month for your own batch.
Broiler chicken feed calculator
Pick the stage “Meat bird (broiler), growing”, then type your birds and the bag you buy: the calculator uses the week-5 figure above per bird per day and gives the feed per day and per month, bags per month and how long a bag lasts. Opens in US units; switch to UK or metric for kg and g.
Mississippi State Extension and UKY ASC-191: about 1/4 lb (113.4 g) of feed a day
Result
- Complete feed per bird per day
- 4.0 oz
- Feed for 6 birds per day
- 1.5 lb
- Feed per month
- 45.7 lb
- Bags per month
- 0.9 (buy 1)
- One bag lasts
- 33 days
- Cost per month
- $13.70
- Cost per bird per month
- $2.28
Starting figure for laying hen, standard breed: Mississippi State University Extension, Feeds and Nutrition (undated), 2026-09-19. Real intake varies with breed, weather, laying and how much the birds forage; set the feed per bird to what your flock actually finishes. Bags per month is exact first, then rounded up to what you buy.
Keeping more than chickens? Pro adds every species into one feeding plan.
Daily and monthly amounts per species, the monthly shopping list in bags and bales, the total cost. Printed or exported to Excel.
Feed per broiler per day and per week
Commercial broilers, male and female averaged, from one extension table (University of Kentucky Extension ASC-191, How Much Will My Chickens Eat? (2012), 2026-09-19). Feed per day is the week's feed divided by seven, so it is an average across a week in which the bird keeps growing. The figures are complete feed per bird for commercial broilers; for another meat breed, weigh what a batch goes through in a week and type that into the calculator.
| Week | Feed that week | Per day |
|---|---|---|
| Week 3 | 1.03 lb (467 g) | 2.4 oz (67 g) |
| Week 5 | 1.87 lb (848 g) | 4.3 oz (121 g) |
| Week 7 | 2.6 lb (1.2 kg) | 5.9 oz (168 g) |
| Hatch to end of week 7 (49 days) | 10.26 lb (4.7 kg) | 3.4 oz (95 g) averaged |
Feed to 7 weeks for 10, 25 and 50 broilers, in bags
10.26 lb (4.7 kg) of feed per bird from hatch to the end of week 7, times the birds. Bags are exact first, then rounded up to what you buy. There is no price column: no neutral source used here publishes a price for broiler feed, so multiply the bags by your own bag price.
| Birds | Feed (lb) | Feed (kg) | Bags of 50 lb | Sacks of 20 kg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10 | 103 lb | 46.5 kg | 2.1 (buy 3) | 2.3 (buy 3) |
| 25 | 257 lb | 116 kg | 5.1 (buy 6) | 5.8 (buy 6) |
| 50 | 513 lb | 233 kg | 10.3 (buy 11) | 11.6 (buy 12) |
Per day and per month for a batch at the week-5 rate
This is what the calculator shows for the meat-bird stage: the week-5 figure for every day. Earlier weeks need less and later weeks more, so use it for a month’s budget in the middle of a grow-out and the table above for a whole batch.
| Birds | Feed per day | Per month | Bags per month |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10 | 2.7 lb | 81.3 lb | 1.6 (buy 2) |
| 25 | 6.7 lb | 203 lb | 4.1 (buy 5) |
| 50 | 13.4 lb | 407 lb | 8.1 (buy 9) |
| Birds | Feed per day | Per month | Sacks per month |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10 | 1.2 kg | 36.9 kg | 1.8 (buy 2) |
| 25 | 3 kg | 92.2 kg | 4.6 (buy 5) |
| 50 | 6.1 kg | 184 kg | 9.2 (buy 10) |
Broiler or laying hen: why the figures differ
A laying hen eats about 4.0 oz (113 g) a day all year (Mississippi State University Extension, Feeds and Nutrition (undated), 2026-09-19); a broiler is past that by week 5 and keeps going. The guide to how much to feed chickens per day has the hen, bantam and flock figures, and the chick feed guide has starter and grower for birds raised to lay; this page is the meat bird. What feed costs a laying flock per month is on the chicken feed cost guide, and the chicken feed calculator has its own page.
Amounts are published averages for planning, not veterinary advice; a vet or a poultry nutritionist decides what a batch needs.
Frequently asked questions
- How much feed does a broiler chicken eat per day?
- It depends on the week: about 2.4 oz (67 g) a day in week 3, 4.3 oz (121 g) in week 5 and 5.9 oz (168 g) in week 7, 3.4 oz (95 g) a day averaged from hatch to the end of week 7 (University of Kentucky Extension ASC-191, How Much Will My Chickens Eat? (2012), 2026-09-19). The figures are for planning the bags, not a ration to measure out.
- How much feed do 25 broilers eat to 7 weeks?
- About 257 lb (116 kg): 5.1 (buy 6) bags of 50 lb or 5.8 (buy 6) sacks of 20 kg, at 10.26 lb per bird (University of Kentucky Extension ASC-191, How Much Will My Chickens Eat? (2012), 2026-09-19). 50 broilers need about 513 lb (233 kg), 10.3 (buy 11) bags. Multiply the bags by your bag price for the cost.
- How many bags of feed do 10 broilers need?
- 2.1 (buy 3) bags of 50 lb from hatch to the end of week 7, 103 lb (46.5 kg) of feed, or 2.3 (buy 3) sacks of 20 kg. The table above has 25 and 50 birds.
- Does a broiler eat more than a laying hen?
- Not at first, then more: a laying hen eats about 4.0 oz (113 g) a day all year (Mississippi State University Extension, Feeds and Nutrition (undated), 2026-09-19); a broiler eats 2.4 oz (67 g) a day in week 3, 4.3 oz (121 g) in week 5 and 5.9 oz (168 g) in week 7 (University of Kentucky Extension ASC-191, How Much Will My Chickens Eat? (2012), 2026-09-19), so it starts below the hen and passes her as it grows.
- Is there a broiler chicken feed calculator?
- Yes: the chicken feed calculator on this page and on its own page. Set the stage to "Meat bird (broiler), growing", type your birds and the bag you buy, and it gives feed per day and per month, bags per month and how long a bag lasts, with the cost once you type your bag price. It uses the week-5 figure for every day, so for a whole batch to market age use the 7-week table above.
More guides
- How much to feed chickens per day
A laying hen eats about 4.0 oz (113 g) of complete feed a day: 6 hens 1.5 lb (680 g), 10 hens 2.5 lb (1.1 kg). Flocks of 3 to 50: per month, bags, cost.
- How much feed does a chicken eat per month (and per year)
Feed one chicken eats per month and per year in lb and kg by stage, how long a bag lasts one bird, and feed, bags and cost per year for flocks of 3 to 50.
- How much feed does a chick eat per day, and to point of lay
Starter per chick per day to 8 weeks and grower to 18 weeks in oz and g, feed per chick to point of lay, bags and cost for batches of 3 to 50 chicks.
- How much do chickens cost per month to feed: 3, 5, 10 and 20 hens
What chickens cost per month: about $2.28 a hen at $15 a 50 lb bag; 5 hens $11.41, 6 $13.70, 10 $22.83, 20 $45.66. Per year, other bag prices, UK sacks.
Last updated 2026-10-03. Figures are planning estimates built from published feeding guidance, each with its source and year: adjust for your own animals and follow the guide on the bag. Not veterinary advice.