What size coop do I need for 6 chickens?

Allow 4 square feet of coop floor per hen, so about 24 square feet (a 4×6 ft footprint) for six hens, plus 60 square feet of run at 10 sq ft per bird. Include two nest boxes and 5–6 ft of roost bar.

How much does it cost to feed chickens per month?

A laying hen eats roughly 1.5 lbs of feed weekly. For six hens that's about 39 lbs/month, costing $16–$20 in layer pellets, or $20–$30 all-in with grit, oyster shell, and bedding.

Are automatic chicken doors worth it?

Yes, if you buy a reliable one. Models like the Run-Chicken T50 (~$180) or Omlet Autodoor open and close on light sensors so you don't have to be home at dusk. Avoid cheap $50 units — motor failure can mean a lost bird.

By the Roost & Co. Editorial Team · 4 min read

Backyard Chicken Keeping Gear and Coops: The Complete Beginner's Guide

Backyard chickens are cheaper to keep than most people think, but the mistakes are expensive: a too-small coop, a flimsy waterer that freezes, or an automatic door that jams and lets a fox in. This guide walks you through the gear that actually matters, with real sizing math, a coop comparison table, and honest monthly cost numbers so you can budget before you buy.

How much coop space you actually need

Undersizing is the #1 beginner error. Cramped hens pick each other's feathers, stop laying, and get sick. The standard rule is 4 square feet of coop floor per hen plus 8–10 square feet of run per hen. Bantams need slightly less; heavy breeds like Orpingtons need the full amount.

Chicken coop size calculator (do the math)

Coop floor: hens × 4 sq ft. Six hens = 24 sq ft (e.g. 4×6 ft).
Run: hens × 10 sq ft. Six hens = 60 sq ft (e.g. 6×10 ft).
Roost bar: 8–12 inches of perch length per bird. Six hens = about 5–6 ft of roost.
Nest boxes: one box per 3–4 hens. Six hens = 2 boxes.

If you free-range daily, you can trim the run, but never the coop floor — that's where they're locked down overnight.

Best chicken coop for 6 hens

Most flat-pack coops sold as "holds 6 chickens" actually fit 3. Read the interior square footage, not the marketing. Here's how the realistic options compare.

Coop type	Price band	Real capacity	Best for	Trade-off
Prefab wooden A-frame (Amazon/Tractor Supply)	$200–$400	2–3 hens	Testing the hobby cheaply	Thin wood, rots in 2–3 yrs
Large prefab combo (e.g. Producer's Pride Sentinel)	$500–$800	4–6 hens	True 6-hen starter	Assembly is fiddly
Plastic coop (Nestera / Omlet Eglu Cube)	$650–$1,200	6–10 hens	Easy cleaning, mite resistance	High upfront cost
Walk-in wood shed conversion	$800–$1,500	8–15 hens	Growing flocks	Needs DIY skill
Custom-built cedar coop	$1,500+	Whatever you design	Permanent setup	Long lead time

For six hens with a normal budget, a large prefab combo (like the Sentinel) or an Omlet Eglu Cube are the two sweet spots. The Eglu costs more but the plastic wipes clean in 10 minutes and red mites can't hide in it — a genuine long-term saver.

Automatic chicken door reviews

An auto door is the single upgrade that gives you your life back. It opens at dawn and closes at dusk so you're not rushing home to lock up. Three that consistently perform:

Run-Chicken T50 (~$180)

Battery or solar, light-sensor plus timer, aluminum door. Reliable in cold; the horizontal-sliding design is harder for predators to lift than string-and-motor units. The most recommended for beginners.

ChickenGuard Premium (~$150)

Sold as controller-only or with a door kit. Timer and light modes, clear LCD. Weak point is the pull-cord mechanism — it can bind in ice, so add the door track kit.

Omlet Autodoor (~$220)

Best safety design, with obstruction detection that reverses if a hen is in the doorway. Pricey and mains or battery powered.

Buy tip: avoid no-brand $50 doors. The motors fail within a year and failure means a dead bird.

Best chicken feeder and waterer

Cheap open trays waste feed and attract rats and wild birds. Spend a little more here and you'll spill less feed than the feeder costs within months.

Best all-round feeder: Grandpa's Feeders treadle feeder ($120–$150) — the hen's weight opens the lid, so rodents and wild birds get nothing. Pays for itself in saved feed.
Budget pick: DIY PVC gravity feeder ($15 in parts) — cheap and low-waste, but no rodent protection.
Best waterer: horizontal nipple bucket (5-gallon, ~$30). Water stays clean; add a de-icer for winter.
Skip: hanging plastic mason-jar founts — they tip, freeze, and grow algae fast.

Chicken feed cost per month

A standard laying hen eats about 1.5 lbs of feed per week, or roughly 0.25 lb/day. Layer pellets run around $20–$25 for a 50 lb bag.

6 hens eat about 9 lbs/week = ~39 lbs/month.
That's roughly $16–$20 per month in feed for six hens on commercial layer pellets.
Add ~$3–5/month for oyster shell, grit, and bedding.
Realistic all-in running cost: $20–$30/month for six hens.

Scraps and free-ranging cut this by 10–20%. Six hens lay roughly 24–30 eggs a week in peak season, so at ~$5/dozen store prices you're producing $50+ of eggs monthly — the feed easily pays for itself once the coop is built.

The beginner buying checklist

Coop sized at 4 sq ft/hen (verify interior, not "holds X")
Run at 8–10 sq ft/hen with hardware cloth, not chicken wire
Reliable automatic door (Run-Chicken T50 or similar)
Treadle or gravity feeder to stop waste and rodents
Nipple-bucket waterer plus winter de-icer
Two nest boxes, 5–6 ft of roost bar
50 lb bag layer pellets, oyster shell, grit

Takeaway: buy the coop one size bigger than you think, protect the run with hardware cloth (predators tear through chicken wire), and invest in an auto door and rodent-proof feeder up front. Do that and six hens will cost you around $25 a month while returning two dozen eggs a week — plus a lot less stress than the cheap-gear route.