Best Chicken Coop: 8 Top-Rated Coop Kits For Your Backyard (2024)

Looking for the best chicken coop? The right option for your needs depends on the size of your flock, and your individual needs. Chicken coops are simple, but choosing the right one is not!

The last thing you want is a coop that takes 36 hours to assemble, requires hundreds of dollars in add-ons to be usable, and demands hours of chicken-poop-scrubbing per month to maintain!

We know our coops. We’ve built, bought, and research hundreds. We’ve made all the mistakes. But you’re in good hands: the following 8 options explore the balance of functionality, practicality, cost, and your needs.

The goal is to have a secure, good-sized backyard chicken coop that’s easy to clean and won’t break the bank or your back. Here are the 8 top-rated chicken coops for backyard flocks.

The 8 Best Backyard Chicken Coop Kits of 2023

What is the best chicken coop to buy? Here’s our round-up of the eight best chicken coops on the market. We’ll tell you what people are raving and complaining about, so you know what to expect when buying for yourself.

Chicken coop	Name	Details
Best Overall Best Overall	Omlet Eglu – Large Coop	Hold up to 6 large hens Easy to maintain, clean, move and modify/expand (with add ons) 30 day money back guarantee + 2 yr Warranty 🙂	CLICK FOR BEST PRICE
Best Small Coop Best Small Coop	Petsfit Weatherproof Outdoor Chicken Coop	Basic coop for 3-4 chicken 1 year warranty included No fencing and coop run	SEE ON AMAZON
For Large Flock For Large Flock	OverEZ Large Chicken Coop	Suitable for up to 15 large chicken Quality build – Built by Amish-trained craftsmen Complex assembly	SEE ON AMAZON
	Best Choice Products Outdoor Coop	Perfect for 3-5 chickens Comes with ramp, chicken run, nesting box & wire fence 3 access points	SEE ON AMAZON
	Snaplock Formex Chicken Coop	For 4-6 large chickens Snap-fit assembly (no tools required) Made from plastic – not ideal	SEE ON AMAZON
	Williams Sonoma Cedar Chicken Coop & Run with Planter	Quality materials + planter box Galvanized roof and wire mesh (strong predator protection) Expensive!	CHECK THE PRICE
	Roost & Root Round Top Stand-Up Chicken Coop	Lots of head clearance Equipped with roosting bars Coop should be empty when cleaning	CHECK THE PRICE

Still unsure which of these is the best chicken coop for you? Continue reading for an in-depth, unbiased review of each one starting with our top pick from Omlet.US:

The Omlet Eglu Chicken House is a beautifully designed chicken coop kit that has taken our top pick award for so many reasons we don’t know where to begin! If your want the short version:

• Customizable based on your flock size – option to add on 3 chicken run sizes.
• Designed so its easy and fast to clean. Spend less time scrubbing chicken poop.
• Automatic chicken coop door included – saves you $100-$200.
• Heavy duty steel steel run with anti-tunnel technology. Your hens are safe from predators.
• Easy to access nesting box. No more commando crawling through chicken filth to get your eggs.
• Smart 2 way insulation – keeps your hens cool in summer and warm in winter.
• Never have to paint, weatherproof or re-roof your coop again – almost no maintenance costs!
• Comes complete with feeders, drinkers and a run cover.

Take a look at the Omlet Eglu Cube here. Otherwise, read on for the long version.

The first thing you’ll notice is that that you can customize this coop many ways depending on your needs and the size of your flock.

The most basic package includes the ‘Eglu cube’ which is the all-hard-plastic chicken coop which sits upon a sturdy metal frame. It’s smooth and durable which makes it extremely easy to clean. Just imagine; no scrubbing! everything wipes away with little effort. Making your life even easier are its accessible doors into the nesting box, and a removable tray for the droppings.

Add-on’s include a set of wheels so you can have a portable chicken coop! There’s also a 6ft ,9ft or 13ft chicken run extension. It’s like building a Lego city where you can just add something new as you add more backyard chickens to your flock!

Did we mention your chickens are safe? This best chicken coop kit’s metal cages have a skirt to keep out digging predators. You also get a lot of freebies like a chicken feeder, a drinker, and a run-cover to keep your hens dry during rain.

Yes, the Eglu is more expensive than a standard coop, but in our opinion it’s worth it. Your hens will be happy (meaning more eggs), and you’ll spend less time building a coop and cleaning chicken sh*t out of hard-to-reach places.

If you’re on the fence consider that this coop has 17,000+ 5 star reviews, comes with a 30-day money-back guarantee, a 2-year warranty, fast delivery, and expert customer service. It’s almost a no-brainer.

Here’s a video if you want the full tour:

The Omlet Eglu Chicken House is the best chicken coop for 6 chickens or 8 regular sized hens. Its modern, customizable design will fit right into any backyard, and will save you thousands over the years as no repairs or maintenance will ever be required.

Click here to check it out now.

Now if you’re just starting out and don’t want to invest a ridiculous amount of money, we highly recommend The Petsfit Weatherproof Outdoor Chicken Coop. It’s our best choice chicken coop for 4 chickens.

This best cheap chicken coop has all the bells and whistles of a basic coop. It has 2 nesting boxes, 2 roosts, and a roof. Yup, that’s all you’ll get.

But, if you’re planning to pimp out the coop, its limited features is a good thing.

In the spirit of budgeting, you can raise the structure, take out a floor panel, and fence the bottom. Ta-da! Instant multi-level enclosure. Or, build a run and fence up the entire yard for your feathered friends.

How about cleaning and collecting eggs?

You’ll want to hinge the roof for easy access instead of nailing it down.The nesting area has a hatch too for easier egg collecting.

The Petsfit Weatherproof Outdoor Chicken Coop is versatile. It works well in a large farm setting or a small backyard. It’s easy and cheap enough to modify to suit your needs.

The security features also need minimal tweaking to work well. But overall, the capacity and multiple functions make this the best budget choice.

Need a chicken coop for 10 chickens? The OverEZ Large Chicken Coop is perfect if you have over six chickens in your flock. Just keep in mind that this coop has no run.

This backyard chicken coop is spacious. It has five nesting boxes and two long roosts to go with the 30 feet2 of floor space. That’s more than enough room for ten chickens (or more if you keep bantams).

The Over EZ chicken coop is made of resin-treated wood. So it’s weather-proof on the outside and moisture-proof on the inside. This gives a smooth finish making it easy to clean.

Ventilation is not a concern. This chicken coop’s got you covered (or, in this case, open). There are two vents on either side and screened windows you can open.

The OverEZ Large Chicken Coop is best for large flocks that have access to a big grazing space. The high-quality wood treatment and finishing will keep up with the wear and tear of your large flock. And all while looking good. This charming shed-like coop will fit perfectly in any backyard or farm.

The Best Choice Products 80″ Outdoor Wooden Chicken Coop landed in our best chicken coops list because of its multi-level and weather-resistant design with wire fencing.

It also has a lot of cool features. First off, the whole thing has a roof.

Your hens don’t need to cram under the raised hen house to stay safe from the elements. It also means your birds don’t get snatched by hungry hawks. WIN. WIN.

Making it easy to clean the coop are its two human-size access points – one at the front and one on the side. If you don’t intend to scrub down the coop daily, hosing down the pull-out tray minimizes smell and bacteria growth.

If your hens lay eggs every day, you can prop open the nesting box’s hatch for convenient egg collecting.

The Best Choice Products 80” Outdoor Wooden Chicken Coop is for you if:

• Your backyard receives direct sunlight throughout the day
• Your flock loves to forage and scratch around
• You prefer a coop that is easy to access and clean
• You harvest eggs daily

The Snaplock Formex Chicken Coop is made the shortlist for five reasons – affordability, durability, tool-free installation, ease of maintenance, and the number of chickens it can house.

Like a Little Tikes playhouse for your chickens, it is made from plastic and snaps together. Your chickens will be ready to move in just a few hours. Plus, plastic is effortless to clean.

As for space, well, there’s lots of it.

This premade chicken coop has four nesting boxes and three three-foot roosting bars. You can easily fit six large chickens in this coop. But ONLY FOR SLEEPING. The Snaplock coop isn’t made for housing chickens 24/7. You’ll either need to free-range them or build a run that attaches to the main coop.

Here’s the plastic chicken coop in action.

It’s a good idea to raise the coop off the ground. This way, you don’t need to bend to access the coop. The rest of the cleaning process is easy, thanks to the beauty of plastic material.

The Snaplock Formex will meet most needs of backyard chicken keepers. It is tough, spacious, easy to clean, and not that heavy on the wallet.

If the price is not an issue, you can’t go wrong with our premium choice – the Williams Sonoma Cedar Chicken Coop & Run with Planter. But, it is worth the extra cash?

From top to bottom, it has the best chicken coop design – it screams high-quality. It uses premium red cedar for the structure and sidings and a galvanized metal for the roof and fence so you don’t have to worry about durability and predators.

Inside the coop, you have roosts and nest boxes to fit four to six backyard chickens. Their droppings fall through the wire floor, keeping their sleeping space clean.

If you’re a budding gardener, there’s a cute planter on top for growing parsley, oregano, and other healthy herb treats for your chickens.

Assembling this outdoor chicken coop is difficult. Luckily, you don’t have to worry about it. The delivery comes with a free installment. Just tell the delivery guys where you want to put it.

Once it’s built, you’ll notice that the coop is high. All the doors are at waist-level, making it easy to clean the coop and collect eggs.

The Williams Sonoma Cedar Chicken Coop & Run with Planter is perfect for those that want a fancy coop in their backyard. (as long as money isn’t a factor). With the assembly service included and the quality materials, this is the best coop you can get at a premium.

This is also perfect for beginner homesteaders since the coop comes with a built-in run and planter. It also has strong reinforced predator protection for keeping chicks safe until they are ready to come out.

Are you tired of bending down to feed your chickens or clean the coop? With the Roost & Root Round Top Stand-Up Chicken Coop, you won’t have to because it has a walk-in design!

And that’s not all. This large chicken coop has a cool design—sort of like a walk-in closet with lots of compartments.

The nesting box doesn’t awkwardly stick out like most hen houses. But, it’s still easy to get to from inside or out. And again, you can stand up straight with lots of clearance for your head. Speaking of convenience, you can top up food and water from outside if you get the EZ feeder and waterer add-on.

You can fit six large chickens in this coop. There are four single bars in the roosting box, two nesting boxes, and a long low roosting bar at the bottom.

So, technically you can fit ten or more if they are bantams and you free-range. Just keep in mind to allot 4 feet² in the coop per chicken, so they’re comfy (1).

This big hen house isn’t hard to clean. All the droppings fall to the floor. So just open the main door and rake to clean.

Now let’s talk security. The chicken coop uses a galvanized roof and rot-resistant Cedar. The fencing and hardware use welded heavy-duty metal. It also has double-locks to outsmart raccoons. Keeping your chickens safe from snow and rain are its storm panels.

The downside is that it takes at least two handy people and 4 hours to assemble.

If you’re willing to spend more time and effort in assembling in exchange for more headroom, the Roost & Root Round Top Stand-Up Chicken Coop is perfect.

How To Choose The Best Coop for your backyard

With many features available, how is one supposed to choose the best coop? There is a lot to consider when choosing the right chicken coop. But don’t just think about the chickens—also factor in what will work for you as a chicken owner.

Here’s our guide to help you narrow down the features to the essentials.

1. Consider the size of your backyard and flock

The first thing you have to consider is the size of your backyard and your flock. This will dictate how big a chicken coop you need. As a standard, you need 3-5 square feet per chicken in an enclosure.

Check the dimensions of the best chicken coops to see which is most suitable. But you might be wondering why space matters so much. Isn’t it enough that the chickens have a place to sleep?

Well, you need extra space for ventilation. If there are too many chickens in a closed coop, they won’t breathe well. That’s without considering the poop.

A lot of chickens mean lots of poop. If you put all that in a small coop, you get bad airflow and bad air quality because of ammonia (2).

This gas is not only stinky and bad for the chicken’s health, but it’s also damaging to the coop. So there, it’s not enough to have chickens fit. Choose chicken coops with proper ventilation and air quality.

2. Make sure your coop is secured and stable

Next, consider security. Do you have a lot of predators around? How about pests like rodents?

If so, you will need to check chicken coop designs that include a predator-proof feature. There are pre-secured backyard chicken coops available. Or you can secure them yourself.

There are many ways to protect your coop from predators. The most common is to elevate the coop and add a hardware skirt to the perimeter.

If you’re going to elevate the coop, make sure it’s stable. Strong winds can topple a coop over, especially if it’s lightweight.

That’s where materials come in. A backyard chicken coop needs sturdy, weather-proof materials. Remember to treat wooden chicken coops to make them last. Chicken wire won’t cut it for some predators (3).

Think of quality and balance it out with the cost. There are a lot of cheap options. But if they only last a few months, you’re better off spending a bit more for it to last longer.

Think of it as an investment. Spending more on quality means:

• Low to no costs for repair and modifications
• Less work for you
• Less risk of accidents due to faulty parts

With a secure and stable coop, you won’t worry about learning how to catch a chicken.

3. Do you need a chicken run?

All chickens need a safe space to move around. Keep in mind that chicken coops are only meant for sleeping. During the day, the chickens need a safe space to scratch around and roam.

This outdoor space can be your entire backyard or just a run. Let’s say you do need a run. What should it be like? The size, again, depends on how many chickens you have. Ideally, you want it big enough to have 10 square feet per standard-sized chicken (4).

Chickens need their space. If they don’t have room to move around, it can lead to behavioral issues like aggression. I mean, wouldn’t you go coo-coo if you stayed in a small space every single day?

So if you need a run, consider how easy it will be to add one onto your coop. Will it require modifications?

Just remember that coop requirements are different from run requirements. Provide both, and you’ll have happy chickens.

4. Consider assembly, cleaning, and egg collecting, and automation

Are you a handyman or woman? Are you okay with bending over to clean and collect eggs?

These are the things to ask yourself when you choose a backyard chicken coop. Consider what works for you.

At this point, you’ve ticked off all the needs of the chicken. Now it’s time to think about what makes keeping those chickens easy for you. They make the mess, but you have to clean it. You might as well make it as easy as possible.

First, let’s talk assembly. If you’re not handy with tools, look for chicken coop kits that you either snap or screw together. You can also check if the company offers installation services. Even if you have to pay for it, it should be worth it to have it done professionally.

Next is upkeep. The materials of the coop play a big part in this. Smooth materials are easy to clean.

Choosing a wooden coop with a laminate finish makes it easy to hose down for cleaning. The same thing goes for hard plastic. Avoid flooring with fixed wire mesh. It’s hard to clean, bad for your chicken’s feet, and can be dangerous for chicks (5).

Removable trays are great. It saves you from crawling into the stinky coop to clean inside. Although, for bigger chicken coops, make sure it has a big door for cleaning access.

Easy access is also good for collecting eggs. This is more of convenience and not a necessity, but what the heck. It’s a daily task; let’s make it easy.

A lot of chicken coops have an external hatch to the nesting box. It means you can collect eggs without having to stick your arm inside a chicken coop. (That’s probably filled with poop)
Just remember that the easy access should only be for you, not raccoons or other predators. Choose a coop with complex locks to keep your eggs safe (6).

Finally, consider if you’ll need something that makes life easier like an automatic chicken coop door. Most coops don’t come with one of these, but they make life much easier.