Chicken Feed Chart by Age
Tells you which feed your birds should be on today, and the exact dates to switch from starter to grower to layer.
Figures reviewed against university extension guidance · Last reviewed August 2026
- Feed right now
- Layer
- what should be in the feeder today
- Next switch
- No more changes
- change feed gradually over about a week
- Age today
- 20 weeks
- feed phases follow age
Full feed schedule
| Stage | Age | Starts | Penn State | UGA |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chick starter | 0–8 weeks | Apr 1, 2026 | 18–20% | 20% pullet · 22% broiler |
| Grower / developer | 8–18 weeks | May 27, 2026 | 14–15% | 17% pullet · 20% broiler |
| Layer | 18+ weeks | Aug 5, 2026 | 16–18% | 16–18% |
Penn State and UGA disagree on grower protein. Both figures are shown deliberately rather than averaged.
The one transition that can actually hurt
Three of the four things on this page are about not wasting money. One is about not harming a bird: do not put pullets on layer feed before they are laying.
Layer feed carries roughly four times the calcium of a grower ration, because a laying hen builds a shell every single day. A pullet that is not yet laying has no use for that calcium and has to excrete it, and sustained excess is associated with kidney damage in growing birds. The rule is 18 weeks or point of lay, whichever comes later — the age is a floor, not an alarm clock. If your pullets hit 18 weeks and nothing has appeared in the nest box, leave them on grower until it does.
How this calculation works
Everything is counted forward from the hatch date. Penn State Extension gives starter as "the first 6–8 weeks", then a grower or developer ration to 18 weeks, then layer over 18 weeks. This calculator switches at 8 weeks, the later edge of that starter range, because moving a chick off starter early is the costlier mistake — a bird short on protein while it is growing does not make the ground up afterwards.
For an 1 April hatch, that puts the grower switch at 2026-05-27 and the layer switch at 2026-08-05.
Meat birds get a shorter schedule on purpose. A broiler is processed somewhere around 8–12 weeks, well before point of lay, so it goes starter → grower/finisher and stops there. Selecting meat birds removes the layer phase entirely rather than showing a transition that should never happen.
Why two sets of protein numbers
The table shows Penn State and UGA side by side, and they do not match. On the layer ration they agree at 16–18%. On the grower phase Penn State says 14–15% while UGA says 17% pullet · 20% broiler.
That gap is real and this site does not paper over it. Averaging two extension recommendations produces a number neither service ever published, and dressing it up as the authoritative answer would be worse than showing the disagreement. Both are defensible; pick the one that matches your birds and your supplier, and read the guaranteed analysis on the bag, which is the only figure that describes what you are actually feeding.
Sources
Phase ages and protein targets come from Penn State Extension 'Management Requirements for Laying Flocks' and UGA Extension Circular 954 'Nutrition for the Backyard Flock'. The two services disagree on grower protein, and both figures are shown rather than averaged.
- Penn State Extension — Management Requirements for Laying Flocks
- University of Georgia Extension — Nutrition for the Backyard Flock (Circular 954)
Frequently asked questions
- When do I switch chicks from starter to grower feed?
- Around 8 weeks. Penn State Extension gives starter as "the first 6 to 8 weeks", then a grower or developer ration to 18 weeks. This calculator uses the later edge of that range, 8 weeks, because moving a chick off starter early is the costlier of the two mistakes — a growing bird short on protein does not catch up later.
- When can chickens start eating layer feed?
- At 18 weeks or at point of lay, whichever comes LATER. Both Penn State and UGA put the layer ration at 18 weeks and over, but the age is a floor rather than an alarm. If your pullets are 18 weeks and not laying, keep them on grower until the first egg appears.
- What happens if I feed layer feed too early?
- Layer feed carries roughly four times the calcium of a grower ration, because a laying hen is building a shell every day. A bird that is not yet laying has no use for that calcium and has to excrete it, and sustained excess is associated with kidney damage in growing birds. This is the one transition where being early genuinely causes harm rather than just wasting money.
- Do meat birds need layer feed?
- No, and they should never get it. A broiler is processed somewhere around 8 to 12 weeks, long before point of lay, so it goes from starter to a grower or finisher ration and stays there. That is why the calculator drops the layer phase entirely when you select meat birds.
- Why do Penn State and UGA give different protein numbers?
- They genuinely disagree on the grower phase — Penn State says 14 to 15 percent, UGA says 17 percent for pullets and 20 percent for broilers. They agree on the layer ration at 16 to 18 percent. This site shows both rather than averaging them, because an average of two extension recommendations is a number neither service actually published.
- How quickly should I change feeds?
- Gradually, over roughly a week. Mix an increasing proportion of the new feed into the old one rather than swapping the feeder contents overnight. An abrupt change can put birds off eating for a day or two, and a growing flock that skips meals loses ground that is awkward to recover.