Best-of guide

Best Meat Chicken Breeds

Raising chickens for the table? These are the heaviest meat and dual-purpose breeds in our database, ranked by rooster weight.

  1. 1 Jersey Giant

    Jersey Giant

    Roosters ~13 lb

    A heavy table bird — roosters reach about 13 lb, hens about 10 lb.

  2. 2 Brahma

    Brahma

    Roosters ~12 lb

    A heavy table bird — roosters reach about 12 lb, hens about 9.5 lb.

  3. 3 Cornish

    Cornish

    Roosters ~10.5 lb

    A heavy table bird — roosters reach about 10.5 lb, hens about 8 lb.

  4. 4

    Bielefelder

    Roosters ~10 lb

    A heavy table bird — roosters reach about 10 lb, hens about 7.5 lb.

  5. 5 Buff Orpington

    Buff Orpington

    Roosters ~10 lb

    A heavy table bird — roosters reach about 10 lb, hens about 8 lb.

  6. 6 Lavender Orpington

    Lavender Orpington

    Roosters ~10 lb

    A heavy table bird — roosters reach about 10 lb, hens about 8 lb.

  7. 7 Plymouth Rock

    Plymouth Rock

    Roosters ~9.5 lb

    A heavy table bird — roosters reach about 9.5 lb, hens about 7.5 lb.

  8. 8

    Buckeye

    Roosters ~9 lb

    A heavy table bird — roosters reach about 9 lb, hens about 6.5 lb.

  9. 9 Speckled Sussex

    Speckled Sussex

    Roosters ~9 lb

    A heavy table bird — roosters reach about 9 lb, hens about 7 lb.

  10. 10 Australorp

    Australorp

    Roosters ~8.5 lb

    A heavy table bird — roosters reach about 8.5 lb, hens about 6.5 lb.

At a glance

#BreedEggs/yrEgg colorTemperamentCold
1 Jersey Giant 180 brown calm, docile, gentle excellent
2 Brahma 150 brown calm, gentle, docile excellent
3 Cornish 160 brown active, hardy fair
4 Bielefelder 200 brown calm, docile, friendly excellent
5 Buff Orpington 190 brown docile, friendly, calm excellent
6 Lavender Orpington 200 brown docile, friendly, calm excellent
7 Plymouth Rock 250 brown docile, friendly, hardy excellent
8 Buckeye 200 brown active, friendly, hardy excellent
9 Speckled Sussex 250 cream, brown docile, curious, friendly good
10 Australorp 280 brown docile, friendly, calm good

Specs are compiled from public sources; blank cells mean the figure wasn't available, not zero. Rankings are a starting point — your climate and goals matter too.

Find your exact match in the Breed Finder → Size your coop