Every flock starts the same way: with a decision about how young a bird you are willing to raise. Day-old, one-month-old or point-of-lay - each starting point trades money against risk and time. Here is the honest comparison, from hatchery practice and our own flock.
Day-old chicks: cheapest per bird, hardest on the beginner
Published Kenyan hatchery prices put improved kienyeji day-old chicks at roughly Ksh 90 to 140 each. That is the lowest entry price you will find - but the chick arrives with nothing done for you.
Brooding is where beginners lose birds. Chicks need 30 to 35 degrees in the first week, clean water, starter feed and vaccinations from day one. Our month-by-month Kenbro guide walks through brooding in detail, and our vaccination schedule starts at day-old. Get either wrong and the cheap chick becomes the expensive one.
One-month-old chicks: the brooding risk is behind you
A one-month-old chick has survived the fragile weeks: brooded, vaccinated and eating on its own. You pay more per bird, but you are paying for someone else's heat, feed, vaccines and losses.
What is a fair price? One 2026 Kenyan brooding cost model put about Ksh 250 of feed, heat and care into a four-week-old chick before anyone's labour or profit. Our own one-month-old Kenbro chicks sell at Ksh 350 each. If someone offers "started chicks" far below the cost of raising them, ask what was skipped.
Point-of-lay pullets: eggs within weeks
Point-of-lay pullets - birds of about 16 to 18 weeks, just before laying starts - are the shortcut for buyers who want eggs, not a project. Published Kenyan sellers list them at about Ksh 1,000 per bird.
At that price, the paperwork matters more than the bird. Ask for the vaccination record before you pay: a pullet that missed its early vaccines carries the risk into your flock. Our vaccination schedule shows what should be done by that age.
So which one is for you?
- First flock, or no brooder setup: start with one-month-old chicks or point-of-lay pullets.
- Experienced, with heat and time: day-old chicks give you the lowest cost per bird and full control.
- Want eggs this season, not next: point-of-lay, with vaccination records checked.
Whichever you choose, run the full budget first - our real cost of 100 kienyeji chickens guide counts everything after the chick, and our starting guide takes the whole journey step by step.
A word from our farm
We are Fitnest Farm in Kochia East, Homa Bay County. We raise Kenbro from day-old ourselves, and we sell one-month-old chicks at Ksh 350 each for farmers who would rather skip the brooding. Our own prices are public: live mature Kenbro chicken at Ksh 450 per kg, slaughtered at Ksh 500 per kg, kienyeji trays at Ksh 460, one-month-old chicks at Ksh 350 each. We deliver chicken orders of 30 birds or more in Homa Bay, Kisii and Kisumu; smaller orders collect at the farm - we would rather say that plainly than promise what we cannot serve well.
Questions, or want to order directly? WhatsApp +254 791 255 964, or visit the Fitnest Farm Shop.
Sources: published Kenyan hatchery and poultry-seller prices current at writing; Agcenture's 2026 chick-brooding cost model for Kenya; Kenchic chick management guidance; our own farm practice. Chick prices vary by breed, season and supplier - confirm before you budget. Our own prices are our live farm shop prices today.