Chick brooder temperature by week starts at 95°F at chick level for week 1, then drops 5°F every week until it reaches 70°F in week 6.
Open the full brooder temperature chart
That is the schedule in UMaine Extension bulletin 2219, and Alabama Extension starts at 95°F and drops 5°F a week too. Chick level means about 2 inches above the bedding, under the heat source, not at your eye level. Kyle's chick brooder temperature chart on Raising Chickens lays out each week with the range extension gives, so you can see how much room you have.
1 — Target at chick level: 95°F; Purdue range: 90 to 95°F
2 — Target at chick level: 90°F; Purdue range: 85 to 90°F
3 — Target at chick level: 85°F; Purdue range: 80 to 85°F
4 — Target at chick level: 80°F; Purdue range: 75 to 80°F
5 — Target at chick level: 75°F; Purdue range: 70 to 75°F
6 — Target at chick level: 70°F; Purdue range: 70°F
In Celsius the targets round to 35, 32, 29, 27, 24 and 21°C. Penn State Extension uses a looser table: 92 to 95°F in week 1, 85 to 90°F in weeks 2 and 3, 80 to 85°F in weeks 3 to 5 and 70 to 80°F in weeks 5 to 8. It lands in the same place by week 6 to 8, with slower steps. Mississippi State Extension says chicks hold their own body temperature near a 70°F room by week 5, because feathers replace the downy coat as they grow.
Next step: Compare a heat plate and a heat lamp before you order your brooder.
If you have seen a chart that says 100 to 105°F for the first days, you are not imagining it. Valley Hatchery's chart starts at 100 to 105°F and steps down from there, which sits 5 to 10°F above the extension rows. The extension sources leave room for a warmer first day. Purdue puts week 1 at 90 to 95°F and says to raise the schedule about 5°F during stress or vaccination. Alabama warms the brooder to 95 to 100°F before the birds arrive when chicks are lethargic.
Kyle's rule for day 1: aim for 95°F. If the chicks arrive tired from shipping, or they huddle at 95°F in a draft-free box, go to 100°F, which is inside what Alabama and Purdue describe, and drop back as they spread out. Do not run the whole week at 100°F or above. Alabama says overheated chicks eat and drink less.
Start the heat 24 hours early. Let the brooder settle at 95°F at chick level. Alabama says it takes about a day to reach temperature.
Check the reading 2 inches above the bedding, under the heat source, with a thermometer you trust.
Set water and feed first. Put the waterer and feeder at the edge of the warm zone and keep the water under 77°F.
Place the chicks and dip each beak in water, then feed.
Watch the first hour, then check every few hours.
Huddled under or beside the heat, chirping sharply — What it means: Too cold; What to do: Add heat or lower the plate. Check for drafts.
Spread evenly, eating, drinking, sleeping — What it means: About right; What to do: Hold, then step down on schedule.
Panting, drowsy, or staying away from the heat — What it means: Too hot; What to do: Cut 5°F, or raise the lamp or plate.
Crowded to one side — What it means: Draft; What to do: Block it with a taller side or a cover.
Gathered in a corner away from the heat — What it means: Corner crowding; What to do: Add a cardboard ring to round the corners.
Chicks outside their comfort zone eat less, drink less and burn more energy keeping warm, so a temperature problem looks like a feed problem first. If the whole batch is piled under the heat, the number on the thermometer is wrong for them. Add 5°F and look again in an hour.
Purdue Extension calls this localized brooding: a local heat source plus a cooler unheated area, so chicks pick their own temperature by walking between the two. The box needs to be big enough for that. UMaine wants 0.5 square foot per chick to week 4, and Kyle's best chick brooder guide has a floor-space table that works it out by chick count. If every inch of the box is 95°F, chicks cannot get away from the heat, and the first sign of too hot is panting. Put the heat at one end and the feeder and waterer at the edge of its reach.
The heat source changes how you read the temperature. A radiant heat plate warms the chicks under it instead of the air, so a thermometer reads lower than the chicks feel. For plates, watch behavior more than the number. Kyle's heat plate vs heat lamp comparison finds a 12 W radiant panel is the best pick for most batches and compares the six-week running cost against a 250 W lamp. Raising the plate or lamp as the chicks grow is how you step the temperature down each week.
For the box itself, the chick brooder hub covers setup basics, and the best brooder guide compares complete kits such as the Cozy Chickens Brooder Habitat Plus with a DIY box plus a Brinsea EcoGlow Safety plate.
The schedule ends at 70°F in week 6, and you can switch the brooder off on warm days before that. The test is the same as at every other step: if the chicks are spread out, active and not huddling when the heat is off, they no longer need it. Drop it for a few hours first, then a full day, and keep an eye on cold nights.
New to chickens and not sure what to buy first? The start here page lists gear in buying order, with the brooder at step five for chick season.
95°F at chick level for week 1, then 5°F lower each week: 90, 85, 80, 75 and 70°F by week 6. Chick level is about 2 inches above the bedding.
They huddle together under or beside the heat and chirp sharply. Add heat, lower the plate and check for drafts.
Until about week 6 on the extension schedule. Chicks hold their own temperature near a 70°F room by week 5 to 6, and you can switch the brooder off on warm days.
UMaine says 0.5 square foot per chick up to week 4. The brooder guide has a table by chick count and week.
Some hatcheries run 5 to 10°F hotter than extension. Aiming for 95°F, and going to 100°F only for tired or huddled chicks, stays inside what Alabama and Purdue describe.
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This page is an independent guide that links to Raising Chickens, a backyard chicken gear site run by Kyle. Prices and specs change, so check the linked pages before you buy.