Skip to Content

8 Beautiful White Chicken Breeds

*This post may have affiliate links, which means I may receive commissions if you choose to purchase through links I provide (at no extra cost to you). As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. Please read my disclaimer for additional details.

There are hundreds of chicken breeds in the world. Each one of these breeds has differing physical, behavioral, and physiological features. Of these features, the color of the plumage is perhaps the easiest to notice.

Chickens come in colors like black, white, orange, red, lavender, and many more. In many cases, they might even come with multicolored plumage.

In this article, we will be discussing chicken breeds with white plumage. We will focus on the purpose they serve, their average costs, and some facts about them.

1. Rhode Island White

Close up of  rhose island white chicken in a garden, people in the background

First on our list of white chicken breeds is the Rhode Island White. As the name already reveals, this chicken breed originated in Rhode Island, USA.

The Rhode Island White was bred from crossing White Wyandottes with Rose Comb White Leghorns and Partridge Cochins. This crossing was achieved by Alonzo Jocoy of Peacedale, Rhode Island in the late 1800s.

Rhode Island Whites were bred and improved on until they looked less like White Plymouth Rock chickens and White Wyandottes.

They were made to look more like the Rhode Island Red to avoid being confused with the breeds earlier mentioned.

The Rhode Island Whites are calm, moderately sized birds. On average, the males weigh 8.5 pounds while the females weigh 6.5 pounds. They are kept for their meat and eggs, and on average, they lay 240-250 eggs per year. The eggs are brown, and their sizes range from large to extra-large.

Rhode Island Whites cost between $2 and $5.

2. White Leghorn

White Leghorn chicken sleeping

White Leghorns are one of the most popular chicken breeds. This breed originated near Leghorn (Livorno) port in Italy. The ancestry of White Leghorn chickens is currently unknown.

Their popularity is partly due to their high egg yields. On average, White Leghorn chickens are said to produce between 300-320 eggs per year.

Besides those with white plumage, Leghorn chickens can come in roughly 12 other colors including black, blue, and brown buff.

White Leghorn chickens are small, skittish, and noisy, and they like moving around. They are also good foragers, so moving around fields and barnyards usually affords them most of their diet.

On average, the cocks weigh 6 pounds while the hens weigh 4.5 pounds. White Leghorns are kept for their eggs. They are also used in avian and embryonic research.

White Leghorn chickens cost between $1.55 and $4.

3. White Araucana

White araucana chicken on a beam of wood inside a chicken coop

White Araucanas are unique small-sized domestic chickens from Araucania, Chile. Araucanas found their way to the USA in the 1930s and were documented by the APA in the 1970s.

This chicken breed is one of few that lays blue eggs. They also have a unique physical appearance. White Araucanas have an upright stance with a back that slopes in the direction of the bottom.

If you are trying to identify a White Araucana, look for the distinctive tufts which may be on one or both sides of their cheeks. Another characteristic useful in identifying Araucana is the absence of a tail feather.

Araucanas come in 19 plumage varieties other than white. Some of these colors include black, silver duckwing, black-breasted red, and golden duckwing.

One downside to the uniqueness of Araucanas is their relatively high chick mortality. A substantial percentage of Araucana chicks die during incubation.

This mortality is linked to the genes responsible for their unique appearance and tuftedness.

Araucanas are friendly, but some people report that they are nervy and flighty. On average, they lay 150 eggs per year.

Araucanas are rare and quite hard to breed. Do not be surprised that you may have to pay as much as $30 for a chick.

4. Yokohama

Yokohama chickens have a unique long tail that adds to their elegance. They have tail feathers that have been measured to be as long as 3-4 feet, and they are used mainly for ornamental purposes.

Bred from long-tailed Japanese fowls, Yokohama chickens were exported from the port of Yokohoma to Paris in 1864 by Girad, a French missionary.

Although there is no concrete evidence for when Yokohama chickens entered the United States, the White Yokohama and Red-Shouldered Yokohama were documented by the APA in 1981.

Yokohama chickens look similar to Sumatra chickens, but the Yokohamas have longer sickles, saddles, and tail feathers.

Standard Yokohama males weigh about 4.5 pounds while standard females weigh 3.5 pounds. Yokohama chickens are active and alert, but they are bad layers. They lay between 80-100 small-sized eggs per year.

The estimated cost of a Yokohama chicken ranges from $4 to $7.

5. Sultan

Sultan chicken portrait

Sultan chickens are an ornamental breed from Turkey where they are called Serai Taook. They come in 3 colors: white, blue, and black.

Sultans are one of the most elegant chickens with a unique crest, beard, muff, v-shaped comb, and 5 toes. They also have feathers on their shanks and toes, and they have vulture hocks.

Sultan chickens are not great layers; they lay around 60 small, white eggs per year. They are available as large fowls and bantam. The standard males weigh 6 pounds, and the females weigh 4 pounds.

Sultans are generally calm, tame, and heat-tolerant. They cost between $5 and $22.

6. Bresse Gauloise

Bresse Gauloise walking in farm

Bresse Gauloise is a domestic chicken breed from Bresse, France. They are available in 4 colors: white, black, grey, and blue. They have single combs, bluish feet and legs, and white earlobes.

The dual-purpose chicken, also known as La Bresse, is reared for its eggs and meat. On average, Bresse Gauloise chickens lay 200-250 white eggs per year.

The males weigh 5.5-6.6 pounds, and the females weigh 4.4-5.5 pounds. Bresse Gauloise chickens are quite expensive and can cost as much as $200.

7. White Plymouth Rock

cute little girl holding yellow gourd and White Plymouth Rock chicken in the garden

The White Plymouth Rock, also known as White Rock chicken, is a variety of the Plymouth Rock chicken. They have pure, bright white plumage with soft fluffy feathers, and they tolerate hot and cold weather quite well.

White Plymouth Rock are dual-purpose chickens. They are reared for their meats and eggs, and they lay over 200 large brown eggs yearly.

White Rock chickens are friendly and tame. They are suitable for backyards, and they are great foragers. However, they are not great at flying.

You can get a White Rock chicken for $2 to 5.

8. White Australorp

white australorp chicks on grass field

Last on our list of white chicken breeds is the White Australorp, which originated in Australia. This breed was bred from the Orpington chicken as breeders sought a thriving dual-purpose chicken. They come in 3 colors: black, blue, and white.

White Australorps are a dual-purpose breed, and on average, they lay 250-300 eggs per year. One Australorp was said to have laid 364 eggs in 365 days – the highest of any chicken on record.

White Australorps are also kept as pets since they are warm, friendly, and tame. They are hardy, and they can withstand hot and cold temperatures.

White Australorps weigh between 6.6 pounds and 8.8 pounds The estimated cost of a White Australorp chick is about $5.

Resources