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▶Walk-In Chicken Coop Plans
A coop you can walk into, a run under the same roof, and every board, cut and screw counted before your first trip to the store.
Which board does each cut come from, how many screws do you buy, and what if the flock grows?
- Three complete plan PDFs in one download, one per size: Small (4 to 6 hens, 6 x 14 ft), Medium (8 to 12 hens, 8 x 18 ft) and Large (16 to 20 hens, 8 x 28 ft), 49 pages each
- A coop on a raised wood floor and a run under one continuous roof, both walk-in: a run door into the run, a coop door in the partition wall between them, and a pop door with a ramp for the hens
- A materials shopping list sorted by store aisle, with a check box on every line
- A cut list with a mark, quantity, length in inches and millimeters, cut notes and build step for every piece (250 pieces on the Medium)
- Board layouts: every board, 4x8 sheet and hardware cloth roll drawn with the pieces it gives, the 1/8 in saw kerf and the offcut (113 boards on the Medium)
- A hardware list counted from the joints in the model: every screw, washer, staple, hurricane tie, hinge and latch, with the package to buy and the steps that use it
- Dimensioned drawings (front, end, plan and a section through the coop) and 24 build steps, one per page, each with a 3D picture of the new parts in amber, lettered to a parts table
- A Cost Calculator for Excel and Google Sheets: pick a size, type your store's prices, and read TOTAL BUILD COST, COST PER HEN, lumber and hardware cloth
Overview
A coop you can walk into, a run under the same roof, and every board, cut and screw counted before your first trip to the store.
Which board does each cut come from, how many screws do you buy, and what if the flock grows?
You want a coop you can walk into, not crawl under, with a run the hens share under the same roof. One download gives you the plans in three sizes, Small for 4 to 6 hens, Medium for 8 to 12 and Large for 16 to 20, and every list in them is generated from one 3D model of the coop. In the Medium plan, 250 pieces come out of 113 boards, each board drawn with its own cuts, and the hardware list counts 827 3 in construction screws, 761 fender washers and 2,004 staples, joint by joint. The Cost Calculator prices the size you pick at your own store.
What's Included
One ZIP, 9 files:
- Three plan PDFs on US Letter, one per size, 49 pages each: how to use the plans, choose your size, before you build, the shopping list by store aisle, the cut list, board layouts, the hardware list, dimensioned drawings, 24 build steps, the nest box and doors in exploded views, predator-proofing, ventilation, roosts and nest boxes with their sources, finishing and weatherproofing, metric notes, a seasonal care checklist and the sources
- The Chicken Coop Cost Calculator, Colorful edition, with five tabs: Start Here, Cost Calculator, Shopping List, Cut List and Help; the same workbook in the Editorial palette, and a zip holding the Colorful, Light and Dark editions
- Invented sample prices already typed into the calculator, so nothing opens blank; type your own store's prices over them
- A PDF with the Google Sheets copy link, a two page Quick-Start PDF and a START-HERE file that names every file
Key Benefits
Why this one
Small, Medium and Large are complete plan sets of their own, and every size meets the extension guidance at its top count: 3 to 4 sq ft per hen inside and 8 to 10 sq ft in the run, with 2, 3 or 4 nest boxes and 82, 130 or 267 in of roost.
The board layouts draw every board, 4x8 sheet and hardware cloth roll with the pieces it gives, the saw kerf and the offcut, and every piece carries a mark you write on it as you cut. Standard US lumber at its actual size, with millimeters beside every inch.
The hardware list is counted from the joints in the model: two screws at each end of every stud, a hurricane tie at every rafter bearing, a screw and fender washer every 8 in along the hardware cloth. Roosts, nest boxes and trim are included.
24 build steps, one per page. Each picture shows the new parts in amber, earlier parts in their own color and later parts not yet there, lettered to a parts table, with 2 to 5 short instructions and the fasteners for the step.
1/2 in hardware cloth everywhere, never chicken wire, screwed through a fender washer every 8 in; a 24 in apron all around; two-step latches on every door and nest box lid; and no gap over 1/2 in.
Who It's For
Built for
- A backyard chicken keeper with ordinary tools who wants a coop they can walk into, with the run fenced and roofed
- Someone keeping a few hens now and planning for more, who wants all three sizes in hand before choosing
- A first-time builder who wants every board, cut and screw settled before the first trip to the store
- A homesteader who wants the cost at their own store's prices before buying a single board
How It Works
Up and running in minutes
Page 4 of any plan compares hens, coop and run space per hen, roost length, nest boxes and vent area for all three sizes, with the sources.
Read Before you build: zoning, HOA and permit rules, the site, the tools, and a call to 811 before you dig.
Pick the size on the Cost Calculator and type your store's prices over the invented samples. On the Medium, a 2x4 x 8 ft at $4.98 instead of $3.98 moves TOTAL BUILD COST from $3,400 to $3,464 and COST PER HEN from $283 to $289.
Cut from the board layouts, write each mark on its piece, and build one step per page. The plans budget two weekends for two people.
Why It's Different
Not another template
Many coop plans come in one size, show several steps in one picture, and give a cut list that does not say which board each cut comes from. These plans cover three sizes in one download and are generated from one 3D model: the cut list, the board layouts, the hardware list, the shopping list and the build steps all come from the same boards, so they agree with each other. Every board modeled and fit-checked in 3D; the cut list and shopping list are generated from the model. They also include every screw and staple counted, vents sized to the flock, predator-proofing designed in, millimeters beside every inch, and a calculator that prices it all at your own store.
Delivery & Compatibility
Instant, and it opens in what you already use
As soon as your order is complete you get instant access to download the ZIP: the three plan PDFs, the Cost Calculator in four color editions, the Google Sheets copy link, a two page Quick-Start PDF and a START-HERE file. Start with the Quick-Start guide and the free video walkthrough. Nothing ships and nothing installs.
One ZIP, instant download. The plans are US Letter PDFs that open in any PDF reader: print them at actual size, or read them on a tablet at the build. The Cost Calculator opens in Excel 2016 or later, or in Google Sheets through the copy link, on a computer or phone. No Canva, no macros, no account and nothing to install.
FAQ
Questions, answered
What format is this?
Three plan PDFs on US Letter (49 pages each, one per size) and one workbook (.xlsx) in four color editions, with a quick-start PDF, a START-HERE file and the Google Sheets copy PDF. 9 files in one ZIP.
Is it one size or three?
All three: Small for 4 to 6 hens, Medium for 8 to 12 and Large for 16 to 20, one complete PDF each. Pick one size and use only its PDF, because the cut lists are different.
How tall is it?
8 ft 6 in at the front wall and just under 9 ft 4 in at the highest point, so you can walk into both the coop and the run. The coop door opening is 72 in tall and the run door 78 in. It covers 84, 144 or 224 sq ft of ground by size.
Is there a materials list with screws?
Yes. The hardware list counts every screw, washer, staple, hurricane tie, hinge and latch from the model, with the package to buy. The Medium needs 827 3 in construction screws, 761 fender washers and 2,004 staples.
Are the measurements metric too?
Yes. Every dimension is in inches with millimeters beside it, and the cut list has its own millimeter column. The metric notes cover metric sheet goods and lumber.
Are these engineered drawings?
No. These are building plans for a backyard accessory structure, not engineered drawings. Check your local zoning, HOA and permit rules before you build; in heavy-snow or high-wind areas ask a local builder about rafter spacing and anchoring.
These are building plans for a backyard accessory structure, not engineered drawings. Check your local zoning, HOA and permit rules before you build; in heavy-snow or high-wind areas ask a local builder about rafter spacing and anchoring. Every board modeled and fit-checked in 3D; the cut list and shopping list are generated from the model. The pictures are 3D renders of the model, not photographs. Space, roost and nest box figures are guidance for standard-size laying hens from the university extension publications named in the plans, and the vent figure of 1 sq ft per 10 sq ft of floor is a common builders' rule of thumb. Real lumber varies: measure your own framing before each cut that fits between others. Calculator prices are invented samples, not quotes from any store, and screws per box vary by brand. The four color editions of the calculator are separate files. Digital product; because the files are delivered instantly, all sales are final.
