Which Chickens Lay White Eggs?

Chickens that lay white eggs are mostly lean, active Mediterranean breeds, led by the Leghorn behind nearly every white egg in the grocery store. They lay a lot of eggs on very little feed, and a few white ones make a nice contrast in a basket of brown.

We raised White Leghorns for a season, and they laid beautifully. They just weren’t a fit for our family flock, which is a big part of what you’re choosing with a white egg breed.

Most white egg layers are light, quick birds that would rather forage than be held. They eat less than the big brown egg breeds, they lay early and often, and most of them won’t sit on a nest.

White eggs are also the plainest eggs in a rainbow egg basket, which is exactly why they’re worth having. They make blue eggs, pink eggs, and chocolate eggs stand out.

If egg count matters most, my list of chickens that lay the most eggs covers the high producers. For the brown side of the carton, there’s a matching list of chickens that lay brown eggs.

Why Some Hens Lay White Eggs

An eggshell is made of calcium carbonate, which is white. A hen spends about 20 hours building it in the shell gland, near the end of the oviduct.

Brown egg breeds add a brown pigment there, mostly in the last few hours. Blue egg breeds build a blue pigment right into the shell.

White egg breeds don’t add any pigment at all. Their shell gland simply finishes the shell and stops, so the egg comes out white inside and out.

Where Grocery Store White Eggs Come From

Most of the white eggs in American grocery stores come from industrial strains of White Leghorn. They’re small hens that lay a lot of eggs, and that’s the whole reason.

Feed is the biggest cost in producing eggs, about three quarters of the cost of a dozen, according to the University of Florida. Brown egg breeds tend to be bigger birds that eat more, so their eggs cost more to produce.

That’s also why brown eggs usually cost more at the store. The hen ate more feed to lay them.

White eggs haven’t always been the cheap option. Breeders at Rutgers developed the Holland in the 1930s, when white eggs brought premium prices.

White Eggs vs. Brown Eggs

There’s no nutritional difference between white and brown eggs. The USDA says nutrient levels aren’t significantly different, and shell color isn’t part of the USDA egg grades at all.

They taste the same, too. What a hen eats and how fresh the egg is make the difference you can taste.

If you’re wondering about storing them, my guide to storing farm fresh eggs works for every color.

The Earlobe Rule

You’ll often hear that hens with white earlobes lay white eggs and hens with red earlobes lay brown. It works more often than not, but it’s a pattern from how breeders defined breeds a century ago, not a genetic rule.

There are plenty of exceptions. Hollands, Redcaps, and Dorkings have red earlobes and lay white or cream eggs, while Penedesencas have white earlobes and lay some of the darkest brown eggs there are.

Ameraucanas and Araucanas have red earlobes and lay blue eggs. So earlobes can give you a hint, but the breed is what really tells you the egg color.

Chickens That Lay White Eggs

Most white egg breeds come from the Mediterranean, especially Italy and Spain, and a few come from northern and western Europe, Egypt, and the United States. Here they are, starting with the most common.

Egg counts vary a lot between lines, so treat the numbers as a range rather than a promise. Most of these breeds are heritage breeds, and several are rare enough that the Livestock Conservancy tracks them.

Leghorn

Leghorns come from Tuscany, and they’re named for Livorno, the Italian port they shipped from (Leghorn in English). They first reached the United States around 1830, and industrial strains of White Leghorn now dominate American white egg production.

Hens weigh about 4 1/2 pounds and lay anywhere from 150 to 320 large white eggs a year, depending on the strain. Hatcheries list them at roughly 220 to 320 a year.

They’re active, noisy, flighty birds that rarely go broody, and they handle both heat and cold. The big single comb can get frostbite, so in a cold climate, rose comb Leghorns are a better choice. My White Leghorn breed guide has the rest.

Ancona

Anconas come from the Marche region of Italy, named for the port of Ancona. Breeders developed them partly from early Leghorns, and they’re about the same size and shape.

They’re black with white tips on some of their feathers, and the mottling increases as they age. Hens lay around 220 white eggs a year.

Anconas are very active and a bit wild, but the Livestock Conservancy says they stand frost and snow quite well. They’re on its watch list.

Minorca

Minorcas are the largest of the Mediterranean breeds, and they’re named for the Spanish island, though no one knows exactly where they came from. Black Minorca hens weigh about 7 1/2 pounds.

They lay chalk white eggs, about 140 to 220 a year, and the eggs are very large. The Livestock Conservancy says they may be the largest white eggs of any white egg breed.

Minorcas love heat and forage well, but their big combs get frostbite easily, so they’re a better fit for warm climates. They’re on my list of heat tolerant chicken breeds.

Andalusian

Andalusians come from the Andalusia region of Spain, and the Blue Andalusian was one of the first breeds in the American Poultry Association standard, in 1874. Hens weigh about 5 1/2 pounds.

They lay chalk white eggs, around 160 to 200 a year. The blue color doesn’t breed true, so two blue parents give you about a quarter black chicks, half blue, and a quarter splash.

They’re active birds, and they’re on the Livestock Conservancy’s watch list.

Sicilian Buttercup

Sicilian Buttercups come from Sicily, and they lay small to medium white eggs, about 140 to 180 a year. Hens weigh about 5 pounds.

They’re very active, and some strains are close to wild. They handle hot weather well and don’t like the cold, which makes sense for a breed from southern Italy.

Hamburg

Despite the name, Hamburgs trace back to Holland, where the Dutch kept them by the 1300s. The name Hamburg only came along in the 1840s.

They’re small birds, with hens around 4 pounds, and they lay about 120 to 225 small to medium white eggs a year. They’re flighty, fly well, and would rather roost in a tree than be shut in a coop.

Hamburgs handle both cold and heat, and they love to roam and forage. The Livestock Conservancy lists them as threatened.

Polish

Polish chickens are the ones with the big pompom crest, which sits on a bony knob on top of the skull. They lay around 150 medium white eggs a year.

They’re calm but easily startled, partly because the crest falls over their eyes. Keep their crests dry in winter, since a wet crest can freeze.

Polish chickens are mostly kept for looks, and they show up on my list of ornamental chicken breeds.

Houdan

Houdans are a French breed with a crest and five toes on each foot. They lay about 150 to 230 large white eggs a year.

They’re gentle birds that are good with children. Like Polish chickens, their crests can freeze in a wet winter, so a dry coop matters.

Holland

Hollands are an American breed, developed at Rutgers in New Jersey in the 1930s, when white eggs sold for more than brown. They lay about 200 to 240 white eggs a year.

They have red earlobes, which makes them one of the exceptions to the earlobe rule. They’re calm birds, and unlike most white egg breeds, the hens can go broody and sometimes raise their own chicks.

The White Holland may now be extinct, so Barred Hollands are the ones you’re likely to find, and the Livestock Conservancy lists the breed as critical. They’re fairly cold tolerant, though the roosters’ combs can get frostbite.

Egyptian Fayoumi

Fayoumis come from the Fayoum region of Egypt, and most sources describe them as an old breed. Iowa State University brought them to the United States in the mid-1900s for poultry research.

They lay small, off-white to tinted eggs, about 150 to 220 a year, and they start laying young, around 4 1/2 months. They’re strong fliers and escape artists.

Fayoumis handle heat well but not cold, and they aren’t friendly birds. They suit someone who wants a hardy, independent flock.

California White

California Whites aren’t a breed. They’re a hybrid, a cross between a White Leghorn hen and a California Gray rooster.

They lay large white eggs, 300 or more a year by the hatchery’s estimate, and they’re mostly white with scattered black flecks. They handle confinement well, which makes them a good fit for a small backyard.

White Egg Layers for Cold Climates

Most white egg breeds come from warm places, and their big single combs freeze easily. We keep our chickens in a coop with no heat or lights, so cold hardiness matters a lot here in Vermont.

If you live somewhere cold, Anconas, Hamburgs, and Hollands handle winter better than most white egg breeds, and rose comb Leghorns hold up better than single comb ones. My guide to raising chickens off the grid and my list of cold hardy chicken breeds have more on keeping a flock through the winter.

For a first flock in any climate, my list of egg laying chickens for beginners is a good place to start. My list of chicken breeds from A to Z covers the rest.

White Egg Chicken FAQs

Here are quick answers to the questions people ask most about white egg layers.

More Egg Color Guides

More ways to fill your basket with color.

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Which Chickens Lay Pink Eggs?

Chicken Egg Colors: Which Breeds Lay Which Color?

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