How to Build Your Coops in Stardew Valley

We independently assess all our recommendations. Purchases through our links may earn us a commission.

Building a coop is one of the many important steps toward your farm’s success. Coops are essential structures in Stardew Valley where you can raise an assortment of animals, including chickens, ducks, rabbits, and, surprisingly, even dinosaurs. Since these critters can only be nurtured within the coop, it ranks among the game’s most important farm buildings and is a good source of income when you’re starting your farm.

Coops are more cost-effective than barns, making them an excellent choice for farmers who are eager to generate income and expand their operations.

If you have questions about acquiring animals, upgrading your coops, or maximizing your profits and farm layouts, this guide will help you through it.

It can be very intimidating at first, but, with careful planning and following these invaluable tips, you can transform your farm into your most-priced possession.

Constructing Your Coop

Initially, you’ll begin with chickens, then as you sell eggs and grow your resources, you’ll be able to house an array of animals on your farm. Building a coop is a straightforward process. But you should also have the necessary construction materials to build it. Here’s a step-by-step on how to do it:

1. Begin by visiting Robin’s Carpenter’s Shop, which operates from 9 A.M. to 5 P.M.
2. To create your coop, you’ll need 300 pieces of wood, 100 stones, and 4,000 gold.
3. Once you’ve assembled these resources, choose a location for your coop. Keep in mind that it occupies a 6×3 footprint and takes three in-game days to complete. Your initial coop will accommodate up to four chickens only.

Upgrading to a Big Coop

As you progress further in the game, you’ll likely want to enhance your coop to a ‘Big Coop.’ This upgrade allows you to house up to eight animals and incorporates an Incubator for hatching eggs. Alongside chickens, you can rear golden chickens, void chickens, ducks, and even dinosaurs. The same step as before just visit Robin’s Carpenter’s Shop and give her the necessary requirements, which costs:

• 10,000 gold
• 400 wood
• 150 stone

Fortunately, constructing the Big Coop only takes two in-game days, and luckily you can still use the Coop while it’s being constructed.

Upgrading to a Deluxe Coop

For the ultimate coop build, consider upgrading to the ‘Deluxe Coop.’ This superior version offers room for 12 animals, including the addition of a new animal, rabbits. It also features an Auto Feed System, allowing your animals to feed from the bench whenever there’s hay in your silo. To achieve this luxurious upgrade, here are the needed requirements to build it:

• 20,000 gold
• 500 wood
• 200 stones.

You’ll need to wait for at least two days as your deluxe coop takes shape. While waiting for it to build, we also have a list of animals you can house in your coop and some needed information:

1. Chicken: Adults in 3 nights, producing daily eggs. Cost: 800 gold or incubate an egg for 9,000 minutes.
2. Duck: Mature in 5 days, lays eggs or feathers worth 250 gold every two days. Cost: 1,200 gold.
3. Void Chicken: Similar to regular chickens but can be obtained through an incubator or purchased from Krobus for 5,000 gold.
4. Golden Chicken: Produces valuable eggs, with a steep price tag of 100,000 gold to purchase.
5. Dinosaur: Already matured upon hatching, lays eggs every 7 days. Obtained via fishing, artifact spots, or Crane Game.
6. Rabbit: Grows in 6 nights, produces wool every 4 days. Cost: 8,000 gold.

Optimizing Your Coop and Farm Layout

Ultimately, farm layout will depend on your personal preferences, and what brings joy to you. Nevertheless, some universal tips can help players enhance their farm layouts, whether they seek a cozy design or aspire to create a lavish masterpiece, here’s what you need to know on how to optimize your farm layout:

• Let the grass go wild: Hay can be pretty expensive to buy when starting a coop, especially when you’re saving up hay to store in the silo during the winter season. Wild grass is a great substitute for hay, so make sure not to cut your grass just yet. Once you put up fences, the grass inside the enclosure will continuously grow, providing a cost-effective source of food for your animals.
• Don’t be afraid to relocate your Buildings: The latest update allows the players to move or relocate their buildings and large objects. Don’t let existing structures disrupt your layout plans. Take the extra step to move objects that obstruct your vision to build the best farm in Stardew Valley.
• Use online farm layout planners: Begin your farm with an organized layout from the start, rather than procrastinating and making changes later on. Planning in advance prevents you from spending too much money when you are experimenting with your farm layout. This can be done by using several websites and applications that can help you visualize your ideal farm design, saving time and in-game resources.
• Utilize fences or paths: Dividing your crops into distinct areas using fences or paths helps you enhance both the aesthetics and the efficiency in building your farm. Grouping similar crops together helps you determine how to harvest and replant crops while also helping you organize the same type of plants in one area, in this way, you’ll be able to streamline your farm’s operation. It also helps your animals from getting too far away from their respective home.
• Craft Multiples of Items: Crafting duplicate machines, such as Mayonnaise Machines for your eggs, can improve efficiency when it comes to processing all animal resources in one go. This ensures that you will gain the maximum profits by the end of the day.
• Organize Artisan Equipment: Efficiency isn’t solely about aesthetics. Place machines that process animal resources near their respective barns to optimize inventory management and save more time to do other activities outside your farm.
• Incorporate Outdoor Furniture This part is more of an aesthetic choice, with the latest update you gain the ability to place outdoor furniture, which adds charm and personality to your farm. Consider decorating your farm with resting areas or floral arrangements to create a more personal space for your farm.