Not only do you bond with an adorable critter, but you produce eggs, milk, and wool that you can sell to keep upgrading your ranch. If the mitochondria is the powerhouse of the cell, the coop and barn can be the mitochondria of your farm. Still, not every farm animal is made equal. Some are more profitable than others! So if you want to get far as a rancher, focus on the following animals:
5. Cows
Product selling price: 125g (Milk) / 190g (Large Milk) Cows are the backbone of any respectable farm. Not only are these beasts adorable, but they produce one of the most versatile ingredients in the game: Milk. Milk is used in many recipes, and if you include the ones that need Cheese, the number skyrockets. Milk may not be the most profitable product when you crunch the numbers, but you can’t live without it. To get the most immediate profit from your cows, you need to make them happy. Once they trust you, they’ll make high-quality Large Milk, which can be used to make Gold-quality Cheese or sold as-is. Professions like Rancher or Artisan can help you increase your cow profits.
4. Sheep
Product selling price: 340g (Wool) Working in the barns isn’t the most entertaining activity in Stardew Valley. If you don’t want to spend most of every day tending to 12 animals in each of your Deluxe Barns, you need to work on automation. Sheep are ideally suited for this since their Wool doesn’t need to be processed before it can be sold. With the Deluxe Barn’s Autofeed System and a high-tech Auto-Petter artifact, you can keep 12 sheep producing high-quality Wool non-stop. Add an Auto-Grabber to the mix, and you’ll rake in the moolah without moving a finger. They’ll even grow to trust and love you, albeit slower than with in-person interactions. The more they love you, the faster and more beautiful their coat grows, earning you some extra gold.
3. Chickens
Product selling price: 50g (Egg) / 95g (Large Egg) The humble chicken doesn’t seem all that profitable, considering the measly 50g you get for a single egg. And yet, they have the potential to become the beating heart of your farm’s economy. The secret behind it all is – you guessed it – the power of love! That, and a Mayonnaise Machine. A loving chicken will reliably lay a Large Egg every day. These Large Eggs are guaranteed to produce Gold-quality Mayo, which sells for 285g, and up to 399g if you have the Artisan profession. That’s almost 2,800g a week per chicken! At 800g per chick at Marnie’s, it’s an excellent investment.
2. Golden Chickens
Product selling price: 500g (Golden Egg) The Golden Chicken is a ridiculously profitable coop animal that’s basically Stardew Valley’s way of giving you infinite money after you’ve cleared the game. When I say “cleared the game,” I mean achieving 100% perfection: you’ve slain every monster, shipped every item, found all Stardrops, etc. Once you’ve achieved 100% perfection, you can buy the Golden Chicken at Marnie’s for 100,000g. At first, making Golden Eggs into Gold-quality Mayo is the most profitable strategy, as every Golden Egg makes three Mayo flasks. Once you’ve built up trust with your Golden Chicken, you’ll make more money by just selling the iridium-quality eggs at 1,000g per unit.
1. Pigs
Product selling price: 625g The most profitable animal in Stardew Valley is – by far – the humble pig. At a premium of 16,000g per pig, filling up a barn is a significant investment, but thanks to their truffle-tracking capabilities, they pay themselves back in no time. A healthy pig will sniff out one Truffle every day, except during the winter. Sometimes, they might even unearth a couple of them! You can sell a regular Truffle for a hefty 625g, but the Botanist profession can raise it to 1,250g by making most of them iridium-quality. Becoming a Gatherer can multiply your truffles upon pick-up for even crazier gains.
