Comparing Regular, Cage-Free, Free-Range, and Pasture-Raised Eggs
If you ask me, the grocery store has too many options. I am already exhausted when I walk in the door, but having to make a million little choices just exhausts me further. Eggs, something so seemingly simple, have multiple different labels to choose from, namely regular, free-range, cage-free, and pasture-raised. They all sound fine, but the meanings can be taken quite literally, allowing for exploitation. It took me standing in the grocery store googling each on my phone multiple times (more than I care to admit) before I really committed a personal hierarchy to memory, and I want to share that with you now in the hopes that it will take you less research and time to remember what it is that you prefer.
TLDR: I prefer pasture-raised eggs. (In case the title didn’t give it away… ha!)
As a disclaimer – nutritionally eggs are fantastic no matter what. They are a complete protein, meaning they have all nine essential amino acids in the proper ratio for your body. They are also very nutrient-dense. The USDA has dialed back the concern over dietary cholesterol, so yolks are on the menu! That’s where a lot of the nutrients are anyway.
As a REAL disclaimer – I don’t know if eating eggs is right for you. I go into the different ethical ramifications of each option, but you may have already decided that the most ethical choice is to be vegan. Or maybe you believe that is the healthiest lifestyle for you. Or maybe you’re allergic to eggs. The point is, I have no idea what your unique situation is. These are just my thoughts and opinions that influence my decisions. You should decide for yourself what’s right for your health, values, and lifestyle.
Regular Eggs
Regular eggs, also called conventional or traditional eggs, are the most common type you’ll find in most grocery stores. These eggs are typically sourced from caged hens on large-scale poultry farms. They will almost definitely be the most affordable option, but there are some negatives to consider.
To start, while eggs in general are very nutritionally dense regardless, these are the least so. Personally, I can tell when I am cooking with them. The shells are thinner (less calcium) and the yolks are pale in comparison to any of the other options. The hens also don’t have the opportunity to eat what would be a normal diet of bugs and grass. Instead, they are given commercial feed. This feed is often full of things like GMOs, pesticides, antibiotics, and growth promoters to make the hens and the eggs unnaturally large. These may or may not be things you would prefer to avoid. I am not here to judge if you don’t care, but that gets an ick from me.
In this setup, you can also pretty much guarantee that the hens live their whole lives in cages. This means they have very limited space to move around or do normal chicken things like foraging or dust baths. The hens in this situation have higher stress levels and decreased overall welfare, which can raise some ethical concerns.
Cage-Free Eggs
With cage-free eggs, the hens usually have a large barn or other indoor coop. The only requirement is that they cannot be in cages. While they typically have more room than those in conventional cages, they can still be quite crowded. Farmers may fit more than an ideal number of birds in the enclosure to maximize production. Overcrowding and the access the hens have to each other can lead to aggression, like pecking and even cannibalism. Some farms actually clip the chickens’ beaks to prevent this.
I am sure some farms do it right and the birds are pretty happy (if that’s a thing chickens can feel), but it’s not enough information for me. What’s more, they still probably never go outside. This would mean no foraging, and I think the insects and grass the chickens consume contribute to the nutritional value of the eggs.
Free-Range Eggs
Free-range hens cannot be caged and also must have access to the outdoors. That’s it. Sounds nice, but this is where taking it literally can become an issue. It doesn’t mean they have unfettered access, or even more than a square foot of access, just some access.
This is where these terms really start to give me pause. These chickens could live in a barn and have a large outdoor run, which would not be a bad life. But another interpretation could be to provide them with a tiny, shared outdoor space. I imagine this as completely picked clean, so it’s really just a prison-yard dirt patch. I don’t love that this is a potential outcome of this good-seeming title. That being said, free range is my second choice when pasture-raised eggs are unavailable. I think given the options, this is the best so far. The birds do have more space to move than in conventional cage setups, and the access to the outdoors can allow them the opportunity to engage in their natural behaviors like foraging for insects and dust bathing.
Pasture-Raised Eggs
You’ve made it to my favorite store-bought option! Pasture-raised eggs are the gold standard. These hens have continuous access to outdoor pastures where they can forage for food, eat insects, dust bathe, and bask in the sunlight. Because of all of this access, it is also basically guaranteed that they have more space than any of the others. This means less motivation to be aggressive, although they are still animals, so it could still happen.
Unfortunately, we are also talking about the most expensive option. It makes sense; it takes more resources (i.e., land) to produce the same number of eggs that conventional egg farming could get with substantially less. Plus, I imagine there are greater costs associated with keeping the birds safe from predators, greater labor costs to the farm, and a whole host of other costs that I am not even aware of. They can also be difficult to find, so sometimes it’s not even an option.
Comparing Egg Costs
I mentioned above that my favorite — pasture-raised — is the most expensive, but it is important to contextualize the actual costs of these different types of eggs. This is difficult to do in any lasting way since eggs are a commodity and prices fluctuate a lot with time and location. For the sake of comparison, though, I will compare the options with today’s prices (it is July 20th, 2023) and in my location (Central Florida, USA). I used two different stores — Aldi and Publix — so you may be able to get a better idea of what the ranges may be.
| Aldi | Publix | |
| Conventional Eggs | $1.15 | $1.99 |
| Cage-Free Eggs | $2.85 | $3.95 |
| Free-Range Eggs | $3.75 | $4.29 |
| Pasture Raised Eggs | $4.95 | $8.56 |
I know that is a stark difference – pasture-raised eggs are over four times more expensive than conventional! But what I always look at is the value I’m getting, which is still amazing. At $4.95/dozen, it is the same cost as one coffee at Starbucks, and it is still only $0.41 per egg. That is an amazing price for what you’re getting in terms of nutritional content and satiety value (or how full it will make you feel). Still, conventional eggs are only $0.10 each, and they are just as filling while providing most of the same nutrition.
I completely get it if conventional eggs still make the most sense for you. Some people’s margins are thinner, or my reasons for liking pasture-raised eggs may not appeal to you. But for me, I think it is worth paying more for my eggs and skipping something else if I need that $4 back in my budget.
Nutritional Differences
I mentioned that I see value in the nutritional differences between these types of eggs, but I think it is important to note that the research shows these variations to be minimal. All eggs, regardless of their production method, contain essential nutrients such as protein, vitamins, and minerals. However, studies suggest that pasture-raised eggs may have higher levels of certain nutrients, such as omega-3 fatty acids and vitamin D, due to the hens’ diet of grass and insects. But, as I have mentioned a few times now, eggs are a nutrient-dense food choice regardless of their production method.
Some Final Thoughts…
A few little notes — you will notice that I did not go into organic versions of any of these options. That is because the “organic” label will remain the same in its meaning across all of these different options. “Organic” is just a certification. It has to do with what the chickens are fed, the lack of pesticide use, and if things like antibiotics and hormones are given to the chickens. When I am buying pasture-raised, I am not as concerned about this because I think these farms are already likely to be employing better practices. Maybe that’s naive of me. When I can’t buy pasture-raised, though, I will often opt for organic, mostly to avoid those hormones and pesticides.
I also didn’t mention buying eggs straight from a farm or getting them from your own chickens. That just wasn’t the focus of this post. I wanted to talk about what you can get at the grocery store since that is what most people do. If you have a local farmstand to buy them from, you can probably get a lot more insight into the care of the hens and their lifestyle. It could be anywhere on this spectrum, but you have the opportunity to ask the farmer, and maybe even see what their lives are like, so you can make the most informed decision possible, short of having your own chickens. Of course, you would have the ultimate insight and control, and probably the lowest carbon footprint, if you are getting eggs from your own chickens, but that just isn’t practical for everyone.
So… That’s it! I know that is a lot of information, but ultimately understanding the differences between regular, free-range, cage-free, and pasture-raised options empowers you to make informed choices; it’s for you to decide what aligns best with your values, preferences, and budget. And hopefully, the next time you are looking at the million choices (or like, six) for what eggs to buy, you will have a better idea of what you want and not feel too overwhelmed!
