How to Care for Chaffinches

Written by the Birdsville team. Last updated October 2026.

Chaffinch care comes down to a varied seed diet, plenty of live food, egg and biscuit, and a canary style cup nest for breeding. The chaffinch, sometimes written chaff finch, is a handsome European finch, and males wear a blue-grey cap and a rosy pink breast. They’re unique among aviary finches in needing three different seed mixes. This guide covers how to care for chaffinches, from diet and breeding to housing and health, with a full shopping list of the supplies we recommend, delivered Australia-wide by Petsville.

Male chaffinch with blue-grey cap, rosy pink breast and white wing bars — A male chaffinch, showing his blue-grey cap and rosy breast.

Fringilla coelebs

Chaffinch Quick Facts

Scientific name: Fringilla coelebs
Also known as: Chaff Finch, Common Chaffinch
Native range: much of Europe, western Asia, Siberia and north west Africa
Introduced to: New Zealand
Adult length: around 14 to 15 cm
Lifespan: commonly around 6 to 8 years
Diet: small parrot mix, finch mix and plain canary seed, plus live food, egg and biscuit and greens
Housing: pairs, in a long cage or aviary
Breeding age: from about 12 months
Clutch: around 4 eggs, incubated for about 14 days
Sexing: males have a blue-grey cap and rosy breast, hens are duller
Temperament: generally peaceful
Experience level: intermediate

Chaffinch Shopping List

Everything in this guide is available from Petsville, which delivers Australia-wide, or in-store at Birdsville in Sydney.

Live food and canary cup nests are available in-store at Birdsville.

Chaffinches in the Wild

Chaffinches are native to much of Europe, western Asia, Siberia and north west Africa. They were introduced to New Zealand, where they’re now common. They aren’t found in the wild in Australia.

Here’s an observation from our team. On a visit to New Zealand, one of our team saw many chaffinches in the wild. It was great to watch how they behave naturally. They were very at home around people, a lot like house sparrows.

Housing Chaffinches

Chaffinches need a long cage or aviary with plenty of room to fly. Keep them in pairs, with perches of different thicknesses, a shallow bath, and separate dishes for each seed mix, grit, live food and water.

Seasonal tip: Chaffinches come from cooler climates and can struggle in Sydney’s summer heat. Give them shade all day, good airflow and a bath, and add Vetafarm Spark Liquid (https://petsville.com.au/products/vetafarm-spark-liquid-50ml) to their water on very hot days. They handle cool winters much better, as long as they’re out of draughts.

Chaffinch Diet

Chaffinches need three seed mixes, plus soaked seed, live food, egg and biscuit, greens, grit, vitamins and fresh water every day.

Seed

These unique finches should be given three different seed mixes, each in its own dish:

Small parrot seed, such as Basic Small Parrot Mix (https://petsville.com.au/products/avigrain-seed-small-parrot-mix-2kg).
Finch seed. Our top pick is Birdsville Blends Finch & Canary (https://petsville.com.au/products/birdsville-blends-finch-canary-500g), our biggest selling finch blend.
Plain canary seed (https://petsville.com.au/products/avigrain-seed-canary-plain-2kg).

Birdsville Blends are bagged fresh on site with a high turnover, so the seed never sits on a shelf, and buying from the people who mix it means better value. It’s very important to give chaffinches good quality seed, because many supermarket and chain store mixes contain filler seed and low grade grains that affect the health and vitality of your birds. If you’re unsure about your seed, ask a bird specialist.

Soaked Seed

Chaffinches relish soaked seed. Rinse it thoroughly with Vetafarm Aviclens (https://petsville.com.au/products/vetafarm-aviclens-water-cleanser-100ml) before feeding to remove bacteria. For instructions on sprouting your own seed, see our Finch Care page [Finch Care page link].

Millet Sprays

Fresh seed still on the stem. Panicum or French white millet sprays are both suitable. Buy them on Petsville (https://petsville.com.au/products/millet-sprays-mixed-100g).

Greens

Carrot tops, broccoli tops, seeding grasses, silverbeet and endive.

Live Food

Feed mealworms and fly pupae with some insectivore mix added, such as Insectivore Rearing Mix (https://petsville.com.au/products/wombaroo-insectivore-rearing-mix-250g) or Vetafarm Insecta-Pro (https://petsville.com.au/products/vetafarm-insecta-pro-450g). Live food is available in-store at Birdsville.

Egg and Biscuit

An essential protein source for chaffinches. Add it to the live food mix above. Try Shep’s Egg & Biscuit (https://petsville.com.au/products/sheps-egg-biscuit-500g).

Vitamins

Add a vitamin supplement such as Vetafarm Multivet (https://petsville.com.au/products/vetafarm-multivet-50ml) to the water. Vitamins on seed are lost when birds remove the husk.

Grit

Use a fine grit mix containing charcoal, shell, baked egg shell, crushed cuttlebone and limestone, such as shell grit (https://petsville.com.au/products/shell-grit-5kg), in its own dish.

Breeding Chaffinches

Chaffinches won’t breed until they’re about 12 months old. The hen builds in a canary cup nest, available in-store, using material such as swamp grass, wool and coconut fibre (https://petsville.com.au/collections/bird-subsrate).

She lays around 4 pale bluish to brownish eggs with darker blotches, which hatch after about 14 days. Supply plenty of the live food mentioned above, as both parents feed the chicks mostly on insects. The chicks usually leave the nest at about 2 weeks old, and the parents keep feeding them for about another 3 weeks. Vetafarm Breeding Aid (https://petsville.com.au/products/vetafarm-breeding-aid-100ml) on the seed also helps support fertility and chick growth.

Sexing Chaffinches

Adult chaffinches are easy to sex. The male has a blue-grey cap and nape, a rosy pink breast and cheeks, and bold white wing bars. The hen has the same white wing bars but is a much duller olive brown overall.

Health and Parasite Control

Watch for fluffed up feathers, sitting still and inactive, a dirty vent, or a thin chest where the keel bone sticks out. A sick bird can go downhill within hours. Move it to a small, warm cage straight away, add Spark Liquid to its water, and see an avian vet. For more on finch health, see our Finch Care page [Finch Care page link].

Worm your chaffinches every 3 months if they live outdoors, or every 6 months indoors, using Vetafarm Wormout Gel (https://petsville.com.au/products/vetafarm-wormout-gel-50ml). Spray birds, nests and the aviary with Avitrol Mite & Lice Spray (https://petsville.com.au/products/fidos-avitrol-bird-mite-and-lice-spray-125ml) every 3 months, avoiding the eyes. Keep new birds separate for 4 to 6 weeks before introducing them, and give them Spark Liquid in their water for the first few days after a move.

Cleaning

Daily: fresh water and seed in clean dishes, blow husks off the seed, and remove old live food and greens.
Weekly: clean the cage or aviary thoroughly.
Monthly: disinfect with Vetafarm Avicare (https://petsville.com.au/products/vetafarm-avicare-rtu-500ml), clean or replace branches, and clean out nests after the young have left.

Compatibility with Other Birds

Chaffinches are generally peaceful with canaries, greenfinches, goldfinches and other similar sized finches. Males can become territorial at breeding time, so give each pair space and its own nest site, and avoid keeping two males in a small aviary. For more on mixing birds, see our Mixing Different Species of Bird page (https://birdsville.net.au/pet-bird-advice-and-training/mixing-different-species-of-bird/).

Chaffinch Frequently Asked Questions

What do chaffinches eat?

Chaffinches do best on three seed mixes: a small parrot mix, a finch mix such as Birdsville Blends Finch & Canary, and plain canary seed. Add soaked seed, millet sprays, greens, egg and biscuit, and live food with insectivore mix. They also need fine grit, vitamins in the water and fresh water.

How do you tell a male chaffinch from a female?

Male chaffinches have a blue-grey cap and nape, a rosy pink breast and cheeks, and bold white wing bars. Hens have the same white wing bars but are a much duller olive brown overall, with no pink or blue. Adults are easy to tell apart side by side.

Are chaffinches found in Australia?

No, chaffinches aren’t found in the wild in Australia. They’re native to Europe, western Asia and north west Africa, and they were introduced to New Zealand, where they’re now common and very at home around people. In Australia, they’re only kept as aviary birds.

When can chaffinches breed?

Chaffinches won’t breed until they’re about 12 months old. The hen builds her nest in a canary cup nest using swamp grass, wool and coconut fibre, and lays around 4 eggs. Supply plenty of live food, as both parents feed the chicks mostly on insects.

Do chaffinches cope with hot weather?

Chaffinches come from cooler climates and can struggle in hot weather. Give them shade all day, good airflow and a bath in summer, and add Spark Liquid to their water on very hot days. They handle cool winters much better, as long as they’re out of draughts.

Can chaffinches live with other birds?

Chaffinch Supplies at Birdsville

We don’t usually have chaffinches in stock, but we stock everything they need. Every product in this guide is available online from Petsville, delivered Australia-wide, or in-store at Birdsville, 684 Botany Road, Alexandria NSW 2015, servicing the Eastern Suburbs and Inner South Sydney. Live food and canary cup nests are available in-store. Visit us or call (02) 9669 1766, and our team will help you set up the right home and diet for your birds. Follow us on Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/BirdsvilleRosebery/), Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/petsvillesydney/) and TikTok (https://www.tiktok.com/@birdsvillepets) for live updates.

About Birdsville

Birdsville has been trading in Sydney since 1985, and we believe we’re now the oldest bricks and mortar bird shop still open in Australia. Owner Ash brings experience from vet clinics and from zoo keeping at the Rainforest Habitat in Port Douglas, now Wildlife Habitat. We’re a small business that does things in a big way. Nobody tells us how to run things, so we keep our products the best of the best.