SC · verified 2026-10-21
Charleston, SC
Short answerYes: the City of Charleston code allows backyard hens, but the cited section sets no number; roosters are banned; a permit is required, but the code lists no fee; and the coop setback is 50 ft (neighbors can waive it in writing).
Buying notes for backyard hens inside the City of Charleston corporate limits. HOA covenants and county rules outside city limits can differ.
Heads up: These rules apply inside the City of Charleston corporate limits only. An HOA or neighborhood covenant can still ban hens. Those private rules are usually not public, so HenCheck does not look them up.
Primary source: Sec. 5-8. Keeping of livestock and poultry prohibited without permit.
At a glance
- Hen cap
- No number set in the cited code section
- Roosters
- Banned
- Permit & fee
- Permit required, fee not listed in the code
- Setback
- 50 ft (neighbors can waive in writing)
Code cite: Sec. 5-8. Keeping of livestock and poultry prohibited without permit.
The rule, quoted
Word for word from Sec. 5-8. Keeping of livestock and poultry prohibited without permit.
How many hens
“It shall be unlawful for any person to keep, lodge, or maintain poultry or fowl within the corporate limits of the city without the issuance of a poultry or fowl permit and after paying a permit fee as required by the division.”
Sec. 5-8(b) allows poultry with a permit but does not set a number of birds. Ask about any limit when you apply for the permit.
Sec. 5-8. Keeping of livestock and poultry prohibited without permit.
Roosters
“It shall be unlawful for any person to own, keep, possess, or lodge any rooster (male chicken) within the corporate limits of the city.”
Permit and fee
“It shall be unlawful for any person to keep, lodge, or maintain poultry or fowl within the corporate limits of the city without the issuance of a poultry or fowl permit and after paying a permit fee as required by the division.”
The code requires a permit fee but does not state the amount. The city's division of animal control issues poultry permits (Sec. 5-37). Ask them for the current fee.
Setback / screening
“To keep, lodge, or maintain poultry or fowl, there must be at least a distance of fifty (50) feet or more between where the poultry or fowl are being housed and any dwelling, other than the dwelling of the person so keeping such animals, unless written permission is obtained from the residents of such dwellings that are within fifty (50) feet of the place where such animals are to be housed or maintained.”
The 50 feet is measured to any neighbor's dwelling, not to the lot line. Neighbors within 50 feet can give written permission instead.
Also in this section
“Free-roaming poultry or fowl are not permitted.”
Who issues the permit
“Receiving applications for and issuing permits for livestock, poultry, and exotic animals.”
Sec. 5-37(7). Duties (division of animal control).
What to buy
Named products and shops are real. Confirm stock, shipping, and that the vet still sees poultry before you spend money.
Shared Charleston, SC metro list: same stores for every city in this metro.
Hatchery
Cackle Hatchery
Ships live chicks to South Carolina via USPS Priority Mail. Cackle's FAQ lists South Carolina among the states it ships to, with chicks going out Mondays and Wednesdays from February to August and Wednesdays only from August to late October. Order sexed pullets if your city bans roosters or does not address them.
Feed store
Tractor Supply — Summerville West (#2715)
Summerville — 10524 Dorchester Rd, Summerville, SC 29485. (843) 376-7063. Has a Feed Center. Store page lists livestock feed and farm supplies, including chicken coops, waterers and feeders.
Coop
OverEZ Medium Chicken Coop with Wooden 8 ft Chicken Run
Dimensions: Coop 50¼ in L × 52½ in W × 62¼ in H (includes nesting box), sized by OverEZ for up to 10 chickens; Wooden 8 ft run 8 ft W × 8 ft L × 6 ft 3 in H
Price: Coop $1,699.00 (Classic or Coastal finish; the Farmhouse finish was out of stock); Wooden 8 ft run $1,899.00. Prices as shown on overezchickencoop.com on 2026-10-21. OverEZ lists its smaller 5-chicken coop as out of stock.
The coop footprint is about 4.2 ft × 4.4 ft and the run is 8 ft × 8 ft, so with the coop at the end of the run plan on roughly 8 ft × 12.5 ft. Measure your setback from the cited code before you pick a spot, and check any height limit: the run is 6 ft 3 in tall. OverEZ ships coops and runs by tractor-trailer freight to the end of your driveway; homes on islands or on roads a truck cannot reach may need to pick up at a freight terminal.
Vet
Exotic Vet Care
Mount Pleasant — 814 Johnnie Dodds Blvd A, Mt Pleasant, SC 29464. Its backyard poultry page says it cares for chickens, turkeys and other domestic poultry, plus ducks and geese. Call (843) 216-8387.
Verified 2026-10-21 against Sec. 5-8. Keeping of livestock and poultry prohibited without permit. at https://library.municode.com/sc/charleston/codes/code_of_ordinances?nodeId=CICO_CH5AN_ARTIINGE_S5-8KELIPOPRWIPE. Read the live code before you build or order birds.