The quick version The five foods that cover almost all backyard bird species are black sunflower seeds, white pro millet, unsalted peanuts, suet cakes and Nyjer seeds. Start with sunflower seeds if you’re only buying one thing. Most species eat them, and a simple blended mix from Costco or Walmart will attract more birds to your yard than any specialty food.
Fastest victory: Scatter a handful of mixed seeds on the ground near bushes or trees today. You don’t need a feeder to get started.
When I first handed out bird food, I bought a generic bag of mixed seeds, scattered some on the porch railing, and finished. The birds have come. I was happy. But after a few weeks of careful observation, I began to notice patterns. Some birds picked up the mixture and threw half of it on the ground. Others barely touched the feeder. A few species I hoped to see never appeared.
That’s when I started paying attention to what each bird actually wanted rather than what I was producing. The difference was immediate and significant. More cash, more activities and much less waste.
We live on a busy suburban road, which isn’t exactly the setting you’d imagine for a thriving backyard bird habitat. And yet, simply by learning what each species prefers and remaining consistent, we now regularly attract cardinals, blue jays, juncos, five species of woodpeckers, nuthatches, chickadees, catbirds, Carolina wrens, goldfinches, pine siskins, rose-breasted grosbeaks, eastern towhees, chickadees, mourning doves and hummingbirds occasional in season. All in a modest suburban courtyard.
This guide covers what we’ve learned over years of eating every day. The species listed here are common throughout much of the eastern United States, with particular emphasis on the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic, where we garden and forage. Species vary by region, but the feeding principles apply everywhere.
If you’re just starting out and want to get a complete idea of how to attract birds to your garden, our beginner’s guide to how to start birdwatching from home covers everything from charger setup to the best ID apps.
How we started: a windowsill and some peanuts The honest origin of our entire food system was a handful of peanuts and sunflower seeds placed on the windowsill one winter. That was all. No feeder, no perch, no planning. Within a day or two we had customers. Chickadees, a cardinal, a titmouse. They found him faster than seemed possible.
As the nuts in the cupboard passed their expiration date, these also came out on the ledge. This didn’t bother the birds. We kept stocking up, they kept coming back, and something that started as a simple curiosity became a daily routine that we looked forward to.
We always do the windowsill. The regulars know it’s there and check it every morning. But over time, the pattern grew. We added a perch feeder with a squirrel baffle and four feeding stations: two platform feeders, a suet cage, and a tube feeder. Then a second post with a small platform feeder that we alternate seasonally between the nyjer, suet, and a hummingbird nectar feeder depending on the time of year.
During a normal spring, we produce about 40 pounds of seed every six to eight weeks. Last winter was brutal weather-wise and we carried 500 pounds. The birds needed it and we kept filling up.
It all started with a windowsill. If you’re not yet ready for a full charger setup, this is definitely enough to get you started.
Window sill tip: Use no-mess, no-waste seed mixes on a ledge so birds eat the whole grain rather than dropping the shells. Sunflower chips and shelled peanuts work best. They are slightly more expensive but keep the threshold clean and significantly reduce waste.
Almost all of the most common backyard species, including juncos, mourning doves, sparrows, cardinals and blue jays, are ground feeders by nature. Scattering a handful of mixed seeds directly on the ground in front of bushes or trees works just as well as a feeder, especially in the first few days when birds have not yet discovered your setup.
A basic mix from Costco or Walmart is a great place to start. These mixes typically include sunflower seeds, millet, and cracked corn, which between them cover the preferences of the most common backyard species. Once you know who visits you regularly, you can start personalizing what you post.
For a regional perspective on species common to the Mid-Atlantic and Northeast, the Maryland DNR Wild Acres Program maintains a handy diet guide worth adding to your favorites.
On consistency: The most important factor in attracting a variety of birds is not what you broadcast, but the reliability of your broadcast. Birds quickly learn the schedule of your garden. Once they know that food appears at the same times each day, they will make your feeder part of their daily route. If you miss a few days, it can take a week to rebuild that traffic.
What to feed backyard birds: by species Once you know which birds visit you regularly, feeding them well becomes surprisingly simple. Most species have clear preferences and once you match the food to the bird, waste significantly decreases and activity increases.
Here’s what we’ve learned after years of policing our own backyard.
Northern Cardinal Cardinals are the most reliable birds at our feeders and the most sought-after backyard species in the country for good reason. They are year-round residents, they are visually stunning and once they find your yard, they rarely leave it.
Their main foods are shelled peanuts and black sunflower seeds. Safflower seeds are another big favorite and have a useful side benefit: squirrels tend to dislike it, which means a feeder filled with safflower stays full longer. Cardinals prefer a feeding platform or tray where they can sit comfortably, although they also feed on the ground.
One observation is worth sharing: cardinals visit our feeders almost without exception twice a day, once very early in the morning and another time in the late afternoon before dark. If you don’t see them, try looking specifically during these windows.
Best foods: Sunflower seeds in black oil, shelled peanuts, safflower seeds
Charger type: Platform or tray feeder, or floor feeder
Blue Jay Blue jays are loud, bold and absolutely obsessed with peanuts. Both in-shell and in-shell peanuts work, although in-shell peanuts bring out a behavior that is truly fun to watch: They will grab as many as they can fit in their throat pouch, fly away, and bury them nearby for later. A single jay can hide dozens of peanuts in a single morning.
If you are accustomed to peanuts, blue jays will become remarkably comfortable around you over time. It is one of the few barnyard species that actually seems to recognize individuals. Keep showing up with peanuts and they will keep showing up for you.
Blue jays are too heavy for standard tube feeders, so a platform feeder or ground feeder works best. They also eat sunflower seeds, corn and acorns when peanuts are not available.
Best foods: Unsalted peanuts (in shell or shelled), sunflower seeds, corn
Charger type: Platform feeder or ground feeder
Black-eyed Junco Juncos are cold-weather visitors to the mid-Atlantic, arriving in late fall and leaving at the first signs of spring. They feed almost exclusively on soil and are almost exclusively interested in millet.
Scatter white proso millet directly on the ground near your other feeders and the juncos will find it a day or two after they arrive for the season. They tend to feed in small groups, making them particularly satisfying to watch on a calm winter morning.
Their departure at the beginning of spring is one of the most reliable seasonal markers on the site. When the juncos leave, the blackbirds and catbirds aren’t far behind.
Best foods: White common millet
Charger type: Ground or low platform power supply
sad dove Mourning doves are among the easiest birds to feed because they will eat almost anything they can physically swallow. Millet, sunflower seeds, safflower, cracked corn – they’re not picky. These are also preferably ground feeders and too heavy to comfortably use most tube feeders.
Doves tend to feed in pairs or small groups and have a slow, gentle presence that is calming to observe. They are some of the most regular visitors to our feeding platform and the grounds below.
Best foods: White common millet, sunflower seeds, safflower, cracked corn
Charger type: Ground power or platform power
House sparrow and American goldfinch Sparrows and finches share a love for millet, making a mixture effective for both. Finches go further, however: They are the primary consumers of Nyjer seeds and sunflower chips, and a New York sock hung from late winter through summer will attract goldfinches specifically and reliably.
American goldfinches are one of the most spectacular seasonal visitors to the Mid-Atlantic. They arrive in their bright yellow breeding plumage in spring and truly hit a New York feeder. If you turn one off and don’t see anything for the first week or two, be patient. Finches take longer than most species to discover a new food source, but once they do, they return daily.
Best foods: Proso white millet, Nyjer seeds, sunflower chips
Charger type: Tubular feeder or nyjer sock
Tufted Tit eu Chickadees prefer safflower and sunflower seeds and have a characteristic feeding habit worth watching: they grab a single seed, fly to a nearby branch, open it, eat it, and return. Repeat all morning. They are fast, neat and strangely methodical.
Chickadees are year-round residents and are among the first birds to find a new feeder. They also hide food like blue jays, storing seeds in bark crevices and under leaves for later use. One thing that never ceases to be amusing: a crested titmouse can and will pick up a whole peanut from the shell and fly away with it in its beak. For such a small bird, this seems really unlikely. Take out the inshell peanuts and watch it happen.
Best foods: Safflower seeds, black oil sunflower seeds, shelled peanuts, inshell peanuts
Charger type: Tube or platform feeder
Woodpeckers and Nuthatches We have five species of woodpeckers that visit us regularly: the downy woodpecker, the hairy woodpecker, the red-bellied woodpecker, the northern flicker and the pileated woodpecker. They all like the same two things: peanuts and suet. Food is consistent across species, although birds vary greatly in size, from the small downy to the large raven.
Some individual notes worth sharing. The Red-bellied Woodpecker is bold enough to come straight to our windowsill to eat peanuts, which never ceases to be a delight. The Northern Flicker is a ground feeder more than most woodpecker species and will feed on suet and peanuts scattered low as readily as on a mounted feeder. The Pileated is the largest and most spectacular visitor you are likely to have and will work like a suet cage with real engagement.
We specifically recommend an upside down suet cage. Woodpeckers and nuthatches feed from the bottom without difficulty and most other birds find the position uncomfortable, so the suet stays in its place. One thing we noticed: blue jays and woodpeckers often arrive together when the peanuts are out, moving between locations as if they are traveling the same circuit. It’s hard to say whether this is learned behavior or coincidence, but it happens regularly enough to be worth monitoring.
Hang the suet cage on a tree trunk or wooden post rather than a metal post when you can. They seem to prefer the feel of natural bark nearby.
Best foods: Suet pancakes, unsalted peanuts (with and without shell), sunflower seeds
Charger type: Inverted suet cage, platform feeder, windowsill
Carolina Wren Carolina wrens are small, noisy, and one of the most endearing birds you’ll ever have in your yard. Their song is disproportionate to their size and they are remarkably bold for such a small bird.
Put out dried mealworms on a low platform or windowsill and they will find them quickly. Shelled peanuts are another favorite that surprises most people. They will take one and come back almost immediately for another. The real reward comes in spring and summer. If you are consistent and have wrens nesting nearby, they will start carrying food from your ledge to their nest all day long. Watching a Carolina wren make trip after trip with a beak full of mealworms for its babies is one of those things that really makes you glad you started doing this.
Wrens also eat suet, small seeds and insects, but mealworms and shelled peanuts are the offerings that build the relationship most quickly.
Best foods: Dried mealworms, shelled peanuts, suet
Charger type: Low platform, windowsill or suet cage
Gray catbird Catbirds are spring and fall visitors to the mid-Atlantic and are easily one of the most entertaining birds you will encounter. They are curious, friendly by bird standards, and have a mimic call that sounds remarkably like that of a cat, hence the name.
They like raisins, fresh fruit, nuts and mixed seeds. Place a small dish of raisins or sliced berries on a platform and see how quickly they find it. Once a catbird discovers your garden, it tends to return daily and become increasingly comfortable with your presence. They are not as nervous as most species and seem genuinely interested in what you are doing.
Best foods: Raisins, fresh fruit, berries, nuts, mixed seeds
Charger type: Platform or floor plate feeder
American robin and northern mockingbird Robins and mockingbirds are both insect and fruit eaters that largely ignore traditional seed feeders. The best way to attract them is to have fresh fruit on a platform (berries, apple slices, raisins) and a reliable water source. Both species are particularly attracted to moving or dripping water.
Blackbirds are one of the first migrants returning to the mid-Atlantic, and their arrival after a long winter is a reliable sign of spring. Mockingbirds are permanent residents and extraordinary singers. Neither needs a feeder. They need fruit and water.
Best foods: Fresh berries, raisins, apple slices
Charger type: Feeding platform or water source
Ruby-throated Hummingbird Hummingbirds are in a category of their own and require a dedicated nectar feeder rather than seeds of any kind. If you have occasional visitors in season (late spring to early fall in the mid-Atlantic), a simple sugar water solution is sufficient: four parts water to one part plain white sugar, dissolved and cooled. No red coloring is needed and no commercial nectar mix is required either. Sugar water is both safer and more effective.
Hang the feeder near the flowers if you have them, clean it every two to three days in warm weather to prevent mold, and refill it with fresh solution. Hummingbirds have excellent spatial memory and will return to the same feeding location year after year if you keep it available.
Best foods: Sugar water (4 parts water to 1 part plain white sugar)
Charger type: Dedicated nectar feeder
Black-capped Chickadee and Carolina Chickadee Chickadees are among the first birds to find a new feeder and among the most common birds year-round. They are fast, fearless by small bird standards, and will go to a windowsill without hesitation once they know the food is still there.
Black oil sunflower seeds and shelled peanuts are their best choices. They take one item at a time, fly to a nearby branch to eat or hide it, and return immediately. A single titmouse can make dozens of trips in a morning. They are one of the species most likely to feed from a window feeder right at eye level and one of the most satisfying regulars.
In the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic, you may have Black-capped Chickadees, Carolina Chickadees, or both depending on your exact location. Their food preferences are essentially identical.
Best foods: Sunflower seeds in black oil, shelled peanuts, suet
Charger type: Tube feeder, platform feeder, windowsill
Rose-breasted Grosbeak The Rose-breasted Grosbeak is a spring and fall migrant throughout much of the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic, passing through in May and again in September. The male is unique: black and white with a bright pink-red triangle on the chest. They are large, striking and unusual at bird feeders, making the visit truly exciting.
Sunflower seeds are their main attraction. A well-stocked rig or feeding tube during migration windows is your best chance of catching one. They might only stay a day or two before leaving again, but if you watch them regularly you won’t miss them.
Best foods: Black oil sunflower seeds, safflower seeds
Charger type: Platform feeder or tube feeder
Pine Siskin and Eastern Towhee Pine siskins are small, streaked finches that erupt into the Mid-Atlantic and Northeast in winter when food supplies further north are insufficient. Some years you’ll barely see one. Other years, they arrive in numbers and descend on New York feeders alongside the goldfinches. A nyjer sock is worth purchasing specifically for this reason.
Eastern Towhees are terrestrial birds with a distinctive call that sounds remarkably like “drink your teeeea.” Males are striking in black, white and rufous. They scratch at dead leaves and seeds scattered on the ground and are not bird feeders in the traditional sense. It is the white millet scattered on the ground near dense shrubs that attracts them. If you have brushy areas or a brush pile in your yard, towhees will find it.
Pine siskin: Nyjer seeds, sunflower chips – Nyjer socks or tube feeder
Eastern Towhee: White common millet, mixed seeds — feeding on the ground near cover
See also
Brown-headed cowbird Cowbirds are ground feeders that eat mixed seeds and will appear at some point in most garden settings. They are worth knowing about because they are a species of brood parasite, meaning the females lay their eggs in the nests of other birds rather than raising their own young. Some birders prefer not to actively encourage them for this reason. If you see them regularly and want to discourage visits, removing seeds scattered on the ground and switching to feeders that require perching will reduce their presence without affecting most other species.
Best foods: Mixture of seeds, millet, crushed corn
Charger type: Ground power
Red-winged Blackbird Red-winged blackbirds are bold, vocal, and undemanding when it comes to food. They eat just about everything: seed mixes, sunflower seeds, millet, cracked corn and suet. Males can be recognized by their bright red and yellow spots on their shoulders. Females are streaked brown and are often confused with large sparrows.
They tend to feed in groups and can dominate a feeding platform when they arrive in numbers. Ground power and a well-stocked platform keep them busy peront. They entertain visitors and their distinctive call is one of the most recognizable spring sounds in the mid-Atlantic.
Best foods: Seed mix, sunflower seeds, millet, cracked corn
Charger type: Platform feeder or ground feeder
A note on hawks and predatory birds Once you start feeding birds consistently and activity in your yard increases, you may start to see predatory birds paying attention. Cooper’s hawks and sharp-shinned hawks in particular are garden eaters in their own right, and a garden full of small songbirds is exactly what they are looking for.
Eliminations happen. They are quick, they surprise you the first time you witness them and can be truly overwhelming. It’s worth knowing in advance that this is a completely natural part of the ecosystem you’re participating in. Hawks need to eat too, and a healthy garden habitat includes predators as well as prey. The presence of hawks is actually a sign that your garden has become a functioning part of the local food web, which is a good thing even when the exact moment is difficult to watch.
If a visit from a hawk disperses your feeder birds, activity will usually return to normal within an hour or two. The songbirds know what to do and they will come back. Some birders find that dense shrubs near feeders provide small birds with a quick escape route and reduce successful strikes by hawks, although it will not eliminate them completely.
Owls are less frequently seen but present in many suburban areas, particularly at dusk and dawn. If you hear a great horned owl or barred owl calling near your yard at night, it’s another sign of a healthy and active local habitat.
Quick Reference: Type of Bird, Food, and Feeder Bird Favorite dish Best feeder Northern Cardinal Sunflower seeds, safflower, peanuts Platform or land Blue Jay Peanuts (in shell) Platform or land Black-eyed Junco White common millet Ground sad dove Millet, sunflower, corn Land or platform House Sparrow Millet, seed mix Tube or mass American goldfinch Nyjer seeds, sunflower chips Nyjer sock or tube Tufted titmouse Safflower, sunflower, peanuts Tube or platform Downy woodpecker Suet, peanuts Upside-down suet cage White-breasted Nuthatch Suet, sunflower seeds Upside-down suet cage Carolina Wren Dried mealworms, suet Low platform or window sill Gray catbird Raisins, fresh fruit, berries Platform or flat American Robin Fresh fruits, berries Platform or water source Northern mockingbird Fresh fruits, berries Platform or water source Tit Sunflower seeds, shelled peanuts Tube, platform, windowsill Rose-breasted Grosbeak Sunflower seeds, safflower Platform or tube feeder Pine Siskin Nyjer seeds, sunflower chips Nyjer sock or tube feeder Eastern Towhee White common millet, seed mix Ground feeding near cover Downy / Hairy Woodpecker Suet, peanuts Upside-down suet cage Red-bellied Woodpecker Suet, peanuts, sunflower seeds Suet cage, windowsill Northern Flicker Suet, peanuts Caged or ground suet Pileated Woodpecker Suet, peanuts Upside-down suet cage Ruby-throated Hummingbird Sugar water (4:1 ratio) Nectar feeder Red-winged Blackbird Mixture of seeds, sunflower, millet Platform or land How diet changes depending on the season The needs of backyard birds change significantly throughout the year, and seasonally adjusting your shows makes a real difference in both the variety and volume of birds you’ll see.
Winter This is when diet matters most. Natural food sources are scarce, temperatures are low, and birds need high-calorie food to maintain body heat during the night. Tallow becomes essential in winter, not just useful. Black oil sunflower seeds, peanuts and safflower should all be saved. A heated water source is also one of the most valuable items you can provide when temperatures drop below freezing.
Spring Migration brings new visitors who may only spend a day or two. Fruits, jellies and mealworms attract orioles and catbirds arriving from the south. Keep mealworms available from early spring through summer for Carolina wrens who may be looking for nearby nesting sites. Fresh water becomes increasingly important as temperatures rise.
Summer Nesting season means that parent birds are making constant trips to feed their young. Mealworms are especially valuable during this time. Nectar feeders should be cleaned every two to three days in warm weather to prevent fermentation and mold. Seeds can spoil more quickly in heat, so check feeders more frequently and throw out anything that is wet or clumped.
Autumn Migration is moving in the opposite direction and another wave of new visitors could pass through. Juncos arrive as temperatures drop. The catbirds are making their final visits before heading south. Increasing your seed production in the fall helps resident birds build up fat reserves before winter. This is also a good time to add or clean suet cages before cold weather demand increases.
How often to fill feeders We fill our feeders two to three times a day: once early in the morning before the first feeding peak and once in the late afternoon. It takes about five minutes in total. The consistency of this schedule is, in our experience, the most important factor in the variety of birds we observe.
Birds learn feeding schedules quickly. Once they know that food reliably appears at certain times in your yard, they begin to route their daily foraging to include your feeders. Skip a few days and it can take almost a week for traffic to return to its previous level. FeederWatch Project at Cornell Lab tracked this behavior through millions of feeder observations and confirms that consistency of supply is the main driver of feeder diversity, more so than the variety of foods offered.
How much you spend depends on the traffic in your yard. Start with a moderate amount and adjust based on how quickly the feeders empty. During the peak winter months, you’ll likely need more than in summer. The goal is for food to be available during peak morning and afternoon activity periods without sitting out long enough to become wet, moldy or stale.
Charger cleaning reminder: Clean feeders every one to two weeks with a diluted bleach solution (1 part bleach to 9 parts water). Rinse thoroughly and dry completely before refilling. Dirty feeders spread disease among birds faster than almost any other factor in a garden setup.
Foods to avoid Some foods that seem harmless are actually problematic for birds. It’s helpful to know these before you start experimenting with what you want to publish. THE University of Florida IFAS Extension publishes detailed research on feeder safety and bird nutrition that has informed several of the recommendations below.
Bread, crackers and chips are nutritionally empty and fill birds without providing them with the calories or nutrients they need to survive. Regular consumption can cause developmental problems in young birds. Salty foods of all kinds. Birds cannot process sodium like humans and even small amounts can cause serious health problems. Chocolate and avocado are both toxic to birds and should never be offered. Moldy or spoiled food can cause fatal respiratory illness. Check feeders regularly and throw out anything that looks wet, clumped or discolored. Raw dried beans contain compounds harmful to birds. Cooked beans are good in small quantities, but raw dried beans should be kept completely away from feeders. Dear can harbor bacteria and fungi dangerous to birds. Sweet water made from plain white sugar is the safe alternative for nectar eaters. Where to buy bird food For everyday seed mixes, the large bags from Costco and Walmart are really good value and cover the most common garden species well. These mixes typically include sunflower seeds, millet, and cracked corn, which together satisfy the preferences of the majority of ground and platform feeders.
If you’re on a tighter budget, the extra-large economy bags from Walmart and Tractor Supply are worth knowing about. Right now, a 40-pound bag at Walmart costs about $19, which is hard to beat on a per-pound basis. The trade-off is that these mixes contain a higher proportion of milo (also called grain sorghum), a less expensive filler seed that many birds are not initially interested in. Milo is not a pest, it is just not the first choice of species like cardinals, finches and chickadees which have more specific preferences.
That said, terrestrial feeders like mourning doves, sparrows, and juncos will eat milo and develop a taste for it over time if it is offered consistently. In winter especially, when birds are less selective and calories matter more than preferences, an economical mix goes further than you might expect. Start with that, see who shows up, and upgrade specific foods for specific species as traffic to your yard grows.
For culinary specialties, some options to know:
Nyjer seed is available in most garden and pet stores and online. Buy it fresh if you can. Old nyjer loses its oil content and the finches will reject it. Dried mealworms are available in specialist wild bird stores and online. We buy them in bulk and store them in an airtight container. Spoil tallow waters are widely available at hardware stores, garden centers and online. Plain tallow or peanut tallow are the most universally appealing options. Avoid very tasty varieties containing fruits or berries, as they may attract unwanted species. Safflower seed is less commonly stocked than sunflower, but most wild bird stores carry them. It’s worth checking to see if cardinals are a priority and squirrels are a problem. If you’re building a complete feeding setup and want advice on which feeders are best for which species, our guide to start birdwatching from home covers charger types in detail plus everything you need to get started.
The simplest way to think about it all You don’t need to buy twelve different foods or match each species perfectly from day one. Start with a basic mix, scatter some on the ground near the cover and see who shows up. Once you know your regulars, adding one or two targeted foods makes an immediate difference.
Sunflower seeds and millet cover the widest range of species. Peanuts bring jays and woodpeckers. Suet brings woodpeckers and nuthatches. Mealworms bring wrens. The fruits bring catbirds and blackbirds. Water brings everyone.
Consistency does the rest.
Which species appeared first once you started feeding? Drop it in the comments. We love to hear what’s visiting other yards.
More than you might enjoy How to start birdwatching from home: The Complete Beginner’s Guide Including Charger Setup, ID Apps, and Viewing Tips Birdwatching on Chincoteague Island, Virginia: one of the best birding destinations on the East Coast Birdwatching at the Merriweather Lakehouse Hotel: a mid-Atlantic getaway with excellent bird watching Simple Ways to Improve the Appearance of Your Yard: native plants and shrubs that also attract more birds Weekend Getaways from Philadelphia: mid-Atlantic trips that go well with bird watching Better Living may earn commissions through affiliate links and may occasionally offer sponsored or partnered content. If you make a purchase through our links, we may receive a small commission at no cost to you.
