How to Get a Duck in Stardew Valley
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Stardew Valley
How to Get a Duck in Stardew Valley
Tips
Ducks are a solid mid-game animal investment — more expensive than chickens but producing more valuable eggs and the unique Duck Feather item. The every-other-day production schedule means they require less daily attention than chickens while still contributing meaningfully to your artisan income. A Big Coop split between chickens and ducks with Mayonnaise Machines processing everything produces a reliable daily income that scales well through Year 2 and beyond.
⚡ Quick Answer
Step by Step
Ducks require a Big Coop — upgrade your basic Coop at Robin’s for 10,000g + 400 Wood + 150 Stone. Once built buy a Duck from Marnie’s Ranch for 4,000g. Ducks produce Duck Eggs every other day and occasionally drop a Duck Feather at maximum friendship — a rare item worth 250g used in several gifting and crafting recipes.
1
Build or upgrade to a Big Coop. If you already have a basic Coop, Robin can upgrade it to a Big Coop for 10,000g + 400 Wood + 150 Stone — takes 3 days. If starting fresh, build the Big Coop directly for the same cost. The Big Coop holds up to 8 animals and adds an Incubator for hatching eggs into new birds for free.
2
Buy a Duck from Marnie. Visit Marnie’s Ranch south of your farm and select «Purchase Animals.» Ducks cost 4,000g each — significantly more than chickens. You can name your Duck and it moves into the Big Coop immediately. Buy at least 2 to make the most of the coop capacity.
3
Feed and pet your Duck daily. Fill the feeding trough with Hay every morning and right-click the Duck to pet it — this builds friendship. On sunny days open the Coop door to let Ducks graze outside, which gives a larger happiness boost than indoor feeding alone. Ducks at full friendship produce more consistently.
4
Collect Duck Eggs every other day. Unlike chickens which produce daily, Ducks lay an egg every 2 days. Pick up the egg from inside the Coop by right-clicking it. Duck Eggs sell for 95g raw or process them in a Mayonnaise Machine to make Duck Mayonnaise worth 375g (525g with Artisan) — a significant upgrade over selling raw.
5
Wait for a Duck Feather drop at max friendship. Once your Duck reaches 5 hearts it has a chance to drop a Duck Feather instead of an egg on some days. Duck Feathers are rare — not every 5-heart Duck produces one regularly. They sell for 250g raw or 500g with Artisan processing, and are a loved gift for Elliott making them valuable for friendship building.
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Duck Mayonnaise is worth more than chicken Mayonnaise — process every Duck Egg in a Mayonnaise Machine before selling. At 375g per jar (525g Artisan) versus 95g for a raw egg, the processing multiplier is enormous and takes only a few hours of in-game time.
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Hatch Ducks from Duck Eggs using the Incubator — place a Duck Egg in the Big Coop’s Incubator and it hatches into a new Duck after about 9 days. This eliminates the need to buy additional Ducks from Marnie, saving 4,000g per bird.
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Duck Feathers are Elliott’s loved gift — if you’re pursuing Elliott’s romance, collecting Duck Feathers and gifting them twice weekly is one of the fastest ways to reach 10 hearts with him. Keep a few in your bag for whenever you run into him around town.
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Upgrade to a Deluxe Coop when possible — it adds an Auto-Grabber that collects Duck Eggs automatically every morning, eliminating the daily manual collection and freeing up time for other activities.