how to tell your chickens apart?

You'll learn to know them, and each will have their own personality. You could use colour bands.

 

If you had just two of the same breed, i think you would find that you would quickly be able to tell them apart. Their personalities and little differences in their appearance will likely start to stand out to you. Six or nine of the same breed is a whole different story.

 

I got four Barred Rocks at 2 days old in July. Petunia turned out to be a rooster, so it was easy to distinguish him from Marsha, Jan and Cindy, but I cannot tell the three girls apart AT ALL. Leg bands sounds like a good idea to me, but I don't know whether they're into accessorizing.

 

We have fifteen standard hens of an assortment of breeds, at least two of each breed. They are all distinguishable to me except for two of my Buff Orps: nearly identical enormous round yellow puff balls. One puff ball is peckish and disagreeable much of the time however, so that helps me tell them apart much of the time. Also, we have two Cinnamon Queen pullets, nearly identical too. One has more blackish tinge on her main feathers, so in good light, we know her from her sister. The rest are SO clearly unique that it's fun when we have visitors and make reference to Matilda over there or Lolita here. People unfamiliar to them just think they look like black or white or red chickens. You'll learn your own flock, trust me! ~G

 

I have 24 BO hens I know about seven by looks, three by personality and the rest all look alike. Someone mentioned zip ties. You can use the small ones, different colors. They cut off easily with wire cutters. I have the 'feather puller' tie wrapped. I pick her up and file the sharp edges off of her beak. It seems to have stopped the problem, so I need to be able to pick her out of the crowd and keep her manicured.
You can try that in the beginning and then remove it when you have them figured out.

 

When they were small, it was very hard to tell my dark and buff brahma hens apart. My lights have always been easy, since they have very distinct markings.
As they've gotten older it's become easier. They all have very different personalities.

 

I have 5 barnevelders, and 2 hamburgs and it can be hard to take them apart. The hamburgs are easy as Wonky Wanda has a wonky tail. The other one is Princess (my DD named her, so don't blame me...lol).

Of my barnies, one has a blue-gray splash up her leg (kinda like a birth mark) - she is Marisa, Vera Vinegar T1ts (named after an evil prison officer in a tv show from the 80's in Australia - Prisoner) is the only one with the complete tail - she is the resident meanie boss chicken who was pecking and bullying everyone when we first got them, Bea (also named from the tv show) is 2nd in charge and is now the main pecker (but never pecks Vera), then there are two more, who we haven't really named yet.

I find it difficult to tell them apart, except Marisa and Vera... need to keep watching chicken tv and eventually I hope to be able to tell. They do have different feather patterns though, so eventually I will learn... maybe...

 

I can't tell my Leghorns apart except for the leg bands, and even that doesn't work very well when they are in the nest box or roosting sitting on their legs

 

Yes, you will learn them in time. Each hen has a different personality and markings! I can actually tell you which one of my hens laid what egg! My Partner said I was crazy until he tested me, he stayed in the hen coop with the ladies and waited for them to lay and then marked the eggs with a grease pencil and then asked me to tell him who laid what! Now mind you we have 24 hens of all types and sizes. Me 100%, and him baffled. I love it when I am RIGHT!!!!!