Cockatiels are gentle, social birds, and their feeding needs sit between the tiny budgie and the big parrot. A typical cockatiel weighs around 90 grams and eats roughly twelve grams of food a day, which is about thirteen percent of its body weight. This free cockatiel food calculator turns your bird weight into daily grams of seed, pellets, and fresh food, with a clear limit on sunflower seed.
The split is designed to keep a cockatiel healthy without letting fatty seed take over. Seed mix is fifty percent, pellets are thirty percent for balanced nutrition, and fresh food is twenty percent for vitamins and variety. Sunflower seed is capped at ten percent of the seed portion, because cockatiels love sunflower and will pick it out first, leaving the balanced part of the mix behind.
Using the tool is simple. Weigh your cockatiel in grams on kitchen scales, enter the number, and press Calculate food. A 90-gram bird gets about 11.7 grams a day: 5.9 grams of seed, 3.5 grams of pellets, and 2.3 grams of fresh food, with sunflower held to about 0.6 grams. Those small numbers are normal for a bird of this size, and measuring in grams stops a heaped spoon from doubling the ration.
Sunflower deserves attention because it is the classic cockatiel trap. A mix heavy in sunflower looks generous, but it is high in fat and low in vitamin A, and a bird that eats sunflower all day can gain weight while missing nutrients. If your mix is mostly sunflower, switch to a cockatiel mix based on millet and canary seed, and keep sunflower as a small treat or training reward rather than a staple.
Fresh food keeps a cockatiel diet interesting and balanced. Offer washed apple, carrot, broccoli, sweetcorn, or leafy greens in small pieces, and remove anything uneaten after a few hours. Many cockatiels enjoy leafy branches or a spray of millet as enrichment, but fresh food should be a daily habit, not a rare extra. Avoid avocado, chocolate, onion, and garlic, which are unsafe for birds.
Cockatiels also need calcium and clean water every day. A cuttlebone in the cage gives calcium for bones and beak health, and females in breeding condition need it most. Change drinking water daily and wash the bowl, since seed husks and droppings find their way in. A shallow bath a few times a week helps feather condition and is usually greeted with great enthusiasm.
Weight checks catch problems early, because cockatiels hide illness until it is advanced. Weigh weekly at the same time, before breakfast, and write the result down. A steady fall, fluffed feathers, sleeping more than usual, or a change in droppings are all reasons to see an avian vet promptly. Re-run the calculator whenever the weight shifts, so portions follow the bird.
Feeding routine matters too. Offer the main mix in the morning, add fresh food mid-morning, and remove soft leftovers before bedtime. Keep food bowls away from perches where droppings can fall in, and wash bowls regularly. If you have more than one cockatiel, use separate bowls or watch that a bold bird is not eating the timid one share.
Moulting changes appetite for a few weeks each year, and cockatiels in heavy moult may eat a little more while growing new feathers. Keep portions steady, add a little extra fresh food, and avoid sudden diet changes during moult, since the body is already under strain. Night routine matters too: cover the cage at a regular hour, keep the room dark and quiet, and let the bird sleep ten to twelve hours, because a rested cockatiel eats better and sings more the next day.
This calculator gives a planning estimate for a healthy adult cockatiel, not a medical prescription. Young, breeding, moulting, or unwell birds may need more, and your avian vet can fine-tune the amounts. It is free, it needs no sign-up, and it runs entirely in your browser.