Cockatiel owners are not limited to only keeping cockatiels.

With proper housing arrangements, you can really bring any other bird species into your home, even when you already keep cockatiels.

However, you can’t expect your cockatiels to bond with a different species.

It’s extremely rare that this happens.

In most cases, the best companion bird for a cockatiel is another cockatiel.

But if you want another species of bird to care for, you should get one that is more likely to live with your cockatiels in harmony… 

And the 10 listed birds below are most suitable to do that!

Remember, these birds can get along with cockatiels, but likely won’t form a bond with them.

Quick Navigation:

• 1) Another Cockatiel – Best Companion For A Cockatiel
• 2) Budgies
• 3) Rosella Parakeet
• 4) Doves
• 5) Conures
• 6) Lovebirds
• 7) Finches
• 8) Quails
• 9) Bourke Parrot
• 10) Parrotlet
• General Advice On Housing Two Species Of Birds
• FAQ’s About Mixing Bird Species
• Can Cockatiels Breed With Other Birds?
• Can Cockatoos & Cockatiels Live Together?

1) Another Cockatiel – Best Companion For A Cockatiel

As mentioned, the best companion bird for a cockatiel is simply another cockatiel.

If you believe your cockatiel is lonely and you’re looking for a bird to become their companion, another cockatiel is your best choice. Being the same species, they have the highest likely hood of becoming friends.

Even if the cockatiels don’t get along, they’ll peacefully co-exist together when given enough space.

Watching the antics of two or more cockatiels is also very entertaining.

They can fight and become aggressive with each other, but of course, that’s just their nature.

But they’re not completely evil, they can also be very loving to one another, especially if it’s a bonded pair.

Overall, another cockatiel is the best option if you’re looking to get a companion for a lonely cockatiel.

But if you’re looking to add a different species of bird to a household already claimed by cockatiels, the next 9 birds on this list can make great companions to you.

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2) Budgies

Budgies and cockatiels are the two most popular pet birds worldwide, so it’s not surprising that they can live together.

Many people have both species living in the same household or outdoor aviary.

Although they can live as housemates, budgies and cockatiels should not share a cage.

The reason for this is simple:

Budgies are much more assertive and dominant, which is the exact opposite of a cockatiel’s calm and passive personality.

When in close contact, budgies will often annoy the peaceful cockatiel.

The only reason the cockatiel tolerates the budgie is that there is plenty of space.

However, if confined to a small space, the cockatiel would likely lash out in frustration and injure the budgie.

When enough space, food, and water are provided, cockatiels and budgies can live peacefully together.

Of course, they will have their antics.

And due to their social nature, they may even bond with each other.

A budgie can definitely live with a cockatiel within a household as long as they have separate cages and plenty of neutral territories to interact. But I wouldn’t adopt a budgie expecting them to become your cockatiel’s best friend.

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3) Rosella Parakeets

Rosellas are not as cuddly toward humans as cockatiels are, but the birds can both get along together.

Rosella parakeets can be easy-going and calm, which is how cockatiels typically behaviour.

However, rosellas will likely not form a companionship with your cockatiels as they prefer to interact with their own kind, just like every other bird.

Cockatiels on the other hand will likely be very interested in the vibrantly coloured rosella.

As you can see, the rosella peacefully accepts the serenade of the cockatiel.

Rosellas are not known for their aggression, so your cockatiels would not be in any danger sharing spaces with them. Although the rosella may ignore the cockatiel, it’ll still engage in activities alongside the cockatiel, such as eating or training.

As long as there is plenty of room, cockatiels and rosellas can live together peacefully, even if they rarely interact.

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4) Doves

The compatibility between doves and cockatiels can vary greatly.

Although doves and pigeons are naturally calm, they tend to get a bit aggressive around other bird species.

Doves have a signature move, the wing slap, which they have been seen doing to cockatiels.

This behaviour is usually caused by the pigeon feeling the need to defend themselves or their food.

So as long as there is plenty of space and food, there won’t be many fights.

For this reason, it’s best to keep doves and cockatiels in a large aviary as opposed to a regular indoor setting.

However, doves have also been seen showing affection to cockatiels.

That dove wanted to mate with the cockatiel, in case you couldn’t tell.

As I said, the relationship between the two birds can vary greatly.

They can still live together in the same house with no big problems, just not in the same cage.

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5) Conures

Conures are popular pet birds that are often kept with cockatiels and budgies.

For the most part, these two birds will ignore each other and co-exist peacefully within the same household.

Both birds have playful personalities, which can cause them to bond.

There are plenty of videos that show cockatiels and conures preening each other, which is a huge sign of affection from birds.

Although they are similar in size, a conure has a stronger bite than a cockatiel.

Therefore, an aggressive conure should not be allowed near a cockatiel as you never know what could happen.

They definitely shouldn’t be cage mates, even if they get along.

In general, conures are very well suited to living with cockatiels in the same household as long as neither bird shows aggression towards the other.

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6) Lovebirds

Cockatiels and lovebirds typically get along very well.

This is likely due to the highly affectionate nature of the lovebird, as well as the easy-going personality of the cockatiel.

The only situation that would cause these two birds to fight is if they were enclosed in a small cage together with little food.

Both parrots can become territorial and aggressive in this situation.

Lovebirds can also bond strongly with a cockatiel if there isn’t another lovebird around.

As you can hear from this video, cockatiels and lovebirds have very similar sound frequencies.

This probably reinforces their bond.

Lovebirds can live with cockatiels in a household or large outdoor aviary, but despite their friendly personalities, should not be kept in the same cage.

Here’s another cute interaction with the two birds:

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7) Finches

There are two main ways that you would house finches and cockatiels together:

1. Keep them in separate large indoor cages while only letting the cockatiels out. Finches are rarely let out of the cage due to their low trainability.

2. Keep them both in large, spacious outdoor aviaries.

It’s a good idea to keep the more dominant finches, such as zebra finches, with the shyer cockatiels.

This will give the much smaller finches a way to stand up to the cockatiels if they chose to bully them.

But cockatiels aren’t known for bullying smaller birds.

Credit to Mr Aviary on YouTube for that helpful idea.

Although finches can live with cockatiels, they normally don’t become companions because finches prefer to socialise with their own kind.

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8) Quails

Quails are typically aviary-only birds.

They normally aren’t kept as household pets.

These birds are ground-dwelling foragers that usually won’t fly unless they need to.

Their care requirements are different to that of cockatiels and other parrots.

Both cockatiels and quails can be kept in the same aviary, but they’ll rarely interact.

Cockatiels will stay up high in the aviary perches while the quails stick to ground foraging.

Although they won’t become companions, quails will live peacefully with cockatiels in a spacious aviary.

Even if they decide to interact with each other, both birds are naturally calm and non-aggressive, so there wouldn’t be any fights.

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9) Bourke Parrots

The Bourke’s parrot is a colourful bird with an easy-going personality.

Many owners keep these birds with cockatiels, budgies, and other similar-sized parrots.

Like cockatiels, the Bourke’s parrot is active and playful, but they can also be pretty calm when they need a break.

Just look at how calm this Bourke is toward this singing cockatiel:

Due to their similar personalities, Bourke parrots can become companions to cockatiels, especially if raised together or if there are no other birds around.

Bourke parrots have a very similar diet to cockatiels, feeding on seeds, pellets, fruits, and vegetables.

They also enjoy the same treats, such as millet spray.

These birds can live with cockatiels in a household or outdoor aviary.

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10) Parrotlet (Pocket Parrot)

Similar to budgies, parrotlets are small, fast-paced birds with lots of energy.

They can be a bit feisty, becoming territorial over spaces such as their cage and breeding site.

So as long as they both have plenty of space, cockatiels and parrotlets can live with each other within the same household.

Cockatiels and parrotlets can even bond with each other under the right conditions.

But don’t let this video mislead you, not all parrotlets will enjoy the company of a cockatiel.

Due to their naturally assertive personality, parrotlets may decide to bully the much shyer cockatiels.

When letting the two interact outside of the cage, supervision is essential.

This is the case with most interactions with birds of different species.

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General Advice On Housing Two Species Of Birds

If you decide to keep two species of bird in the same household, you must be careful.

Interactions between different species can be extremely unpredictable. You can never be 100% certain that the birds will be friendly, aggressive, or ignorant toward each other.

Just because they can be affectionate, doesn’t mean they will.

Introducing two species of birds to each other should be done in neutral territory to prevent aggressive behaviour.

Even smaller birds (budgies, parrotlets) have no trouble attacking larger cockatiels.

Interactions between two bird species depend entirely on the personalities of the individual birds.

Each individual bird has a different personality, which may or may not be compatible with your cockatiels.

When letting two species interact, you must:

• Always be supervising

• Observe for aggressive, territorial, or defensive behaviour

• Separate them if they start showing signs of stress or discomfort

If the birds don’t react well to each other, it might be best to not let them interact again.

You should not get a different species of bird in hopes of giving your single cockatiel a companion…

A cockatiel’s best friends will always be humans and other cockatiel birds.

If you want a different bird species while already owning cockatiels, you should be prepared to keep them separate as they probably won’t get along as shown in cute internet videos.

FAQ’s About Mixing Bird Species

In this section, I want to help answer some commonly asked questions about keeping two species of birds.

Can Cockatiels Breed With Other Birds?

This is a galatiel:

As the name suggests, this bird is a crossbreed between a cockatiel and a galah cockatoo.

There have also been other cockatoo crossbreeds, such as the corella x cockatiel and the sulphur-crested cockatoo x galah cockatoo.

Pretty much all birds can interbreed with birds of the same genus.

For example, most types of cockatoos can interbreed with each other, but they cannot breed with another genus of bird, such as a macaw.

So yes, cockatiels can breed with other birds in the cockatoo family.

Although, it is not recommended to do this intentionally for ethical reasons.

Can Cockatoos & Cockatiels Live Together

This one is a complex matter, but yes, cockatiels can live with cockatoos under the right conditions.

Obviously, the main concern with letting these two birds interact is the size difference.

A cockatoo could seriously injure the much smaller cockatiel if it really wanted to.

So, if you’re going to keep both birds, they must have their cages in separate rooms, their interactions must be carefully supervised, and you also need to give more attention to the cockatoo.

Cockatoos are jealous birds that have injured other birds that got more attention from their owners.

No matter what bird species you adopt, there are important steps you need to take before letting them interact with the cockatiels you already own.

First, there’s the quarantine period…

A newly adopted bird can easily bring diseases into your home, so isolating them for some time is crucial.

Secondly, there’s the proper introduction…

There’s a super specific way that you must introduce a new bird to your cockatiels to help set them up for the best possible relationship.

That’s all explained in the article linked below.

Thank you for reading 🙂

Learn How To Safely Introduce A New Bird To Your Flock

Featured image source: Unsplash