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This study used 1,200 male Ross 308 broiler birds to evaluate efficacy of 3 sources of trace minerals: inorganic, organic, and a coated trace minerals premix, at either one inclusion dose throughout the life cycle of the birds, or the coated minerals at a descending supplemental pattern, on growth performance, carcass traits, footpad health, minerals deposition, and the amount of supplemental trace minerals required per bird to reach market weight. The birds were randomly allocated to 4 dietary treatments with 10 pen-replicates (30 birds/pen) each, fed on corn and soybean meal basal diet, supplemented with 4 schemes of trace minerals: 1) inorganic trace minerals (ITM , in mg/kg diet: Cu 15, Fe 40, Zn and Mn each 100, Se 0.3, and I 1.0); 2) organic trace minerals (OTM , of Zn, Cu, Mn, and Se, chelated with DL-methionine), of which the levels of Zn, Cu, and Mn were one third of those in 1); Treatments 3) and 4) tested a coated trace minerals' premix (CTM , metal polysaccharide, MinCo) at either one dose of 300 g/mt for the entire life cycle (CTM1), or a descending pattern (CTM2, 350/250/200 g/mt, resp. for starter, grower, and finisher). The results showed that all schemes supported the birds to reach 2.65 kg live weight within 35 d of age, at feed conversion ratio below 1.40. No differences were observed in carcass traits, footpad health and minerals deposition in the liver. The birds on the ITM consumed supplemental Cu 54.1 mg, Zn and Mn each 360.8 mg per bird, those on OTM and CTM at a fixed dose ingested about only one third of those 3 trace minerals, and the birds on the descending supplemental scheme consumed Cu 11.0 mg, Zn and Mn each 101.3 mg per bird only. In conclusion, comparing with the classical usage of ITM, supplementing OTM or CTM at a fixed dose can significantly reduce the usage of trace minerals, and using CTM on a descending pattern can save supplemental Cu by 80%, Zn and Mn by 72%, without negative impact on performance, carcass traits and footpad health. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]