4 Answers

Cockatiels are not as long lived as the African Greys. How many years do you feel you will have to dedicate to the bird? African Greys can get aggressive once they hit breeding age. This is not so much the case for a cockatiel. The Greys tend to be a one person bird. Cockatiels just love the attention so will accept more than one person. Both can be trained to talk but Greys as you know have a better ability to mimic words and can remember a much larger vocabulary. Cockatiels are quieter than greys and tend to whistle songs rather than screech or call loudly like a grey. Greys need more attention  than a cockatiel so will want to be out with you watching what you are doing. They are very inquisitive birds so they like to have their brain occupied. There is also the huge difference in price to consider.