This study aimed to assess household dietary diversity and associated factors among residents in major tef growing areas of Central Ethiopia. Data were collected from 240 randomly selected rural households from Minjar Shenkora and Ada’a woredas of Central Ethiopia. The ordered probit model was used to identify the associated factors of explanatory variables on the dependent variable. Only 30% of the total respondents, as evidenced by their consumption of seven or more different food groups during the previous 24 hours, had high dietary diversity. More than 70% of households were found with inadequate dietary diversity. Results further indicated that several factors associated with household dietary diversity, including household size, livestock ownership, credit availability, off-farm activity, and market distance. Therefore, local institutions and regional governments ought to give households access to education so they may increase their understanding of the health and nutritional advantages of a varied diet, as well as promote and encourage the availability of home gardening strategies, expand access to agricultural technologies, and thus diversify rural households' diets. Market infrastructure should be enhanced to facilitate household access to markets, which could help improve dietary diversity.