The present invention provides a sheet feeding apparatus which includes a first conveying device for conveying a sheet stack formed in a stepped fashion by offsetting each sheet by a predetermined distance in a predetermined direction toward the predetermined direction or toward an opposite direction, a separating device disposed at a downstream side of the first conveying means in the predetermined direction and adapted to separate an outermost sheet from the sheet stack being fed by the first conveying device, a second conveying device for conveying the sheet separated by the separating device, and control device for controlling the first conveying device in such a manner that the first conveying device is activated to convey the sheet stack in the predetermined direction and the first conveying device is stopped after the sheet separated by the separating device starts to be conveyed by the second conveying device.