Last updated Oct 24, 2023
Updated by
Medically reviewed by
Mallory Crusta / Cats.com
Whether wet, dry, raw, or freshly cooked, the best cat food honors your cat’s needs as an obligate carnivore. It’s rich in animal-sourced protein, has the right amount of fatty acids, and doesn’t spike your cat’s blood sugar with excessive carbohydrates.
After researching feline nutrition and reviewing all kinds of cat foods, we learned which brands and products are worthy of your cat’s bowl—and which ones aren’t.
With taste, nutrition, and quality ingredients always top of mind, here are 10 of the best cat foods you can feel good about feeding your cat.
At a Glance: Best Cat Food to Buy in 2023
Smalls Fresh Cat Food
- Fresh food made with human-grade ingredients
- Single source of high-quality animal protein
- Very low in carbohydrates
Open Farm RawMix
- Open Farm offers superior transparency compared to other brands
- Rich in animal-derived protein
- Seems to be made from high-quality ingredients
Nulo Freestyle Turkey & Chicken Recipe Grain-Free Canned Cat Food
- Primarily animal-based recipe with low carb content
- Rich in moisture to support your cat’s hydration
- Plenty of omega-3 fatty acids for skin and coat health
RAWZ 96% Turkey & Turkey Liver Pate Canned Cat Food
- Made with a single source of animal protein
- Negligible carbohydrate content
- Rich in moisture and animal-sourced fat
Open Farm Freeze-Dried Raw Cat Food
- Gently freeze-dried
- Grain-free, legume-free
- 100% traceable ingredients
Caru Classic Turkey Stew Grain-Free Wet Cat Food
- Made with a single source of animal protein
- Rich in hydrating moisture
- Cats seem to like the flavor and texture
Koha Wet Cat Food
- No heavy carb fillers like corn, soy, wheat, or potatoes
- Ideal for sensitive stomachs and inappetent cats who need encouragement to eat
Tiki Cat Puka Puka Luau Succulent Chicken
- Rich in nourishing animal protein
- High moisture content helps to flush the urinary tract
- Low ash shouldn’t contribute to crystal formation
Weruva Truluxe Steak Frites
- Offers a blend of vitamins, minerals, and taurine: essential for your older kitty’s vision and heart health
- Made with grass-fed beef
- 100% grain-free
Wellness CORE Kitten Turkey & Chicken Liver Recipe Classic Pate Review
- Ultra-soft pâté texture is easy for kittens to eat
- Rich in protein and calories
- Hydrating canned food
Top Picks Explained
Why Trust Cats.com
We personally purchased and tested the foods on this list. With hundreds of cat food reviews under our belt, we’ve acquired a strong handle on what makes one cat food rise above the rest. During our research on the best cat foods, we considered a range of feline health concerns and pet parent lifestyles. Then we went to work analyzing ingredient lists, contacting companies directly, and taking a deep look at customer feedback.
While testing these products with our own cats, we examined the food’s texture, smell, consistency, packaging, and of course, palatability.
In addition, we tested several recipes at an ISO 17025-certified food testing and analysis lab. This gives us the precise macronutrient and micronutrient content of each recipe, looking at microbial content, yeast, mold, and heavy metals.
Also Read: Why We Lab Test Cat Food And How To Interpret The Reports
Finally, we consulted seven veterinarians to get their professional opinion on what makes a great cat food.
Our Veterinary Advisors:
- Dr. Sarah Wooten, DVM, CVJ
- Dr. Chris Vanderhoof, DVM, MPH
- Dr. Sarah Reidenbach, DVM
- Dr. Chyrle Bonk, DVM
- Dr. Jamie Whittenburg, DVM
- Dr. Albert Ahn, DVM
- Dr. Elizabeth Youens, DVM
The Best Cat Food on the Market: Our Top 10 Picks
At the top of the list is Smalls Cat Food. It’s hard to beat this wet food’s combination of outstanding protein content, emphasis on animal-sourced ingredients, and the exclusion of additives that might harm your cat over time.
Our rankings are determined by a variety of factors, including quality of ingredients, price, and popularity, among others. Each cat will have different needs and preferences, so while Smalls is our top choice, it may not be ideal for your unique cat. To help you choose the right food for your cat, we’ve broken down our recommendations by type, price category, and other key considerations.
#1 Overall Best: Smalls Fresh Cat Food
- Made In: United States
- Guaranteed Protein: 13% Min
- Age Range: All Life Stages
- Calories Per Ounce: 40
- Typical Cost Per Day: $4.00 per day
Smalls is a fresh cat food delivery service that uses human-grade ingredients, including premium proteins like chicken, turkey, beef, and fish. Choose from minced-style recipes or classic pâté to provide your cat with protein-rich, low-carb cat food that’s formulated for cats of all life stages.
The brand’s Fresh Ground Bird recipe features chicken and chicken liver as its top two ingredients. With green beans, kale, and dandelion greens as the only plant ingredients, this formula is very low in carbohydrates. It offers plenty of animal-sourced omega-3 fatty acids and is rich in hydrating moisture.
Though Smalls doesn’t portion out your cat’s meals for you, they do provide detailed feeding recommendations according to your cat’s calorie requirements. Each package contains about five ounces of food. Smalls cat food is delivered frozen, so you’ll need to thaw the package overnight in the fridge first before feeding.
When you place your first order, you’ll receive a sampler pack catered to your cat’s protein preferences and dietary requirements. You can adjust your meal plan, pause deliveries, or cancel your subscription through the customer portal, via email, or by text. Every Smalls subscription includes free treats for life.
Ingredients
Chicken, Chicken Liver, Green Beans, Water Sufficient for Processing, Dried Yeast, Tricalcium Phosphate, Kale, Magnesium Proteinate, Potassium Chloride, Choline Chloride, Dandelion Greens, Dried Kelp, Taurine, Zinc Proteinate, Iron Proteinate, Cod Liver Oil, Salt, Niacin Supplement, Vitamin E Supplement, Vitamin A Supplement, Copper Proteinate, Manganese Proteinate, Thiamine Mononitrate, D-Calcium Pantothenate, Pyridoxine Hydrochloride, Vitamin D3 Supplement, Riboflavin Supplement, Vitamin B12 Supplement, Folic Acid, Sodium Selenite, Biotin.
Ingredients We Liked: Chicken, Chicken Liver, Cod Liver Oil
Ingredients We Didn’t Like: None
Guaranteed Analysis
Dry Matter Basis
Caloric Weight Basis
What We Liked:
- Fresh food made with human-grade ingredients
- Single source of high-quality animal protein
- Very low in carbohydrates
- Rich source of hydrating moisture
What We Didn’t Like:
- Only available as a subscription plan
- No phone support (text and email only)
#2 Best Dry Food: Open Farm RawMix
- Made In: United States
- Guaranteed Protein: 38% min
- Age Range: All Life Stages
- Calories Per Ounce: 105
- Typical Cost Per Day: $1.15 per day
Open Farm is a newer pet food brand that’s earned our respect with excellent transparency and end-to-end quality, including detailed information on ingredient sourcing, partnerships with ethical suppliers, and typical analyses available for each recipe.
What distinguishes Open Farm’s RawMix from other dry foods is its inclusion of freeze-dried raw ingredients. The line’s Grain-Free Open Prairie recipe features nutrient-packed kibble coated in a blend of bone broth and freeze-dried raw meat.
While this formula is carbohydrate-heavy, we like that it contains more animal-derived protein than other Open Farm formulas. This recipe derives its animal protein from chicken, turkey, and menhaden fish meal. Additional protein comes from chicken liver, chicken neck, and whitefish meal. This recipe is fairly low in fat, so it isn’t as calorie-dense as others on this list.
If you’ve been following Cats.com for a while, you may notice that this food has replaced Dr. Elsey’s cleanprotein dry food as our favorite kibble. While the Open Farm food is less carnivore-oriented and higher in carbohydrates, we were concerned by a string of complaints about Dr. Elsey’s food.
While new customers will probably have a great experience with Dr. Elsey’s, a lot of existing customers had trouble with an apparent change in texture and flavor, and they found that their cats were no longer interested in eating it.
Read our full Dr. Elsey’s review here.
Ingredients
Ingredients We Liked: Chicken, Turkey, Menhaden Fish Meal, Ocean Whitefish Meal, Chicken Liver, Chicken Neck, Turkey Gizzard
Ingredients We Didn’t Like: Peas, Chickpeas, Lentils, Coconut Oil, Sunflower Oil
Guaranteed Analysis
Dry Matter Basis
Caloric Weight Basis
What We Liked:
- Open Farm offers superior transparency compared to other brands
- Rich in animal-derived protein
- Seems to be made from high-quality ingredients
What We Didn’t Like:
- Fairly pricey option
- Main sources of added fat are plant-based: coconut oil and sunflower oil
- High in carbohydrates
#3 Budget Pick: Nulo Freestyle Canned Cat Food
- Made In: United States
- Guaranteed Protein: 11% Min
- Age Range: All Life Stages
- Calories Per Ounce: 35
- Typical Cost Per Day: $1.98 per day
For an affordable option that doesn’t compromise on quality, consider moisture-rich Nulo Freestyle Wet Food. Nulo’s Turkey and Chicken Recipe is meat-based and features fresh turkey, chicken, and chicken liver with supplemental protein from fresh tuna. Menhaden fish oil is a species-appropriate source of omega-3 fatty acids to help support your cat’s skin and coat.
While this recipe does contain a few added plant ingredients, the overall carbohydrate content is still low—especially in comparison to the average dry food. It doesn’t contain grains or difficult-to-digest beans and legumes, but it does contain added fiber from cranberries and pumpkin.
The fiber content of this recipe is within the appropriate range for cats but it’s worth noting that certain starchy thickeners like guar gum have been linked to soft stools in some cats. That said, based on customer reviews, cats mostly enjoy this recipe and tend to tolerate it well.
Ingredients
Ingredients We Liked: Turkey, Chicken, Turkey Liver, Tuna, Menhaden Fish Oil
Ingredients We Didn’t Like: Guar Gum
Guaranteed Analysis
Dry Matter Basis
Caloric Weight Basis
What We Liked:
- Primarily animal-based recipe with low carb content
- Rich in moisture to support your cat’s hydration
- Plenty of omega-3 fatty acids for skin and coat health
- Doesn’t contain grains, fillers, or artificial additives
What We Didn’t Like:
- Somewhat expensive
- Guar gum may cause soft stools in some cats
#4 Premium Pick: RAWZ Canned Cat Food
- Made In: Thailand
- Guaranteed Protein: 11% Min
- Age Range: All Life Stages
- Calories Per Ounce: 37
- Typical Cost Per Day: $3.25 per day
RAWZ Wet Cat Food is made in a human-grade food facility, with zero meat by-products, artificial flavors, colors, or preservatives. Another factor that sets this line apart from other wet food brands is that it isn’t thickened with carrageenan (linked to intestinal inflammation) or gum thickeners like guar gum and xanthan gum (known to cause loose stools).
The RAWZ Chicken and Chicken Liver Pâté is made with 96% chicken and chicken liver. The recipe’s single protein makes RAWZ a good choice for cats with food allergies or sensitivities. And the high moisture content and short ingredient list make it easily digestible as well.
This recipe also contains fenugreek seeds and dandelion greens, but given the low carbohydrate content of the food overall, they don’t appear to contribute significantly in terms of the product’s composition.
Some cat owners may also appreciate that RAWZ donates 100% of their profits to benefit individuals who have experienced spinal cord or traumatic brain injuries. A portion of the proceeds goes toward providing these individuals with service dogs.
Ingredients
Ingredients We Liked: Turkey, Turkey Liver
Ingredients We Didn’t Like: None
Guaranteed Analysis
Dry Matter Basis
Caloric Weight Basis
What We Liked:
- Made with a single source of animal protein
- Negligible carbohydrate content
- Rich in moisture and animal-sourced fat
- Contains 96% turkey and turkey liver
What We Didn’t Like:
- Fairly expensive, over $3.25 per day
- Some reviewers don’t like the food’s consistency
#5 Best Raw: Open Farm Freeze-Dried Raw Cat Food
- Made In: United States
- Guaranteed Protein: 47%
- Age Range: All Life Stages
- Calories Per Ounce: 142
- Typical Cost Per Day: $4.17 per day
Open Farm has an outstanding reputation for transparency and safety. If you want to give your cat the benefits of raw, they offer a freeze-dried line that’s prepared from high-quality ingredients and delivers on nutrition. Their Chicken and Salmon Freeze-Dried Recipe is made with free-range chicken and sustainably sourced wild salmon.
What’s more, Open Farm is refreshingly transparent with its sourcing. To get a true picture of what you’re putting in your cat’s bowl, customers can trace where each ingredient comes from on the company’s website.
During the freeze-drying process, moisture is removed, so we always recommend rehydrating with warm water.
Ingredients
Ingredients We Liked: Chicken with Ground Bone, Salmon, Chicken Neck, Chicken Liver, Taurine
Ingredients We Didn’t Like: Salt
Guaranteed Analysis
Dry Matter Basis
Caloric Weight Basis
What We Liked:
- Gently freeze-dried
- Grain-free, legume-free
- 100% traceable ingredients
- Rich in animal-derived protein
- Organic fruits & vegetables are always 100% non-GMO
What We Didn’t Like:
- Low moisture content before rehydration
- Expensive
#6 Best for Picky Eaters: Caru Classic Turkey Stew Grain-Free Wet Cat Food
- Made In: United States
- Guaranteed Protein: 11% Min
- Age Range: All Life Stages
- Calories Per Ounce: 30
- Typical Cost Per Day: $3.39 per day
Cats can be finicky in their food preferences; some prefer certain types, flavors, and textures. If you’re having trouble getting your cat to eat traditional canned or dry cat foods, this stew-style recipe from Caru might pique their interest.
Caru’s grain-free Turkey Stew is made with a single source of animal protein: fresh turkey. The food is gently cooked in turkey broth for flavor and moisture, so it supports your cat’s hydration as well. That said, some reviewers comment that the food contains too much liquid and verges on soupy. When it comes to the texture of cat food, your cat has the final say. It also doesn’t hurt that the dry matter carbohydrate content of this recipe is very low, under 5%.
This wet cat food is pretty expensive, costing over $4 a day to feed your cat. It does, however, come in resealable cardboard cartons rather than cans, so it’s easy to store the leftovers if you prefer to mix it with another food.
Ingredients
Ingredients We Liked: Turkey, Egg Whites
Ingredients We Didn’t Like: Tapioca Starch
Guaranteed Analysis
Dry Matter Basis
Caloric Weight Basis
What We Liked:
- Made with a single source of animal protein
- Rich in hydrating moisture
- Cats seem to like the flavor and texture
- Very low carbohydrate content
What We Didn’t Like:
- Fairly expensive
- Cardboard cartons can be tricky to open
#7 Best for Sensitive Stomachs: Koha Wet Cat Food
- Made In: Canada
- Guaranteed Protein: 8% min.
- Age Range: Adult cats
- Calories Per Ounce: 38
- Typical Cost Per Day: $2.70 per day
With just one protein, Koha Limited Diet wet foods are a good match for cats with digestive problems or food sensitivities. They boast a high moisture content and up to 96% real meat for your little carnivore.
Koha’s Limited Ingredient Duck Pâté is made with a single meat source, making it easier to digest. The recipe also includes New Zealand green-lipped mussels for joint support, cranberries for urinary health, and pumpkin for digestive health. It has a decadent, creamy texture and taste that should appeal to most cats, even those who need encouragement to eat.
Ingredients
Ingredients We Liked: Duck, Green-Lipped Mussel, Taurine, Tumeric
Ingredients We Didn’t Like: None
Guaranteed Analysis
Dry Matter Basis
Caloric Weight Basis
What We Liked:
- No heavy carb fillers like corn, soy, wheat, or potatoes
- Ideal for sensitive stomachs and inappetent cats who need encouragement to eat
What We Didn’t Like:
- Some recipes can be extremely expensive
- High in phosphorus
#8 Best for Weight Loss: Tiki Cat Puka Puka Luau Wet Food
- Made In: Thailand
- Guaranteed Protein: 16% Min
- Age Range: Adult
- Calories Per Ounce: 25
- Typical Cost Per Day: $5.29 per day
If you’re looking for a healthy way for your cat to lose weight, the right food can help. Consider Tiki Cat’s Puka Puka Luau Wet Food. The protein content of the brand’s Succulent Chicken Recipe is incredibly high at about 80% measured as dry matter, and there is no significant carbohydrate content. It’s definitely worth noting the very low calorie and fat content of this food.
This recipe from Tiki Cat is low in ash, which will help lower the risk of urinary crystal formation. This recipe also has enough moisture to flush the urinary tract and has a species-appropriate pH that won’t cause crystal formation.
We’ll admit, this food is very expensive to feed as a staple diet. However, the cost may be less than a prescription diet formulated to support urinary tract health.
Ingredients
Ingredients We Liked: Chicken
Ingredients We Didn’t Like: Sunflower Seed Oil
Guaranteed Analysis
Dry Matter Basis
Caloric Weight Basis
What We Liked:
- Rich in nourishing animal protein
- High moisture content helps to flush the urinary tract
- Low ash shouldn’t contribute to crystal formation
- Species-appropriate pH helps keep things in balance
What We Didn’t Like:
- Contains sunflower oil instead of species-appropriate animal fat
- Low fat content isn’t right for every cat
- Very low in fiber
#9 Best for Seniors: Weruva Truluxe Steak Frites
- Made In: Thailand
- Guaranteed Protein: 10% min.
- Calories Per Ounce: 21
- Typical Cost Per Day: $5.24 per day
Weruva wet foods are known for high moisture levels and animal-based proteins. Their Truluxe line is regarded as the brand’s highest-quality foods, made with unique meats and an emphasis on hydration.
Weruva’s Truluxe Steak Frites Dinner with Beef & Pumpkin is served in a sumptuous gravy—which not only entices reluctant eaters to finish their dinner, but also adds moisture to your senior cat’s diet.
What sets this food apart from the rest is its low phosphorus content. While still above AAFCO’s minimums for adult cats, the food has lower phosphorus content than most. This may help to support kidney health. The soft food is also easier for cats with dental problems to eat.
Ingredients
Ingredients We Liked: Beef Broth, Beef, Taurine
Ingredients We Didn’t Like: Potato Starch, Carrot
Guaranteed Analysis
Dry Matter Basis
Caloric Weight Basis
What We Liked:
- Offers a blend of vitamins, minerals, and taurine: essential for your older kitty’s vision and heart health
- Made with grass-fed beef
- 100% grain-free
- Carrageenan-free
- Free from artificial ingredients and meat by-products
What We Didn’t Like:
- Very expensive option
#10 Best for Kittens: Wellness CORE Kitten Classic Pâté
- Made In: United States
- Guaranteed Protein: 12% Min
- Age Range: Kitten
- Calories Per Ounce: 36
- Typical Cost Per Day: $3.86 per day
Wellness CORE’s Chicken, Turkey, and Chicken Liver Recipe has everything we look for in kitten food. It’s loaded with nourishing animal protein from turkey, chicken liver, chicken muscle meat, and chicken meal. The dry matter carbohydrate content is below 10%, and it’s a hydrating source of moisture.
While menhaden fish oil is the primary added fat in this recipe, herring also supplies animal-sourced omega-3 fatty acids. Both are strong sources of DHA, which contributes to brain and eye development in kittens. Omega-3s also play an important role in supporting healthy skin and coats in cats.
This recipe doesn’t contain any grains or starchy beans, peas, or legumes.
At over 50% crude protein measured as dry matter, this recipe is formulated to support the development of lean mass. It’s also calorie-dense enough to fuel your kitten’s growth at about 36 calories per ounce.
Ingredients
Ingredients We Liked: Turkey, Chicken Liver, Chicken, Chicken Meal, Herring, Menhaden Fish Oil
Ingredients We Didn’t Like: Guar Gum, Cassia Gum, Xanthan Gum
Guaranteed Analysis
Dry Matter Basis
Caloric Weight Basis
What We Liked:
- Ultra-soft pâté texture is easy for kittens to eat
- Rich in protein and calories
- Hydrating canned food
- Supplemented with fish oil as a species-appropriate source of DHA
What We Didn’t Like:
- Can be quite expensive when feeding a hungry kitten
What to Consider When Buying Cat Food
Choosing great cat food starts with an understanding of your cat’s unique nutritional needs as an obligate carnivore. Veterinarian Dr. Lizzie Youens, BVSc, MRCVS explains, “Our domestic pet cats have not altered their physiology much from their wildcat ancestor.” In other words, they crave meat.
According to Dr. Youens, cats gain most of their energy from protein, rather than carbohydrates; they use fats to process certain vitamins and nutrients. “An extra point to consider for our feline friends is that they cannot make certain amino acids, such as taurine, and so they must be provided as part of their balanced diet.”
When weighing your options, Dr. Chris Vanderhoof, DVM, MPH, a veterinarian practicing at VCA Centreville Animal Hospital, recommends asking yourself the following:
- What life stage is my cat in (kitten, adult, or senior)?
- If a senior, does my cat have any specific nutritional needs that a diet can address, such as muscle loss or arthritis?
- Does my cat have any medical conditions that can be addressed with a particular diet?
- Is this cat food nutritionally balanced? (Does it carry an AAFCO statement, and is it meeting at least the minimum nutritional requirements for my cat’s life stage?)
- Does this cat food have a moderate caloric density (especially important for indoor cats)?
- Is this a food that my cat loves and will gladly eat?
Keeping these parameters in mind, here’s what to look for when choosing the best food for your cat.
Look for Low Carbohydrate Content
Cats primarily utilize protein and fat as energy sources. While they can metabolize carbohydrates, high carbohydrate content is not a part of the natural feline diet. There’s little evidence that high-carb foods are harmful, but they’re also not necessary. We prefer foods that model a cat’s ancestral diet.
Choose High-Quality Protein
It helps to understand the difference between crude protein and digestible protein. Digestibility values, not percentages in the guaranteed analysis, are key to measuring nutritional value. For example, an egg and a feather may share the same protein values on a label’s guaranteed analysis. But an egg (unsurprisingly) is far more digestible and nourishing than a feather. For that reason, we prefer foods that incorporate high-quality, clearly-named protein sources.
Avoid Animal By-Products
Animal by-products are one of the most misunderstood ingredients in cat food. While many common by-products are highly nourishing and delectable to cats, digestibility and quality control are major concerns.
Vaguely-specified ingredients may be produced from any number of animal parts. Besides not knowing what type of animals contributed to the by-product stew, you don’t know if it contains more wholesome liver or nutritionally weak chicken feet. To ensure maximum protein digestibility, avoid purchasing cat foods with meat by-products and other vaguely-named ingredients like “meat”, “poultry”, and “meat and bone meal”.
Choose Minimal Plant Protein
While it’s unclear exactly where each source of plant protein lies on the digestibility spectrum, we do know that protein from peas, potatoes, and other plants is less efficient than that from animal ingredients. While a single prey animal offers all the amino acids a cat needs, plant ingredients need to be combined with animal protein and synthetic additives to recreate that mix of amino acids. Furthermore, many cat guardians report that their cats have less waste when they’re eating a diet composed primarily of animal-sourced protein.
Prioritize Moisture-Rich Foods
Our cats’ ancestors were desert dwellers. Because fresh water was scarce, early wild cats evolved to have low thirst drives and a natural inclination to get their water from the moisture-rich bodies of their prey. This means that they typically don’t drink enough water to compensate for moisture-depleted dry food.
Favor Foods Free Of Harmful Ingredients
Artificial flavors and colors are unnecessary and have been tied to health consequences for both humans and animals. Some preservatives may also be of questionable safety. For example, BHA is considered safe in animal feed for all species except for cats due to inadequate safety data. Most pet foods have replaced them with natural alternatives including Vitamin E (mixed tocopherols), rosemary extract, and other antioxidants.
Seek Brands With Trustworthy Reputations
While it doesn’t tell us everything about the brand, a company’s recall history provides key insights into its ethics, safety standards, and the quality of its products. If a company faces voluntary, or worse—mandatory—recalls every five years, purchasing from that company could subject your cat to three or more potentially harmful slip-ups during their lifetime. A communicative, transparent company isn’t afraid to share this information with its customers.
Additionally, it’s helpful to check out what other consumers are saying about the brand. Through social media, blogging, reviews on retail platforms, and sites like Consumer Reports, pet parents can easily share their complaints or praises with the world.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the best dry cat food?
The best dry cat food is rich in animal-derived protein, low in carbohydrate content, and made from high-quality ingredients. One of the best brands for dried cat food is Open Farm RawMix.
What is the best wet cat food?
The best wet cat food honors your cat’s needs as a carnivore. It’s a meat-rich product that delivers all the protein, fat, and micronutrients your cat needs without a lot of plants and starch. A few of our favorite brands include Smalls, RAWZ, and Nulo.
What is the healthiest cat food?
The healthiest cat food is nutritionally complete and balanced, emphasizing meat over plants and protein over starch. Look for expert-formulated recipes that were made with carnivores in mind.
Is dry or wet food best for cats?
Because it’s more hydrating and typically lower in carbohydrates, wet food is best for cats. A dry diet is convenient, but it could increase your cat’s chances of health complications over time.
Is grain-free cat food best for cats?
Cats don’t need to avoid grains. What they need to avoid is excessive carbohydrates. Grain-free foods often replace grain with an unhealthy dose of biologically inappropriate ingredients like potatoes and peas.
Wonderful review article. Very important and helpful article. I found a lot of information from this share.
Thanks, for sharing such an informative article.
Hopefully, waiting for your more article in the future.
Hey! Thank you so much for the information and review.
I have a question regarding my 2 cats food, I would love to try Smalls food but since we live in Sweden in a tiny town in middle of nowhere, the food we find at stores are mostly commercial brands. I would love to be able to offer quality food such as Smalls to my cats, but has been imposible to find at least a similar one. My question is, it’s possible to make by my own their food, i am afraid it will not cover all their needs. I could buy good quality protein but don’t know how to use it or what could I add more. I would appreciate so much some information about it. I trust on you guys and I am afraid of try some YouTube recipe. Thank you so so much. Appreciate to have found this page!
Hi Viviana! We have a couple of in-depth articles on homemade cat food, including this one going over the details on homemade food and another including several recipes. Hope this helps!
Can anyone tell me how healthy is Primal Pet Food Chicken Recipe Gently Cooked Real Food for Cats my cat loves it. I had find a new food for him because he refused to eat his diabetic food. Yes, he’s diabetic.
It looks like a great option. We highly recommend Primal’s raw recipes, and the new cooked formulas have very similar ingredient lists and quality, but in a cooked format that may be more appealing to some people and cats. The carbohydrate content appears to sit at around 4.2% on a dry matter basis, making it an appropriate choice for your diabetic cat. Remember that switching to a significantly lower-carb food will reduce your cat’s need for insulin, so it’s important to closely monitor his blood sugar and ensure that his blood sugar is not dropping lower than it should. Wishing you all the best!
Hello. Interesting article.
I have a cat who is very picky about food. He will not eat any food. And that’s a problem for me.
I already tried to buy him 9 different feeds. My cat only eats new food at the beginning, and then does not want to eat it. My cat only eats wet food and no more.
Thanks to your article, I now have a large selection of good cat food. I liked the food from these manufacturers Feline Natural and Authority Cat Food. I will try to buy them for my cat.
Glad you found the article helpful! I hope that Feline Natural and Authority work for your picky eater.
Try mixing some dry with wet. My cats prefer wet but it digests to fast and they want to eat more times a day so I mix it to get them to eat more dry food.
I have found food mysteriously disappears when I am away from home. So even if your cat(s) give you the withering “What is this? Are you trying to kill me?” look, don’t be surprised if their bowls are empty when you come home.
Truly awesome article! Thankyou.
Hi.
From your blog, I knew how to feed a cat perfectly.
Thanks
Glad to hear it! Thank you for stopping by.
I have a cat who is very picky about food. He will not eat any food. And that’s a problem for me.
I already tried to buy him 9 different feeds. My cat only eats new food at the beginning, and then does not want to eat it. My cat only eats wet food and no more.
Thanks to your article, I now have a large selection of good cat food. I liked the food from these manufacturers Feline Natural and Authority Cat Food. I will try to buy them for my cat. Best Pet Foods
Try feed cat food high protein may than he or she will be be happy cat picking rater
Thank you so much Mallory for the comprehensive review for which I have been guided in q myriad of products and advertising!
What about Feline Leukemia positive cats? What’s best to feed them?
Hello Cherry, it’s best to give cats with Feline Leukemia a nutritionally-dense diet that is ultra-easy to digest, similar to the type of food we might recommend for cats in between bouts of pancreatitis, except an FeLV-positive cat should be on a cooked diet (not raw). Here’s a useful article from the Feline Nutrition Foundation: https://feline-nutrition.org/health/nutrition-is-vital-for-felv-cats
My senior cat has been diagnosed with kidney disease. My Vet recommended that I buy prescription food, but after spending about $200., he doesn’t like it at all. With all this info, I’m still confused as to what to try. I have 2 other cats and offer them a variety of dry and canned food, so Oliver also eats some of that, or he’s starve. It’s so frustrating that they charge ridiculous prices when it has no medicine in it!! I’ll go back and read about the kidney food again, do you have any new recommendations since it is now 2020?? Something non-prescription??
Hello Sieg. Thank you for commenting! We did add some more recommendations to our article on the best cat food for kidney disease: https://cats.com/best-cat-food-for-kidney-disease. You’ll also find some options that Oliver may like in our article on the best food for seniors: https://cats.com/best-cat-food-for-senior-cats.
I hope you find something that he’s willing to eat soon!
On my way to pick up my new Russian Blue kitten. Thank you for the great information. Do cats do better staying with the same brands? Or, is variety OK?
Fantastic information. Thank you, What do you think of Dr. Marty’s?
Hi Noelle, we have gone in-depth on Dr. Marty’s cat food check here: https://cats.com/dr-marty-unbiased-cat-food-review, and it appears to be comparable to freeze-dried foods from Primal, except with somewhat more starch and less animal-derived omega-3 fatty acids. You can consider it, but I wouldn’t rank it among the best freeze-dried foods on the market. Hope this helps!
In your article a few months ago you said Kirkland is not an acceptable diet for carnivores… so did they change their formula? Or are you going back on what you said?
https://cats.com/kirkland-cat-food-review
Hi Jackie, while Kirkland’s dry food is not ideal, we included it here as a good budget dry food. Compared to other foods at the same price point, it seems to feature relatively high-quality ingredients and certain supplements not seen in the competition. Our recommendations may vary depending on who we’re talking to.
Have you ever reviewed Genesis cat food?
Hi Heather, we haven’t reviewed Genesis food yet, but we’ll consider it for a future brand review. Thank you!
We have an 11 year old male Siberian Forest cat who is an extremely picky eater. We finally found Tiki Cat and he loved Sardines in Sardine Broth but after a month on this he became blocked and couldn’t urinate. He was also having bloody diarrhea and the vet said that they had another kitty just come in also on Tiki Cat who was also blocked. My cat spent 11 days in and out of the vet having numerous tests ran at a cost of $2200 and a referral to a specialist who works with Texas A&M. He stopped eating and they suggested a feeding tube. They also think he has inflamed intestines/colon. The only thing that changed before he got sick was the switch to Tiki Cat. We also fed him their pouches, about one pouch of Chicken and Egg a day. While I have no idea of knowing for sure if there is any correlation between his illness and Tiki Cat, I wanted to put this out there. I’m now looking for another brand with low ash content that has high moisture (this is why we chose Tiki Cat). Can you recommend another brand that has those same attributes so we can try something else? Thank you for any help you can provide!
Hi Lara, thanks for commenting. That is a curious experience, and it does make me wonder if there is any connection. Are you looking for low ash content in hopes of preventing another urethral blockage, or are you concerned about protecting your cat’s kidneys? Any wet cat food, especially if it is made from high-quality proteins and, generally, doesn’t contain fish, is going to have appropriate ash levels for most cats. All of the foods on our list of the best cat food for urinary health should be acceptable options—the question is whether or not your picky eater will accept them.
I am curious about Farmina cat food as well. Have you reviewed that? Local pet store carries these two brands and recommended them; but I have never heard of them.
Heather, you can read our Farmina cat food review here: https://cats.com/farmina-cat-food-review
I am curious about wet food from Cat Person. Do you recommend for an 8 month old boy Ragoll kitten who is very picky and only eats Core for kittens now.
Thank you for all the good information! I think you have a small typo – under the entry for Ziwi Pets venison, you say “lamb” in the first sentence – “This protein-packed formula features 100% single-sourced New Zealand lamb.”
Related to lamb, do you have any information about whether some protein sources are better for cats than others? I’ve ran across a lot of claims (of course fish and mercury, but I’ve also seen people claim that certain protein sources cause inflammatory problems) but I don’t know if they have any basis. I can’t imagine it’s good for my cat to only eat chicken, but if I’m avoiding seafood, and she doesn’t like Hound & Gatos (unfortunately), other protein sources can become expensive very quickly.
Brit, thank you for pointing out that mistake! I’ve corrected it. As for the question of some proteins being better than others, it is true that various protein sources will have different digestibility and biological availability levels, but this is a complex and poorly-understood area and more research is needed before we can say which proteins are best for cats. You might consider turkey and beef as affordable non-fish alternatives to chicken.
Thanks for the information, you can never be too informed.
Do you recommend FussievCat wet and dry foods. I have a very fussy eater that will only eat certain flavors of this brand. She also likes their dry food. My other cats eat most other foods and because of digestive issues I include a Royal Canin hair ball and digestive dry foods as well
Hi Marie, Fussie Cat wet food does look like a decent option for your cat, though there are some concerns about its use of carrageenan, a potentially-carcinogenic additive that may cause inflammation. As for their dry food, it looks like a typical grain-free dry food and probably wouldn’t be among our top recommendations. As for those other digestive foods, you can learn about our recommendations for cats with digestive issues click here.
Hello! My kitten is very picky so we decided to try out the wellness core kitten food although he hates turkey and is not so fond of chicken. He was eating authority kitten food when we got him but began throwing it up so we switched him over to instinct+instinct kitten (wont eat kitten). He is picky again and will only eat salmon, rabbit, and lamb. He happily eats tiki cat but I’m scared the low fat will hurt him (7 months old). They also only have a fish variety and I heard its bad for kittens. All other kitten foods aren’t good quality(Too many carbs or fillers) or tasty enough. We’ve been giving him boiled chicken to make him eat. He also eats Purina one dry kitten from the shelter( Bad quality but instinct kitten gave him a runny stool, were slowly transitioning again). Once again please help and thank you in advance.
Hi there! I think that it’s still really a matter of trial-and-error. If you have the time and inclination, it sounds like you may be a good fit for a homemade diet. I’d also ask why your kitten started throwing up the Authority food—if he was able to eat it previously, why did he suddenly start vomiting? Are you sure that it’s connected to the food? There are a lot of unanswered questions here, and I’d advise consulting a veterinarian for more insights and specificity.
We will ask our vet about that. Thank you!
We will ask our vet about that, I never thought about it in that way and it’s a good place to start. Thank you!
I was looking at this brand for my cats and Chewy was out of the Chicken Paté (out of all of it, actually), so I checked the PetSmart website (they own the brand) and discovered they all now contain carrageenan and a bunch of other ingredients that weren’t in the version you reviewed.
Thank you for letting me know about this. It sounds like it’s time to update our reviews of Authority cat food. – Mallory
Is it okay to serve a wet and dry cat food that are different brands, even if they are both grain free? Say, Elseys dry and Tiki wet? Also, considering a dry food for main nutrition for weight control, but a wet food as a weekly supplement/treat.
Hi Catie, absolutely. There’s no reason to avoid feeding from multiple brands. A mix of Dr. Elsey’s dry and Tiki Cat wet would be perfectly fine. Remember that, as a satisfying, high-moisture product that helps your cat to feel fuller on fewer calories, wet food is generally the best option for weight control.
I do Dr. Elsey’s dry and Tiki wet, though my cat is extremely limited in which flavor of Tiki she’ll eat. She has pancreatis and seems to be doing okay now. I used to give Purina Cat Chow or One and Friskies canned food, but didn’t like the ingredients (though the cat gobbled them up). May try a higher up line of Purina wet food (though she hated the vet formula), as the “healthy” food is pretty pricey for me, or a mix of the two. My cat didn’t love Dr. Elsey’s dry at first, but when I mixed a little Cat Chow in she ate it all up. With cats, everything is smell and texture.
The Authority wet cat food you reviewed is apparently no longer available in that formulation – the current chicken paté options now contain carrageenan, powdered cellulose, and a bunch of other ingredients not listed for the version you reviewed. Such a pity.
Thank you for sharing this.
Hi Mallory,
I love your content. What do you think about Cat Person wet food? I currently have an 8 month Ragdoll boy and he is very picky and the only thing he finally ate is Core Pate for kittens. I no longer feed him kibble just Core and Instrict Freeze Dried. Is Cat Person wet a good option and or is Smalls better? Please let me know your opinion. Thank you!
Hi Lisa, I’ve responded to parts of your question in another comment, but to cover everything here, I see no really good reason to switch from Core and Instinct to Cat Person food unless you’re just looking for variety. The latter is a perfectly good option, but so are the two foods that your kitten already loves. As for the Cat Person to Smalls comparison, it really depends on who you are. In terms of texture and taste appeal, I would lean towards Smalls, but if you want to have a flexible meal plan or order one food at a time, Cat Person is going to be the better option. They seem to be similar in terms of quality. Hope this helps!
Hi Mallory,
Great content! I have an 8 month old Ragdoll boy and he is a very picky eater. The only thing he finally chose to eat is the Core Pate for kittens and Instinct freeze dried food. What are you thoughts on Cat Person wet food?
Hi Lisa! Sounds like your Ragdoll has settled on a couple of good foods! As for our thoughts on Cat Person, I think you will appreciate our in-depth review of the brand. – Mallory
Hello!
Is Blue Buffalo Wilderness a good dry cat food?
Right now I’m using Iams and I know that’s probably not not a good choice.
Also, what is your final decision about Authority wet cat food? I think you said they changed their formula since your last review.
Hi Debbie, Blue Buffalo Wilderness cat food isn’t terrible, but it’s certainly not one of the best dry foods on the market. You’re talking about food with high carbohydrate content, plenty of ingredients that are arguably not necessary for an obligate carnivore, and which comes from a company with a less-than-perfect recall history. With a few exceptions, I don’t recommend Blue Buffalo foods, whether wet or dry and from any line. As for Authority, it’s hard to say. I had heard that Authority’s recipes have changed, but I’m still seeing their old formulations available on the web and at PetSmart. Overall, I would still recommend this brand.
Hi Mallory,
Hope this finds you well.
My cat is 16 lbs of love but she has chronic rhinitis that she has had for about 6 years. We have literally tried everything to help her.
Her diet is and has been for most of the time we have had her (6 years) has been Science Diet Z/D wet food and Royal Canin Hydrolyzed protein dry and Greenies treats. She has never eaten people food. We tried rabbit and duck both can, dry and treats – it didn’t make a difference in her breathing and she would not eat the treats or the dry. With that said her poop is firm and not stinky and twice a day but she does drink a lot of water.
My vet wants to get her to lose weight and suggests only wet so less carbs.
Do you think Smalls is good for her?
Hi Lori, yes! Smalls can be a good choice for most cats, and I think it’s a great, satisfying choice for cats who need to lose weight. Additionally, you get plenty of limited-ingredient options that should be highly digestible and not very inflammatory. Good luck!
Hi Lori,
I just happened upon this site and even though your post is 2 years old, thought I’d respond with what helped determine my cat’s true allergies. Not sure if I’m allowed to post a link, so I won’t try. Please look up Hemopet Nutriscan by Jean Dodds. It’s a saliva test and finally gave me the answers I sought and my dear kitty, Batman, finally started to show improvement in allergy symptoms: severe scratching, fluid filled bumps, pulling out hair on his back, red inflamed ears. I had 2 previous blood tests for allergies, religiously feeding per results for many months after each blood test to no avail. I saw holistic and conventional vets who could not help me heal his gut and restore his health. When I changed his diet per the saliva test results he finally improved greatly. However, it was too late as he had been struggling with megacolon, and sadly, I lost my dear Batman, my Superkitty. I fed my supercat good quality brands, organic meats, tried homemade, raw, kangaroo, etc… I pray that your cats issues have already been resolved and this will help others.
Hello,
Just FYI : Smalls issued a “Voluntary Recall” today.
They stated the affected products include:
-Ground Bird, Chicken Recipe
-Smooth Bird, Chicken Recipe
-Ground Other Bird, Turkey Recipe
-Smooth Other Bird, Turkey Recipe
“Customers reported that product looked spoiled and had an unusual odor.” I personally feel it’s reckless to continue promoting them as the #1 choice, as it’s apparent they lack quality control and their cancellation process is anything but convenient. I have my cat scheduled for a vet appointment, to determine whether or not he has gastroenteritis due to consuming what I BELIEVED to be the best quality option for his meals.
I must ask, do YOU feed your cat(s) Smalls? As a new cat owner, it’s so discouraging to spends days upon days researching what would be in the best interest for my fur baby, and yet nothing can be trusted because the world is motivated by money. As you mentioned above, you do gain money from people subscribing to them. Why wouldn’t people be interested to subscribe, after you rank them absolute #1, with only one noted flaw “not pre-portioned”?
If you absolutely must continue to promote them, please be transparent with their shortcomings so more people will not be blindsided like I was. Is the small amount of money you gain, worth misleading pet owners? Even on their actual review page you noted back in APRIL that it’s in need of a huge update, this is not new news. Please update your website and take responsibility for the influence you have on pet owners. Thank you.
Hi there. We just updated our review to mention this recall, and we will be completely revising the Smalls review this month. Thank you for sharing.
Hi Dear, My one year old cat is suffering from multifocal necrotic and chronic active colitis. The vet recommended gastrointestinal wet and dry food, do you have a Gastrointestinal recommended brand, please?
Thank you
Kind regards
Hello there! I would ask your veterinarian for a specific food recommendation—there are a few GI-focused foods from Hill’s and Royal Canin that may be appropriate for your cat’s conditions.
I have been using Life’s Abundance, grain/grain free for my Kitties. Do you have any input on it ? It is all stages and my Companions are aged between nearly five months and seventeen months. They also share a tin of Fancy Feast daily, as well as Stella & Chewys. Just interested in your feedback.
Hi there! Thanks for commenting. We haven’t reviewed Life’s Abundance yet, but it is something that we’d like to cover in the future.
Heya, I was here looking for a new fresh cat food after the nomnom recall and noticed it wasn’t mentioned here (because of how disappointing the recall itself was… )
Anyways, to the details, they get their chicken pre-cooked from Tyson foods- then Tyson had a recall because of Listeria monocytogene contamination.
Nomnom was very transparent about what happened, issued refunds quickly, and answered emails within a timely manner.
But, the fact that they are getting Tyson pre-cooked chicken makes me wonder what I’m paying for. No way the cat-healthy additives are that expensive. I do not like Tyson foods business practices (chicken sourcing and employee treatment among other things), so it made me rethink my kitty food choices. Trying out smalls soon.
Hi Lea, thank you for commenting and making us aware of this! I’ve edited the Nom Nom cat food review to mention the recent recall announcement and will take this incident and revelations about Nom Nom’s manufacturing into consideration when writing about it in the future. All the best.
FYI, nom nom issued a voluntary recall on 7/8/2021: truthaboutpetfood.com/nom-nom-chicken-cuisine-cat-food-recall/
Thank you! We have made a note of this in our article reviewing Nom Nom.
Hi, I’m looking for something somewhat affordable. We currently are doing taste of the wild and I read your reviews on it and it doesn’t seem that good now. So what would you recommend something within that budget. I usually get the bigger bag option. We have four cats so getting taste of the wild in the bigger bag seems to be affordable. Just wondering your thoughts. I love your website and reading all the articles and reviews by the way!
Hi Destiny, you might like Kirkland’s dry cat food—it’s very similar to Taste of the Wild in terms of price and seems to be made by the same manufacturer, but from what I can tell, it seems to have a slightly better ingredient list. You might also consider Authority or Simply Nourish, both store brands that offer comparatively good dry foods.
Was this listing done before the review written on Hound & Gato’s wet/dry food? If so, where would they fall on this list? I thought i was doing well with Instinct, Halo, Crave, Soulistic, Weruva, Merrick, and Caster & Pollock
Hi Brittney, Hound & Gatos used to be high on our best wet food list, but we could see in our records that not a lot of people were buying it for some reason! It’s not the most universally-palatable food, and a lot of cats don’t enjoy eating it. Nutritionally, though, it would be in the #2 or #3 position. So if your cat is willing to eat it, I would highly recommend food from this brand.
Thank you so much I have a new kitten (first in 17 years) and trying my best to start him off right any opinion on the above food brands?
I switched from Science Diet many years ago because Kirkland seem to have the same ingredients. Within a year my young cats starting getting really bad tarter or plack(sp), along with gum disease. I finally quit feeding it after a couple of years and went to Purina One as I was no longer breeding. I have not had not had tooth and gum issues since. This was a couple of decades ago, but I don’t know it they have addressed the problem over the years or not. I don’t know if they even know it is a problem. I love Costco but will never buy their cat food again unless I see some reviews showing that no one is having a problem with tooth and gum disease..
Interesting observation! Thank you for sharing.
Dear Mallory, I am From Iran and here we cant chose to select good cat food..
Recently i get SCHESIR DRY FOOd Cat which is Italian. They say their food is grain and gluten free and with Animal Protein.
Can you please review this brand.
schesir.com
Many thanks
Ali
Hi Ali, we plan to review Schesir in the near future. I hope you’ll find it helpful!
Hi there! Thank you for such a thoughtful article. Not sure if you are still answering questions, but curious as to why Koha didn’t make it onto this list, as I know it has an A grading. If you were to pick between Ziwi and Koha, which would you go with in terms of quality? My cat is a bit overweight, so leaning towards Koha since Ziwi is relatively high in carb content, but I do like Ziwi’s sourcing and manufacturing practices. So tied!
Thanks so much!
Hi there! I’m so sorry about the late reply. In this case, I believe Koha comes out on top. While it doesn’t quite equal Ziwi in this department and loses a point or two for working with outside manufacturers, Koha isn’t exactly a slouch when it comes to ingredient sourcing—many of their ingredients are free-range, and many of them do come from New Zealand. The company is transparent about the countries from which their ingredients are sourced, which seems to demonstrate a commitment to integrity. When you consider that their foods are lower in carbohydrates and may be a bit less calorically dense, I think they’re a better candidate for your cat. As for why it didn’t make it onto this list, we simply hadn’t considered it for this round of updates. Now that we’ve considered Koha more seriously, we will re-evaluate it for inclusion in the next update of the piece. Thanks for commenting!
Hi Mllory
This is Ali
pleas can you check the SCHESIR BARAND. they products dry and food cat which is grain and gluten free. Their website:
schesir.com
Thanks
Hello Ali, we plan to review Schesir cat food soon!
Can you comment on wet foods made or available in Canada? My Siamese is rather picky and not consistent.. I have been feeding Schesir which is likes sometimes but would like other suggestions for high quality wet cat food available in Canada.
Hi Frances, we are planning to release an article on the best cat food in Canada by the end of this month. For now, Schesir seems like a good brand. Koha is another good option available in Canada, along with Canada Fresh and Essence.
Wow, thanks for this in-depth review of cat foods and nutrition. I’ve been looking for the cat equivalent of dogfoodadvisor.com, and so far this is the best I’ve found.
I’d love to see more on budget options since of course the best foods are also the priciest. 😉 I’ve inherited my mom’s 14-yr-old cat, who’s been eating Purina One Tender Morsels. I see byproduct in the ingredients, so not sure about that one.
Hi Mallory ,
Wow great informative information here.
I have 6 cats ..and I do feed a couple outdoor strays as well.
I did not want 6 cats but I took in a pregnant female and kept her and her now 4 year old ..3 kittens.
I have one 20 year old cat who is healthy and eats anything.
But my big boy ..Quentin ,he is 7 spent much of 2019 in and out of emergency vets with urinary blockages
and the expensive cd and xd diets did nothing..unblocking him ,painful,expensive and temporary.
In the end I opted for the PU operation as a last resort and the operation saved his life.
He is doing great but I have not found a food that I am happy with.
I currently feed them friskies and purina sensitive stomach dry food.
I would dearly love to put them on raw food diet or freeze dried cat food program.
My issue is I have 6 cats and some of the prices I see out there are really really pricey.
I am looking for a good option that I can buy in bulk and does not require a chef to prepare.
high protein low carb healthy option with a price point that is cost effective and reasonable .
I am a vegetarian and while i have to feed my fluffy carnivore’s meat,I do not want any part in
the rabbit meat trade please ,so please omit any rabbit suggestions please.
Thank you so much
However
Hi Kurshila, thanks for commenting. Preparing food at home is the cheapest way to give your cat raw (at the cheapest, it can be just a little bit more expensive than Friskies), but it will be time-consuming and require a fair amount of planning. You say that you want something that won’t require a chef to prepare, so I’m thinking that homemade food may not be the best option. As an alternative, you may want to try a freeze-dried raw food from Stella & Chewy’s. Their chicken recipe, for example, is relatively inexpensive compared to other freeze-dried and raw products while being easy to prepare. I’m afraid there aren’t really any other options much cheaper than that in this category.
I lovre your cat
Sweet! Same here. 🙂
Thanks for all your research. Any advice on Nutrish by Rachel Ray?
Torri, you might like our review of this brand here.
Thank you this informative article. I’ve been looking for a species appropriate canned cat food that wasn’t super expensive, still had the ingredients he needs, but none that he doesn’t (looking at you, carrageenan). I’m going to try Authority today. Tiki Cat After Dark looked good on the label (and in the bowl), but at $6/day, that seems a bit high for something he can take or leave.
(By comparison, if I ate one can/8 lbs of weight, I’d be at $56/day.)
Hi. I have been feeding my cats the Instinct Grain Free Minced Recipe with Real Rabbit Cups for years because I thought it was an excellent quality cat food. I order it from Chewy. I am now a bit concerned that it might not be as good as I thought it was because it did not make this list. Was it ruled out for some reason? If so, I would like to be aware of any problems. Thanks.
It looks good! It seems a bit high in plant ingredients, but if it really is just around 5% carbohydrates on a dry matter basis, that’s quite good. I do rank Instinct by Nature’s Variety among the top wet food brands, but this recipe just didn’t fit any of the categories shown in this particular roundup.
I am in desperate search for the very best brand for my. Kittens age range from 2 months to 9 months. What is your recommendation for the most nutritional food?
Is pureluxe something to consider?
Hi Victor,
Please see our article on the best kitten food here:
https://cats.com/best-kitten-food
Can you just give your indoor cat wet food only or is it best to give them some dry kibble also?
Hi Cindy,
You can feed your cat only wet food as long is the food complete and balance (Should say so on the product label). For more info in wet and dry cat food we recommend to read the following article:
https://cats.com/wet-vs-dry-cat-food
I had just ordered Feline Natural freeze dried and canned food for my cats. Both cats threw up 5-6 times just after eating it. I never got a recall alert. I did notify the company via email. Unfortunately there was no phone number I could find on the bag or their website to call. I also informed the FDA. Not sure what else to do. I won’t be buying this product ever again!!! I’m so frustrated with all this food business I’m about to just buy Cat Chow and be done with it.
Hi Jacque, thanks for letting us know what happened. Sounds like you handled the situation well. I found this phone number on their privacy policy page in case you’d still like to call Feline Natural: +64 3 342 6380. Good luck.
Hi,
I tried Smalls food for cats. I got the cheapest sample pack which you can’t modify. It contained mostly freeze dried food. Be warned when you sign up with Smalls it automatically signs you up for a monthly subscription and if you don’t pick your next items, Smalls will charge an exorbitant amount and there are no refunds.
Thanks for sharing your experience, Russ.
I forgot to cancel my subscription and got eight bags of freeze-dried food delivered to me. I did not receive any email before the subscription order. Usually, companies would send out an email a few days earlier for you to make the last min edit…. when I contacted customer support, I was pretty disappointed in how they handled my case and basically told me that it was my fault for not canceling it, and they had all my login histories, etc…. and they would not acknowledge their own mistake because they claimed it was perishable delivery and no refund, but I received freeze-dried food, nothing fresh about it. Because of that experience, I do not think I trust Smalls.
Yes, this seems like a typical experience—I find that their customer support team tends to miss the nuance of various situations and gives the same pat answers for different problems, and it’s often in a way that leaves a really bad taste in your mouth. Not the way to keep customers and get referrals. I’m sorry you went through this.
Thank you. They responded to my email. I’m just so frustrated trying to find a healthy yet safe food for my 2 felines. The pet food industry is So disappointing.
It’s difficult. I hope you find something that works for you soon.
Very informative article. there is a lot to consider when deciding on the daily health of a pet. I am interested in feeding my cats healthier alternatives to my current food. I was looking at Dr. Elsey’s food and you have it listed for .80 per day. I realize the article was published several years ago. The current cost of a 6.5-pound bag is $82.00. Apparently, there are approximately 48-1/2 cup servings per bag. That is a current cost of $1.71 per day if you only have 1 cat, that is. I personally have 2, so that is $3.42 a day. A month’s supply would cost $102.00!! Holy cow! what are these manufacturers thinking of when they set their profit margins. I dearly love my cats but to me, that is ridiculous, and it’s not even the most expensive food on the list. I am very frustrated, as many pet owners are, with the pet food industry as a whole.
Yikes. I haven’t seen Dr. Elsey’s cat food priced that high—a 6.6-lb bag is listed at $46.99 on Chewy—but, you’re right, that price is quite high. Thanks for commenting!
I check your site for the best cat food and I found that your listing is ever changing even from day to day. How do cat owners keep up and know which cat food is best?? We can’t keep changing our cats foods it causes digestive problems.
I’ve used your site for food references but every time I buy one of your recommended foods I go back the next day or so and you removed it?
Hi Mary Jean, thank you for commenting—this is valuable feedback. While we do sometimes switch out products due to availability issues or new information on the products’ merits, we try to keep changes to the page infrequent, but I know that seeing any change to the lineup could be jarring. The only thing I can say is that whatever food is listed as the number one on this list is not necessarily the best product for your cat. Choosing the best food is an individual choice, and there’s no need to feed your cat whatever’s ranked number one. If you’ve found something that works well for you and your cat, I wouldn’t be quick to change it. Again, I appreciate the input, and we’ll keep this in mind when considering article updates in the future. – Mallory
When comparing the cost and content, I have found that it is significantly less expensive to feed my cats store-brand canned tuna and chicken than any canned cat food of any type. Opinion?
Not recommended. Canned tuna and chicken are not formulated to be nutritionally complete and balanced for cats, and feeding them as a sole source of nutrition may lead to deficiencies.
I been reading and listening to YouTube videos on all about cats, I thought I read instinct was a good food for cats, now I am not seeing anything of the sort. I am retired and on a limited budget and want to give the best for my cats. Small’s is a bit expensive. I did feed the American Journey but my cats started to react to their food so I changed it up to wet instinct chicken, duck, rabbit, lamb and venison flavors and instinct dry chicken kibble. They absolutely hate fish foods.
If there is a better food approximately the same cost please let me know. I have a 10 year old 9 year old and a 1 year old.
Hi Doreen, Instinct is a decent brand! I recommend their wet food as one of the best options out there, and their raw-infused kibble is one of the best dry options on the market. If it’s working for your cats, I would keep feeding it! Hope this helps.
Wonderful… thank you so much for your response.
Dr. Marty Nature’s Feast Raw Cat Food is absolutely the best! Try it.
Some of these foods contain vegetable oils and carrageenen. Trusting vets to ensure our pets health over a pet nutritionist is a red flag to me. I’ve never had one vet that cured my pets issues like a holistic nutritionist can. It’s all about following a protocol to make money with vets.
Hello there!
I love your website. Lots of useful and life saver info to be found.
May I ask if you would consider reviewing Cosma products by any chance?
Thank you
We’ll consider it! Thanks, Henriett!
What about Orijen dry cat food and Instinct canned. I like that the cans of instinct are white inside.
Hello Heather, you can learn more about both in the following brand reviews:
Instinct Cat Food Review
Orijen Cat Food Review
Hi Moallory,
Cannot thank you and your team enough for this review. I will definitely try out some companies for my two pick eater cats.
Hope you find something that works well for you all.
Hit there! I have been using Smalls for a while but wanted to write that they have food coming from two different kitchens – one with the round “chub” packaging and one from the “rectangular EZ peek packaging” and the first one a lot of people have noticed their cats will not touch or eat. Wondering which food from which kitchen you tested in this report because they are completely different quality, texture, and color which makes me think they are different ingredients. I also wanted to let you know that Smalls sent an email letting us know as of today their pulled products are “indefinitely” out of stock and I felt that was the best product they had.
Thank you for letting me know! I’ve tried both the chubs and the rectangular packaging, and my cats seemed okay with both. Regarding the pulled food being out of stock indefinitely, I’m glad you mentioned that! I had no idea. That’s really unfortunate, as my cats also really liked the pulled recipes.
I have a young female tortie who has digestive issues. She should be eating raw food (I’m told) and that’s what she ate at the rescue but she’s also picky and won’t eat the raw any longer. She has dry Farmina ND that she can only sample or she’ll vomit. She likes their canned “digestion” food too but it’s too expensive to feed all the time. I’m hoping to find another solution. She doesn’t like freeze dried – so far.
Can you suggest good quality foods for digestion issues? Thank you.
Hello Ellen, you might appreciate our article on the best cat food for cats with sensitive stomachs.
Hello,
Why did you remove Ziwi Peaks from the list?
Adolfo, we noticed that several Ziwi Peak recipes were out of stock very frequently over the last year, so we removed it from numerous roundups. It’s still just as strong a contender for those older positions, but we wanted to replace it with something our readers could actually purchase when they wanted to.
Thank you, I appreciate your answer, I have the same problem in getting the food. May I know why you put at the beginning of the list to a maker who add vegetables to the food? Cats do eat/ be helped by vegetables.
How do you feel about weruva? My cat loves the brand but I wanna make sure it’s full of the right nutrients. Also I’d love to try smalls but I’ve seen so many reviews of people complaining about being charged over 200$ after the first 30$ trial. I don’t like the idea of being charged unexpectedly so much money.
Weruva is a good brand! You can read our review of it here. Smalls has definitely had the issues you’re describing, and I would agree that Weruva is probably a more consistent/reliable option.
It is really hard to select the best food for your cat.my cat is very nice.
Hi there, really appreciate your work on delivering helpful reports on cat food brands. Any chance you could cover Canagan? Thanks.
We’ll consider it! Thank you!
Hi there. After trying about 30 different foods on the most picky feline I’ve ever met, he will regularly eat Wellness wet food. What are your thoughts on the quality?
Pretty good! You can learn more in our review of Wellness cat food here. https://cats.com/wellness-cat-food-review
Thank you, Mallory, for doing all this research…. what a huge undertaking! Could you provide a list of all the cat foods you tested before compiling your list of the best? I’m wondering if the foods I’ve been feeding my cats were included in this study. Thanks again!
Hi Carol! You can see a full list of the brands we’ve reviewed here. Look for the ones with a glass flask icon, and those are the ones that have undergone testing in a lab.
Hi, my cats love Triumph brand wet food. Can you give any feedback on that brand?
I love the work you guys do over there! Thank you.
Hi Bryan, thanks for asking! We have a review of Triumph here.
Why are the comments hidden for the Dr. Elsey’s Cat Food Review? Why is the cyanide so high in the lab report? Shouldn’t you be warning people about this?
Hi Bruce, we learned that a 3rd-party lab service testing the product was not clear when formatting the test results, leading to some confusing data. We are not affiliated with Dr. Elsey’s, but we don’t want to share unclear information, and therefore removed unclear data.
Hi, Thank you for sharing this!! Could you share the formula you use to calculate the cost for day??
Hi Grace! Sure.
I base it on 200 calories per day.
Figure out how many calories are in the food per ounce, then divide 200 by that number, then multiply that number by the price per ounce.
Example:
Basic information: food costs $0.50 per ounce, is 30 calories per ounce.
200/30 = 6.6 ounces per day
$0.50 x 6.6 = $3.30 per day
With dry food, it’s a bit harder, because the calories are generally given per kilogram rather than pound, so you need to do some extra conversions to figure out the price per ounce, but the formula is the same.
So for example, a cat food recipe has 3,500 calories per kilogram. Since a kilogram is roughly 35 ounces, we divide by 35, so it’s 100 calories per ounce. Therefore, you need 2 ounces to get those 200 calories a day. (Fun fact: this is about average across typical dry foods…just two ounces!! Can you believe it? No wonder cats get fat on dry food.) Anyway, after breaking down the bag’s weight into ounces and dividing the price accordingly, we see that it’s $0.09 per ounce. At 2 ounces per day, that’s $0.18 per day.
Can you recommend another brand of pate that is comparable to Wellness Core classic pate? My Siberians love, love the Wellness Core and despite my best efforts I cannot seem to find something that they really go for.
I have tried mixing the foods and even putting their favorite treat on top and in the new food and it’s still a no go!
Thanks for all the you do!
Hi Roddy! Thanks for reaching out! The Nulo cat food recommended here has a similar formula and texture to Wellness CORE—have you given it a try?
Hi Mallory,
Indeed I have! I have a whole flat of Nulo! Maybe I will try again starting with 25/75 Nulo/Wellness CORE and then increase Nulo slowly.
Thank you!