Most cats let you know what they think of a new litter within a day, usually by going on the bath mat. Start with Dr. Elsey's Ultra. It's a plain, unscented clay that clumps hard enough to lift out in one piece, and a 40-pound bag runs about $23, though you'll feel every one of those pounds on the stairs and a few grains will follow your cat down the hallway (a mat under the box catches most of them).
If the stairs are the real problem, World's Best is made from corn and is much lighter to carry, for a bit more than twice the price per pound. If the smell is why you're here and you have two or three cats, Clump & Seal holds it down longest, as long as nobody in the house minds a light fresh scent.
You have one cat or two, an ordinary box, and you want the litter most cats accept on the first try.
Skip it if
You live up three flights with no elevator. A 40-pound bag is a two-handed carry.
Key specs
Type
Clumping clay
Bag
40 lb
Scent
Unscented
Per pound
about 57¢
Read more about the UltraShow less
The Ultra is 100 percent bentonite clay (the kind that swells and locks up when it gets wet), in a medium grain with nothing added for smell. Dr. Elsey's sells it as low-dust and low-tracking. What that means at the box: a wet spot becomes one firm clump you lift out whole, instead of a soft patty that crumbles back into the clean litter and starts the smell all over again.
The Merck Veterinary Manual says most cats prefer small, clumping particles like clay, and an unscented litter; the Ultra is exactly that. And at about 57 cents a pound, it costs less than half of anything else here that isn't clay. I'd buy the 40-pound bag even for one cat; it costs less than two 18-pound bags of the same litter.
Flaws but not dealbreakers
Heavy, and clay doesn't break down, so all 40 pounds go out with the trash eventually.
On a long-haired cat, some grains still ride out of the box between the toes.
40 lb bagUnscented
2Best plant-based
2. World's Best Multiple Cat
Best for: Carrying bags up the stairs
Clumping corn with no clay dust, in a 15-pound bag you can carry with one hand.
You carry litter up stairs, or you'd rather not have clay dust in the air.
Skip it if
You're buying on price alone. Per pound, it's more than twice the Ultra.
Key specs
Type
Clumping corn
Bag
15 lb
Scent
Unscented
Per pound
about $1.28
Read more about the World's BestShow less
Fifteen pounds of corn sounds like less litter than forty pounds of clay, but corn is light, so the bag fills a good part of a box and you can carry it home in one hand. It's whole-kernel corn, ground fine enough to clump, with no clay and no added perfume. The maker's own advice is worth following: use it on its own, never mixed with a non-clumping litter.
Buy the Multiple Cat Unscented bag. World's Best sells more than a dozen versions, and the lavender one sits right next to it on the shelf.
It's sold as flushable. Bag it anyway: cat waste flushed down the toilet can reach rivers and the ocean, which is why California makes litter brands print a warning against flushing.
Flaws but not dealbreakers
No 40-pound bag: the biggest is 32 pounds, at about $40.
About $19 for 15 pounds adds up fast with two cats.
15 lb bagCorn
3Best for picky cats
3. Dr. Elsey's Cat Attract
Best for: A cat who has started skipping the box
The Ultra's clay with an herbal attractant mixed in, made to bring a reluctant cat back to the box.
Your cat has started going next to the box, and the vet has found nothing wrong.
Skip it if
The box is dirty, small or next to the washing machine. Fix that first; no litter makes up for it.
Key specs
Type
Clumping clay
Bag
40 lb
Scent
Herbal attractant
Per pound
about 80¢
Read more about the Cat AttractShow less
A cat who stops using the box should see the vet before anything else, since going outside the box can have a medical cause. Once that's ruled out, Cat Attract is the litter to try. It's the Ultra's clay with an herbal attractant mixed in, made for exactly this: drawing a reluctant cat back to the right spot.
At about 80 cents a pound it costs a third more than the Ultra, and once your cat is back in the box, there's no harm in going back to the cheaper bag over a week or two.
Flaws but not dealbreakers
Same weight problem as the Ultra: 40 pounds.
The attractant can't fix a box in a spot your cat dislikes.
40 lb bagAttractant
4Best for odor control
4. Arm & Hammer Clump & Seal Platinum
Best for: Two or three cats
Clay with baking soda and extra odor blockers, for a box that gets visited all day.
Two or three cats share the boxes and the smell builds before you get home.
Skip it if
One of your cats is fussy about smells. This one is scented, lightly but clearly.
Key specs
Type
Clumping clay
Bag
18 lb
Scent
Lightly scented
Per pound
about $1
Read more about the Clump & SealShow less
Arm & Hammer puts its baking soda and a heavier dose of odor blockers into the Platinum version, which is sold online only and meant for a box that several cats use all day. It clumps hard and it's sold as low-dust.
It is scented, though. If your cats are fine with it, the bathroom smells faintly of laundry instead of cats. If one of them starts hovering at the edge of the box, switch back to the Ultra.
Flaws but not dealbreakers
The 34-pound bag runs about $35, so buying big saves little.
About $1 a pound, almost twice the Ultra.
18 lb bagBaking soda
5Best lightweight clay
5. Tidy Cats LightWeight Free & Clean
Best for: A cat who won’t give up clay
Feels and clumps like clay, weighs half as much, and has activated charcoal instead of perfume.
You want lighter bags, but your cat ignores anything that doesn't feel like clay.
Skip it if
Your stairs aren't a problem. The Ultra is cheaper for the same job.
Key specs
Type
Lightweight clay
Bag
17 lb
Scent
Unscented
Per pound
about $1.59
Read more about the Tidy Cats LightWeightShow less
Purina makes this clay about half as heavy as a regular clumping litter, so the 17-pound box holds roughly what a 34-pound bag would. It's still clay to your cat's paws, which matters for the ones who walk straight back out of a box filled with corn or wood. Activated charcoal handles the smell, and there's no perfume or dye.
The arithmetic is plain: about $27 here buys a bit less litter than $23 buys in the Ultra's 40-pound bag. The extra few dollars are for your back, and I'd pay them for a third-floor walk-up.
Flaws but not dealbreakers
Costs more than regular clay for the same amount of litter.
It comes in a box, not a bag, so it takes more room in the closet.
17 lb boxCharcoal
6Softest under the paws
6. ökocat Super Soft
Best for: Kittens and tender paws
Fine wood fiber with a clay-like feel, so a cat used to clay barely notices the switch.
You have a kitten, or a cat with tender paws who shakes a foot after every visit.
Skip it if
You want the cheapest bag per pound; this is the priciest here.
Key specs
Type
Clumping wood
Bag
10.6 lb
Scent
Unscented
Per pound
about $1.89
Read more about the ökocatShow less
The Super Soft is fine wood fiber, screened to take out the dust, and it's the softest litter here underfoot. ökocat sells it for kittens and cats with sensitive paws, and makes it with a clay-like texture so a cat raised on clay accepts it without a fuss. It clumps, it's unscented, and like corn it's light enough that a 10-pound bag goes a long way.
Flaws but not dealbreakers
About $1.89 a pound, the most of any litter here.
ökocat's formulas come in near-identical bags; the one you want says Super Soft.
10.6 lb bagWood
7Best crystal litter
7. PetSafe ScoopFree Premium Crystal
Best for: One cat and fewer full changes
Silica crystals soak up urine instead of clumping, and two small bags cover about a month for one cat.
You have one cat and you'd rather do a full change once in a while than scoop wet clumps.
Skip it if
Two cats or more share the box, or your cat has only ever known soft clumping litter.
Key specs
Type
Silica crystal
Bag
2 × 4.3 lb
Scent
Unscented
Per pound
about $2.90
Read more about the ScoopFree crystalsShow less
Silica crystals work differently from everything above: they soak up urine and dry out solid waste instead of clumping. You still scoop the solids every day and stir, then replace all of it when it stops absorbing. PetSafe says one 4.3-pound bag lasts up to 30 days with one cat, which makes the two-pack about $12.50 a month. That's the best case; the cat charity International Cat Care suggests a full change every week for any non-clumping litter.
The crystals are made for PetSafe's ScoopFree self-cleaning boxes and fill an ordinary box just as well. They're crunchy and bigger than the fine, sand-like grains cats usually go for, and some cats simply refuse them.
Flaws but not dealbreakers
Some cats dislike the feel and won't use it.
The 30-day figure holds for one cat only.
2 bagsSilica
Best cat litter for odor control
Most of the smell comes from what's left in the box, not from the litter itself, so scooping matters more than the bag: at least once a day, twice if you can. After that, a litter that clumps hard keeps urine from soaking down to the bottom of the box, where it sits and smells. The Ultra does that without perfume. With several cats, Clump & Seal adds baking soda and a light scent on top.
Low-dust cat litter
Every litter here is sold as 99 percent dust-free or better, and for a healthy cat the difference barely matters. If your cat has asthma, it does: Cornell's vets list irritating cat litter among the things to clear out of an asthmatic cat's home. The easy change is a litter with no clay at all, like ökocat or World's Best.
Best clumping cat litter
Clay still clumps the hardest, and the Ultra is the clay to buy. Corn and wood clump too, more softly, and they're the ones to pick if weight or dust matters more to you than the firmest possible clump.
Crystal cat litter, and who it's for
Crystal (or silica) litter is for one cat and an owner who'd rather swap the litter than scoop wet clumps. PetSafe sells the same crystals in Fresh Scent and Lavender; buy the unscented ones.
Best cat litter for multiple cats
With two or three cats, the litter has to clump hard and hold the smell between scoops: Clump & Seal if your cats accept a scent, the Ultra if they don't. World's Best Multiple Cat is the lighter choice. Whatever you pick, plan on one box per cat plus one (three cats, four boxes), and scoop more often than you would for a single cat.
Litter for a self-cleaning box
Most self-cleaning boxes rake out clumps, so they need a clumping litter, and Arm & Hammer says Clump & Seal works in robotic boxes. PetSafe's ScoopFree boxes are the exception: they use crystals in a disposable tray (the cheapest of them is in the best cheap self-cleaning litter boxes). Check what your box's maker recommends before you buy a big bag; the best self-cleaning litter boxes list the litter each one takes, and corn litters like World's Best usually don't suit a Litter-Robot.
Who this is for
This is for anyone choosing a litter for an indoor cat, whether you're setting up for a new kitten or trying to fix a smell that won't quit. If the trouble is the box itself (too small, too hidden, or with a lid your cat refuses), the litter can only do so much: a bigger box, or an open one, is the next thing to try, and the best litter boxes are sorted by the cat they fit. Litter and boxes are together under cat litter and litter boxes, and the rest of your cat’s gear is in the cat gear guides.
What to look for in a cat litter
Clumps that lift out whole
A soft clump breaks apart on the scoop and leaves the smell in the box.
Fine grains, no perfume
The domestic cat's ancestors lived in the desert, and a fine, sand-like litter is still what most cats look for.
Low dust, if anyone sneezes
It only matters for a cat with asthma, or for whoever pours the bag.
A bag you can carry
If the bag is too heavy to bring home easily, you'll put off the full change. Buy the size you can lift.
Price per pound
Bag sizes vary so much that the shelf price means little. The Ultra is about 57 cents a pound; plant litters cost two to three times that, or more.
Pine pellets don't clump: they crumble into sawdust, and you need a sifting box to separate the two. Good if you already own one, a hassle if you don’t.
A decent grocery-store clay, but it costs more per pound than the Ultra for no clear gain.
How I picked
Clumps that lift out wholeUnscented, or a scent most cats acceptLow dust and trackingA bag you can carryPrice per pound
I picked the litters I'd buy for a real cat, each for a different home, from a single kitten to three cats sharing a hallway. Clay comes first because most cats prefer it; the plant and crystal litters are there for the homes where clay doesn't work.
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Common questions
What’s the best cat litter for indoor cats?+−
For most indoor cats, an unscented clumping clay like Dr. Elsey's Ultra. Indoor cats use the box for everything, so a litter that clumps hard and costs little per pound makes the daily scoop easy to keep up.
How do I stop my house from smelling like cat litter?+−
Scoop every day, twice if you can, and empty and wash the box with fresh litter every two to four weeks with a clumping litter (every week with a non-clumping one). An open box airs out better than a covered one, and a box with high sides keeps kicked litter off the floor.
What litter to avoid for cats?+−
Heavily perfumed litters, since some cats will go elsewhere rather than use a box that smells strong. Skip dusty clay if your cat has asthma, and skip pine pellets unless you have a sifting box.
What cat litter is the least dusty?+−
Plant litters with no clay at all, like ökocat (wood) and World's Best (corn), make the least dust. Among clays, Dr. Elsey's Ultra, Clump & Seal and Tidy Cats LightWeight are all sold as 99.9 percent dust-free.
Is unscented cat litter better for cats?+−
For most cats, yes. Unscented litter is the usual recommendation because cats are sensitive to smells. A clean box doesn't need perfume to smell fine.
The verdict
Switch slowly, whatever you buy
Whichever litter you pick, don't switch overnight. Mix a little more of the new one into the old every couple of days for about a week, keep it a little over an inch deep, and watch the bath mat; your cat will tell you if it worked.
