12 Best Cat Litters, From Clay to Crystals to Wood Pellets (2024)

Some brands we tested were like fine-grained sand, which can cause clumps of cat waste to break apart as you attempt to scoop. Others had large granules that didn't clump at all. Dr. Elsey's Ultra Premium cat litter had medium-size bentonite clay granules that form hard clumps, making scooping easy.

In our at-home tests, daily litter-box cleaning became a 20-second chore with this litter. Because of its reliable clumping it's also among the best cat litters to use with self-cleaning litter boxes, specifically the Litter-Robot 4.

Dr. Elsey's has no added scent, which veterinarians prefer, but controls odor well, even with multiple cats. While this 35-pound bag is heavy, the brand has added handles to the side to make it easier to lift. There will dust that rises up when you first pour this into the litter box, but we found that it quickly settled. The large bag can last up to two months with one cat.

Clumping: Yes | Scented: No | Main ingredient: Clay | Packaging: 35-lb bag | Cost per pound: 51¢

If you're looking to pay less and don't mind the occasional sweep around the litter box to pick up a few tracked granules, this Walmart exclusive costs much less than others. Like our best overall choice it's comprised of bentonite clay which forms tight clumps and helps speed up your scooping time.

This "fresh scent" choice receives the most five-star reviews, but it is strongly fragranced, so it's best for cats (and owners) who are less sensitive to perfume. Alternatively there's a fragrance-free variety. Many online reviewers using this litter have multiple cats and need to clean daily, so this light-on-the-wallet brand is especially attractive for them.

Each 20-pound, easy-pour plastic jug lasts at least a month for one cat, and the jug can be recycled. If you like the litter, you can bump up to the 40-pound box, which saves you even more — that size brings the cost per pound to just 32¢.

Clumping: Yes | Scented: Yes | Main ingredient: Clay | Packaging: 20-lb jug (shown) or 40-lb box | Cost per pound: 39¢

If you've got an indoor cat with a box in your living space, you're probably scooping every day, and having something that clumps well is key. We like all the various Arm & Hammer cat litters but Clump & Seal stands out for being the easiest to scoop. We've seen it recommended on Reddit forums and it's got more than 34,000 five-star reviews on Amazon.

Because of its superior clumping ability, this is another great choice for any automatic cat litter box (like the Litter Robot). But unlike our best overall pick, this one has a scented added — a pro for some, a con for others. The brand also uses its signature baking soda to absorb odors.

We tested Arm & Hammer cat litter in an open-top litter box placed just outside the kitchen of a home with one senior cat. To our noses, there was no telltale smell even after it was left unscooped for several days.

"The cat tracks this litter and also knocks it out of his box, but that's not entirely the litter's fault — that's the cat, and the fact that my litter box doesn't have a lid," our tester noted. "The litter is still worth it for the odor control."

Arm & Hammer also makes a Cloud Control variety for cat owners who are especially sensitive to dust their cat might kick up if it vigorously rakes its litter.

Clumping: Yes | Scented: Yes | Main ingredient: Clay | Packaging: 18-lb box (shown), 27.5-lb box or 37-lb box | Cost per pound: $1

Vets recommend unscented litter for finicky cats and for kittens, but, of course, cat owners don't ever want to be able to smell the litter box, picky cats or no. We home-tested this with a family whose litter box sits in the hallway, and the odor control was top-notch, especially considering this is unscented litter.

The brand says it uses activated charcoal to help neutralize odors. You should be able to go a few days without scooping (if you have just one cat) and a month and a half without changing out the whole litter box.

The brand also claims these smooth granules are easy on a cat's or kitten's small paws. We did notice less tracking with this litter, but it doesn't clump as tightly as other clay litters on this list, maybe because the granules are on the larger side.

The litter pours easily out of a hole in the side of the box. It's not dust-free, but if odor-fighting is your top priority, this is a good option.

Clumping: Yes | Scented: No | Main ingredient: Clay | Packaging: 18.5-lb box or Amazon sells a 2-pack for a total of 37 lbs (shown) | Cost per pound: 77¢

World's Best Cat Litter is made from corn, so it's much lighter than clay litter and your trash bag won’t sink from the weight of your daily cleaning. The brand claims that this is flushable and septic-safe, as long as you don't flush more than two clumps at a time.

Good Housekeeping writer Yolanda Wikiel used and flushed this litter for a year with no ill effects. "I definitely prefer to be able to flush litter," she said. But note that the state of California asks its residents to always place litter in the trash rather than flushing.

Wikiel purchased World's Best Cat Litter when she adopted two new kittens. "A lot of the animal rescue organizations I talked with recommended it, and the kittens gravitated to this brand when I put out two boxes, each with a different litter," she said. "But the pieces of litter are small, so they do get everywhere."

Also the litter smells a bit malty, since it's plant-based, which also means it has some naturally occurring dust. That's offset by the fact that it clumps so well there's very little litter waste as you clean. The 15-pound bag can last about a month if you have two cats.

Clumping: Yes | Scented: No | Main ingredient: Corn | Packaging: 15-lb bag | Cost per pound: $1.23

The premise of color-changing crystal cat litters, like this one and Pretty Litter (further down on our list), is that the silica gel crystals turn a certain color if your cat is having a health issue.

Normal, healthy cat urine should make the crystals yellow or olive green; any other color, including red or blue, could signal a need for a trip to the vet for a possible health concern. (Blue, for instance, might mean there's a urinary tract infection.) Most cats are stoic and don't let on if they're feeling sick, so using this litter might be worth the price for the peace of mind.

We tested Tidy Care both in our Lab and in homes. Our experts report that the granules can absorb their own mass in liquid. Indeed, all of our testers gave it a perfect score for absorbing urine effectively and noted that it also killed the smell. For liquid waste, you stir the crystals daily so your cat doesn't keep peeing on the same litter. Solid waste is not absorbed; you'll want to scoop that daily or every few days to avoid odors.

For one cat, you'll need to change out all the litter once a month and put in a fresh bag. Bonus: There's no dust with crystal cat litter. But some online reviewers say their cat does track this.

Related: GH Seal Spotlight: Tidy Care Alert Cat Litter

Clumping: No | Scented: No | Main ingredient: Silica gel crystals | Packaging: 8-lb bag | Cost per pound: $3.04

Perfume smells and pebbly textures can be a turn-off for some cats. Felines on the finicky side (or maybe those embracing their outdoorsy roots) seem to take to this shredded-wood litter, thanks to its soft, natural texture and lack of added scent.

Online reviewers say that because it clumps, they can scoop less regularly and that odors stay under control. Some cat parents use this brand with an automatically sifting litter box and remove solid waste that way, instead of using a scooper.

This plant-based cat litter is lightweight. A giant box that pours from the side is only 16.4 pounds and lasts a month or more for one cat. The pellets were originally developed in Germany but are now produced domestically, in Georgia, from what the brand says is a blend of spruce, fir and pine. It may produce some natural wood dust.

Clumping: Yes | Scented: No | Main ingredient: Wood | Packaging: 18.6-lb box exclusive to Amazon (shown) | Cost per pound: $1.48

Online reviewers who have older cats with sensitive paws, picky cats or cats with scent sensitivities or dust allergies gravitate toward this soft, unscented litter that's made up of granules of wheat with no added fragrances or chemicals. sWheat Scoop claims to biodegrade and be safe to flush. (We did not try the flushing part, though remember, flushing litter is not allowed in California.) You can compost the litter when you do a total box changeover — not the cat poop, only the excess litter.

Users looking out for the environment will appreciate that the wheat is domestically grown and the brand says it's a more renewable resource than clay, the main ingredient in most traditional clumping litters. The 25-pound bag comes with an easy-open top.

The con with this is that it doesn't control odors as well as other picks on our list. You'll want to scoop daily to keep odors at bay if your litter box sits in a bathroom that humans also use. This could be a good choice if you keep the litter box in a garage or basem*nt, away from daily life.

Clumping: Yes | Scented: No | Main ingredient: Wheat | Packaging: 25-lb bag | Cost per pound: $1.18

So Phresh claims to be made of recycled paper pellets that create no dust and won't track. And we realized another benefit while home testing: If your cat noisily kicks around regular clay litter, this So Phresh paper formula solves that problem — it's quieter as your kitty rakes away.

This formula is made with baking soda in addition to a scent, and the combination masks most odors. It's sold exclusively through Petco in 25-pound bags. Just note that because urine can trickle down through non-clumping pellets, you will want to empty and clean the entire box every week or two. Online reviewers seem to either love or hate this, so it might be something you just have to try to decide for yourself.

Clumping: No | Scented: Yes | Main ingredient: Paper | Packaging: 25-lb bag | Cost per pound: 68¢

Many online reviewers rave about this option, which includes four vacuum-packed individual bags banded together. Though you'll need to heft in the full 38-pound package, you can then pull out one compact 9.5-pound individual bag at a time and fill one litter box with each, making the chore of changing a whole box a lot easier on your arms and back. But there is, we'll note, a lot of plastic waste.

Scoop Away's 38-pound package can be especially helpful if you have multiple cats and more than one litter box to regularly fill and clean. (Cats.com and any vet will tell you that you're officially supposed to have one litter box per cat.) This scented litter does a good job of masking odors, and the quick-clumping clay is easy to scoop. This litter is also less than 50 cents per pound, making it one of the value options.

Clumping: Yes | Scented: Yes | Main ingredient: Clay | Packaging: Four 9.5-lb bags in a 38-pound package | Cost per pound: 46¢

An older relative of mine turned me on to this Tidy Cats variety that is easy to handle and use, even if you don't have a lot of arm strength. The 17-pound package stretches as far as 35 pounds of regular clay litter, according to the brand. The granules are light and easy to pour, scoop and haul away in a garbage bag.

This is a favorite of our veterinarian consultant, Megan Conrad, BVMS, and I have a cousin who uses it too. "The con is that it's so lightweight it goes everywhere if your cat tracks it," my cousin noted, but since she carries litter down to a basem*nt litter box she likes this lightweight option. Some online reviewers said it sticks to their cat's paws, but others said they didn't have that issue, so tracking might vary cat to cat.

This version of Tidy Cats does clump and it does include a light scent. For real fragrance buffs, there is a lightweight version scented with Glade that, if your cat accepts it, can practically double as a room freshener. It's labeled as nearly dust-free, but our testers and online reviewers say you should expect some dust when you initially pour this into the box.

Related: 8 Best Cat Treats, According to Veterinarians

Clumping: Yes | Scented: Yes | Main ingredient: Clay and minerals | Packaging: 17-lb bag | Cost per pound: $1.26

The original health-monitoring cat litter, Pretty Litter is made of silica gel crystals that should turn yellow or olive green if your healthy cat pees on them. If they turn red or blue, you may want bring your cat to the vet. As the name implies, the crystals are, in fact, pretty. Martha Stewart is a paid spokesperson for this subscription-based cat-litter service, so you may have seen her in the ads.

For regular use with healthy cats, we find these non-clumping crystals to be more difficult to scoop than clay litter. Two tester cats simply sat their solid feces on top and didn't bury anything, so we had to stay on top of scooping. A different home tester had more success, so it's really cat by cat and house by house whether Pretty Litter will work well.

The brand recommends owners "thoroughly mix the litter every day" to avoid having cats saturate the same granules over and over. If you do that, one six-pound bag could last you one month for one cat. Pretty Litter is nice and lightweight — each bag weighs only six pounds, yet fills a box.

Per pound, this is the priciest litter on our list, but a little goes a long way. Also, the cost goes down if you order more than one bag at a time.

Clumping: No | Scented: Scented and unscented | Main ingredient: Silica gel crystals | Packaging: 6-lb bag | Cost per pound: $4

Our Lab experts, lead tester and home testers reviewed more than 25 cat litters over the course of two years. We also interviewed cat owners about their favorites and combed through online reviews to get a full picture of how each brand works in real-world conditions.

Users answered survey questions about the packaging, ease of scooping, odor control, level of dust, level of tracking and their cat's acceptance of the litter. We also interviewed pet expert Megan Conrad, BVMS, of Wellhaven Pet Health, about what to look for when shopping for the best cat litter for your household.

According to the American Veterinary Medical Association, when you're analyzing different types of cat litter, you should identify which factors you consider most important. In the end, though, your cat may be the decision-maker.

✔️ Material:

• Clay (technically bentonite clay) is what most litters are made of, and it's usually inexpensive. When urine hits the clay, it clumps up. That makes it easy for you to scoop out the waste and throw it in a garbage bag. When your cat rakes a clay litter, it will, ideally, easily bury its own solid waste, so this kind of litter can also be very effective at controlling odors. Some varieties are scented, some are unscented, and some have added minerals or baking soda to help kill odors (more on that below). Clay litter should never be flushed.
• Silica gel crystals have recently grown in popularity because the color can change based on your cat's urine content, helping indicate if there's a health problem. Crystals do not clump but they do absorb urine. They do not absorb solid waste. Crystal cat litter tends to be the most expensive, but it's also lightweight and not as dusty as some clay litters. You should not flush crystal cat litter.
• Wood, wheat, corn and paper are often referred to as more "natural" choices. (Clay is natural, too, and gel crystals are sodium silicate sand processed with oxygen and water so it absorbs a tremendous amount of liquid, according to Chewy.) Wood, wheat, corn and paper varieties might be milled, sawed, ground or cut into fine granules or chunky particles. Some are flushable outside of the state of California, or even compostable once you've removed the cat waste.

✔️ Odor control: Any litter that clumps or that your cat can use to bury waste can be odor-controlling. Some varieties go further to mask odors and others use baking soda, activated charcoal or added scents to keep urine and fecal odors at bay. However, any of these odor-masking ingredients can be a turn-off to some cats.

"According to research, most cats seem to prefer an unscented litter that's fine-grained," said Dr. Conrad, associate veterinarian at Wellhaven Pet Health. "Some cats aren't picky and will use whatever you buy, but others will skip the box if they don't like what's in it," she explained. "It may be a matter of experimenting, or even creating a 'box line-up' of different litters to find something your cat will regularly use that also works for your lifestyle."

✔️ Clumping ability: Clumping cat litter tends to help minimize messes, making it easier for you to scoop. Clay cat litter can clump well unless it's too fine-grained or too large-grained to hold together. Wheat, wood and corn cat litter can clump too. Clumping cat litter is the best kind to use in self-cleaning automatic litter boxes such as the Litter Robot 4.

Crystals are non-clumping litter, and so is paper cat litter. With non-clumping litter, it's difficult to scoop urine or fecal matter without changing the whole pan, but some people prefer to clean the entire box every couple weeks. That's especially easy if the litter box is near a door and you can take it outside to hose it clean.

✔️ Dust level: This isn't just important for keeping your floors and furniture clean; it's also helpful for preventing you and your cat from sneezing. Some people are much more sensitive to dust than others. In our list of picks, we have noted litter that, in our testing, produced less dust. Sometimes a litter is dusty just when you first pour it into the box and then it quickly settles.

✔️ Tracking: The goal is for your cat's litter to stay in the box and not get tracked around the house. Clay litters tend to track more than some other materials, such as paper or wood, and small particles of clay from sand-like litter tend to track more than large pieces of litter. A mat outside the litter box (such as this cat litter mat from Amazon) can help remove particles from a kitty's paws.

Whether you're using clumping or non-clumping cat litter, you really should scoop daily. If you comb the Reddit forums, most cat enthusiasts claim they clean daily or even twice a day. But the Pet Health Network says that it's okay to scoop every other day too. If your cat scratches around outside the box, that could be a sign that it's not thrilled with the waste inside the box and you should scoop more often.

If you use an automatic, self-cleaning litter box, you don't need to scoop daily but you'll need to empty the waste drawer at least once a week.

Dr. Conrad says that if you're using a clumping cat litter, you might change over the entire box and litter contents once a month, but that you may have to do it more often if you're using a non-clumping litter.

If you have access to an outside hose, you can empty the litter box and spray-clean it outdoors. If you live in an apartment, many Reddit posters recommend emptying the box completely and cleaning the box in your bath tub, then cleaning the tub. Find directions for cleaning the Litter Robot on its site.

We like these tips from the ASPCA:

• Most cats like a shallow bed, so only fill your box with one to two inches of litter.

• Most (but not all) cats prefer clumping, unscented litter. Sometimes a cat keeps preferring whatever it used as a kitten.

• Cats like their bathroom to be in a quiet location. If you can use a cat-door to a basem*nt or garage, that might be best. Cats also like to do their business somewhere where they're not "trapped;" in other words: there's an exit that they could escape through quickly if a person or another pet approaches. A box in the human bathroom might not work if the door is often shut, keeping the cat out or trapping it in.

The ASPCA also has a lot of great advice for resolving litter box problems. Much of it boils down to the fact that cats can't be shame-trained to use a litter box; it's up to cat owners to put a box somewhere their cat feels safe, filling it with a litter that the cat likes and cleaning it often.

For more than a century, the Good Housekeeping Institute has provided expert reviews and advice on consumer products. With the way that pets have increasingly integrated into American families, our Lab experts and writers now offer plenty of advice for keeping your pet healthy and happy. We've also reviewed everything from cooling dog beds to outdoor cat houses.

In her work as a contributing writer, Jessica Hartshorn uses her decades of experience as a cat owner and product tester to evaluate kitty products. She previously covered pets as part of her job at Parents magazine.