The 6 Best Premium Dry Cat Foods, According To 299 Cats

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A bag of Hill's Science Diet Adult Dry Cat Food and a bowl of cat food

The Spruce Pets / Alexander Huang

For optimal health a cat must receive protein, vitamins, and minerals through their diet. There are two main types of cat food to choose from, canned (often called wet), or dry (often called kibble). Dry cat food is convenient, compatible with most automatic feeders, and—by selecting the right formula for your cat's current needs—can easily provide a nutritious, well-balanced meal.

A premium dry cat food has animal-source protein as the first ingredient. "Cats are what we call obligate carnivores, meaning they must have protein as the majority of their diet," Dr. Lewis Singleton, a veterinarian at Banfield Pet Hospital in New Jersey told the The Spruce Pets. "Cats are not able to naturally make certain amino acids and vitamins such as taurine, arginine, vitamin A, vitamin D3, and other B vitamins, and therefore they must be included in their diet."

To help you select the best food for your cat, we polled 299 real cat parents to hear firsthand which brand and type of cat food works for their household, while gleaning additional insights for felines of all sizes, ages, and breeds. You can learn more about our polling methodology below our recommendations, under the heading How We Found The Best Premium Dry Cat Foods. We also have additional tips on how to evaluate dry cat food for yourself in the What To Look For section, below.

From novice kitten to experienced senior, a cat's needs change with each stage of life, so you'll need to adjust the type of dry kibble, along with the serving size, throughout your shared time together.

Our Top Picks

Best Overall

Hill's Science Diet Dry Cat Food

Hill's Science Diet Adult Dry Cat Food

Hill's Science Diet

What We Like
  • No artificial colors, flavors, or preservatives

  • Chicken is first ingredient

  • Contains omega 3 and omega 6 fatty acids, taurine, fiber, vitamins, and minerals

  • Multiple formulations for every life stage and many specific health needs

What We Don't Like
  • Some recipes are easier to find than others

Hill's Science Diet Dry Cat Food is our top choice for most cats, and among our panelist of 299 cat guardians, the food received the highest score in overall quality satisfaction with the ingredients used. It serving supports overall health with omega fatty acids, vitamins, and minerals, and the food is never made with artificial colors, flavors, or preservatives.

Hill's Science Diet dry cat food is divided into four life stages—Kitten, Adult 1-6, Adult 7+, and Adult 11+, and the recipe is specialized within each stage to address the nutritional needs of a growing cat, like DHA for brain development and taurine for heart health.

The main source of protein and primary ingredient is chicken, but there are also recipes made with salmon, pollock, or ocean fish as the first ingredient depending on the formulation your cat requires. Additional ingredients include whole grains, fish oil, animal fat, vegetable fibers, and amino acids, with variations, like grain-free, to make the food more amendable for cats with allergies and sensitivities.

The brand is highly recommended by veterinarians for daily feeding and to address specific aliments, including Hairball Control, Oral Care, Weight Management, and Sensitive Stomach & Skin. And for Indoor Cats, the food is formulated to reduce hairballs and support digestive health, making it easier for your cat to use their litter box correctly and reducing the effort you have to put in to keep their bathroom tidy.

Plus, the dry food recipes from Hill's Science Diet are also available as canned cat food, offering the same level of reliable quality along with the added benefit of helping your cat eat their hydration.

Life Stage: Kitten, adult 1-6, adult 7+, adult 11+ | Flavors: Chicken recipe | Package Sizes: 4, 7, or 16-pounds

Best Budget

Purina Friskies Dry Cat Food

Purina Friskies Dry Cat Food

Purina

What We Like
  • Provides protein for muscle support, essential fatty acids for healthy skin, and antioxidants

  • Seven flavors

  • Manufactured in the United States

What We Don't Like
  • Some flavors have limited retailer availability

For adult cats, Friskies Dry Cat Food from Purina is available in seven flavors—Seafood Sensations, Ocean Favorites, Surfin' & Turfin' Favorites, Indoor Delights, Gravy Swirlers, Tender & Crunchy Combo, and Farm Favorites, all made with animal-source protein to support healthy muscles, fatty acids for skin and coat maintenance along with vitamins and antioxidants for immunity.

Friskies received the highest overall rating among our 299 cat parents we surveyed with many emphasizing the brands overall value and their cat's enjoyment of the food. Friskies packages their poultry and seafood recipes by spotlighting the lead source of protein, but all of the flavors list yellow corn as the first ingredient. Corn is a healthy whole grain that is easy for cats to digest when it's cooked and ground for use in dry cat food, but we recommend limiting your cats inake of treats that also list corn as a lead ingredient to keep your obligatory carnivore's diet high in protein.

Friskies, a brand from Purina, is manufactured in the United States, and the line of dry cat food is affordably priced, but some flavors, like Seafood Sensations and Farm Favorites, are easier to come by online and in store than others.

Life Stage: Adult | Flavors: Seafood sensations, ocean favorites, surfin' & turfin' favorites, indoor delights, gravy swirlers, tender & crunchy combo, farm favorites | Package Sizes: 3.15, 16, 22, or 30-pounds

Best for Kittens

Purina ONE Plus Healthy Kitten Dry Cat Food

Purina ONE +Plus Healthy Kitten Dry Cat Food

Purina

What We Like
  • Contains DHA, an essential omega fatty acid kittens need for brain and vision development

  • First ingredient is real chicken

  • Free of artificial flavors or preservatives

What We Don't Like
  • Largest bag is 16 pounds which runs out quickly in a home with more than one kitten to feed

Purina One +Plus Healthy Kitten Dry Cat Food is our top choice for cats under the age of one. It's affordably priced, readily available, and among the current and former kittens who participated in our panel, the food has an appealing texture and flavor.

For healthy brain and vision development, this kitten food is fortified with DHA, a naturally occurring omega-3 fatty acid that baby cats usually get from their mother's milk, but is also found in fish oil. The crunchy kibble is made with real chicken as the first ingredient and primary source of protein. In each serving, the food provides calcium for strong teeth and bones, vitamins E and A for immunity, and is never made with artificial flavors or preservatives.

Purina One offers +Plus Healthy Kitten Dry Cat Food in three sizes, 3.5, 7, or 16 pound bags, but even the largest bag of kibble runs out quickly if you are feeding more than one kitten at a time.

Life Stage: Kitten | Flavor: Chicken | Package Sizes: 3.5, 7, or 16-pounds

Best Variety

Purina Fancy Feast

Purina Fancy Feast Dry Cat Food

Purina

What We Like
  • Convenient bundles mixing flavors and textures

  • Formulated to provide complete and balanced nutrition

  • Cats enjoy the variety

What We Don't Like
  • First two ingredients are rice and poultry by-product meal

Surprise and delight your kitty by mixing up the flavors in their bowl at meal time. Fancy Feast from Purina offers variety bundles of their dry cat food combining two flavors of crunchy kibble, or by pairing the dry food with Fancy Feast Broths or with Fancy Feast canned cat food.

Fancy Feast has three flavors of kitty-appealing dry food—Savory Chicken & Turkey, Filet Mignon Flavor with Real Seafood & Shrimp, and Ocean Fish & Salmon. All recipes are enhanced with vitamins and minerals to provide nutritionally complete and balanced meals in each serving.

But the primary ingredient used in all recipes for dry cat food from Fancy Feast is rice followed by poultry by-product meal as the second ingredient. By-product meals typically make use of nutrient-rich parts of an animal, like organs, that might otherwise go to waste in an effort to keep costs down and reduce food waste. Rice, a whole grain, is easy for cats to digest, but be sure to keep your cats overall intake of treats made with grains to a minimum while focusing on protein-packed snacks to satisfy your purring carnivore's appetite for meat.

Life Stage: Adult | Flavors: Savory Chicken & Turkey; filet mignon with seafood & shrimp; ocean fish & salmon | Package Sizes: 3, 7, 12, or 16-pounds

Best for Weight Loss

Blue Buffalo Tastefuls Weight Control Adult Dry Cat Food

Blue Buffalo Tastefuls Weight Control Adult Dry Cat Food

Amazon

What We Like
  • Two formulation, Weight Control or Weight & Hairball Control

  • Made without soy, wheat, corn, and by-product meals

  • Free of artificial flavors and preservatives

What We Don't Like
  • Only one flavor

  • No senior specific formulation

If your cat is carrying around an extra few pounds, giving them a food formulated for weight loss and maintenance can help them achieve their optimal size while satiating their appetite. Blue Buffalo's Tastefuls Weight Control Adult Dry Cat Food is our top recommendation and the protein-rich recipe is made with chicken as the first ingredient along with whole grains and vegetables.

There are two weight-focused formulas to chose from, Weight Control and Weight & Hairball Control. Both are fortified with antioxidants, vitamins, and minerals to support a cat's immune system and overall health. To help your cat feel full in between meals and support digestion, the food provides natural fiber. And for hairball control, the food also contains a blend of psyllium seed husks and cellulose to help your cat's internal system process ingested fur from grooming.

Blue Buffalo pet foods are always made without corn, wheat, soy, by-product meals, artificial flavors, and artificial preservatives, which is exceptionally helpful if your cat has allergies or sensitivities to any of these items.

Life Stage: Adult | Flavor: Chicken & brown rice recipe | Package Sizes: 3, 5, 7, or 15-pounds

Best with Probiotics

Purina Pro Plan Complete Essentials Dry Food

Purina Pro Plan Adult Complete Essentials Dry Cat Food with Probiotics

Amazon

What We Like
  • Rich in protein

  • Digestion-friendly

  • Helps maintain a healthy coat

What We Don't Like
  • Not grain-free

Purina Pro Plan Complete Essentials is a high-protein cat food developed with digestive health and immunity in mind. The primary ingredient is real chicken or salmon, combined with brewer's rice and a blend of live probiotics and prebiotics. This dry cat food also has omega-6 fatty acids for a healthy coat and skin. The ingredient list also has eggs, animal fat, amino acids, and a range of essential vitamins and minerals.

Weight: 16 pounds | Flavor: Chicken | Life Stage: Adult

Final Verdict

The best overall premium dry cat food is Hill's Science Diet Dry Cat Food. There are formulation for four life stages (Kitten, Adult 1-6, Adult 7, and Adult 11+) and the vet-recommended food provides an optimal mix of protein, carbs, vitamins, and minerals to keep each kitty healthy and well-fed. If you are looking for a budget-friendly option, Purina Friskies Dry Cat Food is a great choice and comes in seven flavors so you can find the one your cat loves most.

A gray and white cat next to a bowl of Natural Balance Limited Ingredient Dry Cat Food

The Spruce Pets / Jordan Provost

What to Look for in a Premium Dry Cat Food

Life Stage

Match your cat’s life stage to the dry food you choose to feed them. Kittens have unique nutritional needs as they grow and develop, so it makes sense to feed them accordingly. Through the active adult years, feed your cat a balanced diet that will supply plenty of nutrients and energy to keep them healthy and happy. Senior cats will have different diet criteria than either of these first two life stages, so pick a formula that has been developed for your kitty’s golden years.

Flavor

This is a matter of taste, but the fact is that some felines are more finicky than others. Finding a dry cat food that your cat will eat and appreciate is sometimes a challenge, especially if you’re transitioning from wet cat food. While limited ingredient foods are good for digestion, they’re not always as appetizing to some cats. You may need to experiment with different protein sources and ingredients to find a dry cat food that your cat will gobble up.

Essential Nutrients

Your cat needs certain nutrients to thrive, including amino acids, vitamins, and minerals. For instance, taurine is an essential amino acid that your cat needs to absorb through diet. Look for dry cat food that meets the minimum daily requirements for essential amino acids, vitamins, and minerals.

One thing to note is that your cat does not need carbohydrates in his or her diet, although there's no data to show what the optimal carbohydrate percent for cats should be.

Hydration

It's important to make sure your cat is drinking enough water, so along with dry cat food, we strongly recommend giving your cat a water fountain. Studies have shown that cats drink more when the source of their water is flowing. And if your cat is experiencing issues related to their urinary tract or digestion, slowly shifting their diet to a different kind of food can alleviate symptoms and discomfort. Adding some bone broth for cats to their diet can also improve your cat's hydration.

How We Found The Best Premium Dry Cat Foods

To evaluate dry cat foods, our research panel put together a comprehensive questionnaire, asking for cat parents to describe the qualities that matter most to them when they choose a food for their feline at each life stage. We learned what brands were recommended by veterinarians, and which had the most trustworthy list of ingredients. We also looked for high-value brands that can fit in people's budgets, and brands with wide retailer availability.

We also gathered details about a cat's size, breed, age, and health history, which helped us make picks tailored to a wide range of cats, since the best cat food for an adult Ragamuffin that needs to lose weight won't be the best cat food for a recently rescued kitten.

In total, 299 respondents described how they and their cats felt about the cat foods they currently feed or previously fed at home, using a combination of numerical scores and detailed feedback.

FAQ
  • How much dry cat food should you feed a cat?

    If you're unsure of how much dry food to feed your particular cat, you can refer to the packaging for guidelines or check with your veterinarian. To give you a general idea, you should consider factors such as your cat's weight and age. Most adult cats (one year and older) can be fed around a quarter of a cup of dry food twice daily. Older cats or ones with special needs however, may need to be fed more often. This would be a case to check in with your veterinarian.

    Ideally, it's recommended to feed your cat a combination of mostly wet food with dry food mixed in. This is because dry food is higher in carbs and cats don't generally need carbs in their diet. In this case, you can look at the recommended feeding amount on each type of food and half them.

  • What ingredients should you look for in premium dry cat food?

    When selecting a premium dry food, it's important to select one that contains essential nutrients to meet your cat's needs. As stated above, taurine is one essential amino acid you should always look for in a dry food because it helps with digestion, muscle function, and immunity. Look for other ingredients like protein, vitamins, minerals, and fiber. Fiber helps with digestive function and weight management while high-quality protein (turkey, fish, chicken, etc.) keeps your cat energized and satisfied. A dry food high in omega-3 fatty acids is also more ideal as it helps promote healthy fur and skin.

  • Can dry cat food go stale?

    Like any other pet food, dry cat food can go bad. Always check the "best by" date to make sure your food isn't past its due date. To best preserve your dry food, keep it in the original packaging—these bags are designed to help food maintain its freshness as long as possible.

    Make sure to seal the bag properly after use to avoid air exposure as well. Air exposure can cause degradation of the food. Store your food in a cool, dry place as opposed to out in the sun as that can cause the temperature and humidity to rise in the bag.

  • Is it better for cats to eat dry food or canned food?

    When it comes to feeding your cat, there are two basic choices: canned wet food or dry kibble. You might wonder which is best, and indeed, there is considerable dispute even among veterinarians as to whether it's ideal for cats to eat only wet food, or whether kibble is a satisfactory choice as well.

    The answer, however, is not cut-and-dried. The two major arguments against kibble—that it is too high in carbohydrates and that it causes dehydration—are not necessarily true in all cases.

    While cats are not designed to eat a diet high in carbohydrates, they can digest complex carbs, and indeed, require some carbohydrates in their diet for optimum health. A good cat food is high in protein, and only low-to-moderate on carbohydrates. Unfortunately, many inferior kibbles have plant-based carbohydrates as a top ingredient, with protein further down the list. To keep your cat healthy, always read the ingredient list of any potential kibble, and be sure that meat-based proteins are the top ingredients, with grains or plants absent or further down the ingredient list.

    As for dehydration, there is no clear evidence that a diet of kibble causes cats to be more or less dehydrated than other felines. Studies have gone both ways; some show cats fed kibble-only diets are more dehydrated than cats fed wet food, while others indicate the reverse. But all cats, regardless of diet, should have access at all times to a source of fresh, clean water.

    Many people solve the dry-versus-wet-food dilemma by feeding their cat a mixture of both. Perhaps a morning meal of wet food and a dinner of kibble, or the reverse. Whatever you decide, however, always check the ingredients of your cat's food and choose only those with a high-quality, meat-based protein as the top ingredient—this goes for both dry and canned cat food.

    It's also helpful to talk to your veterinarian as to what food they recommend for your specific feline, as your cat may have specific dietary needs due to age, health, or weight, such as the need for a food that promotes urinary tract health.

Why Trust The Spruce Pets?

This story was updated by Anna Mejorada, a writer for The Spruce Pets, who shares her home with a happy pomeranian named Gidget. Before researching and writing about pet products for a living, Mejorada embarked on a self-mandated, ongoing quest to find the optimal items for her dog. She is now delightfully devoted to helping humans discover and select the most favorable products for their pets.

We also took a comprehensive survey on preferred brands and feeding habits. Each respondent provided data on their cat's age, size, and breed, in addition to a detailed history of the cat food brands and products they mutually enjoy.

A previous version was written by Theresa Holland, a writer and animal lover with substantial experience covering pet products and breed guides. In addition to The Spruce Pets, she regularly contributes to The Spruce, MyDomaine, and Byrdie.

For this piece, Holland interviewed Dr. Lewis Singleton, a veterinarian at Banfield Pet Hospital, to obtain more information on dry cat food. Choosing the right cat food can be a daunting task, but consulting with a veterinarian about key ingredients to look for (or avoid) can make the task less intimidating.

The Spruce Pets uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read our editorial process to learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.
  1. Hunter, Tammy, DVM. “The Importance of Your Pet's Skin and Coat and the Role of Diet.VCA Hospitals.

  2. Verbrugghe, Adronie, and Hesta, Myriam. "Cats And Carbohydrates: The Carnivore Fantasy?Veterinary Sciences. doi:10.3390/vetsci4040055

  3. McKenzie, Brennan, VMD. “Canned or Dry Food: What’s Better for Cats?Veterinary Practice News.