Best cat food UK 2026: 9 wet and dry foods compared on cost, protein and meat content

Best wet cat food UK: the 5 complete wet foods compared

The 5complete wet cat foods in this comparison, cheapest first by the lowest daily cost for a 4 kg cat. Each label names a reason you can check on the pack or price, not a judgement of quality. Where we could find the same recipe at a second UK retailer, the Ocado price is worked out the same way (pack price ÷ pouches × the maker's daily amount), so you can see how much the retailer matters: Lily's Kitchen costs about twice as much a day at Ocado as at zooplus, while Pro Plan is slightly cheaper there. Applaws is left out because it is complementary.

High protein cat food: which foods have the most protein?

The protein percentage on the front of a pack is not comparable between wet and dry food, because wet food is mostly water. Two fairer measures, both worked out from the label's analytical constituents: protein per 100 kcal (protein ÷ energy × 100), which shows how much protein a cat gets for the calories it eats, and dry-matter protein (protein ÷ (100 − moisture) × 100), the share of protein once the water is removed. Of the foods that state their energy, Felix As Good As It Looks has the most protein per 100 kcal at 15.3 g, and the complete wet foods give 10.9 to 15.3 g against 6.8 to 7.7 g for the dry foods.

Why some cells are blank: UK feed law (Regulation 767/2009, Annex I) only requires moisture on the label when it is over 14%, so most dry foods leave it off, and energy is optional. We have not estimated missing values. The FEDIAF guidelinesset protein minimums per 1,000 kcal precisely because a cat that eats fewer calories, such as an indoor or neutered cat, needs more protein in each calorie to get enough. If you want a higher-protein food, compare protein per 100 kcal on the label rather than the word “high” on the front, and ask your vet first if your cat has kidney disease.

Healthy cat food: what to look for on a UK label

There is no legal definition of “healthy” cat food, so the useful checks are on the back of the pack. The PDSA's vets recommend a complete commercial food, chosen for your cat's life stage (kitten, junior, adult or senior), weighed on electronic scales, with meals reduced when you give treats; it does not recommend feeding human food scraps. On the label, look for the word complete, the life stage, the feeding guide for your cat's weight, and the analytical constituents, which let you work out protein per 100 kcal as in the table above. A named meat percentage, a grain-free claim or a premium price is a preference rather than a health requirement. International Cat Care adds that fresh water should always be available. If your cat is losing or gaining weight, or drinking more, contact your vet.

Complete vs complementary cat food

“Complete” is a legal term. UK Pet Food, the trade body, explains that a complete food contains all the nutrients a pet needs to support its daily life when fed as directed, while a complementary food needs other food added to provide nutritional balance; treats and toppers are complementary. Every food in our table is complete except the Applaws cans, which are labelled complementary: they are mostly chicken breast and broth, so they score highly on protein but are not a whole diet on their own. Feed a complementary food alongside a complete one and count its calories in the daily total. The same label also lists ingredients in descending order of weight, and a phrase such as “meat and animal derivatives (4% chicken)” means at least 4% chicken, as UK Pet Food explains.

How much is cat food a month?

Cat food for a 4 kg adult cat costs about £13.80 to £15.60 a month on the complete dry foods in this comparison and £23.70 to £95.10 a month on the complete wet foods, using zooplus UK one-off prices checked on 21 October 2026 and each maker's feeding guide. Most of the spread comes from wet food: the cheapest wet foods here cost about twice as much a day as dry, and the dearest more than six times as much. Cats Protection puts food at £20 to £50 a month. Our cat food cost guide sets these figures against the charity estimates, and the cost of owning a cat guide adds litter, flea treatment and boosters. To turn a food's calories into a daily portion for your own cat, use the cat food portion calculator.

Wet or dry cat food: which is better?

International Cat Care notes that cats tend to concentrate their urine rather than drink more water, so cats fed mostly dry food should be encouraged to drink, particularly to help prevent urinary problems. Wet food is mostly water (the complete wet food labels we checked state 78–84.5% moisture), so it supplies more fluid but costs more per day. Some cats prefer running water, although a controlled study found no overall difference in how much cats drank from a fountain: see our cat water fountain comparison. If your cat has an upset stomach on its current food, our sensitive stomach cat food comparison covers gentler recipes.

Cat food by life stage: kitten, adult, senior and sensitive

The foods on this page are adult foods. Kittens need a growth food, and International Cat Care notes that growing kittens need more protein and calories: our kitten food comparison covers foods labelled for kittens up to about 12 months. For adult cats, any complete adult food in the table above works if you feed the right amount; the cat food portion calculator turns your cat's weight and activity into grams. Senior food is covered in the section below. For cats with loose stools or vomiting after meals, see our cat food for sensitive stomachs, and if the problem continues, contact your vet. To budget for a year, the cat food cost guide sets our daily costs against charity estimates.

Should indoor cats eat indoor cat food?

Indoor cat food is not a separate nutritional category: it is a complete adult food that makers usually pitch as lower in calories or higher in fibre. What matters for an indoor cat is calories. The PDSA says over a third of UK cats are overweight, and that an overweight cat that stays indoors is likely taking in more calories than it burns; it suggests a lower-calorie diet and daily play. Any complete food can work for an indoor cat if you feed the amount for its weight and activity. The Purina Pro Plan food here is made for neutered (sterilised) cats and its maker gives a daily amount for a 4 kg cat; check the feeding guide whichever food you choose.

Is senior cat food necessary?

Cats Protection says cats are generally considered senior from 11 years old, and that senior food should contain reduced phosphorus and enough protein to maintain weight and muscle, because a cat's ability to digest fat falls with age. Kidney disease is the main reason this matters: in a VetCompass study of cats at English vet practices, renal disorders were the most common recorded cause of death in cats dying at five years or older, at 13.6% (O'Neill et al., 2015), and the ISFM guidelines say chronic kidney disease may affect 30–40% or more of cats over ten. Regular check-ups help catch it early, and International Cat Care advises wet food for cats that already have kidney disease. If you are worried about your cat's weight or thirst, contact your vet. Young cats need a growth food instead: see our kitten food comparison.

Is premium cat food worth it?

Premium cat food is not a defined term, and in this comparison price does not follow protein. The dearest complete wet food here, Bozita at £3.17 a day, has 47.2% protein on a dry-matter basis, while Felix, at £1.01–£1.35 a day, has 63.9%. What a higher price does buy, on these labels, is a declared meat content (Lily's Kitchen states 65% named meat; several cheaper foods state only a small named percentage) or a grain-free recipe. Those are reasonable preferences, but they are not shown to make a food healthier for a typical adult cat. Compare the cost per day and the label, and keep to a complete food.

Is a cat food subscription cheaper?

A cat food subscription can be cheaper than buying one-off, but only by the discount on the food you already buy. Every daily cost on this page uses the zooplus one-off price, before any Repeat or voucher discount, so the figures are a ceiling rather than a floor. Fresh-food subscriptions work differently: they price each cat individually, so there is no published price to compare until you get a quote. Our cat food subscription comparison sets out the discounts, delivery charges and cancellation terms of the main UK services, dated, so you can compare them with a one-off order. If you feed on a schedule while you are out, an automatic cat feeder can portion dry food for you.

Breed foods

Royal Canin British Shorthair costs about £0.51 a day for a 4 kg cat, close to the general dry foods here. A breed food is a complete adult food; Royal Canin says this one has arched kibble developed for the breed's jaw. Any food labelled complete is made to be fed on its own as the whole diet, so a breed food is a choice rather than a requirement: compare it on cost and calories like any other. Our British Shorthair guide and the cat breeds hub cover weight and health by breed. For health cover, see our cat insurance guide.