6 Best Automatic Cat Feeders Wet or Dry

Cats do best on a regular feeding schedule.

Some of us cat guardians are lucky enough to be able to work from home. We can lavish our furbabies with care and affection all day long, including offering our kitties healthy foods on a regular schedule. But most of us need to work away from home, leaving our pets alone for many hours a day. And most of us travel on occasion, leaving home for days at a time.

Back in the day, when I needed to leave my cat alone for a few days, I’d just leave out a huge amount of dry food. She didn’t go hungry, but it was far from ideal.

Fortunately, today we have much better options! Automatic cat feeders have come a long way, so our pets don’t have to end up bingeing on kibble while we’re away. Not only that, but the promise of a tasty meal on a regular schedule will give your pet a feeling of security and something to look forward to.

There are a lot of automatic cat feeders on the market. Some are relatively simple, using gravity to feed kibble into a dish as the cat empties it. The gravity fed hoppers get fancier, feeding on a programmed schedule, and even measuring the portion doled out. Plate style automatic feeders have all the bells and whistles, with a motorized turntable of food dishes that slide into view, one at a time, on a schedule of your choice. The wet cat food automatic feeders are especially helpful. Some include cold packs to keep wet food fresh. And some automatic cat feeders even allow you to record messages for your pet to hear as they feast.

As with everything, not all of these wondrous gadgets are created equal, so we’ve curated a range of choices to meet every need.

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In this Article

• Best of the Best
  • Best for Wet Food – Cat Mate C500 Automatic Pet Feeder with Digital Timer
  • Best for Long Trips Away – PetSafe Healthy Pet Simply Feed Pre-Portioned Automatic Food Dispenser
  • Best for Multi-Cat Families – WellToBe Timed Automatic Pet Feeder For 1-2 Cats
  • Best for Cat Owners on a Budget – PetSafe Automatic 2 Meal Pet Feeder Programmable Timer
• The 2 Kinds of Automatic Cat Feeders Explained
  • Plate Style Cat Feeders Explained
  • Gravity Fed Hopper Style Cat Feeders Explained
• 6 Things to Consider Before Shopping
• All Our Top Picks for You
  • The Best Plate Style Automatic Cat Feeders
  • The Best Gravity Fed Hopper Style Automatic Cat Feeders
• Tips and Tricks to get the most out of your automatic cat feeder
  

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Best of the Best

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Best for Wet Food

Cat Mate C500 Automatic Pet Feeder with Digital Timer

• Suitable for wet or kibble food and includes 2 ice packs to keep food fresh
• Five Food Compartments
• Four Timed Meals (after the initial one you start with)
• Each Compartment Holds 11.5 oz. Wet Food
• Two Ice Packs (included) Keep Food Fresh
• Cover and Base are Easy to Remove and Top Rack Dishwasher Safe
• Uses 3 AA Batteries (not included)
• Digital Display Includes Battery Level Indicator
• Tight Fitting, Tamper Resistant Lid
• 13.4 x 11.4 x 2.8 inches
• 3 Year Warranty

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Best for Long Trips Away

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PetSafe Healthy Pet Simply Feed Pre-Portioned Automatic Food Dispenser

• Up to 12 timed meals per day
• Portion size options as small as 1/8 cup
• Works with all kitty kibble
• Option to release kibble slowly over a 15 minute period to discourage wolfing of food
• Top Rack Dishwasher safe plastic feeder parts
• Conveyor system hand washable
• Pet-proof food reservoir
• Holds up to 24 cups of kibble
• 18.54 x 8.7 x 12.36 inches
• Requires 4 D-cell alkaline batteries (not included)

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Best for Multi-Cat Families

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Best for Cat Owners on a Budget

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The 2 Kinds of Automatic Cat Feeders Explained

Automatic Cat Feeders Come in Two Basic Types:

• Plate Style Feeders
• Gravity-Fed Hopper Feeders

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Plate Style Automatic Cat Feeders

Plate style feeders feature a number of covered dishes that are revealed one at a time on a programmed timed schedule. Most come in a carousel shape, with the carousel rotating to reveal a new dish of food on schedule.

PROS: Only plate style feeders can dispense wet food. Furthermore, since a new dish is used for each meal, your pet won’t have to eat out of a bowl that may be dirty from their last meal. The flat shape allows the feeder to be tucked away with little overhead space required.

CONS: Plate style feeders only hold just so many meals, so they can’t go as long as gravity fed hopper feeders without the food having to be replaced. Of course, if you feed wet food, you’re used to this. But more important, it means you can’t be gone as long as a gravity fed hopper feeder would allow.

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Gravity Fed Hopper Style Automatic Cat Feeders

Gravity fed style hopper feeders have hoppers that hold a large reservoir of kibble, usually many days’ worth. They ones we picked have programmable feeding schedules, so you can customize feeding times to meet your cat’s exact needs.

PROS: The feeder will measure the amount of food dispensed for you, which is a time-saver. Furthermore, they hold a lot of food, which means you won’t have to refill it as often. In addition, the large size means you can be away for a longer time than a plate style feeder will permit. Finally, some feeders have the option to dispense each portion slowly over up to 15 minutes—a plus if you’d like to keep kitty from wolfing down the food too quickly.

CONS: The most obvious con is the fact that gravity fed hopper feeders can’t dispense wet food. Their tall shape means a fair amount of overhead space is required, including space to open the lid. And if measuring exact amounts of food is important, you might want to consider plate style feeders, because while programmable feeders do allow for many different portions, they aren’t always very accurate, sometimes dispensing extra food.

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6 Things to Consider Before Shopping

• Do you have enough room for the feeder? Automatic feeders come in a variety of shapes and sizes, so be sure to take note of the size and measure your available space. Gravity fed feeders require a fair amount of vertical space. On the other hand, plate style feeders can be tucked into a spot with less room overhead.
• Does the feeder have the option to use a power cord? Surprisingly, not all feeders can be plugged into the wall. If you don’t mind buying batteries or can use rechargeable ones, that might not be a problem. But if you will have to be gone days at a time, you might not want to take a chance on batteries running down in your absence.
• How long will you have to be away? Figure out how much food your cat eats each day. If you’ll be gone more than one day, be sure your automatic feeder will hold enough food to cover the the time needed. Gravity fed hopper style feeders usually hold a substantial amount of food.
• How many cats do you have? Most feeders aren’t designed to feed cats separately. So if you have more than one cat, consider choosing one of the feeders that will dispense food into multiple bowls.
• Do you need to feed you cat wet food or kibble? Gravity hopper feeders only work for kibble, so if your cat needs to eat wet food—and vets recommend that cats get some wet food daily—you’ll want to have a plate style feeder. And you’ll probably want to find one that is designed to keep wet food fresh.
• Would you like to be able to record your voice, so your cat can hear you talk to them while you’re away? Some automatic feeders offer the option of recording a brief voice message for your kitty. This feature is a bonus because it will get your pet’s attention when it’s meal time, as well as offering the comfort of hearing your voice.

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All Our Top Picks for You

All of the automatic cat feeders below pass our standards for quality, safety, and functionality. Read the features carefully when making your choice, and you and your kitty will be happy with their new feeder in no time!

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The Best Plate-Style Automatic Cat Feeders

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Cat Mate C500 Automatic Pet Feeder with Digital Timer

• Suitable for wet or kibble food and includes 2 ice packs to keep food fresh
• Five Food Compartments
• Four Timed Meals (after the initial one you start with)
• Each Compartment Holds 11.5 oz. Wet Food
• Two Ice Packs (included) Keep Food Fresh
• Cover and Base are Easy to Remove and Top Rack Dishwasher Safe
• Uses 3 AA Batteries (not included)
• Digital Display Includes Battery Level Indicator
• Tight Fitting, Tamper Resistant Lid
• 13.4 x 11.4 x 2.8 inches
• 3 Year Warranty

 

PetSafe 5 Meal Automatic Pet Feeder

• Suitable for dry or semi-moist kibble. Also works for wet food.
• Five bowls hold up to 1 cup each
• “Feed now” button allows owner to manually open the next portion. Next automatic feeding remains the same.
• Suspend feeding function allows suspension of feeding without losing programmed schedule
• Top-rack dishwasher safe
• 15 x 5 x 18 inches

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The Best Gravity Fed Hopper Style Automatic Cat Feeders

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PetSafe Healthy Pet Simply Feed Pre-Portioned Automatic Food Dispenser

• Up to 12 timed meals per day
• Portion size options as small as 1/8 cup
• Works with all kitty kibble
• Option to release kibble slowly over a 15 minute period to discourage wolfing of food
• Top Rack Dishwasher safe plastic feeder parts
• Conveyor system hand washable
• Pet-proof food reservoir
• Holds up to 24 cups of kibble
• 18.54 x 8.7 x 12.36 inches
• Requires 4 D-cell alkaline batteries (not included)

Arf Pets Automatic Pet Feeder Food Dispenser

• Up to 4 Meals a Day
• Dispense from 1 to 10 measured portions per meal, with minimum portion of 24 ml
• Option to use voice recorder for  timed messages to your pet
•  Pet-proof magnetic lock lid keeps kibble fresh
• Runs on power outlet or 3 D size batteries
• Top rack dishwasher safe tray

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Tips and Tricks to Get the Most Out of Your Automatic Cat Feeder

• Clean your pet’s dish regularly, especially if your cat is prone to chin acne. All dishes will harbor bacteria if not cleaned regularly, and plastic dishes even moreso.
• Check under and around dishes for dropped food lurking out of sight. Whether you’re feeding kibble, semi-moist, or wet food, bits of food can fall under or between the cracks.
• If you’re feeding wet food, replace daily. Even feeders that have cold packs will lose their cool eventually.
• Consider a low-profile plate style feeder if your pet is especially rambunctious. Higher profile gravity fed hopper style feeders could be tipped over by a determined kitty of larger stature.

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Top image by birgl from Pixabay