Best Cat Food for Hairballs (2024): Top 13 For Control and Prevention
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Hairballs are a nightmare. Especially if you step in the remnants of one at 3am! Agreed?
There’s nothing worse than stumbling downstairs half-awake in the morning, just to squish your bare foot into the gift your feline friend left on the carpet. The thought is enough to make most of us physically shudder.
Below, we'll look at the best cat food for hairballs as a proven method of hairball control for cats, but first let's briefly look at what hairball is and why your cat has them.
While hairballs are a common part of cat ownership, if your fluffy friend is dealing with a lot of them, this could be a sign that something is very wrong. Hairballs aren’t just an issue for the person who needs to clean them up.
These unpleasant regurgitations can be bad for your cat too. Whilst we can usually consider them normal, they’re also capable of causing a range of health issues, from intestinal problems to sickness.
Understanding Hairballs - What Are They and Why Does Your Cat Have Them?
Hairballs are gross, but they’re also a common issue for cats. Often, they develop as a result of your cat’s grooming routine. If you were licking your fur clean every day, you’d get hairballs too.
If you’ve ever been licked by a cat, you’ll know they have a Velcro-style tongue. The little hooks in your cat’s tongue will catch loose hair, which your cat then swallows.
Usually, the majority of the hair passes through your cat’s digestion tract with no problem.
However, if some hair remains in the stomach, a hairball can form. Usually, your cat will end up vomiting the hairball to remove it. Yuck.
There are hairball treatments for cats that one of our vets has written about in detail here, but, often, the first step is to switch to a hairball cat food.
Best Cat Food For Hairballs
Best Overall
Royal Canin Feline Intense Hairball
Best Cat Food For Hairballs
Best Overall Choice
Royal Canin Feline Intense Hairball
Royal Canin Intensive Hairball's specialized formula is designed to promote healthy digestion and reduce hairball formation. The food contains a precise blend of fibers, which help move the hair through the cat's digestive system, reducing the formation of hairballs.
Royal Canin Feline Intense Hairball comes with specific nutrients, such as omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids, that support skin and coat health, reducing excessive shedding and decreases the amount of ingested hair.
Additionally, this dry cat food's unique shape and texture also encourage chewing and increased saliva production, further aiding in the prevention of hairball formation.
3 Top Cat Food For Hairballs Picks – Best, Value & Premium
Now we come to the most essential part of our list–the best hairball cat food.
We have a vast audience on our social media channels (over 1 million followers) so we regularly reach out to the cat owner community and get their valuable and real world experience input for our tests. After all, they certainly know best and pretty much every cat owner has an opinion on dealing with hairballs.
So here are the top selections recommended by cat owners and our vet advisors, which covers a range of great tasting, budget-friendly, and premium hairball food for cats.
Our Top 3 Choices
Best Overall
Royal Canin Feline Intense Hairball
Best Value
IAMS PROACTIVE HEALTH Adult Hairball Care
Premium Choice
Smalls Cat Food
So that’s a quick chart showing our three main choices for the best cat food for hairball control. Now let’s take a deeper look at those three group test picks and a range of other furball prevention foods that we also rated.
To start with, let’s look at the top three in a little more detail.
1. Royal Canin Feline Intense Hairball - Best Overall
We have a beautiful long-haired "terrace cat" called Chupco - which is Croatian for Fluffy.
He decided to move himself in a few years ago when he was a baby and decided not to leave. Needless to say, he is a family member now.
As you can see by his name, he is very FLUFFY and when the summer months come round, we started to notice that he shed his long fur really fast, but that also meant a month of consistent hairball issues.
On the advice of one of the vets who is on our writing team, we immediately switched his food over to the Royal Canin Feline Intense Hairball and after a couple of weeks, there was a massive improvement in his problems with hairballs.
Of course, he still got a few, here and there, but the amount and regularity of his hairball gacking reduced substantially. We have stuck with it and it does make his summer coat transition period a lot more comfortable.
Royal Canin is an excellent company in the specialist kitty diet landscape and is rightly renowned for making a high-quality cat food. The company has something for everyone, including this unique food for cats who are prone to hairballs.
Royal Canin Feline Intense Hairball cat food is tailored to suit cats over the age of one because of the recipe, so you should avoid using it for kittens.
For any cat older than that, it's our go to choice because it's so effective. The recipe was made based on vet advice and our community rated it very highly as effective.
You should find that the specially shaped kibble and the flavor (predominantly made of chicken) make it easy to get your cat to switch to this when the need arises.
You will need to feed this formula for a few weeks before you see the improvement in your cat's ability to deal with hairballs as the ingredients have a chance to work on their digestion.
This food reduces hairballs by moving the hair gently through the GI tract rather than letting it get stuck and build up to a point where it needs to be regurgitated. It controls hairball development thanks to a specific blend of dietary fibers intended for healthy stomachs and improved ability to move blockages through the digestive tract.
It does this very effectively in our experience.
Although we're recommending the dry food, Royal Canin also do a wet cat food for hairballs that you may choose to try if that is your and your cat's preference.
Whether you pick the dry or the wet food, the only downside is that this recipe is quite expensive.
Pros
Cons
2. IAMS PROACTIVE HEALTH Adult Hairball Care - Best Value
As we talked about in our overall best cat food for hairball control, Royal Canin can be quite expensive. On top of that, sometimes we can't actually get hold of it as it is not stocked regularly in our local stores and online deliveries can be touch and go!
So, when this isn't available we usually opt for the cheaper and more widely stocked option of IAMS Proactive Health Adult Hairball Control.
This hairball control cat food also does an awesome job with Chupco! I wouldn't say it is quite as effective as the Royal Canin, BUT it definitely works...and it is so much cheaper. We end up using a mixture of the two to get him through his hairball season!
He gets them all year round, but when he moults, it can get quite gruesome and the outdoor terrace can become a hairball vomit minefield. So we always need some cat hairball food on hand!
IAMS Proactive Health is one of the more convenient hairball control foods on the market, because it’s so easy to find online or offline. One bag contains everything you need to protect your cat’s system, including the main ingredient of protein-rich chicken.
The same idea as our best overall pick makes this formula work so there are specific fibers in the recipe that help to move all ingested hair through your cat's stomach. In the Iams recipe the fiber blend contains beet pulp to reduce hairballs before they start bothering your cat.
Another bonus of using kibble for your hairball remedy is that it helps to protect your cat’s teeth. Crunching kibble biscuits remove and reduces plaque!
There are some cat owners who note that this food has some inconsistency to it in different batches, with some who think that the recipe seems to change. Or at least that the overall resulting kibble can smell different.
Additionally, your cat might not love the flavor, and there’s only one available.
However, the reason this gets our best value recommendation is that you should be able to find it in most pet stores and given the overall quality (and IAMS is vet recommended) this cat hairball food is very good value.
Pros
Cons
3. Smalls Cat Food - Premium Choice
This is fast becoming a popular choice with cat owners looking for the best hairball cat food!
Smalls cat food is a favorite of the team here, our cats, our vet advisors and many in our community. It's a great option for any number of issues faced by your cat because switching to Smalls means that you are feeding your cat human-grade fresh prepared food free of all additives. In other words, to make your cat healthy, feed them healthy food!
Their recipes include natural sources of fiber, such as pumpkin or psyllium husk, which aid in promoting healthy digestion and regular bowel movements.
This helps the cat pass hair through their digestive system more effectively, reducing the likelihood of hairball formation.
Additionally, Smalls cat food is made with high-quality, easily digestible ingredients that support overall digestive health.
The balanced and nutritious formulation helps reduce excessive shedding and promotes a healthy coat, minimizing the amount of loose hair ingested during grooming.
By providing a fiber-rich and easily digestible diet, Smalls cat food helps in the prevention of hairballs, ensuring a comfortable and healthy digestive system for cats.
If you can stretch to the cost, we recommend giving it a go. Not only will it help with cat hairball control, but it will help with all nutritionally related issues for your cat.
Pros
Cons
4. Hill's Science Diet Adult Urinary Hairball Control
Another option from one of the leading cat food brands (and one of my personal favorites), Hill’s Science diet Urinary and Hairball control food supports your kitty’s urinary tract and their GI system as well as dealing with hairball control.
There’s Omega 3, and vitamin E included for a healthier coat, and you get tons of high-quality protein from the main chicken ingredient to support your cat in maintaining their strength.
As with the other dry hairball food for cats this recipe relies on an increased amount of natural fiber in the formula to move ingested hair through your cat's gut. That means it moves all the way through rather than forming a hairball in the first place.
Our community spoke highly about this specific recipe from Hill's (rather than their other dry Hairball - non urinary - formula which we look at below). Our vet advisor also noted that cats that suffer from hairball blockages can also have related symptoms of urinary blockage or infection. This dry cat food for hairball control deals with those potential urinary issues at the same time.
It's a two-for-one formula and all the reports we have from our survey are that owners were very happy to confirm that it does reduce hairballs and helps prevent any urinary issues.
It is a more expensive recipe and Hill's aren't the cheapest brand of cat food but you can be sure that this Hill's Science Diet Urinary and Hairball Control gets our vote for quality and effectiveness.
Pros
Cons
5. Hill's Science Diet Adult Hairball Control- Best Wet Cat Food For Hairballs
If your cat needs help with hairballs, but urinary problems aren’t an issue, you can try this wet cat food formula from Hill's instead. There is also a Hairball and Urinary version of the wet food too.
Your best option for wet food if budget allows is the Smalls cat food we have as our Premium Choice above, but this is a good, but still pricey, alternative.
Available in a chicken recipe, this complete adult cat food helps to reduce hairballs and support your cat’s development.
The product even features a bunch of must-have high quality protein for healthy growth.
Hill’s Science wet hairball food features easy-to-digest ingredients that cats love. It has the natural fibers needed to push hair through the stomach and prevent blockages and hairballs forming. What’s more, because it’s wet food, you don’t need to worry as much about constipation issues caused by a lack of water in the diet!
Sometimes, a sole dry-food diet can cause constipation and this can be made worse by hairball blockages. High moisture wet cat hairball food like this recipe from Hills can help alleviate this problem.
Keep in mind that this food does have a pretty strong smell and customers also note some differences in texture between different cans.
Pros
Cons
6. Purina ONE Natural Cat Food for Hairball Control
If your cat’s more of a fan of kibble than wet food (like my Savannah), then you might want to try the Purina ONE hairball formula.
The great thing about this food is that the number one ingredient is real chicken. That means your kitty gets a fantastic dose of protein and all the vitamins they need in their carnivore diet.
There’s natural added fiber to reduce hairballs, but the calorie content is still reasonably low so that you can reduce your risk of an overweight moggy.
This Purina mix is also vet recommended. However, there is only one flavor choice, so that might be a problem if your cat doesn’t like chicken. The scent is pretty bad too!
Pros
Cons
7. Blue Buffalo Tastefuls Hairball Control Natural Adult Dry Cat Food
We regularly recommend Blue Buffalo cat food formulas and they also do very well in our cat community surveys. They are a high-quality brand making great cat food from the finest ingredients and with zero additives.
When they call their cat food 'natural', they stick to it!
This hairball control cat food formula uses the natural fiber approach to increase hairball motility through your cat's gut. It does this with a range of natural fiber ingredients, including psyllium husk and cellulose.
There’s real meat from chicken as the first ingredient, and the recipe is formulated to promote healthy digestion with no corn, wheat or soy and no artificial additives.
Omega 3 and 6 fatty acids ensure that your cat has a healthy coat with less shedding to reduce fur ingested.
The Blue Buffalo recipe also features their proprietary LifeSource bits, which are hardened chunks of extra kibble that contain a lot of antioxidants and minerals.
While these bits are great, they won’t appeal to all cats - particularly those who don’t like large pieces of biscuit.
Pros
Cons
8. Hill's Science Diet Dry Hairball Control Cat Food
Choosing a kibble as the best cat food for hairballs is an excellent option for many pet parents. Adding a bit of extra kibble to your kitty’s diet is usually a lot easier than changing the moggy’s meals entirely. And, in most cats who get sufficient hydration by drinking water the dry cat food can do a good job of binding with hair in your cat's gut.
This dry kibble from Hill’s Science includes all the natural fibers your cat needs to reduce hairballs quickly and effectively.
There are vitamin E and Omega acids (3 and 6) to help improve the health of your cat’s fur and skin. Plus, you get an extra dose of protein to help your feline build its muscles.
One possible downside is that this food is quite expensive, and the price can change almost at random.
If you're looking for a dry cat food for hairballs from Hill's and you don't need the urinary protection formula then this is a great dry food.
Pros
Cons
9. Meow Mix Hairball Control Dry Cat Food
Here’s another great option with a hairball cat food that is US made and extremely good value.
The Meow Mix Hairball control food isn’t just there to help eliminate hairballs, but can also reduce the risk of your kitty developing hairballs in the first place.
The 100% complete and balanced formula gives your moggy everything they need to stay healthy, including plenty of protein and some of the all-important extra fiber.
What’s more, Meow Mix is made in the USA, so you know you’re getting a product that passes all US cat food tests and guidelines. It's worth noting that at this cheaper end of the cat food market, you cannot expect the same quality of ingredients as the higher priced brands. Nonetheless, this is an effective hairball food for cats at the price.
This product also comes with a single recipe that is a mix of chicken and seafood flavors, which is a nice change from all the chicken-based options out there.
Unfortunately, there aren’t any other flavors to choose from. Another issue is that this product only comes in two sizes.
Pros
Cons
10. Purina Cat Chow Indoor Dry Hairball + Healthy Weight Cat Food
Purina Cat Chow is a popular food for a lot of pet owners. There aren’t a lot of size and flavor options to choose from, but the complete mix does come with plenty of bonuses.
For instance, you get natural fiber to help everything move naturally in your cat’s stomach. What’s more, the antioxidants in this meal will help to support a healthier immune system too.
Unlike some of the leading cat foods for hairballs, Purina comes with a low-calorie content too. This reduces your risk of a fat kitty running around if they enjoy their food too much.
Pros
Cons
11. Purina Pro Plan Hairball Management, Indoor Cat Food
If your kitty doesn’t enjoy the taste of the previous Purina foods mentioned, you could always switch to Pro plan. This option comes with a range of different taste sensations, from chicken and turkey to salmon and rice. There are also plenty of sizes to pick from too.
The number one ingredient in every bag is meat – perfect for your carnivore kitty. This food also comes with plenty of protein and natural fiber to control hairballs. There are even natural prebiotic fibers to help promote better digestive health.
Unfortunately, the chunks are quite large for cats with painful teeth or smaller mouths and the smell is pretty significant too.
Pros
Cons
12. Purina Cat Chow Hairball, Healthy Weight, Indoor, Natural Dry Cat Food
If you love knowing that your cat’s enjoying an all-natural diet, then you might like this option from Purina. This recipe is essentially the natural version of the Purina Cat Chow for hairballs that we've covered above.
Some of our community found that their cats took to the taste of this version in preference to the other option. The ingredient difference and formulation is very limited, so it's really just down to your cat's choice!
Available in just one size and flavor, the Purina cat chow for natural hairball control is made with only natural ingredients, including real chicken and turkey.
The best thing about this food is that there are no added flavors or preservatives that might cause tummy troubles for your kitty.
Plus, there’s a good helping of natural fiber included to help with managing your moggy’s hairballs.
Pros
Cons
13. Blue Buffalo Cat Food for Indoor Cats, Hairball Control & Weight Management
Finally, a grain-free diet is always a great thing for cats. Your fluffy friend doesn’t need a lot of grain in their food – they want all-natural meats instead.
The Blue Buffalo, grain-free hairball control food, is specifically made to support a cat’s dietary needs.
Aside from helping with hairballs, this food also supports weight control with a low-calorie biscuit.
There are even LifeSource bits included for that extra boost of antioxidants. However, some cats seem to stay away from these extra chunks.
We said in our other Blue Buffalo pick how much we rate their cat food. So, despite coming last in our recommended list of the best hairball control cat food, this Blue Buffalo is still a great option.
Pros
Cons
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Cat Food for Hairballs Buyer's Guide
Every kitty owner, at some point, has encountered the peculiar and often unsettling sight of their furry friend regurgitating an unwanted hairball.
These clumps of matted hair, while common, always bring up some questions about their origins and if there are any implications for the health of our kitties.
Are hairballs a natural occurrence? Most importantly, how can they be prevented and minimized?
In the section below, we'll delve deep into the causes of hairballs, the symptoms to be wary of, and various methods to manage and reduce their occurrence which ties in nicely with all the best hairball control cat foods we have mentioned above.
Whether you're a new cat owner or a seasoned one looking to better understand this bizarre feline phenomenon, this guide sheds light on the often misunderstood topic of hairballs in cats and how food can play a part in controlling them.
Read this next: Cat Hairballs - Causes, Symptoms & Treatment (Vet Advice)
What Causes Hairballs - Are They Dangerous?
Cats that shed a lot or groom regularly are more likely to have hairballs because they swallow a lot of fur.
And that's what a hairball is - the hair and fur that your cat has licked from themselves as they groom that gets stuck in their digestive system. It needs to come back up and that's a hairball.
The hairball is indigestible for your cat because it contains keratin which their digestive system cannot break down.
You may have noticed that your cat didn’t have as many hairballs as a kitten, and that's because they groom less and their fur is finer, but these issues can grow as your cat does.
Hairballs are more likely to appear with long-haired cat breeds like Maine Coons and Persians. That’s because they have more hair to deal with.
Excessive grooming habits caused by stress can also exacerbate hairballs. Symptoms of hairballs include:
How to Prevent Hairballs
So, what can you do to keep hairballs to a minimum?
There’s nothing that you can do to prevent hairballs from happening with your cat completely, because your cat is going to swallow some hair! However, there are things you can do to reduce the chances that your kitty will struggle too regularly. For instance:
Another option might be to discourage excessive grooming whenever possible. If you’re concerned that your cat’s hairballs might be a result of compulsive grooming, give them something else to do.
When you notice your kitty over-cleaning, provide them with something else to do, like playing with a toy!
What is Hairball Prevention Food?
Before you can choose the best cat food for hairballs, you need to make sure that you know how these foods work.
The key things to focus on are higher amounts of fiber and, in some cases, hypoallergenic foods. Almost all specifically formulated Hairball control cat food will have particular sources of fiber to help push fur and hair through your cat's stomach.
Choosing hairball cat food as part of a high-fiber cat food diet will usually greatly aid in preventing hairballs occurring in the first place. Most of the hair your cat ingests will pass right through their digestive system.
Different kinds of fiber in your cat’s diet perform various roles. For instance, indigestible fiber – the kind your cat would usually get from its prey’s bones and fur – sweeps hair through the intestinal tract.
There are also sources of soluble fiber, like beet pulp and oats, that can support your kitty’s gut health too to aid digestion and ease the passage of any hair.
Getting the right combination of ingredients in your cat’s diet will reduce the chances of suffering from hairballs.
Sometimes, the best food for hairballs will be a hypoallergenic diet. That's because undiagnosed allergies to foods, and issues with inflammatory bowel disease, can sometimes contribute to hairballs.
These conditions cause your kitty’s intestinal tract to swell, making it harder to pass food so another form of hairball prevention is to look into the best food for cats with allergies.
Hypoallergenic cat food can eliminate the inflammation problem. Usually, they include limited ingredients that avoid common causes of allergies in cats. Your vet will be able to give you more guidance on the kind of food to look for here.
Read this next: How to Groom a Cat: An Introductory Guide
What to Look for in the Best Cat Food For Hairballs
The ingredients you look for when you’re searching for the best cat food will depend on your moggy. All cats have unique dietary requirements, and your vet can tell you if yours needs anything special.
There are many pet food manufacturers out there that now add fiber to their formulations to improve hairball management.
Usually, you’ll need to look for diets with a good percentage of fiber and plenty of extra delicious ingredients too.
All cats need plenty of protein, vitamins, and minerals to help them stay healthy.
Nutrition
Start by looking at the nutrients and ingredients on your chosen cat food. Natural fibers are often the best way to move fur and other substances through your cat’s digestive tract.
Most of the best hairball prevention foods have high numbers of natural fiber.
However, try not to choose something too high in fiber.
Your cat is a carnivore, and too much fiber could mean that your cat fails to consume enough protein, because his stomach feels overly full.
On top of helping hairballs move through the digestive tract, you want your food to include a low amount of carbs, to reduce obesity.
Omega 3 & 6 fatty acids are also helpful as they improve the health of your cat’s hair and coat.
Taste
Spending a fortune on hairball control cat food isn’t going to do much good if your kitty refuses to eat it.
Fortunately, there are different styles and flavors available on the market today. You can usually find something that appeals to your cat out of the selection.
Remember to consider the consistency of the food along with the taste. Some cats will prefer dry foods.
Other cats love wet food, and this comes in everything from pate form, to minced and shredded morsels of meat.
You should have a good idea of your cat’s preferences based on their usual diet. If you’re not certain, take it slow when introducing your kitty to new options.
Things to Avoid
Just as there are essential ingredients to look for in the best cat food for hairballs, there are also things to avoid.
For instance, just like with food for humans, it’s best to stay away from artificial preservatives and flavorings. These things don’t serve much of a purpose.
Avoid any food or treats that are full of fats, starches, fillers, and extras. Cornmeal is also a common ingredient in dry cat food that doesn’t deliver any value to your cat’s diet.
These things are fine in moderation, but too many carbs can cause your cat to gain weight.
Even wheat gluten, which doesn’t seem like a dangerous ingredient, is often used as a substitute for muscle proteins, can cause problems. Sometimes, this food contains melamine, which may cause kidney failures.
Read this next: 7 Best Cat Hair Remover Tools
Does Hairball Control Gel Work?
Aside from experimenting with foods specially intended to remove hairballs, you can also consider using the gels that we mentioned above.
These lubricated gels contain various substances that are intended to help hairballs slide through the GI tract.
Ultimately, you need to avoid giving your cats too much of this substance, because it can make them feel sick or lead to issues like diarrhea. However, if you follow the guidelines given by your vet, then using a gel could be a safe strategy.
Vets recommend substances like the Nutri-Vet, Multi-Vite Paw-Gel for cats. Vets are responsible for this particular gel’s formula. The great thing about this lubricant is that you don’t have to force it into your cat’s mouth.
All you need to do is apply the gel to your cat’s paw, and they’ll consume it as they groom themselves.
Another bonus for this particular gel is that it comes with a flavor designed to appeal to your kitties in either Salmon or Chicken. That could make encouraging them to eat it is a much easier process.
FAQs
What ingredients should I look for in cat food to prevent hairballs?
Cat food formulated to prevent hairballs typically contains higher amounts of dietary fiber. Natural fibers, like beet pulp or psyllium husk. These fibers really help to move fur through the digestive tract. Additionally, foods rich in omega fatty acids can assist in a healthier coat, reducing shedding and subsequently lowering the ingestion of hair.
How does high-fiber cat food help in reducing hairballs?
Fiber aids in the movement of hair through the cat's digestive system. As cats groom, they ingest hair, which can then form hairballs in the stomach. A high-fiber diet ensures that these hairs are moved through the intestines and then pooped out the other end, reducing the likelihood of hairball formation.
Is wet or dry cat food better for preventing hairballs?
Both wet and dry cat foods can be effective for hairball control. It really does depend on the type of food and the ingredients in that food. You may find that some cats benefit more from the moisture content in wet food, which can help in passing the hair through the system. Plus it helps with their overall hydration.
However, many dry cat foods are also specifically designed with increased fiber content to target hairball issues. It's important to choose a product based on its hairball combating ingredients and, of course, your cat's preferences. We all know how fussy they can be!
How often should I feed my cat a hairball control diet?
If you've chosen a hairball control cat food, it's actually fairly safe to feed it as your cat's regular diet. However, please, always consult with your veterinarian to determine the best diet for your specific cat.
You must take into consideration age, weight, whether they are an indoor cat or an outdoor cat and their general overall health.
Best Cat Food For Hairballs: The Verdict
It can be tough to find cat food that works perfectly for your kitty, particularly when they have additional needs.
Fortunately, there are tons of options out there for the best cat food for hairballs. Whether you’re looking for dry food or something wet, you’re sure to find something that works for your cat.
My top choice has to be the Royal Canin Feline Intense Hairball, simply because it works perfectly for my Maine Coon. The fact that it came out top in our community survey and is preferred by our vet advisors just adds to that recommendation.
This mix has helped my fluffy kitty to cut down on hairballs. Plus, his skin and fur seem healthier than ever.
That said, many of our team swear by Smalls cat food and, because they have a full money back guarantee, it might be well worth giving it a go as a super healthy diet that is good for the overall health of your cat.
Good luck finding the food that works for your cat!
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