Unless you have the same luck as my mother does with her cat Angel, you probably are in search for a better alternative than having to clean your cat’s litter box on a daily basis. Quick backstory on Angel, she is extremely low maintenance even for a cat. While she’s super snugly indoors she loves to go outside on a daily basis for her kitty adventures and 9 times out of 10 she does all of her business outside and barely uses her litter box. If this was the case with all cats the automatic litter box industry would go out of business because there just wouldn’t be a need for it.
Now for everyone else who has a furry little friend that is more than happy to use their litter box multiple times a day (and sometimes it seems like they’re going trying to get into the Guinness book of records for record breaking quantity and size), cleaning up after your cats can be a daunting task to keep up with. If you are looking to save time and simplify the process an automatic litter box is definitely worth considering and well worth the money. There are several things to take into consideration when looking for the best automatic cat litter box and we’ve put together a list of some of the best automatic litter box reviews to help get you started.
Comparison Chart of Automatic Litter Box Reviews
Model | Dimensions | Multiple Cats | Items need to be replaced. | Price |
---|---|---|---|---|
Litter Robot LRII | 24 x 22 x 29 inches | Yes | Clumping Litter, 10 Gallon Trash Bags | Check Price Here |
PetSafe ScoopFree® | 27.4 x 19 x 7 inches | Yes | Disposable Trays | Check Price Here |
CatGenie | 24.5 x 19.2 x 21 inches | Yes, but 3 max | SaniSolution | Check Price Here |
LitterMaid LM680C | 10 x 17.8 x 24.6 inches | Yes, but not larger than 15 lbs. | Clumping Litter, Waste Receptacles & Carbon Filters | Check Price Here |
Litter-Robot III | 26.8 x 24.4 x 29.1 | Yes | Clumping Litter, 10 Gallon Trash Bags | Check Price Here |
Litter Robot LRII Automatic Self-Cleaning Litter Box
This is an all-star performer that is cheaper that is sturdy and durable. The way that it works is by using a weight activated sensor. Once your cat steps into the box it recognizes the weight of it. Once it detects the weight of your cat, it automatically starts the cleaning cycle, seven minutes from when your cat entered. The cycle consist of a gentle rotation of the unit. During this process it sifts the clumps of waste from the litter that is still clean. All of the waste is placed into a storage drawer that is lined with a plastic bag. At the end of the cycle the globe goes back to it’s normal position with nothing but clean litter.
Another nice feature is that it has an on/off mode. You may be wondering why you would want to shut it off. The answer is while the cleaning cycle isn’t extremely loud, if you’re like and me and any slight noise wakes you up, you may want to shut it off a night and run the cycle in the morning. Leaving it the off mode can also be helpful while your cat gets adjusted to the system.
Maintenance with this litter box basically consists of opening the waste storage drawer, removing the dirty bag and replacing it with a clean bag and then a refreshing of the litter. This only needs to be done once or twice a week (maybe 2-3 times / week if multiple cats are using it.) A 10 gallon garbage bag work well with the drawer.
One minor downside is that your cat may track a small amount of litter as it exits the globe so for easy cleanup you may want to place a small mat outside of the litter box.
Features
PetSafe ScoopFree® Self Cleaning Litter Box
This self cleaning litter box is easy to load, doesn’t need to be emptied for weeks and is significantly cheaper than the Cat Genie and Litter Robot. Instead of traditional litter it uses crystal litter trays that are disposable. Each tray lasts about 2-4 weeks depending on how many cats are using it.
After your cat goes to the bathroom, the crystal litter absorbs the urine and begins drying out any solid waste. About 20 minutes after your cat leaves the litter box it will automatically rake through the crystals and push the waste into the covered waste trap. When it’s time to change the tray all that you need to do is lift the litter box remove the tray and cover it with the leak proof lid that it comes with and replace it with a new tray. To help maximize the use of the trays you want to make sure that the litter box isn’t placed in areas with high humidity such as the bathroom.
Overall this is a great, hassle free, self cleaning system that is significantly cheaper than Cat Genie and Litter Robot. However, it will give you the ongoing expense of purchasing the replacement trays. See the price of the replacement trays here. The ongoing cost of this should be taken into consideration. Especially if you’ll be using it for more than one cat because the trays will need to replaced more frequently. On the other hand the Cat Genie does cost more for the litter box but only needs the Sani Solution, just something to keep in mind for cost comparison. While the Cat Genie is my number 1 pick for the best automatic litter box, with it’s unique disposable tray system this would be my second pick.
CatGenie Self Washing Self Flushing Cat Box
This hands down is the closest thing to a truly automatic system. The Cat Genie basically functions like a human toilet for cats. It works by taking the waste and liquefies and sends it down the toilet (or drain) without you needing to do anything. That means that there aren’t any waste storage receptacles for you to empty or clean and because it self flushes and self cleans you don’t have to worry about odor at all. In my opinion this is one of the best automatic litter boxes on the market for cats.
As if all of that isn’t amazing enough, because it uses permanent granules you don’t have to purchase litter. The granules (which are similar in look to litter) do not, I repeat do not need to be changed.
After the Cat Genie liquefies the waste it then uses SaniSolution (which is vet approved and safe for the environment) to thoroughly wash the granules and then it’s built in dryer to remove any moisture.
The Cat Genie should not be used for kittens under 6 months. It also is designed to work with 1-2 cats but can work with up to three average sized cats. My recommendation would be to only use it for three cats is if one of your cats is like my Mom’s cat Angel who does most of her business outside.
Set up requires connecting it to a cold water line using the supplied T-Adaptor and plug into a 120-volt ac electric outlet sharing the cold water line for the toilet or washing machine. The only thing that you need to purchase on an ongoing basis is the SaniSoltion which lasts about 120 washes when set to and 240 when set to cat activation mode.
LitterMaid LM680C Automatic Self-Cleaning Classic Litter Box (LM680C)
The LitterMaid(R) LM680C works by automatically scooping your cat’s waste into a sealed, disposable receptacle that features a carbon filter to absorb and remove odors. Timed, dual-motion sensors activate ten minutes after you cat has exited the box to quickly scoop and remove any new waste. This automatic litter box is designed to work with single cat or multiple cats that weigh 15 pounds or less.
It is one of the most affordable self cleaning litter boxes, however that does come with some trade offs. Unlike the more sophisticated (and more expensive) litter boxes such as the Litter Robot and Cat Genie, there is more hands on maintenance involved with this.
With any litter box of course you need to replace the litter as necessary and empty the waste storage receptacle. However, while this will automatically dispose of your cats waste into a receptacle. The receptacles of this automatic litter box are disposable and need to be replaced every time they are full. Which means you’ll need to purchase them on an going basis.
It is also recommended that the carbon filters be changed on a weekly basis, which gives you one more task to do each week and the ongoing expense of purchasing filters. It does come with 8 startup filters and receptacles, which depending on the number of cats you have could last you 1-2 months.
Overall this will save you time compared to a traditional litter box, however it still requires additional steps such as changing the carbon filters and cleaning the scooping rake on a regular basis. It will also give you the ongoing expense of purchasing the filters and waste receptacles. For that reason out of all of the automatic litter box reviews that I’ve put together, this model by LitterMaid(R) is the one that I least recommend.
Features:
Litter-Robot III Open-Air - Automatic Self-Cleaning Litter Box
Overall this model works very similar to it’s predecessor the Litter Box LR11 where after your cats exists it automatically begins the cleaning process where it slowly rotates the globe to sift and remove the waste from the unit, disposing it in a storage drawer (see above Litter Box review for a more detailed description of the process.) However, the LRIII has an a more modern design and is equipped with some enhanced features that build upon the already great features of the LRII.
One of the new features that this model comes with is a drawer full indicator. When the drawer is full it will flash a blue light letting you know that it’s time to empty the drawer. It also has a control panel lockout that prevents cats from changing the programmed cleaning schedule. The LRII begins the cleaning process 7 minutes after your cat goes to the bathroom, and this model gives you the ability to choose a 3, 7 or 15 minute delay. One important thing to mention is that your cat needs to be at least 5lbs for the sensor to detect it’s weight. This can be used with smaller cats but you will need to manually press the cleaning cycle button.
There is also an 8 hour sleeping cycle that will pause the cleaning cycle and resume it at the end of the sleep cycle. With the older model if you wanted to not have the cleaning cycle run at night you had to manually shut off the unit. There is also a 48 hour backup battery (sold separately) that is useful in power outages.
Tips To Help Your Cat Adjust to an Automatic Litter Box
To help get your get to recognize that this is the new litter box one option is to mix some of the litter from their current litter box and mix it in with fresh litter that will help them using the scent. Another option is to place the new litter box next to their old one and stop cleaning the old box which should help encourage them to try out their new litter box.