The 7 Best Automatic Litter Boxes (2025) Our Cats Would R…
Featured in this article
Best Automatic Litter Box
Petkit Purobot Max Pro 2
Amazon
Best Connected App
Whisker Litter-Robot 4
Litter-Robot
Best Basic Automatic Litter Box for Most People
Petkit PuraMax 2
Amazon
Best Budget Automatic Litter Box
PetPivot Autoscooper 11
Amazon
I can confidently say that having an automatic litter box has been the biggest game changer for me when it comes to cat ownership. I can’t recommend them enough. They can be pricey, but never having to scoop poop again is priceless. One of the biggest complaints against cats is that litter boxes are stinky, and you don’t want another creature’s poop just hanging out in your house. Naysayers be gone! Because thanks to ever-evolving and growing pet tech, automatic cat litter boxes have provided a hygienic, low-labor solution to the smelly litter box problem.
We at WIRED—well, our WIRED cats—tested a dozen of the highest-rated and most technologically advanced automatic litter boxes on the market for at least a week, often more (using standard clay clumping litter unless otherwise indicated), to see if they were really worth the money—or the hype. Our new favorite automatic litter box is the Purobot Max Pro 2 because of its compact design and camera to monitor. The Litter-Robot 4 is a close second because of its LitterHopper attachment that easily refills litter for you. Plus, we still love the more basic Petkit PuraMax 2 (and think it’s a great option for most people).
Check out our related guides, the Best Automatic Feeders, Best Cat Water Fountains, Best Pet Cameras, and Best Cat Toys. More of a dog person? We’ve got you covered; see our Best Dog Accessories.
Updated February 2026: We’ve added the Litter-Robot 5 Pro and Petlibro Luma Smart Litter Box,
and updated links and prices throughout.
Table of Contents
- Compare Our Picks
- Others We Tested
- Not Recommended
- How Do Automatic Litter Boxes Work?
- Are Automatic Litter Boxes Safe?
- Where Should I Put the Automatic Litter Box?
- History of the Automatic Litter Box
- What Should You Look for When Shopping?
- How Does WIRED Select Models to Be Reviewed?
- How Does WIRED Acquire the Boxes?
- What Does WIRED Do With Them After Testing?
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Best Automatic Litter Box
Chevron Chevron Petkit
Purobot Max Pro 2
Amazon
Petkit
Chewy
The Purobot Max Pro 2 is the newest model from Petkit. It has a built-in 1080p camera with a 210-degree wide-angle view. The AI-enabled camera supports multi-cat face recognition, usage tracking (via a companion app), audio recording, night vision, and 2.4-GHz and 5.0-GHz Wi-Fi networks. The camera can also capture video of the cat using the box and their stool or urine.
This model has a 43 percent larger opening than the previous one, the PuraMax Pro, making it ideal for large cats my 16-pound tabby, Basil. The waste bag is also bigger: It stores up to 17 days of waste for one cat, and it’s self-sealing for easy disposal. The Petkit app sends an alert when the waste basket is full, and two odor eliminator cartridges help to help keep smells at bay.
You get Petkit’s premium Care+ service for a free trial period, which detects if there’s been unusual activity, howling; logs weight and use frequency; and sends an alert if your cat’s weight has seen a consistent increase or decrease (which is a great way to monitor your cat’s overall health). When Care+ ended, it still could tell my cats apart, but reviewer Kat Merck and others have complained that it got their cats confused. Petkit’s app still could use some work to be more intuitive, and it’s overcrowded with ads. Overall though, my cats took to this right away (which isn’t always the case), and even my large cat was able to use this automatic litter box easily. I’m still not sure we need to be watching our cats defecate, but it is an incredible way to monitor your pets’ health more closely.
Connected to an app? Yes Entry size 10.7 x 10.5 inches Footprint size 21.2 x 25.9 inches Compatible litter Any clumping litter with granules shorter than 0.5 inches Suitable cat size From 6 months old or weighing 3.3 to 22.1 pounds Special Features AI-powered camera; deodorizing cartridges WIRED/TIRED
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- Camera inside records videos of both your cat and its waste being scooped
- App tracks usage and weight changes
- Works with both 2.4 GHz and 5.0 GHz Wi-Fi
TIRED
- App got cats confused once the free Care+ subscription was over
- Camera isn’t movable
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Best Connected App
Chevron Chevron Whisker
Litter-Robot 4
Litter-Robot
Best Buy
Amazon (Bundle)
Walmart
This previous model of the Litter-Robot (the Litter-Robot 5 was released in fall 2025; see my preliminary thoughts under “Best AI-Enabled Automatic Litter Box for Health Tracking,” below) has been a consistent favorite, largely due to its well-designed app. UnPetkit, which has great automatic litter boxes with subpar apps that are crowded with ads for other products in the brand’s lineup, the Whisker app (available for Android and iOS) is simple and intuitive. It logs usage and weight daily and historically, and it monitors litter and waste levels, alerting you when either is low. You can also adjust things lights, manually start cycles, and set “Do Not Disturb” schedules so it won’t cycle during certain periods. The large, front-facing hole is not as easy to fill as Petkit’s rotating hole, and over time, my model has increasingly sensed ghost cats and stopped repeatedly during cleaning cycles.
This had been my top pick, mostly because of the super-convenient optional LitterHopper auto-refill attachment—until it stopped working after about seven months, and I’ve had to manually refill the litter ever since. Without the attachment, I think Petkit’s new model (our current top pick) is the best automatic litter box for most people now, but I still think Litter-Robot is a solid choice.
Connected to an app? Yes Entry size 15.8 x 15.8 inches Footprint size 22 x 27 inches Compatible litter Clumping or scoopable clay litter (translucent or crystal may affect litter level monitoring) Suitable cat size 4 pounds minimum, no maximum Special Features LitterHopper auto-refill attachment WIRED/TIRED
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- Intuitive connected app
- Compatible with LitterHopper refill attachment
- Measures and notifies when litter level is low or waste drawer is full
TIRED
- Opening can be hard to refill
- Sensors get buggy over time
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Best Basic Automatic Litter Box for Most People
Chevron Chevron Petkit
PuraMax 2
Amazon
Petkit
Walmart
This is a great option for most people—cheaper than some of our other picks, easy to use, and compact. Perhaps best of all, when it’s time to refill with clean litter, the box rotates so the hole is on top for easier filling. Not only does this litter box smell neutral, dare I say it smells … good? This box has triple odor control: a sealed waste bin, an odor-eliminator attachment that sits in the waste bin, and a citrusy deodorizing spray that goes off after every cleaning and randomly throughout the day to ensure the litter box stays fresh. When the cat enters the box, their weight is displayed on the front, and the app logs every time it is used, for how long, when the cleaning cycle begins, ends, and when the deodorizing spray was emitted. Owners can also change settings manually via the buttons on the front.
My only complaints are that the app could be better—it’s a overcrowded with ads for other Petkit products, and unthe Litter-Robot 4, the box doesn’t have sensors to tell you when the litter’s low or needs to be refilled—that has to be manually checked (or you can add manual reminders via the app). One of my cats, who is 15 pounds, didn’t using it as much because the opening was cramped for him, so if you have bigger cats this may be a problem.
Connected to an app? Yes Entry size 7.87 x 8.85 inches (76 liter interior) Footprint size 24.4 x 21.2 inches Compatible litter Clay, tofu, mixed, and bentonite litters (incompatible with crystal) Suitable cat size 3.5 to 18 pounds Special Features Odor eliminator attachment in the waste bin; a deodorizing spray that goes off periodically WIRED/TIRED
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- Odor eliminator attachment in the waste bin and has a deodorizing spray that goes off periodically
- Opening rotates up vertically for easier litter filling
TIRED
- No sensors to tell you when the litter’s low or needs to be refilled
- Overcrowded, sometimes buggy app
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Best Budget Automatic Litter Box
Chevron Chevron PetPivot
Autoscooper 11
Amazon
Walmart
This automatic litter box doesn’t have all the bells and whistles of some others on this list, but if you’re looking for a basic, cheap automatic box, I’d recommend this one. Strikingly similar in design to the Neakasa M1 Self-Cleaning Litter Box, the PetPivot Autoscooper has an open-top design that remains fully open throughout the cleaning cycle and has sensors to know when the cat has used the box and when or if the cat reenters during the cleaning cycle. most others, it spins dirty litter from clean using grates, and the dirty litter is deposited in a drawer below the box. The litter box is the smallest and lightest I’ve tested, and the only assembly required was popping on the legs and inserting the drawer (and putting a waste bag liner in).
There’s no app required for use, and functions can be controlled by three buttons on the box—clean, refill litter, and power on/off. When you want to completely empty the litter, you attach a plastic cover that pops on to scoot all of the litter into the drawer below. Since this has no app, you won’t be able to closely monitor your cats’ usage or get alerted when the drawer is full, so this requires more check-ins than other WIRED-tested automatic boxes on this list.
Connected to an app? No (controlled via buttons on machine) Entry size 16.3 x 15.4 inches (10 liter interior) Footprint size 21.5 x 21.5 inches Compatible litter Benonite and mineral litters (incompatible with tofu or crystal) Suitable cat size 3 to 22 pounds Special Features No WIRED/TIRED
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- Very inexpensive for the quality
- Easy to assemble
- Resembles traditional litter box
TIRED
- No connected app; manual buttons only
- Box may be too high for elderly cats
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Best Luxury Upgrade
Chevron Chevron Petkit
Purobot Ultra
Amazon
Walmart
Petkit
I d this automatic box a lot, even if some of the features are a little over the top. (Read the full review here.) It uses a camera and AI technology to monitor litter box usage and lets you see your cat’s stool to help more closely monitor their health. This upgrade has a large horizontal footprint and a camera on an arm in front of the opening, which swivels and s your cat when it senses motion and records inside the litter box (it also has night vision). It has auto-bagging and -sealing features, so you never have to deal with the stool. The app logs and monitors usage, including the number of times used and the average duration. The camera has 180-degree viewing, two-way audio, and 24/7 streaming. It uses AI to identify which cat used the box, and while it doesn’t explicitly note whether a cat peed or pooped, you can review the footage to determine.
Although this is a good idea in theory, the videos inside the litter box aren’t hi-def and were always in black and white, which made actually observing anything with any detail very difficult. The arm’s placement is awkward and makes refilling litter into the box extremely challenging. This litter box always worked well and kept smells at bay, but the AI analytics fell a little flat for me and it was needlessly tough to refill the litter.
Connected to an app? Yes Entry size 8.58 x 9.84 inches Footprint size 20.9 x 32.2 inches Compatible litter Clay, tofu, mixed, and bentonite litters (not recommended with litter longer than 0.5 inches or wider than 3 mm) Suitable cat size 3.3 to 22 pounds Special Features Camera to see inside and outside; two-way audio; AI cat identification; auto-packing and -sealing waste bag WIRED/TIRED
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- Rotating camera and two-way audio
- AI cat identification
- Auto-packing and -sealing waste bag
TIRED
- Massive footprint; heavy
- Arm makes opening cramped
- One of the priciest automatic litter boxes on the market
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Best Automatic Litter Box for Bigger Cats
Photograph: Louryn Strampe
Homerunpet
Self-Cleaning Litter Box CS106
Homerunpet
Amazon
There’s a lot that I about this automatic device from Homerunpet. It’s huge, with a 106-liter capacity (and holds 8 liters of litter, with a 4.5-liter reservoir) that makes it ideal for big, chonky cats weighing up to 20 pounds (or multiple-cat households). My cat gets claustrophobic in most domed boxes, and she used this one right away. I that it dumps and refills its own litter, and it has anti-pinch sensors in place as well as two escape routes that are always open. There’s a drawer for storing the waste bags that line the poop drawer, as well as underneath the box so you can dump all the litter at once. It cleaned itself efficiently and quietly.
One thing to note is that the box is absolutely massive upon arrival—I couldn’t fit it in the back seat of my Mazda 3—and the litter box itself is huge, with a frustratingly short cord that might make for an inconvenient placement situation. My other gripe was with the app, which had some poorly translated instructions and alerts that sometimes left me feeling confused. But if you’re the proud parent of a hefty feline, it’s still an option worth considering, especially with its 90-day trial—you can return the box for a full refund if you pay the return shipping fees. —Louryn Strampe
Connected to an app? Yes Entry size 10 x 10.5 inches Footprint size 27.4 × 23.6 inches Compatible litter Tofu, bentonite, clay, and mixed litters Suitable cat size Up to 20 pounds Special Features Self-filling litter reservoir WIRED/TIRED
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- Lots of space for larger cats
- Litter reservoir for automatic refilling
TIRED
- Huge footprint, may be too big for smaller spaces
- Poorly translated and sometimes confusing updates in-app
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Best AI-Enabled Automatic Litter Box for Health Tracking
Photograph: Molly Higgins
Whisker
Litter-Robot 5 Pro
Whisker
This model is part of Whisker’s newest Litter-Robot lineup, which also includes the regular 5 and the EVO, both of which we’re currently testing. It’s got a built-in, AI-enabled camera that can recognize up to five cats, and WasteID technology to determine what type of visit your cat had—the only model I’ve tested with this capability. The dual-camera system captures external motion outside the box and inside the litter bed (the only other one that does this is the expensive and larger Petkit Purobot Ultra). It also charts trends over time to help you more accurately understand your cats’ health and habits, so you know if anything is amiss. Plus, depending on type of waste, LR5 Pro gives more targeted odor control, cycling immediately for solid waste, and waiting for urine make sure it clumps. The drawer is also more sealed and larger, with up to 10 days of waste storage per cat.
It looks similar to my personal favorite auto box, the Litter-Robot 4, but has the built-in camera, a touchscreen rather than physical buttons, a wider and shallower drawer, and a taller (removable) lip in the entryway. Maybe I’m just partial to the older model, but I think all of these changes make it less user-friendly than the 4. The touchscreen is finicky, the drawer liners are harder to place perfectly with the shallow design, and the removable entryway lip is much harder to attach and detach with smaller insertion tabs that feel they could break off.
Setup took several days because onboarding requires scanning a QR code with the built-in camera, but the camera never auto-captured the code. It’d be much easier if you could enter the code manually rather than relying on the camera. The camera always panned to the outside of the box rather than inside, and rarely showed footage of the stool/pee. The AI to differentiate cats only works reliably with the Whisker+ paid subscription plan ($80/year). A few of the design changes are annoying, but are not deal-breakers. I tested an early model, so I’m hoping most of my complaints with the app are fixed in future software updates. With AI recognition and WasteID technology, this will be an invaluable tool for tracking pets’ health when a few kinks are worked out.
Connected to an app? Yes Entry size 15.75 x 15.75 inches Footprint size 22 x 27 inches Compatible litter Clumping or scoopable clay litter (translucent or crystal may affect litter level monitoring) Suitable cat size Cats from 3 to 30 pounds Special Features AI-powered camera; WasteID smart detection WIRED/TIRED
LargeChevron WIRED
- Built-in, AI-enabled camera
- WasteID technology
- Intuitive connected app
TIRED
- Set up with QR code capture is frustrating
- Touch screen can be finnicky
- Whisker+ plan needed to reliably differentiate cats
Compare Our Picks
| Connected to an app? | Entry size | Footprint size | Compatible litter | Suitable cat size | Special features | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Petkit Purobot Max Pro 2 | Yes | 10.7 x 10.5 inches | 21.2 x 25.9 inches | Any clumping litter with granules shorter than 0.5 inches | From 6 months old or weighing 3.3 to 22.1 pounds | AI-powered camera; deodorizing cartridges |
| Whisker Litter-Robot 4 | Yes | 15.75 x 15.75 inches | 22 x 27 inches | Clumping or scoopable clay litter (translucent or crystal may affect litter level monitoring) | 4 pounds minimum, no maximum | LitterHopper auto-refill attachment |
| Petkit PuraMax 2 | Yes | 7.87 x 8.85 inches (76 liter interior) | 24.4 x 21.2 inches | Clay, tofu, mixed, and bentonite litters (incompatible with crystal) | 3.5 to 18 pounds | Odor eliminator attachment in the waste bin; a deodorizing spray that goes off periodically |
| PetPivot Autoscooper 11 | No | 16.3 x 15.4 inches (10 liter interior) | 21.5 x 21.5 inches | Benonite and mineral litters (incompatible with tofu or crystal) | 3 to 22 pounds | No |
| Petkit Purobot Ultra | Yes | 8.58 x 9.84 inches | 20.9 x 32.2 inches | Clay, tofu, mixed, and bentonite litters (not recommended with litter longer than 0.5 inches or wider than 3 mm) | 3.3 to 22 pounds | Camera to see inside and out of the litter box; two-way audio; AI cat identification; auto-packing and -sealing waste bag |
| Homerunpet Self-Cleaning Litter Box CS106 | Yes | 10 x 10.5 inches | 27.4 × 23.6 inches | Tofu, bentonite, clay, and mixed litters | Up to 20 pounds | Self-filling litter reservoir |
| Whisker Litter-Robot 5 Pro | Yes | 15.75 x 15.75 inches | 22 x 27 inches | Clumping or scoopable clay litter (translucent or crystal may affect litter level monitoring) | 3 to 30 pounds | AI-powered camera; WasteID smart detection |
Others We Tested
Photograph: Kat Merck
Els Pet Orbitie for $290: This is one of the least expensive automatic litter boxes, but it functions much the more expensive models, with an internal 65-liter-capacity orb that rotates and catches clumps with a plastic grate, depositing them into a bag-lined box below. The opening is a generous 12 by 12 inches—plenty big enough for my two 7-year-old cats, who took to it almost immediately despite never having seen anything but a traditional litter box. The accompanying Orbitie app doesn’t offer an extensive amount of information; it tells the user the volume of litter and what step of the cleaning phase the box is currently in, as well as how many times the box has been used and at what times. The first test unit I received was faulty—it sent multiple phantom alerts to the app, letting me know it had cleaned itself as many as 36 times a day, which I knew for a fact was not true. The replacement unit, however, works just as intended, though the bin beneath fills up fast (about every other day with my two cats), and it occasionally needs to be disassembled and cleaned, as tiny pieces of cat litter have a tendency to get in the gears beneath the orb (and make a loud grinding noise). However, this isn’t an unusual occurrence even with pricier boxes. Online reviews panned an earlier version of this box, but Orbitie says this is an improved version. Thankfully, the bigger brands, Orbitie also offers a 90-day money-back guarantee if you’re on the fence. —Kat Merck
Photograph: Molly Higgins
FurryTail Automatic Litter Box Pro for $400: I was surprised by how quickly and easily my cats took to this device—even my larger cat, who hates change, started using it right away. Setup was super easy, and the box comes with a year’s supply of waste bag liners, an additional grate attachment, and a mat to reduce litter tracking. Similar to many models, the spherical orb rotates, sifting dirty litter into a waste bag, which, on this model, is on top of the machine rather than below. The box has both a manual display and buttons on the machine, as well as an app to adjust settings. I’d include this model in our top picks because of how easy it was to set up and use, as well as how much my cats d it, but the app was basically useless. Through the app, you can adjust settings timed cleanings and do-not-disturb modes, manually clean, and monitor waste levels. However, the app never tracked usage or weight, and for the majority of the time, didn’t clean when I manually instructed it to. The sensors would sense ghost cats and refuse to clean, with the device not automatically cycling for the majority of the day (which sort of defeats the purpose). This automatic box has tons of potential, but I can’t fully recommend it until the kinks (especially in the app) are ironed out.
Courtesy of Smarty Pear
Casa Leo Leo’s Loo Too Automatic Litter Box for $700: This automatic litter box was a top pick for a long time, but it’s pricey and a bit cramped for some cats. We still it, but think the options above are better for most people (and cats). There are four weight sensors inside the barrel to detect when a cat is still inside (it needs just 1 pound of weight to detect your cat), an anti-pinch sensor (for fingers and paws), and a radar system that detects when anyone, feline or human, is near it. For extra cleanliness, it also uses ultraviolet light for extra sanitation. The Smarty Pear app (on iOS and Android) alerts you when the drawer is full (about once a week), records the times your cat uses it and the cat’s weight, and you can set it to automatically clean six seconds to 20 minutes after your cat uses it. You can start a cleaning session manually from the app or use your voice if you connect the box to Alexa or Google Assistant. Former WIRED reviewer Medea Giordano’s biggest struggle using the Loo Too was pouring new litter into it, which can be tricky because of the small entry hole. The barrel is also pretty cramped, especially for her 12-pound cat.
Photograph: Simon Hill
PetSafe ScoopFree SmartSpin Self-Cleaning Litter Box for $370: This basic automatic litter box is around half the price but has a similar design to more expensive models. This futuristic-looking pod on legs has a rubbery bottom, a weight detector that sets off the cleaning cycle a few minutes after your cat has done its business, and a slide-out tray in the bottom. After they’ve been, the body rotates, and a mesh catches the clumps and deposits them in the tray, where there’s a bag with a wee deodorizer unit that smells watermelon. You can connect it to Wi-Fi and review your cat’s toilet visits in the app on your phone, where each entry displays the time they went, their weight, and toilet trip duration. This self-cleaning box was easy to build and works surprisingly well, even though it feels kinda cheap. Ultimately, as a relatively affordable self-cleaning device, the PetSafe ScoopFree SmartSpin is worth a look. —Simon Hill
Not Recommended
Photograph: Molly Higgins
PetSnowy Snow+ Self-Cleaning Litter Box for $680: This box looks something from Kubrick’s visions of space travel, or if Eames started making plastic litter boxes. It takes up quite a bit of horizontal floor space, so it may not be ideal for those in cramped apartments looking to conserve space. Unall others on this list, this globe is closed during cleaning, which could cause injury if the machine malfunctioned and didn’t sense a cat. The box also doesn’t tell you when the litter’s low or needs to be refilled. My cats had a really hard time using it—they just couldn’t understand that it was a litter box. Older cats could have a tough time jumping into it, and the smaller opening could be a problem if you have bigger cats. It might be great for someone who wants to keep things tidy—it’s extremely clean, smells good, and hugely reduces litter tracking. However, we just can’t recommend the device since it’s closed during cleaning, which is not safe.
Petlibro Luma Smart Litter Box for $600: I’m a big fan of Petlibro’s automatic feeders and fountains, but I’ve found that the brand’s other tech products, this automatic litter box and AI-enabled pet camera, aren’t on the same level. First, we cannot recommend any model that closes completely during cleaning cycles. The Luma is outfitted with tons of sensors to prevent cleaning while a cat (or any object) is inside or near the entrance, and I highly doubt injury would occur. But the globe spins backward and forward, rather than clockwise and counterclockwise, meaning that the entrance is closed during cycling. If a sensing malfunction happened, the cat would be trapped inside. I appreciated the button controls on the outside top, which allow for manual control. However, they’re on a touchscreen above the camera. So, oftentimes, when I tried to manually reset, the camera caught me and wouldn’t continue the cleaning or control I asked of it, because the safety features would prevent action inside the box. It was very frustrating. When I went out of town, it got stuck in the middle of the cleaning cycle for two days because it kept sensing a ghost cat. The globe was mid-cycle, and the entrance was covered; I couldn’t bypass via the app to keep cleaning. (Thank God I had a second litter box for my cats available, or I would’ve been SOL.) The auto-deodorizing feature goes off automatically for five minutes after each use and sounds an airplane engine. There’s no way to turn it off; you can turn the power down to a lower level, but it’s still egregiously loud. Right now, I can’t recommend this model (mostly for safety reasons), but a lot of the design flaws could be fixed in future iterations to make it a solid choice.
Photograph: Molly Higgins
The Pet Zone Smart Scoop for $166: This is probably the least “smart” automatic litter box we’ve tested—it’s a typical rectangular plastic box with an automatic arm that acts as a rake and scoops the clumped (soiled) litter into a small bin on the other side. Once the cat leaves, it begins a 15-minute countdown and the rake slides over the length of the box, (ideally) scooping up the waste and lifting it into the receptacle. You’re only allowed to fill the device with about an inch and a half of litter, which my cats didn’t (they prefer a few inches to really bury it). The rake doesn’t stop when it’s in the cleaning cycle—even if something jumps in, which is potentially dangerous. My cats tend to pee on the side of the litter box, which, because of the rake’s placement, means it misses an inch on either side—I still had to scrape the caked-on litter from the edges. The cycle timing can’t be adjusted, so the litter didn’t have time to clump completely, and the rake would immediately break it down into smaller clumps that would then be missed because they were too small. For me, the hassle’s not worth it, and I’d rather just scoop it myself.
How Do Automatic Litter Boxes Work?
Automatic litter boxes vary depending on the brand and litter type. Generally, they have sensors, either by motion or weight, to tell when a cat has entered or exited the device. Usually customizable and controlled via app on your phone, or on a more rudimentary timer system, the cleaning cycle will begin a short time after the cat has used the box. With dome-shaped litter boxes, the cleaning will happen via a cycle where the litter spins and rotates around the spherical interior; the bigger soiled clumps will be deposited into the waste basket while the clean granules pass through the grates and get recycled back into the box.
The Petkit PuraMax 2, for example, rotates backward and then forward (rather than a clock-wise/counter-clockwise spin cycle) to sift the clumps from the clean litter, depositing the larger clumps into the waste basket. The Pet Zone Smart Scoop is the most rudimentary we tested, simply using a rake attachment to scoop the bigger clumps into a waste receptacle in the back.
Are Automatic Litter Boxes Safe?
Pet owners should always do research and make an informed decision regarding which box is best for them and their cat. We only tested automatic litter boxes that remain open during cycling to ensure that if for some reason the weight sensors didn’t pick up on a cat being inside, the cat could jump out. We don’t recommend devices that close completely because of the potential that the machine could not sense the cat and kill it during its automatic cycle.
These automatic boxes use sensors—some only needing 1 pound of weight to detect your cat—where the cycle will automatically stop no matter where it is in the cleaning process. Many also have anti-pinch sensors. For added security, the devices on this list have customizable schedules, including “do not disturb” modes. If you’re a neurotic helicopter cat mom me, you could only run the clean cycles when you choose, when you’re in the room to observe the cycle (although if you do that, the box won’t stay clean for as long).
Where Should I Put the Automatic Litter Box?
All of these automatic litter boxes require electricity, so they will need to be near an outlet. Since cats will generally take a little while to get comfortable with their new potty, I recommend that you keep your old litter box until they use the device regularly. It helps to put the new automatic litter box near the old boxes to familiarize your cat with it. Adding in litter attractant and using old litter from the previous box also encourages your cat to use the new model.
As a general rule, for old-school litter boxes, you should have one box for each cat, plus one. With automatic models constantly cleaning, there is less need for multiple options, but we recommend leaving your old litter box out for an extended period to ensure the cat has acclimated to the new automatic box.
History of the Automatic Litter Box
Rudimentary automatic litter boxes have been around since the late ’80s. These early models featured an automatic rake attachment (much the Pet Zone Smart Scoop box) but had problems with reliability and loudness. It wasn’t until the 2010s that the devices started incorporating advanced tech Wi-Fi and app control. In the decade since, that technology has continuously grown and improved, with most devices providing insight into your cats’ habits and health—truly becoming an asset in understanding your feline friends even better.
What Should You Look for When Shopping?
After testing around a dozen automatic litter boxes, I look for several things that make day-to-day life with the device easier for you and your pet. First, the connected app. This is what you’ll be checking daily, so it’s important that it works well. This is one of the reasons the Litter-Robot 4 was our top pick for a long time: its connected app is intuitive, simple to use, and reliable. I absolutely love the Petkit models we’ve tested, but the app is subpar, overcrowded with ads for other products and poorly translated. I also look for anything that makes filling litter easier: I love the Litter-Hopper attachment, which refills litter for you on Litter-Robot models, the self-filling litter reservoir on Homerunpet, and the self-sealing waste bags of the newest Petkit models. You’ll also want to keep the cat’s size in mind. My two cats are large, so I tend to opt for something with an extra-large, front-facing hole. What box you choose depends on litter type and compatibility—if you’re using tofu litter, make sure you get a model that is compatible with your preferred type. Budget is also a factor, with some models as low as $150 or as high as nearly a grand.
How Does WIRED Select Models to Be Reviewed?
I do a lot of research, looking up other reviews online, including our competitors, to see which are getting buzz. Since I’m the pet tech writer here at WIRED, I also have knowledge from other pet tech brands I love for things automatic feeders and pet water fountains. Most of these brands also have automatic litter boxes, which I always try to test among their lineup of new pet tech. I also talk to other cat-parents to see what they’re using (and liking). I aim to test a wide range of styles and price points for every type of budget and cat.
How Does WIRED Acquire the Boxes?
Oftentimes, we reach out to brands we’re excited about and are gifted them for potential review. Other times, if there is a model we want to try but can’t reach the brand for, we will buy it ourselves. I bought the The Pet Zone Smart Scoop, but it isn’t a model we recommend others buy.
What Does WIRED Do With Them After Testing?
Some products that we’re really excited about, we keep for long-term testing to see if they hold up over time. This is especially useful for our former top pick, the Litter-Robot 4, whose Litter-Hopper attachment eventually stopped working, or the Petkit models, whose AI starts falling flat without a Care+ subscription. Keeping some devices for longer-term testing helps ensure that we are giving our readers a comprehensive review. Most models we test for several weeks and donate locally when finished.
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Molly Higgins is WIRED’s Commerce Production and Operations Coordinator. She tests mattresses, cat gadgets, pet hair vacuums, vegan meal kits, and helps oversee our coupon program. She graduated with a bachelor’s degree in English from UCLA and an MFA in creative nonfiction writing from the University of Missouri–Kansas City. She … Read More
Commerce Production and Operations Coordinator
TopicsShoppingbuying guidesgadgetspetscatssmart home
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