The Ultimate Guide to Choosing the Perfect Cat Fountain for Your Cats
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I get asked a lot about the best cat fountain to replace a standard cat water dish.
One of the drinking fountains’ first draws is that it constantly recirculates cat water. This adds oxygen to the water, making it more attractive for the cats to drink.
Most cat owners know that their cat is naturally drawn to moving water. If the water is not moving, they will do everything they can to get it moving. Cats also prefer fresh water—recirculating water is one of the best ways to keep it fresh and free of dust and debris.
Another positive in reviews of cat water fountains is that they can help curb some of the destructive behaviors your kitty might have developed. For example, the moving water might help satisfy their intense need to drink from a running faucet, or keep them from sticking their paws into water glasses or their bowl and knocking them over.
There are some things to consider before deciding which cat water fountain to purchase.
- What kind of replacement equipment will you have to purchase?
- How much do replacement filters cost, and how often will you have to replace them?
- Look at the pump. If something happens, will you replace the entire water fountain, or can you replace the pump?
You want something that requires minimal maintenance and expenses after the initial purchase.
Another consideration is placement. There is a good chance the water fountain will make noise. Are you going to be able to place it somewhere so that the noise will not bother anyone in the house? Also, remember that it may need to be placed near an electrical outlet. This could rule out the original spot that you have in mind.
A cat drinking fountain can be a perfect idea. However, make sure to do your research before you purchase. There are many fountains out there, and you want to make the right decision for you and your cat.
I prefer metal or ceramic ones because they don’t collect bacteria as quickly as plastic ones:
Cat Water Fountain Stainless Steel
Elfin Fountain or Cheerble Fountain – my current favorite, we have two
The Elfin fountain (sold as the Cheerble fountain on Amazon) is a thoughtfully designed pet hydration solution that prioritizes water quality, convenience, and pet health. One of its standout features is the stainless steel construction, which is beneficial for cats prone to chin acne, as plastic can sometimes cause skin irritation. The fountain has a generous maximum capacity of 2,000 ml (2 L) of purified water. In terms of design, users appreciate the ability to view the water level line from all sides without disassembling or moving the unit. Furthermore, the base includes a clever feature that allows the power cord to be plugged in and routed in either direction, providing greater flexibility for placing the fountain in any room.
For operation, the fountain includes an intelligent mode that uses a motion sensor to dispense water only when a pet is detected nearby. While some users prefer a consistently running fountain, the reviewer’s cat, Charlie, quickly adapted and learned to trigger the spout to get a drink. A critical safety and consistency feature is the internal battery backup, which ensures the fountain continues to run and provide fresh water during power outages. The unit operates quietly and includes several indicator lights to communicate status, such as a flashing green light for charging, an orange light for a low battery, and a dedicated light to indicate when the filter needs replacement or a system reset is required.
Maintenance is one of the fountain’s most praised attributes, with the cleaning process being “super easy” and taking only about 3 to 5 minutes to fully disassemble, rinse, and reassemble. A three-stage filtration system maintains water quality. This system includes PP cotton to remove larger impurities such as sediment and hair, ion-exchange resin to soften water by removing hard-water minerals like calcium and magnesium, and coconut-shell activated carbon to eliminate chemicals, odors, and colors. For setup, it is recommended to soak the replacement filter for five minutes and rinse it before use. The reviewer also shared a helpful tip for maintenance: soaking the fountain’s parts in a small amount of vinegar and water can easily remove hard-water mineral deposits that may accumulate over time.
Elfin Pet Water Fountain Unboxing & Set Up! 💦
Elfin Fountain Review
Buy the Elfin or Cheerble Fountain:
- on Amazon
- on Elfin’s website – Use Elfin Coupon Code “FLOPPYCATS” to get 10% off
Inexpensive Wonder Creature Cat Water Fountain
The Cat Water Fountain Stainless Steel uses a triple filtration system to purify water, removing hair, debris, and foul odors, delivering the purest water to your cats in line with human health standards. It can hold about 2.4 liters, or 81 ounces of water, enough to last more than a week.
The flower fountain features two free-falling streams to entice your cats to drink, including a waterfall and a bubbler. You can even remove the petals if your cat does not like drinking flowing water from a stream. Caymus and Murphy prefer to drink from the bubbler fountain.
The replacement filter should be changed every 2 to 3 weeks to ensure your pets have access to the freshest, cleanest water 24/7. There are three included with the fountain accessories.
The water level window with a blue LED light helps keep track of the water day or night, ensuring timely refilling.
Maintenance is easy. As recommended, clean the fountain every two weeks or so for optimal effectiveness and longevity. I rinse the stainless steel dish and give it a light scrub. To clean the water pump, pop the cover and impeller cap off, remove the impeller, clean the parts with the kit, and rinse them.
The fountain is virtually quiet, producing 30 decibels, less than the sound of a whisper. The 360-degree cylindrical design is suitable for multiple cats, allowing them to drink simultaneously. It can also fit into tight spaces better compared to the square one.
Unboxing Cat Water Fountain Stainless Steel
How to Clean Cat Water Fountain Stainless Steel
Buy the Cat Water Fountain Stainless Steel on Amazon.
Cat Water Fountains That Readers Also Love
Some other cat water fountains our readers rate highly include:
Ceramic Cat Fountains
Why a ceramic fountain? They are more resistant to scratches, slime, and scum buildup, inhibiting bacteria growth while allowing for easy maintenance. Some of the best-rated ceramic fountains are as follows:
PetSafe Drinkwell Pagoda Cat Water Fountain
The Drinkwell Ceramic Pagoda Fountain by PetSafe is designed to provide your pets with pure, filtered drinking water 24/7. It can hold about 2 liters of constantly circulating water, making it a viable choice for cats and even medium dog breeds.
The fountain features an open bowl design with upper and lower drinking areas, and two water streams flowing from the top on opposite sides.
If you have multiple cats, they do not have to gather on one side to drink; they can drink running water together from both streams. The moving water from the streams tempts your cats to drink more and stay hydrated.
The continuous water circulation, along with the activated carbon and foam filters, eliminates foul tastes and smells from the water and traps pet hair and other impurities. That keeps the water clean and fresh. The ceramic design also keeps the fountain free of slime buildup and microbes, so it stays cleaner for longer.
As the fountain is made of ceramic, the upper base and tower are heat-resistant, making them easy to clean by tossing them into the top rack of the dishwasher. However, hand-wash the other components, like the pump. Replace the filters every couple of weeks for optimal effectiveness.
The PetSafe Drinkwell Pagoda Cat Water Fountain comes in four colors, making it easy to match your home decor.
Cat Fountain Product Review: PetSafe Drinkwell Pagoda Cat Water Fountain
Buy the PetSafe Drinkwell Ceramic Pagoda Fountain for Pets on Chewy and Amazon.
Glacier Point Fountains
The Glacier Point Fountain provides clean, chilled water for your pets through charcoal filters that remove harmful toxins. The high-fired ceramic bowls and pharmaceutical-grade and antimicrobial-treated parts inhibit mold and bacterial growth.
Pioneer Pet Raindrop Ceramic Drinking Fountain for Pet
This drinking fountain holds about 60 oz of circulating water and features a replaceable charcoal filter to provide clean and healthy water for your pets. The fountain is dishwasher-safe, making cleaning easy.
Buy the Pioneer Pet Raindrop Ceramic Drinking Fountain on Chewy and Amazon.
PetSafe Drinkwell Seascape Ceramic Dog & Cat Fountain
The PetSafe Drinkwell Seascape Fountain holds 70 ounces of water while operating silently. Its circulating stream encourages your pets to drink more and stay hydrated.
It has a foam and carbon filter for a round-the-clock fresh water supply, filtering hair and dirt while keeping the water free from unpleasant odor and taste.
Buy the PetSafe Drinkwell Seascape Ceramic Dog & Cat Fountain on Chewy and Amazon.
Cupcake Cat Water Fountain
The Cupcake Ceramic Pet Fountain delivers clean, fresh water through a three-layer filtration system that eliminates bacteria and other impurities. The streams flow in a 360-degree loop, allowing multiple cats to drink together. The water pump is virtually silent, which produces a sound of less than 40 decibels.
Buy the Cupcake Cat Water Fountain on Amazon.
Stainless Steel Cat Water Fountains
Stainless steel cat fountains are the best choice regarding durability, cleanliness, and hygiene. The metal does not harbor bacteria and is corrosion-resistant, providing a safe and hygienic drinking outlet for your pets. Our top-rated stainless steel fountains include:
Pioneer Pet Stainless Steel Fountain Raindrop Design
The Pioneer Pet Fountain Raindrop Design offers continuously filtered water for your pets. The sleek, aesthetic fountain comes with a replaceable charcoal filter that keeps the water fresh and pure and removes impurities and the bad tastes and smells of tap water.
Buy the Pioneer Pet Stainless Steel Fountain Raindrop Design on Chewy and Amazon.
Drinkwell 360 Pet Fountain Stainless Steel
The Drinkwell 360 Pet Fountain holds 3.8 liters of water. It features a charcoal and foam filter to provide clean, hygienic water, and its 360-degree design makes it a viable choice if you have multiple pets, allowing them to drink from all angles. Pets can drink from either the free-falling streams or the elevated bowl.
Buy the Drinkwell 360 Pet Fountain Stainless Steel on Chewy and Amazon.
Tomxcute Cat Water Fountain
Equipped with a carbon filter and pre-filter sponge to provide crystal clear water, The Tomxcute Cat Water Fountain is an ultra-quiet water fountain with a large capacity of more than a gallon. If your cat likes drinking from the tap, the fountain can entice more drinking as it features a faucet.
Buy the Tomxcute Cat Water Fountain on Amazon.
PetSafe Seaside Stainless Cat & Dog Fountain
The PetSafe Seaside Fountain features an advanced triple-filtration system with more activated carbon than other fountains, providing the purest water for your pets. The 360 design enables multiple pets to drink together, and they can either drink from the bowl or the tower.
Buy the PetSafe Seaside Stainless Cat & Dog Fountain on Chewy and Amazon.
Plastic Cat Water Fountains
Plastic cat water fountains are typically less hygienic and durable than their stainless steel and ceramic counterparts, as they can harbor bacteria quickly. If you intend to buy a plastic fountain, make sure it is BPA-free and clean it regularly. Some recommended plastic fountains include:
Drinkwell Platinum Pet Fountain
The Drinkwell Platinum Pet Fountain features a free-falling stream and a 168-oz water capacity to encourage your pets to drink more while eliminating the need to refill the fountain regularly. The pre-filter and carbon filter keep the water fresh by trapping hair and debris and eliminating foul odors.
Buy the Drinkwell Platinum Pet Fountain on Chewy and Amazon.
Cat Mate Pet Fountain
The Cat Mate Pet Fountain features a three-stage filtration system and polymer-carbon filters to deliver the purest water. It operates silently, and the three-level drinking areas ensure the fountain is suitable for pets of varying sizes.
Buy the Cat Mate Pet Fountain on Chewy and Amazon.
Catit PIXI Smart Water Fountain
The Catit PIXI Fountain comes with a triple-action filter to purify water in multiple ways. The fountain provides three ways for picky cats to drink from it: either through the stream with the spout attached, bubbling top without the spout, or the bowl. The arching water flow from the spout and shallow drinking surface ensures comfortable drinking, preventing whisker fatigue.
Buy the Catit PIXI Smart Water Fountain on Chewy and Amazon.
My cats drink plant water from my Asian Luck plant, I couldn’t get them to drink from the fountain I bought. Finally the Luck plant died and I took away the vase and put the fountain back in. I throw ice cubes in it and clean it often and I have seen them both drink from it now, so I am glad. Do any other cats out there drink dirty ole plant water from a vase (with the plant in it)?
We have two of the Keith’s Thirsty Cat fountains. Both of mine love them and drink both from the bubbler and the bowl. They are so pretty and I actually love the sound they make. One is by the sliding glass door where the bird watching goes on, which is thirsty work, and the other is my bedroom. By modifying the pump settings, you can make them as quiet or as noisy as you like.
In drought-ridden California a fountain is a much better idea than leaving the tap running, which was one of my past cat’s favorite thing!
Thank you so much for this great info, Jenny! Lurve those ThirstyCat Fountains! So pretty! We have one but it’s been stored under our cabinet for about a year now as Miss Pink SugarPickyPants grew bored with it pretty quickly and preferred to drink from an old Pyrex measuring cup. Sigh….
But a Very Nice Kitteh Fairy recently gifted us with a beautiful PawNosh bowl and by golly my sweet hubby got Miss Pink SugarPP to drink from it after one day! Yay! I have my Pyrex measuring cup back now and Miss Pink Sugarbelle now drinks from a beautiful Tangerine PawNosh Bowl. 🙂 <3
Big hugs!
Patti & Miss Pink Sugardoodles 🙂 <3
Patti, I didn’t know you had a PawNosh bowl – fantastic! How do you like it? Sorry to hear about the cat fountain.
Yes, we got one as a gift from a very dear & lurvely friend of mine. Just so thoughtful and wonderful. We got the Tangerine (Amber) color. The bowl is AWESOME! And…Miss Pink Sugarbelle adores it and paw dunks and drinks for it many times throughout the day. My hubby got her to drink from it on the second day that we had it. I had placed the new bowl with water in it on the table along with the standard ol’ Pyrex measuring cup that SHE adores. Hubby put Miss Pink Sugarherself on the dining room table and he removed the ol’ measuring cup and then proceeded to gently dunk her paw in the new bowl and she figure out what to do right away and began drinking from it. (Miss PS and her Daddy have this Special Bond.) 🙂 <3
It is hefty, durable, beautiful and incredibly functional and our baby girl really lurves it! YAY!!!!!! 🙂 <3
very cool! love it!
🙂 <3