Dry or wet food for your cat: which suits it and what each option costs
There is no single answer, but one fact tips the balance: cats drink very little, and wet food gives them the water they do not take from the bowl. Dry food is more convenient and cheaper. Most cats do best on a well-calculated mix of the two.
The main difference is water
Dry food contains around 8 to 10% moisture. A tin or pouch contains between 75 and 82%. In other words, a portion of wet food gives your cat an amount of water it is unlikely to drink on its own. The domestic cat descends from a wild cat of arid regions that got nearly all its water from its prey, and it has kept a fairly weak thirst drive. A cat that eats only dry food makes up for it by drinking more, but overall it usually takes in less total water than one that eats wet food, and its urine is more concentrated. Concentrated urine is fertile ground for crystals, cystitis and, in males, urinary blockages.
What you gain with wet food
Besides the water, wet food has other advantages. It usually has fewer carbohydrates and proportionally more protein, because it does not need starch to hold a kibble together. It is more filling for fewer calories, because it has bulk: an 85 g pouch has around 70 to 85 kilocalories, compared with more than 300 in the same weight of dry food. That makes it very useful for overweight cats or those that tend to put on weight after neutering. It is also easier for older cats, cats with dental problems or poor appetites to accept. For cats with kidney disease, cystitis or a history of stones, the vet will almost always recommend it.
What you gain with dry food
Dry food is convenient, cheap and keeps for hours in the bowl without spoiling, which lets the cat eat at its own pace in small meals throughout the day, as it would in the wild. It can go into puzzle feeders and treat-dispensing toys, which turn food into hunting and fight the boredom of indoor cats. It is easy to portion with scales, needs no fridge and makes holidays with a cat sitter much simpler. A good complete dry food is a perfectly valid diet; the catch is making sure the cat drinks enough.
The myth that dry food cleans teeth
It is often repeated, and it is not really true. Most cats barely chew their kibble: they crack it once or twice or swallow it whole, so the scraping effect on tartar is minimal. There are specific dental diets, with large kibbles and a texture designed so the tooth sinks in before it breaks, and those do have some effect, but ordinary dry food is no substitute for brushing or check-ups. Choosing a food “for the teeth” is a poor criterion: if you are worried about your cat’s mouth, the article on tartar and teeth explains what actually works.
Beware of “complementary” wet food
This is the most common mistake. Many tins and pouches, especially fillets in jelly, tuna with prawns or gourmet recipes, are complementary foods: they are not formulated to be the only food, and they lack vitamins, minerals or the right balance of calcium and phosphorus. Always check the label: it must say “complete food for cats”. If your cat eats only wet food, all or nearly all of it should be complete. Complementary foods are fine as a treat or to liven up a meal, in small amounts.
Mixed feeding, the most sensible option
For most healthy cats, the most balanced approach is to combine: one or two wet meals a day and the rest as dry food, adjusting the amounts so the total does not exceed the cat’s daily calories. That is the part many people forget: if you add a pouch, you have to take away some dry food. As a guide, an 85 g pouch is roughly equivalent to 20 to 25 grams of dry food. Beyond hydration, mixed feeding has another advantage: it gets the cat used to different textures from an early age, which makes life much easier if one day it needs a wet or dry veterinary diet.
What each option costs
At Spanish prices in 2026 and for an adult cat of about 4 kg (9 lb), a diet of mid-range or premium dry food alone costs between €12 and €25 a month. A mixed diet, with one pouch a day and the rest dry, rises to between €30 and €50. A wet-only diet, which for that cat means about three pouches or one large tin a day, comes to between €60 and €120 a month in Spain, depending on the brand. Large 400 g tins work out a good deal cheaper per kilo than single pouches, although they have to be kept in the fridge once opened and some cats tire of them sooner. You can do the sums with the cost calculator.
How to serve wet food
Wet food has its rules. Once opened, keep it covered in the fridge and use it within 24 to 48 hours. Many cats refuse it straight from the fridge, because their sense of smell depends on temperature: take it out a little beforehand or warm the portion for a few seconds without making it hot. It should not sit in the bowl for more than an hour or two, less in summer, because it dries out and ferments. Use wide, shallow dishes and wash them every time: dried-on leftovers smell bad to a cat and can make it refuse a clean dish because of the smell of the last meal.
If your cat only wants dry, or only wet
Some cats get hooked on one texture and refuse everything else, especially if they only knew one as kittens. You do not force the issue with hunger: a cat that stops eating for more than a day or two can develop hepatic lipidosis, which is serious. Introduce the new food slowly, mixing a teaspoon of it with the usual one, trying different textures such as pâté, mousse or chunks, and warming it. For the dry food addict, water fountains and bowls spread around the home also help. For the wet food addict, dry food can be offered in treat-dispensing toys, as a game.
When the vet decides, not you
In some situations the choice is no longer yours to make. A cat with struvite bladder stones, idiopathic cystitis, kidney disease, diabetes or marked obesity usually needs a specific diet, often wet or veterinary, and changing it on your own can make the problem worse. If your cat has a diagnosis, food is part of the treatment. And for a healthy cat, what matters more than the format is that the food is complete, that the cat eats what it needs and drinks enough.
Wet food provides the water cats do not drink and helps with urine and weight; dry food is more convenient and cheaper. For most cats the best choice is a well-calculated mix, using complete foods and taking away dry food when you add wet.
Educational content from Michipedia, translated from the Spanish original. It does not replace the advice of a vet or a feline behaviour specialist. Every cat is an individual.