HuffPost and its publishing partners may receive a commission from some purchases made via links on this page. Every item is independently curated by the HuffPost Shopping team. Prices and availability are subject to change.
I hate everything about scooping kitty litter. I hate how I inevitably end up dropping litter all over the floor when I try to scoop it. I hate how I can never seem to find or remove all the clumped litter. I hate the ever-present smell, and I hate dreading whenever my cat uses the litter box knowing that there’s now more litter to scoop.
I had heard about the splurgeworthy Litter Robot through my endless internet jaunts and from friends. It’s designed to automatically scoop litter by rotating its inner shell, shaking clumped litter through a filter and finally depositing it in a sealed drawer-like compartment underneath the box. (Check the process out in action on TikTok or on YouTube.)
The result? A fresh bed of litter for your cat every time they go, with the added bonus of ridding cat parents of a chore that I personally dread more than almost any other task.
It seemed like a heaven-sent solution, yet the almost-$700 price tag gave me sticker shock.
I researched endlessly about the Litter Robot before investing. I hate spending money and sometimes veer toward being too frugal, unwilling to part from my earnings unless I’m fully convinced that an item will actually make my life easier or better. When I finally took the plunge and bought the robot, I was hopeful but truthfully not totally convinced it’d be worth the money; I was worried about spending so much when I could have just bought a standard litter box, minus all the bells and whistles, and something like the ever-popular Litter Genie to help contain the smell. But, of course, the bells and whistles were exactly why I was interested in buying it.
The first couple days of owning the robot, I admittedly didn’t notice much of a difference. But by day three or four, it dawned on me that I hadn’t scooped a single bit of cat poop. And I wasn’t dreading every time my cat went to the litter box, anticipating having to again scoop more cat poop. A week in, I was convinced. Despite its cost — more than I ever anticipated spending on a litter box — this thing was worth every single penny I paid for it. Not only that, but I would pay for it again.
Now, to my slight horror, the Litter Robot is all I can talk about. I tell my friends with cats how worth it the investment was (they know, they say). I tell my friends without cats how worth it it was (they remind me they don’t have cats). I sit and marvel to myself about how happy I am to have it. The Litter Robot is everything I hoped, and I don’t even like to think about not having bought it.
The main takeaway about the Litter Robot, in my opinion? It’s also a huge benefit for cats. Every single time they relieve themselves, they get to have a fresh, hygienic floor of litter — no more dodging previous pee clumps and poops to find a clear spot. That’s near impossible to accomplish even for cat owners who are incredibly conscientious litter scoopers. You’d have to essentially spring into action every time your cat uses the litter box, day or night, to replicate these results. So while I initially saw the Litter Robot as mainly an incredibly convenient solution for cat parents (which it is), it’s likely that your cat will appreciate it as much as you do.
As for other details: The robot connects to its Whisker app, which I initially thought I wouldn’t get much use of, but which I actually (somewhat embarrassingly) really enjoy and check frequently. The app catalogues when your kitty has used the bathroom, updates you on how full the litter compartment is (so you know when it needs to be emptied) and reports your fur babe’s current weight. It gives me a great sense of my cat’s habits and her baseline. I also bought the Litter Robot litter trap mat to go with the robot, which I recommend; it fits perfectly around the semi-circular Litter Robot to easily capture any tracked litter.
I’ve found that the trick to the Litter Robot is not overfilling it with litter, yet still making sure that it has enough litter in it to do its thing. Ensuring the robot has enough litter prevents the clumped litter from getting stuck in the filter, an issue that some folks online had mentioned. This did happen to me, and with more litter the problem was resolved.
Some cat owners report their cat being afraid of the Litter Robot, though my new cat has had no problem with it and seems to appreciate the extra-clean space. Chewy reviewers who’ve dealt with this recommended that you place the robot where the old litter box was or encourage your cat with treats; your kitty may simply require some time to adjust.
I ended up investing in the Litter Robot 4. I also considered buying the Litter Robot 3, which is about $150 cheaper, but after scouring through reviews online (and speaking to folks I know who owned both) I decided that the Litter Robot 4 was well worth the extra money. If I was going to spend so much on a litter box, I wanted it to be the best and give me all that I needed, and given that the 4 is an upgrade and addresses some of the previous model’s shortcomings, it seemed like the clear best choice for me.
All in all, I’m convinced that the Litter Robot is more than worth the investment for folks with cats, and doubly so for folks with multiple cats. It truly changes the game for cat owners, and the time and convenience it’ll save both you and your kitty make it well worth its price.
Before You Go
