Independent guide · Updated October 2026

Getting a cat? Start with real numbers

Adopt or buy, choose a breeder, spot a scam, and know what the first year costs. We collect and date the prices ourselves, and every health or safety point links to a vet or official source.

New kitten checklist
How we research
  • Prices we collect and date ourselves
  • Vet and official sources, linked
  • No sponsored rankings

Before you bring a cat home

  1. Adopt or buy?Shelter fees next to breeder prices
  2. Choose a breederWhat a good one does, and the red flags
  3. Spot a kitten scamCheck the seller before you pay
  4. Pick the right ageWhen a kitten is ready to leave its mother
  5. Get readyWhat to buy, and what it really costs

Latest guides

Card: how much is cat insurance? NAPHIA's 2025 US averages for a cat: $435 a year for accident and illness, $112 for accident only, $859 with wellness built in. Fetch's cat average is $21 a month, Pets Best's $21 to $34, and starting prices run $9 to $10 a month.

Costs

Cat insurance costs

The average US cat accident-and-illness policy cost $435 a year in 2025 (NAPHIA), about $36 a month. Insurers’ own published cat figures run from $9 starting prices to $21-$34 averages. Checked Oct 7, 2026.

Checked October 7, 2026 · By Anisur Rahman

Card: how to litter train a kitten. The setup: a low-entry box, the litter the kitten already knows, one more box than you have cats, and daily scooping. Kittens can use a low-sided tray from about 3 weeks old.

Kitten care

How to litter train a kitten

Most kittens already know what a litter box is for. How to set one up, teach a new kitten where it is, clean up accidents and know when to call the vet.

Checked October 7, 2026 · By Anisur Rahman

Card: when to spay or neuter a kitten. The FelineVMA (formerly AAFP) advises by 5 months, since cats can be fertile from 4 to 5 months; International Cat Care says about 4 months; the ASPCA says it is safe from 8 weeks.

Kitten care

When to spay or neuter a kitten

Vets advise spaying or neutering a kitten by 5 months, since cats can breed from 4 to 5 months: what the FelineVMA, AVMA, shelter vets and iCatCare say, plus risks, recovery and cost.

Checked October 7, 2026 · By Anisur Rahman

Card: questions to ask a cat breeder before you pay: the registry and cattery name, the parents' health test reports, seeing the mother, the kitten's age and vaccines at pickup, and the contract. The guide has 15 questions.

Buying a cat

Questions to ask a cat breeder

The questions to ask a cat breeder before you pay a deposit, from registration and health tests to the contract, with good answers and warning signs.

Checked October 7, 2026 · By Anisur Rahman

Card: how much a Maine Coon costs. Posted prices at 25 US catteries on Oct 7, 2026: a median pet kitten price of $3,000, with the middle half at $2,750 to $3,250 and the lowest regular price $2,000; a median deposit of $500; and $308 to $1,158 for first vet care.

Costs

How much a Maine Coon costs

What 25 registered US Maine Coon catteries charge for a pet kitten (median $3,000, checked Oct 7, 2026), plus what the price includes, deposits, extras and first-year costs.

Checked October 7, 2026 · By Anisur Rahman

Card: best cat carriers for vet visits, a buyer's guide. Vets look for a hard plastic shell, a top that comes off, top and front openings, a secure door and clips, and a leak-proof floor. The guide compares five hard-sided carriers.

Supplies

Best cat carriers for vet visits

What vets say makes a cat carrier right for vet visits, and five hard-sided carriers whose tops open or come off, compared from the makers’ own specs.

Checked October 13, 2026 · By Anisur Rahman

How we research

Our full method →

1

Collect real prices

Breeder prices from public listings, shelter adoption fees, insurers’ published prices and retail prices, each one dated, with the raw data kept.

2

Check expert sources

Health, age, safety and the law come from vets and official bodies: Cornell, AAFP, ASPCA, International Cat Care, CFA, TICA, the FTC and the BBB.

3

Show the method

Every guide says where its numbers come from, when they were checked and what we left out. We don’t test products or pets hands-on, and we say so.

Who’s behind Cat Buyer Guide

Cat Buyer Guide is edited by Anisur Rahman and published by PPC Optimizer Pro LLC. We don’t own a cat, so we don’t pretend to review pets or products hands-on: our value is careful, dated research you can check. More about us

Looking for the old Cat Buyer Guide?

This domain changed hands in 2026. The cat breeders who ran the old site, its forum and its cattery lists are not part of this site, and we can’t help with their kittens or accounts. Old links now lead to new guides on the same topics. More about the change