The best cat litter for odor control will make your house eliminate the stink and unpleasant smell. Of course, all cat parents understand how big a problem is to suffer from a smell of waste that’s lingering around the house. Our cats hate those nasty odors, too! And when their litter boxes stay smelly, they misbehave and would probably poop somewhere else. Disastrous, right?
It is, according to our search. We’ve found some runner-ups, too, in case you have very specific considerations for a cat litter. Want to find out which odor-controlling litter suits you best? Then read through our reviews below.
What’s the Best Odor Control Cat Litter in 2020?
- Arm & Hammer Clump & Seal Clumping Litter – Fresh Home
- Fresh Step Odor Shield Cat Litter
- Purina Tidy Cats Lightweight Glade Tough Odor Solutions Clumping Cat Litter
- Fresh Step Ultra Unscented Litter, Clumping Cat Litter
- Nature’s Miracle Just for Cats Easy Care Crystal Litter
- Dr. Elsey’s Ultra Premium Clumping Cat Litter
Reviews of 6 Best Odor Control Cat Litter
Ready to explore and find out which among the odor-controlling cat litters would suit your needs best? Then check out our picks below.
#1. Arm & Hammer Clump & Seal Clumping Litter – Fresh Home
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With powerful odor neutralizers, this Clump & Seal litter can be perfect for a household of multiple, picky cats. In fact, numerous owners (and their cat kids) have already tried evaluating the power of this litter. And, despite its strong ingredients for odor control, they’ve reported that the litter has no adverse effects on the dearest felines.
You might as well expect such a kind of safety, as this Fresh Home odor-controlling litter contains no animal by-products. Plant-derived particles “clump and seal” both the moisture and odors even before your cat leaves the litter box.
Finally, you can come home to a stink-free environment. With a high cat satisfaction rate and trusted by many cat owners worldwide, this Fresh Home cat litter has become our favorite.
We’ve mentioned above that this Fresh Home Cat Litter features a 7-day odor control guarantee. What’s amazing is that most users have indeed been satisfied and have experienced the convenience of having a smell-free cat-filled home.
So, how is that possible? Well, this cat litter makes use of moisture-activated Micro-Granules. These micro-granules form a tight seal around the smell, and then they destroy the smell with the Fresh Home litter’s specially-formulated smell eliminators. Plus, it has partnered with the Arm & Hammer Baking Soda — which further absorbs all those nasty smells.
With all these ingredients working together aggressively, it only means one thing: this Fresh Home litter can really keep the surrounding environment as fresh as possible.
As we’ve mentioned above, clumping litters are quite efficient at odor control. More than that, they also make cleaning up the litter box such an effortless task. And why is that? Well, it forms rock-solid clumps around your cat’s waste, effectively locking in both moisture and smell so it no longer circulates around your home.
- 7-day smell-free home guarantee
- Clumps and seals both moisture and smell
- Granules act against moisture upon contact
- Contains Arm & Hammer Baking Soda for better smell control
- Forms rock-solid, non-crumbling clumps
- Non-biodegradable
- Can’t be composted
#2. Fresh Step Odor Shield Cat Litter – Best Multiple Cat Odor Control
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If the first litter we’ve discussed above has a 7-day odor-control guarantee, this Fresh Step over here would like to advance the competition three steps forward. Do you know what it offers? A 10-day odor-free home that’s guaranteed to work against the stinkiest litter boxes.
Created with your cat’s health and happiness in mind, this odor-shielding litter has partnered with Febreze in order to attack extreme litter box odors and maintain freshness.
Because of its effectiveness, it’s trusted and chosen by many customers on Reddit.
We’re giving it all of our thumbs up, too, as we’ve seen how it’s top-rated and how it could match excellently with your cat’s satisfaction.
So, with the help of this Fresh Step litter, you can now say goodbye to the experience of going home and wanting to leave again immediately just because of the nasty smells that greet you at the door.
So, how does this litter make the 10-days odor control guarantee possible?
First of all, like the Fresh Step Clean Paws Clumping Cat Litter we reviewed in the previous article, this Odor Shield variant contains activated charcoal. This ingredient is responsible for trapping and eventually eliminating your cat’s waste smells.
Moreover, it features an ammonia block technology that stops smells from one of the key offenders in your kitty’s litter box: cat urine.
So, what does it do? The technology works in two ways: it controls bacterial growth and then it also deactivates the enzyme that’s responsible for forming ammonia.
So, all in all, the Odor Shield cat litter can eliminate the smell from all 3 major sources of stinky litter box smell, namely, urine smell, feces smell, and smell from bacteria. Blocking all these unwanted smells, the Odor Shield guarantees you to have a fresher, cleaner home.
Upgraded not only to shield odor more effectively, but the Fresh Step Shield also has a better low dust formula than its previous formulation. This means it ensures having cleaner surfaces in your home and having a clearer air around the litter box. So, it’s quite helpful for saving the kitties from dust allergies.
- 10-days smell-free home guarantee
- Contains activated charcoal for odor elimination
- No harmful chemicals
- Has ammonia-block technology and controls bacterial growth
- Superior Clumping
- Scented (uses Febreze)
- Can be a bit dusty
#3.Purina Tidy Cats Lightweight Glade Tough Odor Solutions Clumping Cat Litter
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If Fresh Step has partnered with Febreze, Purina Tidy Cats has worked with Glade in order to counter and control the toughest kitty waste smells you encounter each day.
Made from natural clay and mineral products with a well-developed deodorizing system, this Purina Tidy Cats Lightweight Litter offers to outsmart odors using the power of Glade’s Tough Odor Solutions.
This technology, in turn, fights the strong smells coming from your kitty’s poop and urine. Furthermore, it works to block ammoniac smells as well as urine and fecal smells with its TidyLock technology, leaving only a pleasant Glade fresh scent.
The result? A cat litter that’s able to prevent the formation of stinky ammonia smells for at least two weeks. In fact, it works against smells that are strong enough for multiple cats, so, this litter could be perfect if you have high-traffic litter boxes at home.
Beyond these odor-controlling perks, the Tidy Cats Lightweight Litter also offers a dust-free formula — something you’d appreciate as a cat parent if you’ve got a cat kid who’s sensitive to dusty litters.
It also features a lightweight formula (as revealed in the name itself) — something we think you’d appreciate if you happen to be the kind of cat owner who bags tons of litter as a gift to their kitty cats.
Haven’t we already mentioned above how we prefer to use cat litters that are clumping? Yes, of course, and that’s because clumping litters tend to be better at controlling and sealing up smells. Well, this Tidy Cats litter has a powerful clumping action, too. And, we really appreciate this feature since it helps lock in moisture and further preventing the nasty smells from coming out.
- Fights ammonia smells for at least 2 weeks
- Clumps and locks in moisture
- Lightweight
- Superior Clumping
- Scented (uses Glade)
- Tracking
#4. Fresh Step Ultra Unscented Litter, Clumping Cat Litter – Best Unscented Odor Control Cat Litter
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Finally, an unscented entry to our top picks. Also coming from Fresh Step, this Ultra Unscented Clumping Cat Litter promises a similar 10-days smell control guarantee.
Formulated to attack and control bacterial growth, this unscented litter finally gives your sensitive kitty an option for a stress-free litter box experience.
What we love most about this kitty litter is that it’s free of perfumes and dyes, so you and your cat’s sensitive sense of smell doesn’t have to suffer.
Instead of adding odor-masking fragrances, it makes use of the litter clumping ability combined with the antibacterial action of activated charcoal to fight against the stinky odors.
Furthermore, its low dust formula helps to address other cat sensitivities, making it the least likely for your cat to catch dust allergies out of this litter.
Just a side note here: Every year, Fresh Step donates over 1 million scoops of litter to pet shelters around the country. If you have similar advocacy for cats and pets in general, then we think this fact might be important to you.
What the Fresh Step Ultra Unscented Litter has decided to do is to step back from using added fragrances and to control smell by attacking the root of the problem itself — bacteria. So, it was specially formulated so that it prevents the growth of bacteria and the bad smells they cause.
Moreover, its activated carbon component traps and eliminates odors around the clock, while the plant extracts neutralize odors before they even leave the litter box.
- Unscented
- 10-days smell control guarantee
- Contains activated charcoal, which fights off bacteria
- Low-dust formula
- Great for multi-cat home
- Non-biodegradable
- Not flushable
#5. Nature’s Miracle Just for Cats Easy Care Crystal Litter
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Are you looking for a type of odor-controlling litter that’s composed of crystal granules? If so, then this Nature’s Miracle Crystal Litter could be your best bet. Designed for maximum odor control, it’s ideal for multi-cat households, especially if these cats are frequent litter box visitors.
How does this crystal litter work to absorb odor? Actually, the secret to its power is in the dehydrating crystals. They’ve got intense absorption capabilities that lock in both moisture and its accompanying smells. Right upon contact, it already begins to absorb feces, urine, and ammonia smells, thereby keeping these nasty smells from spreading throughout your home.
Plus, the good thing about this crystal litter is that it will not stick to the bottom of the pan, and there’s no urine scooping required making it effortless for you to wash up the litter tray.
Already appealing to high customer satisfaction, this litter could also become your cat’s favorite.
Plus the dehydrating crystals continue to work until it has absorbed all the smells around — providing your beloved feline the fresh litter environment their picky selves would love to prefer.
- Releases fragrance as your cat steps on the crystals
- Strong absorption capability
- Attacks fecal, urine, and ammonia smells
- Low-dust formula
- Not as dust-free as claimed
#6: Dr. Elsey’s Ultra Premium Clumping Cat Litter
Speaking about clumping cat litters, we’ve just found the best one your cat could use. It’s Dr. Elsey’s Ultra Premium Clumping Cat Litter. Like the first product we’ve reviewed above (the Ever Clean Extra Strength Clumping Litter), Dr. Elsey’s Litter is also made of 100% sodium bentonite.
Actually, it’s this clay component that makes Dr. Elsey’s Ultra Premium Litter hard- clumping. With such a maximized clumping ability, this litter is an ideal match for mechanical or sifting litter boxes.
Now take note that if you weren’t that fond of the Yesterday’s News Paper Litter because it was not clumping and it was also not for multiple cats, well this one from Dr. Elsey’s is. Plus, despite the fact that it’s clay-based, it’s still hypoallergenic and boasts of a superior odor-control that takes care of the challenges of having a multi-cat household.
If you think Dr. Elsey’s Ultra Premium Litter is just like any other litter, think again. This litter is made of 100% sodium bentonite — just as we’ve mentioned a while ago. Now, in contrast to some other clumping clay litters that only combine cheaper clays with bentonite and they will break apart, this litter is full-on, thus maximizing the clumping ability and giving way to no crumbling clumps.
In other words, it doesn’t break apart. So, it’s not that surprising to know that Dr. Elsey’s formulation has satisfied many cat owners for 15 years now.
Now, while this is an all-natural clumping litter, it is not for internal use according to Dr. Elsey. So far, though, the feline-only veterinarian has not seen any case where his clumping litter has caused any cat problems. In fact, the convenience of using clumping clay in litters has brought joy to multi-cat households.
Clumping clay litters are usually very dusty but not this litter. It actually has less dust compared to other clay litters in the market. Plus, this litter is hypoallergenic since it has no plant protein content. Thus, it’s safe for your cats to use, especially for their lungs.
When it comes to tracking concerns, you have less to worry about with Dr. Elsey’s Ultra Premium Clumping Litter. Since it’s made from 100% sodium bentonite clay, its granules are heavy and therefore designed to be non-tracking. Although it’s not the best litter in terms of totally preventing tracks.
Still, the added weight really helps in minimizing your effort in following your kitty’s usual tracks of mess.
One bag of 40 lbs of this litter can last long enough — even 2 months for one cat. In other words, this litter can save you from having frequent visits to the pet store.
- Hard-clumping
- No crumbling clumps
- Hypoallergenic
- Suitable for multi-cat homes
- Easy to scoop
- Not flushable
How to choose the Best Odor Control Cat Litter?
If you want more information on what makes an odor-controlling cat litter ideal or effective, then we recommend you check the following out first:
Which is better for odor control?
We prefer clumping litters for more efficient odor control.
If you’re still confused about the kind of litter that combines safety and smell control for your little ones, then you might as well want to read on to know which litter has crafted a perfect and awesome solution for your kitty kids.
Most of the litters that are marketed for smell control are clumping. Why? It’s because the clumping mechanism helps lock in not just urine and fecal moisture but also the smell that goes with the waste. So, the best clumping litters are more likely to feature superb smell control as well, aside from all the great things that a clumping litter does. Some clumping litters, by the way, are also quite aggressive in fighting against smells such that they, too, have additional fragrances.
One downside of clumping litters is that they’re not recommended for kittens (since they can be curious enough to ingest some and suffer a troublous tummy).
On the other hand, non-clumping litters usually rely on odor-controlling or odor-masking ingredients such as baking soda, activated charcoal, and additional scents. This strategy is somewhat a way to cope up with a non-clumping litter’s lack of a moisture-locking feature.
Non-clumping litters, therefore, have to at least be super absorbent to help control the smells.
To be fair, non-clumping litters often have pellets that disintegrate into sawdust once they’ve reached their saturation point, i.e., they’re too full to hold any more moisture from your cat’s urine.
Still, this mechanism doesn’t negate the fact that non-clumping litter pellets couldn’t clump around your feline’s solid waste, hence the need for further odor-controlling ingredients to mask those smells that can’t be completely sealed. So, one downside to non-clumping litters, especially the scented ones is that if your cat doesn’t like the odor-controlling agents in these pellets or granules, then the cat may show those irregular litter box behaviors that we’ve mentioned above.
Dust-free, non-tracking, long-lasting
As we’ve mentioned in our previous articles, it’s also important for you to look for a dust-free and non-tracking feature in a cat litter. If you’re sensitive to nasty smells, then you’re most likely sensitive to dust allergens, too. How much more will your cat be?
Finally, you’d like it to be long-lasting and something that gives value for money. A long-lasting litter is what you’d also like to have if you’ve got multiple cats at home.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Tips for Eliminating Litter Odor
Picking the best cat litter box for smell control is one thing. Doing anything else you can do to further eliminate litter smell is another. Want to take that extra step? Here are a few things we’d recommend you do.
- Pick an appropriate location for your cat’s litter box. Not the dining area, please. Some places where there’s good ventilation will do.
- Freshen up the room regularly. Avoid locking it up for too long.
- Clean the litter box often and clean it thoroughly. Don’t leave the previous batch’s residue to stay stuck in there.
- Fill the box with enough litter. This will ensure that no waste will accidentally stick to the bottom of the litter box and become the source of stinky smells.
- Choose the appropriate type of litter box. You may try using a covered box if that’s okay with your kitty. Or, you may also opt for a self-cleaning litter box so you would have less hassle in cleaning up and if you want the litter to be automatically cleaned.
Our Verdict
Finally, we’re presenting our choice: it’s the Arm & Hammer Clump & Seal Clumping Litter – Fresh Home.
Editor’s Choice:
Arm & Hammer Clump & Seal Clumping Litter – Fresh Home
Allow us to refresh you now with its excellent qualities.
- Its superb clumping ability locks in both moisture and its associated smells.
- This litter’s micro granules cover the solid waste matter and seal its smells.
- It’s dust-free and safe for your kitties.
- As it’s long-lasting, it can give you value for money.
- Scooping and cleaning is just a breeze with this litter.
- The scent is mild enough and can help neutralize odors effectively.
That’s all you want to see in our best cat litter for odor control. Now, why don’t you begin to enjoy a fresh home with this Arm & Hammer Fresh Home Clumping Litter?
