9 Best Heated Cat Beds

Choosing a Heated Cat Bed

If the heat is on — running through your radiator or rising from your laptop — cats will make it their mission to find it and sit on it. That’s why it’s a fantastic idea to offer your feline friend a soft heated bed as the temperatures dip, especially if they tend to spend a lot of time outdoors or have certain health issues.

“Many cats have a natural affinity to seek out cozy and warm havens so it should come as no surprise that heated cat beds have pretty broad appeal,” says Dr. Rebecca Greenstein, veterinary medical advisor for Rover.

“Cats recovering from surgeries or illness, older or arthritic cats, sparsely haired or thin cats may also find the warmth particularly soothing. Feral or outdoor cats in cooler climates will particularly seek out warmth to shelter them during harsher weather.”

A few things you should look for when shopping for a heated cat bed, according to Greenstein:

• Easy entry: Look for a bed with low sides, so less mobile senior felines can enter and exit without struggling.
• Privacy level: Some cats prefer the coziness and privacy of a covered bed, but others prefer more of an open, more mattress-like design.
• Surface area: Make sure it’s big enough to warm your cat’s body, at minimum. One with a larger overall surface area allows your cat to shimmy between heated and non-heated areas at will.
• Washability: A machine-washable, durable, soft bed cover is ideal, given how much fur and debris cat beds always seem to attract.
• Power source: Some plug-in beds are not appropriate for outdoors or exposure to the elements, while others generate heat without any electricity at all.

Here are our picks for the best heated cat beds.