Applaws Cat Food Review 2024

First launched in 2006, Applaws has quickly stamped its mark on the pet food industry. Applaws produces wet and dry cat foods made with all-natural limited ingredients and high protein levels. Plus, Applaws is a Certified B Corp, meaning it's committed to sustainable ingredient sourcing and transparent manufacturing. 

For these reasons and more, we give Applaws cat food a respectable 4 out of 5 paws up! Applaws cat food loses points for not being human-grade, its lack of protein variety, and its wet foods not being "complete and balanced."

Keep scrolling for Wag! 's comprehensive Applaws cat food review, where we discuss different product lines, recalls, frequently asked questions, and more!

Applaws offers 20 wet and dry cat food, as well as meal topper and treat lines. 

Only Applaws dry cat food recipes are "complete and balanced," meeting the Association of American Feed Control Officials (AAFCO) nutrient profile guidelines for all life stages, maintenance (adults), or growth (kittens). Applaws wet cat food, treats, and toppers are for supplemental feeding only. 

Applaws dry cat food

You'll find five Applaws dry cat food recipes on the market, including one specifically for kittens. 

All recipes are grain-free and high-quality — they list a named cut of meat as the top ingredient. Each recipe includes meat meal which means they aren't human-grade.

Containing 10 or fewer main ingredients (excluding nutritional supplements), Applaws dry foods are an excellent choice for cats with food allergies. Nutrient-rich ingredients and supplements like flaxseed, which is an omega-3 fatty acid source, taurine, and niacin, are added to each recipe. 

Applaws Kitten dry food is slightly higher in protein to support growth and development. Applaws include menhaden fish oil in its kitten recipe. Menhaden fish oil is a docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) source, which helps with brain and vision development. 

Applaws dry cat food recipes contain an average of 39% protein as dry matter, which is above average for dry cat food. 

Applaws dry cat food flavors:

• Chicken
• Chicken with Salmon
• Chicken with Turkey
• Whitefish
• Kitten Chicken

Applaws wet cat food

Applaws has several wet cat food recipes in broth, gravy and mousse. These wet foods are excellent for cats with food sensitivities or allergies — some recipes, like chicken breast in broth, consist of only two or three ingredients. 

A quality cut of meat is one of the top two ingredients in each variation. Applaws wet cat foods include no meat meals. Grain-free and grain-inclusive options are available. 

It's important to note that Applaws wet cat foods don't meet the AAFCO nutrient profile guidelines for all life stages, maintenance (adults), or growth (kittens). Applaws wet cat foods are too low in fat to be considered complete, with just 0.1% fat in most recipes. 

Some Applaws wet food recipes, like chicken breast in broth, contain as much as 85% protein as dry matter, but you'll need to add these wet foods to another complete cat food to meet all your fur-baby's nutritional needs. 

Applaws wet cat food flavors:

• Kitten Chicken Breast in Broth
• Kitten Tuna Fillet in Broth
• Chicken Breast in Broth
• Chicken Breast & Cheese in Broth
• Chicken Breast & Chicken Liver Recipe in Broth
• Chicken Breast, Carrots & Green Beans in Broth
• Chicken Breast & Pumpkin in Broth
  
• Chicken Breast & Duck in Broth
• Chicken & Pumpkin in Broth
• Ocean Fish in Broth
• Sardine & Mackerel in Broth
• Whitefish & Salmon in Broth
• Tuna Fillet in Broth
• Tuna Fillet & Crab in Broth
• Tuna Fillet, Anchovy & Seaweed in Broth  
• Tuna Fillet & Shrimp in Broth
• Tuna Fillet & Salmon in Broth
• Tuna Fillet & Cheese in Broth
• Tuna Fillet & Seaweed in Broth
• Tuna Fillet & Sea Bream in Broth
• Chicken Breast in Gravy
• Tuna Fillet & Salmon in Gravy
• Tuna Fillet & Shrimp in Gravy
• Tuna Fillet & Crab in Gravy
• Tuna Fillet in Gravy
• Ocean Fish in Gravy
• Chicken Mousse
• Salmon Mousse
• Ocean Dish Mousse
  
• Tuna Mousse
• Tuna Fillet Mousse
• Tuna Fillet & Mackerel Mousse
• Tuna Fillet & Salmon Mousse

Applaws cat treats

Applaws offers four treat types: freeze-dried treats, chewy treats, lickable purees and whole meat filets. Applaws' filets and loins are of the highest quality and are made with a single ingredient: a quality cut of meat. 

Applaws freeze-dried treats are equally good quality and consist of just a named cut of meat. Each treat is just two calories, making it ideal for training. 

Applaws cat treat flavors:

• Freeze-dried Tuna Fillet
• Freeze-Dried Salmon 
• Freeze-dried Chicken Breast
• Tilapia Filet
• Salmon Filet
• Chicken & Rosemary Filet
• Tuna Loin
• Mackerel Filet
• Tuna in Broth Lickable Puree
• Salmon Lickable Puree
• Chicken Lickable Puree
• Tuna Lickable Puree
• Chicken Breast & Salmon Chewy Treats
• Chicken Breast Chewy Treats
• Tuna Filet Chewy Treats

Applaws cat food toppers

Applaws cat food toppers are designed to add flavor and texture to your cat's kibble, encouraging fussy eaters to chow down. Both recipes contain only a handful of ingredients, including meat bone broth, a named cut of meat, and guar gum, which is a natural thickener. 

Applaws cat food topper flavors:

• Fish Bone Broth with Tuna Fillet
• Chicken Bone Broth with Chicken Breast

Here are a couple of reasons why Wag! 's highly rates Applaws cat food.

Good protein-to-fat ratios

Applaws recipes complete and balanced dry foods contain above-average protein and average fat levels. For example, Applaws Adult Chicken Dry Food contains 40% protein as dry matter and 15.5% fat as dry matter. 

These protein-to-fat ratios ensure your cat gets enough energy for an active lifestyle while making them suitable for cats with weight management issues. 

Free from artificial ingredients

Applaws include no artificial flavors, colors, or preservatives in its cat foods. Most recipes are grain-free and carrageenan-free. Most recipes use only natural vegetable gelling agents like guar gum as preservatives. As a result, Applaws foods are higher quality and easier on your cat's digestive system.

A focus on sustainability

As a Certified B Corp company, Applaws must meet certain transparency and environmental sustainability criteria. For example, its foods are manufactured at facilities that meet Global Food Safety Initiative (GFSI) or International Featured Standard (IFS) standards. 

Applaws must continue to meet these standards to keep its certification — B Corps recertifies all businesses every three years. A B Corp Certification is evidence that a company is taking real steps to have a positive impact on a social and environmental level. 

Reasonably priced considering its quality

While Applaws is pricier than some lower-quality foods, it's reasonably priced compared to its top competitors. 

At the time of writing, a 4-lb of Applaws Adult Chicken Dry Food costs $16.99 on Chewy, which works out to $4.25 per lb. By comparison, a 5-lb bag of Blue Buffalo Wilderness Indoor Chicken Dry Cat Food costs $20.98 on Chewy, which works out to $5.25 per lb.

Think Applaws cat food could be a good choice for your fur-baby? Here are a few things to bear in mind before you buy. 

Lack of protein variety

Most Applaws recipes use either chicken or tuna as the primary protein source. All recipes include either fish or poultry. So, Applaws may not be suitable for your cat if they have a fish or chicken allergy or sensitivity.  

Wet food recipes aren't "complete and balanced"

Only Applaws dry food recipes are "complete and balanced," meeting the AAFCO nutrient guidelines. If you buy your cat Applaws wet cat food, you'll need to add it to kibble to meet all your fur-baby's dietary requirements. 

Though Applaws states that its wet foods are complimentary, it's not particularly on its website or on third-party seller platforms that its wet foods aren't "complete and balanced." 

As a result, some pet parents may mistakenly buy Applaws wet food, thinking it's a complete meal for their cat.

"My cats are very picky. Every time I have to choose a new kibble for them it's a headache until we find the one they like. This one was love at the first sight for both of them. I am so glad. I like that it has few ingredients and doesn't contain grains or fillers."

"This is my go to food for all my cats. I feed [them] a good dry food as their base food. This is to add variety and moisture as I have 2 of my 4 cats on special diets."

Read more reviews on Chewy.

Two friends, both named Roger, and their other friend, John, founded Applaws in the U.K. in 2006. 

Over dinner, they discussed how they were unimpressed with the quality of pet food across the country. They wanted to make pet food from human-grade, ethically sourced ingredients, leading them to establish Applaws.

Applaws launched its first dry pet food in 2009 and the world's first see-through wet food pouches in 2010. In 2012, Applaws branched into Australia and China. It expanded into the U.S. in 2014.

The FDA has recorded no recalls of Applaws cat food as of May 2024. 

In June 2021, Applaws recalled UK-manufactured cat foods due to a rise in pancytopenia cases linked to one of Applaws' manufacturing partners, Fold Hill Foods. Following this recall, Applaws decided to discontinue its relationship with Fold Hill Foods.