Select Pet Awards 2023: Our favorite stain removers, litter and litter boxes
Guided by cleaning experts, we chose the best products to remove stains and fight odors.
Award: Best Stain Remover | Type: Spot Cleaner
One of our favorite eco-friendly cleaning products, Woolite’s InstaClean Pet meets the EPA’s Safer Choice Standard criteria, which means it’s made with ingredients that the EPA determines safe for the environment, people and animals. “Seeing that label on the bottle made me feel confident about using it in my home,” says NBC Select associate commerce editor Zoe Malin. She says it did a great job at removing hard-to-clean stains in seconds without causing any damage to her carpets or upholstery. She notes it’s also easy to use as a spot cleaner because the pour spout lets you target the exact spot you need to clean. Once you let the stain remover sit for about a minute, you can use the scrub attached to the top of the bottle to fully rid the area of the stain. Malin also notes the product has a fresh yet very subtle scent, so it isn’t overpowering.
Award: Best Stain Remover | Type: Machine
Bissell’s Little Green Machine portable cleaner lets you lift away messes from carpets, upholstery, car interiors and more using a spray and suction mechanism. It comes with several attachments, including a stain trapper for pet messes and a self-cleaning hose to rinse it out after each use.
NBC Select updates editor Mili Godio has used the Little Green Machine on her carpets, couch and other furniture for years and likes how it continues to stack up against other stain removers. She says it comes in handy when her 16-pound Havachon, Bella, tracks in dirt from playing outside. “It’s so easy to use…it visibly removes stains in seconds — it’s amazing to see the difference in color after using it, especially when I clean my carpet,” she says.
Award: Best Litter
Look for litter that clumps and is unscented, experts told us. The reason? Clumping litter is easy to scoop, and unscented litter is made without added fragrances, which some cats (and their owners) may be sensitive to. Tuft + Paw’s Really Great Cat Litter (which lives up to its name) is not only unscented and clumping, but it’s also completely dust-free, according to Malin who tried it.
“When I poured the litter into my cat Wanda’s litter box, it didn't create a dust cloud, unlike every other litter I’ve used,” she says. “From that moment on, I was completely sold.”
Tuft + Paws litter is made from tofu and is shaped like long pellets. Malin says this makes it easy to scoop, and the litter dissolves in water, so it’s flushable. Additionally, she noted that the litter masks smell entirely, and when the brand says it's low-tracking, they really mean it. “Previously, Wanda tracked litter all over my apartment and I had to vacuum multiple times a day. But because the pieces of this litter are larger, they don’t stick to her feet as much, which is a lifesaver.”
Award: Best Litter | Type: Multi-Cat
Dr. Elsey’s medium-grain clay litter is designed for homes with multiple cats, and it forms hard clumps that don’t break apart when you scoop them, says Rebecca Rodriguez, Select editorial projects associate. She uses the litter with her two cats, Luna and Enzo, and says it minimizes orders in her multi-pet household. “My favorite thing about this litter is that it gives off very little dust, minimizing sneezing and allergies for me,” Rodriguez noted. You can also use the litter with standard or mechanical litter boxes, according to the brand.
Award: Best Litter Box | Type: Side Entry
One of the main reasons we love Cat Person’s Skylight Litter Box is because it’s not an eyesore — the sleek design helps it blend into your home. “Litter boxes are typically not cute, but this one breaks that norm,” Rodriguez says. “The wooden top makes it feel more like a piece of furniture than a poop box, and because of its modern design, we didn’t have to worry about hiding such a big litter box in our small apartment. We integrated it into the living room decor.”
When looking for a litter box, the bigger the better, experts told us. The general rule of thumb is that your litter box should be 50% longer than the length of your cat, giving them plenty of space to turn around and move freely. Cat Person’s litter box is about 19.6 inches long, 17 inches wide and 18 inches high — Rodriguez says it’s perfect for her Enzo, a large, 15-pound cat.
The litter box also has a corner entryway and a ventilated lid, making it feel open and airy, Rodriguez says. However, this means cats can kick litter out of the box, so she recommends putting a mat underneath it to prevent litter from ending up on your floor. Since you can remove the top of the litter box, it’s easy to scoop, Rodriguez added.
Award: Best Litter Box | Type: Top Entry
Top-entry litter boxes are especially useful if your cat tends to kick litter while they use the bathroom. This one from Iris USA is about 14.6 inches tall, 20 inches long and 16.4 inches deep, making it a roomy option with high sides. Its lid is removable, making it easy to scoop litter, and the tub is small enough to pick up and tilt if you need to dump out old litter, says Jason Stauffer, a CNBC Money reporter, who used the box with his cat Piper.
Iris USA’s top-entry litter box also has built-in grooves that catch litter on cats’ paws and prevent it from getting on the floor. “Compared to other litter box styles, this one did a great job keeping the litter where it’s supposed to be,” Stauffer says. “Over time, litter accumulates on the lid, which leads to some tracking. But anyone who diligently cleans the lid shouldn’t have much of a problem.” Malin noted that she uses a handheld vacuum to remove litter from the lid.
When a product carries the Select badge, you can trust that our team of editors as shopping experts and professionals vetted the item thoroughly. We are journalists, first and foremost, which means we will always do our research and reporting.
To ensure our product picks are more than just editor-approved, we used a panel of experts, including veterinarians, pet groomers and veterinary technicians to give buying advice for each category. Experts did not recommend individual products. When conferring with our unaffiliated panel of experts, we asked them for advice they would give to their patients or clients.
Catch up on Select's in-depth coverage of personal finance, tech and tools, wellness and more, and follow us on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter to stay up to date.
