How Much to Feed a 5 lb Cat (2.3 kg)

Quick answer A neutered adult cat of 5 lb (2.3 kg) needs about 155 kcal a day, which is about 41 g of a 3,800 kcal/kg dry food, or 155 g of a 1,000 kcal/kg wet food. Weigh your cat monthly and adjust by about 10% if the trend is wrong.

Daily calories and grams for a 5 lb (2.3 kg) cat

Resting energy for 2.3 kg is 129 kcal (70 × 2.3^0.75). Multiply by the factor for the life stage to get the day's energy, then divide by the food's kcal per gram.

Life stage	kcal a day	g at 3,400 kcal/kg	g at 3,800 kcal/kg	g at 4,200 kcal/kg
Neutered adult	155	46	41	37
Intact adult	181	53	48	43
Inactive or prone to weight gain	129	38	34	31
Kitten	323	95	85	77

These are averages from the Merck/WSAVA energy factors. Your cat may need 10 to 20% more or less. Check the energy on your own food's label and use the calculator below.

Meals, treats and cost

Two meals a day (neutered adult)	20 g each
Three meals a day	14 g each
Treat allowance (10% of calories)	16 kcal: 8 pieces of 2 kcal, or 1.9 of 8 kcal
Dry food as a share of body weight	1.8% a day
Calories per kilogram of body weight	68.4 kcal per kg

Monthly food cost at example prices

Cost = grams a day × 30 ÷ 1,000 × price per kg. The prices are examples; use your own.

Price per kg	4.00	6.00	8.00
Dry food, 3,800 kcal/kg	4.90	7.35	9.80
Wet food at 1,000 kcal/kg (price per kg: 3.00, 5.00, 7.00)	13.97 / 23.29 / 32.60

How long a bag lasts

Bag size	2 kg	4 kg	8 kg
Days at 41 g a day	49	98	196

On wet food only, a 5 lb (2.3 kg) cat needs about 1.8 cans of 85 kcal a day.

A sample day for a 5 lb (2.3 kg) cat

One way to lay out a neutered adult's day on a 3,800 kcal/kg dry food, with treats counted inside the total.

Time	What	Amount
Morning	Meal	18 g
During the day	Treats and training rewards (counted)	16 kcal
Evening	Meal	18 g
All day	Fresh water	Always available

Meals are smaller than the table above because the treat allowance of 16 kcal is taken out of the day's 155 kcal: 140 kcal of meals is 37 g.

If you feed wet and dry together

Split the calories, not the grams. This uses a wet food of 1,000 kcal/kg and a dry food of 3,800 kcal/kg for a neutered adult needing 155 kcal.

Share of calories from wet food	Wet food	Dry food
25%	39 g	31 g
50%	78 g	20 g
75%	116 g	10 g

Do not add wet food on top of the full dry amount: that doubles the calories it replaces.

How 5 lb compares with nearby weights

Weight	kcal a day (neutered adult)	g of 3,800 kcal/kg food	kcal per kg of body weight
5 lb (2.3 kg)	155	41	68.4
6 lb (2.7 kg)	178	47	65.4
7 lb (3.2 kg)	200	53	62.9
8 lb (3.6 kg)	221	58	60.9

Why a cat twice as heavy does not eat twice as much

Energy needs rise with body weight to the power 0.75, not in a straight line. Moving from 5 lb to 6 lb is a 20% weight increase but only about 15% more calories. At 5 lb (2.3 kg), the neutered figure is 68.4 kcal per kg of body weight.

What changes your cat's number

Neutering and activity. The table shows a 10 to 30% spread between stages.
The food. A richer food means fewer grams for the same calories.
Treats. They count within the daily total.
Weight trend. Weigh monthly, score body condition and adjust by about 10%.
Health. A pet on a veterinary diet or with a health condition should follow the vet's plan.

Frequently asked questions

How much should a 5 lb (2.3 kg) cat eat a day?

A neutered adult of 5 lb (2.3 kg) needs about 155 kcal a day. On a 3,800 kcal/kg dry food that is about 41 g. Intact and inactive cats need 181 and 129 kcal.

How many meals a day for a 5 lb cat?

Two meals of about 20 g, or three of about 14 g, using the same 3,800 kcal/kg food. Your vet may suggest a different pattern.

How many treats can a 5 lb cat have?

Treats should stay within about 10% of daily calories, which is 16 kcal: 8 pieces of 2 kcal or 1.9 pieces of 8 kcal. Subtract them from the meals.

Other weights

Related guides

How we calculate: RER = 70 × kg^0.75, times the life-stage factor, as set out on Formulas & sources. This page is general information, not veterinary advice; ask your vet about your cat.