Safely Trim Your Cat's Claws At Home With Our 6 Favorite Cat Nail Clippers (2024)

Our Top Picks

We like the sturdy, stainless steel, user-friendly curve of the Shiny Pet Nail Clippers for Small Animals. The angled blade of this scissor-style clipper makes it easier to see and manipulate each nail for a clean, quick cut.

They’re appropriate for cats and kittens of all ages as well as a range of small animals.While there's no safety guard, they do have a rounded clipper head, so you don't risk poking yourself or your cat.

The rubberized coating on the handles enables a secure grip for a fast, efficient, and safe trim. They’re also lightweight and compact—3.7 inches long and 2.6 inches wide—for easy use and storage. But it's small touches, like the 20-degree angled blades and QR nail clipping guide printed on the packaging, that made the Shiny Pet clippers our favorites.

In our tests, they were simply the easiest to use. This means you can cut your cat's nails more quickly, so they can get back to scratching something.

All Shiny Pet grooming tools are backed by a lifetime money-back guarantee.

_{Style: Scissors | Dimensions: 3.74 x 2.56 x 0.59 inches | Blade Type: Semi-circular angled}

While there are a lot of cheap cat nail clippers out there, too many exercise poor quality control and cut corners, making them unpleasant to use. Pet Boussa cat nail clippers are an exception, offering budget clippers that professional groomers wouldn't be embarrassed to deploy.

The scissor-style clippers have a stainless steel surgical cutting edge, ensuring long-lasting sharpness. The ergonomically molded non-slip handles and simple design help you work quickly to lessen your cat's discomfort.

Plus, the clippers feature rounded safety tips to prevent accidental poking. These clippers work well for cats of all ages, even kittens, and also can be used on small dog breeds and even on pet birds.

_{Style: Scissors | Dimensions: 3.82 x 2.28 x 0.43 inches | Blade Type: Semi-circular}

Most of us would prefer that the word “guillotine” wasn’t associated with our cat’s delicate claws, but it's an apt description for this effective cutting design. The spring-action mechanism of the Resco Original Cat Nail Trimmer resembles a cigar cutter and enables a consistently smooth, quick cut. Plus, there's only one blade that ever needs replacing or sharpening.

When purchasing a Resco Original Cat Nail Trimmer, it is important to select the right size. It is often labeled as cat size and has a blade size of 1/4 of an inch.

There are slightly bigger sizes, large and small/medium with blade sizes of 3/8- and 5/16-of an inch, respectively, which are designed for dogs. The cat size is also appropriate for use with birds, lizards, ferrets, bunnies, and other small animals weighing under 10 pounds.

Resco has been making grooming tools since 1937 and is one of the few makers of cat nail trimmers that manufactures its product in the United States. Unlike most other cat nail clippers, Resco’s clippers contain no plastic parts, plus the blade is replaceable. Each pair comes with a limited lifetime warranty and the deluxe version includes non-slip handle grips.

_{Style: Guillotine | Dimensions: 5 x 3.5 x 0.5 inches | Blade Type: Guillotine}

Nail clippers with a built-in light can help you discern the pink interior of the nail, known as the quick, so you can avoid cutting too much and potentially hurting your pet. The Petgravity nail clippers have several useful features, including a nail file that can be stored in the handle, but the main attraction is its simple-to-use LED light.

Activated with a switch in the handle, the bright LED lights up the semi-translucent portion of your cat's claw, so you can more easily discern where the quick begins, protecting you from cutting too deeply. While the light is convenient, replacing the batteries is a little more of a chore, requiring three LR44 button batteries. Still, with more than a year of expected battery life, it's not much of a trade-off.

Made in China, this particular nail clipper form can be found sold under several different brand names, but in our experience, the Petgravity version is the most reliably available. Also, while advertised for both dogs and cats, the clippers are on the smaller side and might not be effective for larger dog nails—but they're perfect for cat claws.

_{Style: Scissors | Dimensions: 1.69 x 5.82 x 0.7 inches | Blade Type: Semi-circular}

Kitten toes may be tiny, but those little nails are sharp and kittens love to scratch. Plus, since they don't have an adult cat's coordination, it's common for kittens to snag their claws on everything. Trimming their nails regularly can help your furniture survive their adolescence.

Pet Republique Cat Nail Clippers are small and scissor-style, with textured handles that have large enough grips to fit a thumb and two fingers, providing more than enough leverage and control for handling kitty claws—though it does not come with a safety guard. The stainless, half-moon blades make for quick work, so kitty can get back to playing. Plus, Pet Republique donates 15 percent of profits to the American Animal Rescue Society, so each purchase helps save the life of a dog or cat.

_{Style: Scissors | Dimensions: 6.5 x 3.5 x 0.25 inches | Blade Type: Semi-circular}

If you’ve ever cut too much of the nail, then you know the value of a safety guard. Cutting into the quick will cause pain and bleeding, and may also cause your pet to hide when they see the clippers come out next time.

Gonicc Pet Nail Clippers have a built-in safety guard to protect your cat from distress. The guard works by blocking one side of the clippers, so your cat's nails can only project a short distance into the space between cutting blades. However, since the Gonicc clippers are designed for both cats and small dogs, it's still important to watch closely to prevent nicking the quick of the nail, since it's possible that smaller cat nails may project too far into the clippers, even with the safety guard.

These clippers have several other useful features as well, including stainless steel blades, a safety lock, an included nail file, and a spring to ensure enough leverage is applied to cut cleanly.

_{Style: Plier | Dimensions: 1.5 x 4.7 inches | Blade Type: Semi-circular}

Final Verdict

Shiny Pet Nail Clippers for Small Animals are our top choice because they’re simple, effective, and have been extensively tested by The Spruce Pets. If you’re trying to reduce the plastic in your life and place a premium on long-term durability, consider the Resco Deluxe Cat Nail Trimmer. Their stainless steel cat nail clippers are made in the United States and designed with a replaceable blade.

FAQ

• Can I use nail clippers for people on my cat?

  “Nail clippers for people can be used on cats as long as they’re sharp,” says Dr. Bonk. “You’ll want to use a larger size on larger cats or for longer nails, since cat nails are thicker than a human’s and little nail clippers might not be big enough to properly handle them. Scissor-type nail clippers may also be used to trim nails that have overgrown and curled into a circle.”

• Can cat nail clippers be sharpened?

  A sharp cutting surface is important to prevent cat nails from being crushed instead of cut in the trimming process. Dull clippers will cause the nail to crack and fray, rather than being trimmed cleanly. But whether the clippers can be sharpened depends on the clipper you choose, what tools you have at home and how comfortable you are using them.

  Many cat nail clippers are designed so that the cutting surfaces can be replaced or sharpened (such as Resco, above). Like sharpening household scissors or kitchen knives, you can take them to a professional for sharpening for a small fee, or if you’re comfortable and capable, you can sharpen them yourself at home.

  There are a large number of detailed videos available online to guide you through sharpening your cat nail clippers when they start to become dull. But be careful if you’re trying to sharpen them on your own for the first time as you can injure yourself in the process if you don’t use proper safety precautions.

• Can you use a nail grinder on a cat?

  “Nail grinders are great tools for trimming the nails of some willing dogs. However, you may be hard-pressed to find a cat that will allow it,” says Dr. Bonk. “The noise and vibration may be more than even a laidback cat can handle. You’ll also need to be extra careful because nail grinders trim nails very quickly. Cat nails aren’t as thick as dog nails so they can easily be ground too short in very little time.”

  If you are among the few confident enough to use a grinder, with a cat willing to tolerate it, we recommend the Casfuy Upgraded Professional Rechargable Electric Pet Nail Trimmer.

• How often should a cat's nails be trimmed?

  In general, a cat’s nails should be every two to four weeks. Frequency can depend on several factors, including speed of nail growth, a cat's activity level, age, and health, as well as scratching behavior. It's time to trim when your cat's nails become long, curved, and sharp.

• Do cats naturally trim their own nails?

  Cats frequently file down their nails by scratching on furniture, posts, and trees. They also like to bite or chew on their nails which also helps to keep them short and stubby.

The 7 Best Cat Scratching Posts of 2024, Tested and Reviewed