12 Best Catnip Toys in 2024 – Reviews & Top Picks

Many felines love catnip. We don’t exactly know why cats love catnip, though scientists have a few different theories. One is that catnip is a natural pest repellant, enabling wild cats to avoid ticks and fleas.

Catnip toys are ideal for encouraging activity and play. Many cats may be too lazy to play with normal toys, but they can’t resist the smell of catnip.

However, not all catnip toys are the same. Some are technically advertised as containing catnip, but the scent is so slight or low-quality that cats don’t seem to notice. Others simply aren’t fun to play with or get broken easily.

Therefore, we created reviews of the best catnip toys out there. You should be able to find something for your feline here.

 

A Quick Comparison of Our Favorites in 2024

The 12 Best Catnip Toys

Our pick for the best overall catnip toy is the Hepper Catnip Stick Toy. It features a simple, clean design and is handmade in the United States. It’s filled with organic catnip and does not contain unnecessary fillers. Hepper Catnip Stick Toys are versatile toys with a long, thin shape that are ideal for your cat to chew, carry, kick, or cuddle.

Even cats that don’t respond to catnip should find this toy entertaining. Your cat can amuse itself with self-guided play, or you can spend quality time with your feline friend playing fetch with Hepper’s Catnip Stick Toy. The toy is double-layered for durability and comes in two stylish colors.

If your kitty gets its toys grimy, be aware that this product can only be wiped down by hand and can be tough to get completely clean. As with any toy, you’ll want to supervise your cat while playing, especially if it likes to chew and shred its possessions.

At Pet Keen, we’ve admired Hepper for many years and decided to take a controlling ownership interest so that we could benefit from the outstanding designs of this cool cat company!

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These lightweight furry balls are perfect for batting around and playing with. These toys would be a great option by themselves, but the inclusion of catnip makes them even more fun to play with. Therefore, we consider the Ethical Pet Kitty Yarn Puffs Small Balls Catnip Toy our budget buy option. They are extremely inexpensive, but your cat will likely have so much fun playing with them.

This product is shipped in a bag containing four different fuzzy balls. You’ll likely lose one or two of these balls due to their small size, which is one of the significant downsides of these toys. However, your cat will have plenty of fun with them before that, and the inclusion of multiple toys ensures that they will still have something to play with.

These toys are polyester and have a simple design.

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The Kong Refillable Hedgehog Catnip Toy is one of the better options on the market, largely because it is refillable. Therefore, it will never lose its scent, like some other toys on the market. If it does begin to lose its scent, you can simply refill it with new catnip.

This toy comes with quality North American catnip in a recloseable vial inside the toy. To refill the vial, simply open it and add some new catnip. Catnip can last a long time if you keep it in the fridge, so buying in bulk and then storing it cooled may be your best option.

The hedgehog itself is fun to play, though it probably wouldn’t be popular with cats if it didn’t have catnip included. For this reason, we highly recommend keeping it stocked with catnip. Your cat may simply ignore it otherwise.

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4. Frisco Basic Plush Mice Cat Toy With Catnip

For most cats, these simple Frisco Basic Plush Mice Cat Toy With Catnip are popular. They are about the size of real mice, and encourage your feline to play and bat at them. They are extremely lightweight, so when they get hit, they can go flying. All of this encourages your cat to run and chase them, providing more playtime and exercise.

Their texture is soft and cuddly, which encourages play. No one wants to play with hard things, so these mice are designed to be extremely fast.

There are five mice included in this pack. These are easy to lose, so the fact that there are multiple mice is helpful.

These mice are quite inexpensive, so they’re great for owners who are purchasing multiple toys for their feline. The added catnip will help ensure that your cat actually pays attention to these toys.

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This adorable and quirky catnip toy from Hepper also makes a great pick. The Hepper Cuppa Tea Catnip Toy is handmade from all-natural materials and is the perfect choice for a tea lover or British Shorthair pet parent! The unique shape of this tea bag-like toy allows it to be easily batted around by playful cats or picked up and carried. It’s also tough enough to withstand chewing by teething kittens. Even cats who don’t find catnip appealing should enjoy the Cuppa Tea thanks to its intriguing design. This toy is suitable for all ages and activity levels of cats and is an excellent self-guided play option for kitties who must spend a lot of time entertaining themselves.

Because it’s filled with catnip, this product isn’t easily washed, which could be an issue if it sees heavy use from your cat. Since it’s handmade, the Cuppa Tea is higher priced than some other catnip toys on our list as well. However, if you’re searching for a toy your cat will love to play with and you won’t mind seeing on the floor, the Cuppa Tea could be the one for you!

At Pet Keen, we’ve admired Hepper for many years and decided to take a controlling ownership interest so that we could benefit from the outstanding designs of this cool cat company!

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The Yeowww! Catnip Yellow Banana Cat Toy is one of the most popular toys for cats that like catnip for a few different reasons. First, the shape of the banana makes it perfect for cats to grab onto and kick with their feet. Since cats will want to be close to the toy due to the catnip smell, this banana’s shape encourages that exact behavior.

It also allows cats to wrap their arms around the banana and rub against it. Many cats will instinctively do this when introduced to the toy.

This banana is simply the perfect shape for cats to rub against and play with. For this reason, we consider this to be the best overall catnip toy.

Each toy contains 100% organic cotton that is grown without pesticides. Only the leaves and flowers are used, which are the most effective parts. It is individually crafted and hand-sewn in the U.S.A. No fillers or plastic pieces are used.

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7. Frisco Bird Teaser With Feathers Cat Toy

The Frisco Bird Teaser With Feathers Cat Toy is a great option for interactive play. It is designed a bit differently than most other options out there, as it has a wand that enables you to play with your cat directly. The little bird at the end of the wand includes Canadian catnip, enticing your cat to play with you. It encourages bonding time and activity.

With its colorful feathers and crinkle material, this toy is designed to encourage play in a multitude of ways. Even if it didn’t include catnip, your feline would probably play with it.

Since it is a wand toy, you probably aren’t going to lose it easily, so you may end up saving money in the long run. However, this toy is not refillable with catnip, so it will stop smelling eventually.

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You may be trying to figure out what sort of cat would play with a carrot toy. However, the OurPets Catnip 24 Karat Cat Toy is designed to encourage play, even among laidback cats.

This carrot contains completely 100% natural and aromatic catnip to encourage play. The top of the carrot is fuzzy and feather-like. The actual body of the carrot is thick and plushy—perfect for your cat to grab and kick.

This company also has many different toys that are fairly similar. So, if your cat likes this one, it is likely that they will enjoy the other ones.

This toy is not refillable, though. Once the catnip wears off, you’ll need to purchase a new carrot. The top doesn’t stay around long either, as cats tend to pull off the fuzz with their teeth.

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9. Frisco Sushi Plush Cat Toy With Catnip

The Frisco Sushi Plush Cat Toy With Catnip includes four different toys that are all sushi-themed. These toys are small, so they are best for cats who like to bat toys around. The soft, plush fabric is perfect for cats that like to cuddle with their toys too. Since these include catnip, your feline will likely want to rub their face on them.

Many people like the theme of these toys because they are quite unique compared to most other options on the market. Your cat will probably find at least one thing that they like in this pack.

These toys are not refillable, though. Once they stop smelling like catnip, it is nearly impossible to get them smelling again, though it is not impossible.

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Compared to most other toys, the SmartyKat Chickadee Chirp Electronic Bird-Sound Cat Toy has so much going on. It includes catnip to help stimulate playtime, and the bird itself emits electronic bird sounds when touched. Therefore, when your cat swats it, it’ll start making noise, encouraging further play.

The catnip inside the bird is refillable, so you can continue to add catnip as necessary. The refilling process is easy and straightforward.

This company also offers a safety guarantee, which is great given that this toy is full of electronic components. It seems to be rather safe, too, with no reports of cats becoming injured by playing with this bird.

That said, it does need to be tapped a bit hard to activate the sounds. The cat already needs to be engaged in deep play in many cases before they’ll hit the bird hard enough for it to make noise. There are also reports of the bird’s chirping noise not activating at all.

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The Petstages Night Time Catnip Rolls Cat Toy is a simple rope toy filled with natural North American catnip. That’s the main appeal of these toys. If it weren’t for the catnip, your feline probably wouldn’t play with these.

They are designed to be rather quiet, though. The company advertises that they’re a replacement for noisy toys that keep owners up at night or that are simply annoying. However, the lack of noise may also mean your cat doesn’t play with them much!

If your cat seems to play with just about everything, they may like these rope toys. However, beyond that, there aren’t many reasons that your cat may like this toy.

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The Pet Qwerks Incredibubbles for Cats is quite unique as far as cat toys are concerned. Unlike other toys, this one is bubbles, which is a rare cat toy indeed. These bubbles are designed to dry in the air so they have a pretty high chance of making it to the floor. Therefore, your cat will have the opportunity to chase and bite the bubble — if they are interested in that sort of thing.

The bubble solution contains catnip, which is meant to be an encouraging factor. However, the solution smells mostly like soap, which may be off-putting to some cats. Therefore, the bubbles may not actually be interesting to your feline.

The main downside of this toy is that while it is a nice idea, it assumes that your feline really likes bubbles — enough to chase and play with them, at least. However, this isn’t necessarily true for all cats.

Buyer’s Guide: How to Choose the Best Catnip Toy

When you’re interested in a cat toy for your feline, catnip is practically always the way to go. Most cats like catnip. Therefore, many cats will pay more if their toys have catnip in them. They’ll be drawn to the smell and, therefore, drawn to the toy.

However, that doesn’t necessarily mean just any catnip toy will do. Instead, you need to carefully choose a toy that will fit your cat and be high-quality enough to encourage helpful play.

Here, we can help you choose the best toy for your feline that includes catnip. If your cat loves catnip, you’ve already won half the battle. Let’s hit the other half out of the park by choosing the best catnip toy.

Longevity

Even the strongest, highest-quality catnip will run out at some point or another. For this reason, we highly recommend choosing a refillable option. Otherwise, the toy will eventually not smell like any catnip, which may make your cat begin to ignore it. (Of course, some cats will continue to like the toy even if it doesn’t smell like catnip, so this isn’t always a huge deal.)

Sadly, most toys on the market are not refillable. It appears that most companies do not consider it an important addition to their toys.

Therefore, you may not be able to get a refillable toy. However, we do highly recommend that you at least choose an option that includes high-quality catnip so it will last as long as possible. It can be difficult to determine which toys include quality catnip. If the toy includes the location where the catnip has grown, it is likely a great option.

Durability

You should also choose a toy that is durable. It doesn’t matter if the toy smells like catnip if the toy isn’t even usable!

There are several ways to determine the durability of the toy. First, take a look at the material that most of the toy is made out of. If it is hand-sewn or otherwise made of quality materials, this option is likely a good choice.

Second, you should consider the separate parts of the toy. Toys with feathers don’t tend to last long because cats tend to pull off all the feathers. Fuzzy balls tend to be destroyed in a similar manner.

Some materials may be fun for cats (like feathers) but not durable. Therefore, you have to decide whether the feathers are worth the potential downside of having a toy that breaks faster.

Fun

A toy is not helpful if it is not fun! You need to select a toy that has things that your feline will like. It is best if you already know what your cat likes. After all, this will help you determine which toys they will likely enjoy the most.

Some cats like batting toys the most, while others prefer interactive wand toys. In these cases, you’ll likely want to pick the toy that best matches your cat’s preference.

Some felines prefer toys that have feathers, while others don’t care for them. If there is a particular feature that your feline likes, be sure that you select a toy that matches up.

If you don’t know anything about what your feline likes, your best bet is to choose many different kinds of toys. This way, you can introduce your cat to multiple toys and observe their preferences. Your cat will likely completely ignore some and be absolutely obsessed with others.

Types of Catnip Toys

There are several types of catnip toys. In some cases, you may be looking for one in particular. However, you’ll usually want to have a toy or two in each of these categories to ensure that your feline has plenty of things to play with. Some cats will like a few of these toys more than others:

Conclusion

There are tons of cat toys out there with catnip. The hard part is narrowing down the field until you find the perfect toy for your cat.

In particular, we highly recommend the Hepper Catnip Stick Toy as the overall best catnip toy for cats. The cat nut brings vibrant fun to playtime! Your furry monster can scratch, nip, and nibble to their heart’s content. The thick, catnip-infused material is as long-lasting as it is tasty. It is the perfect accessory for any cat in any home.

We also recommend the Ethical Pet Kitty Yarn Puffs Small Balls Cat Toy With Catnip. These inexpensive balls are covered in catnip to encourage play. They are perfect for batting around due to being so lightweight.

There are many catnip toys out there on the market. We recommend choosing the option that best fits your cat’s preferences because different cats do like different things.

• See also: Can Hedgehogs Have Catnip? Is Catnip Safe for Hedgehogs?

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Featured Image Credit: Ellie Burnett, Shutterstock