Choosing the best eco-friendly cat litter: Tippaws vs. Natusan

As cat owners (and pet owners in general), more and more of us are becoming conscious of the impact of pet ownership on the planet and want to know how we can make small, everyday steps to improve our carbon pawprint. Using an eco-friendly, biodegradable, clumping cat litter is an easy way to make quite a larger difference. As we discuss in our article about the impact of cat litter on the environment, clay cat litter has a hugely negative impact on our planet in many ways, from how it is made, how much of it you need to use and how it is disposed of. 

There are many eco-friendly cat litters on the market, but in this article we’ll be comparing the two best eco-friendly clumping cat litters in the UK: Tippaws Long-lasting Clumping Litter and Natusan’s Wood Litter. 

Note: this is based on personal experience and extensive research into the cat litter industry over many years and so we feel we are well placed to write am objective Natusan cat litter review.

So let’s see how the two best eco-friendly cat litters compare…

Ingredients and composition

Tippaws Long-lasting Clumping Litter is made from corn and wood. Both of which are by-products of industries that use these raw materials for either human consumption (in the case of corn) or human use (the timber industry, in the case of wood). As well as being a by-product, the wood used in Tippaws’ litter is FSC certified. It also contains a patented antibacterial clumping agent which allows it to be super tight clumping and provides another level of reassurance that bad odours will be contained.

Natusan Wood Litter is made from 100% PEFC-certified, recycled wood materials, a by-product of the timber industry. It also contains a clumping agent, but we don’t believe it contains an antibacterial agent based on the description on their website.

Tippaws is heavier than Natusan at approx 3kg per 6L bag vs. 4kg per 10L bag due to the slightly more granular texture. Natusan’s texture is fine, almost like wood shavings.

Note: our comparison only relates to Natusan Wood Litter and not Natusan Wheat Litter. The wheat version is much more comparable to Catsan Natural, which has an almost identical description and appears to have the same composition. These litters don’t have clumping agents so they have a more ‘sludge’ like consistency when they clump resulting in less good odour control.

Odour control performance

We haven’t conducted an independent scientific study to compare how the odour control compares for Tippaws and Natusan litter so we would not want to comment without this data. However, from feedback provided by people who have tried both litters, we would say the odour control performance is similar for both litters. 

For those who are interested, the way to test odour control performance would be to monitor the levels of ammonia in the immediate environment/ litter tray over a period of time after a cat has urinated in the litter, to see when it hits the human sensing threshold i.e. at what point a human could smell the ammonia. This needs to be tested in an independent lab. 

Litter tracking

All natural litter will track at least a little bit due to the nature of the particles (lots of them and they are both small and light so can be carried on the cat’s paws). However, Tippaws Long-lasting Clumping Litter tracks significantly less than Natusan litter. This was determined by at home testing with a number of customers/ cats. Tracking seems to be the number one pain point for Natusan Wood litter looking at their Trustpilot page. 

Only 0.5% of Tippaws litter stays on a cat's paws when they leave the litter tray. We don’t have the same data point for Natusan Wood. 

Is the litter flushable?

Tippaws is flushable however you must ask your local waste water provider if they allow you to do so.

Natusan advise you do not flush their litter.

How long does each litter last?

A 6L bag of Tippaws litter lasts the average cat up to 30-45 days.

A 10L bag of Natusan litter lasts the average cat around 4 weeks.

How much does each litter cost?

Tippaws costs £1.68 per litre if you subscribe to the largest size. This works out at approx. £10.07 per month. Tippaws offers free standard delivery on all orders and express delivery is £4.99. 

Natusan Wood costs £1.24 per litre if you subscribe to the largest size. This works out at approx. £12.37 per month. Natusan offers one delivery type which is £2.99 for orders under £30 and it’s free for orders over this threshold. 

How much litter do you need?

You can calculate how much Tippaws Long-lasting Litter you need using this calculator. 

Natusan says you need 1 x 10L bag per 4 weeks. 

Scent

Tippaws Long-lasting Clumping Litter has a very mild wood-like scent.

Natusan Wood Litter has a slightly stronger wood-like scent.

Dust content

Tippaws Long-lasting Clumping Litter is dust-free. We couldn’t find a statement about dust on Natusan’s website, however from in-home trials it is slightly dusty as the particles are so fine. 

Bentonite

No, neither litter contains bentonite.

Company ownership / background

Tippaws is independently owned by its Founder who started the company in February 2023. 

Natusan is owned by Mars Petcare and it was launched in September 2019.

Packaging

Both litters come in recyclable packaging. 

Suitability for kittens

Tippaws is suitable for kittens / cats of all ages.

Natusan is suitable for kittens over the age of 12 weeks.

Trustpilot scores

Both companies have great Trustpilot scores, with Tippaws scoring 4.8 (Excellent) and Natusan scoring 4.6 (Excellent).

Summary: comparing Tippaws Long-lasting Litter and Natusan Wood Litter

If you'd like us to do a comparison with Natusan Wheat Litter or have any questions about this, please email us at help@tippaws.com

*See above calculations. 

**Based on qualitative analysis of Trustpilot reviews.

If you have any questions on our comparison, please email us on help@tippaws.com or click the chat icon in the bottom right hand corner of the screen.

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