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Being a cat owner can be one of the most gratifying experiences, but the litter box duties? Not so much. I’ve had my cat, Bones, for twelve years. We’ve moved more times than I care to admit, and through all of it, I’ve kept things simple out of necessity: a covered litter box tucked into whatever corner I could find. It certainly isn’t glamorous, and I’m willing to bet that the drawback for most cat lovers is the litter box and the smell.
Now, for the first time in years, I’m not moving anytime soon. Which means my litter box has a permanent home in my bedroom under my desk (ick). In a small Brooklyn apartment, that’s not exactly ideal. The smell and unsightly dirty litter were ruining the ambiance of my room, to say the least. So it seemed the perfect time to test out the self-cleaning Litter-Robot 5. I wanted to know if a self-cleaning litter box could actually make a noticeable difference, or if it was just an expensive piece of tech for people who hate scooping (which, to be fair, I do, too.) Here’s how it went.
We like
- Incredibly straightforward to use
- Cuts down on litter use
- Relatively quiet
- Looks sleek in my room
- Doesn’t smell at all
We don't like
- App sometimes glitches (like says litter is empty when it isn’t.)
- The height of the box makes it so my cat tracked a lot of litter out of the box
First Impressions:
I’d heard about self-cleaning litter boxes for years: The Litter-Robot has been all over my IG feed, past models are ranked among the best by outlets like Good Housekeeping and WIRED, and my cat-obsessed friends rave about their own. But I’d never actually used one. The Litter-Robot 5 works with internal sensors that detect when your cat enters and exits. After your cat leaves, the globe waits a few minutes (to allow clumps to fully form), then slowly rotates. Clean litter sifts through an internal screen while clumped waste separates and drops into a sealed drawer below. The globe then rotates back, redistributing the clean litter evenly and resetting it for the next use.
When the Litter-Robot arrived at my door, I was intimidated by how massive the box was. The whole thing measures 30” x 22” x 27”, so it’s not subtle. But I had already measured the space under my desk to make sure it was sufficient, and it fit perfectly. Keep in mind it does need to be plugged in, so you’ll have to house it close to an outlet.
The setup was simple. The globe comes mostly assembled, and the waste drawer arrives in two pieces that snap together. It took me about three minutes to figure out how to attach them, and after that, I slid the drawer right into the base of the main globe.
I did make one rookie mistake, though: At first, I filled the litter too high and when the Litter-Robot went through the cleaning cycle, it dumped about two cups of litter into the waste tray. Next time, I filled it just below the max fill line, and it cycled perfectly. It just took some experimentation to get it right.
The Testing Experience
My cat is a little fickle sometimes, and we’ve had some hiccups in the past (she can get sassy with her pee if she’s mad at me). So the idea of switching litter boxes felt risky, as she had settled into a nice routine with her basic covered litter box and actually seemed to like it. I was also about to head out for a week of travel, and had a cat sitter lined up to watch her. I really didn’t want any mishaps while I was out of town.
At first, she wanted nothing to do with it. The Litter-Robot is tall and pod-shaped—nothing like the box she was used to. I tried gently guiding her toward it and moved her old box into the bathroom to encourage the transition, but she refused to get near it, so I had to be creative to get my cat to use Litter-Robot.
Once I sprinkled a bit of her old litter in the globe, though, we made progress. Within ten minutes, she climbed in. Since then, we’ve had zero problems. She uses it multiple times a day, and sometimes, she just sits in the box for no good reason.
However, I know not every cat will have such an easy time adjusting. Reddit threads are full of troubleshooting advice from Litter-Robot stans who are eager to help others adjust. Many recommend turning off automatic cycling until your cat gets acclimated (you can do this on the app) and only manually cycling the dome when the cats are out of sight.
I had also heard that traditional clay litters tend to perform best in self-cleaning systems, so I was hesitant to switch. I use a clumping corn-based litter (Nature’s Miracle Clumping Corn Cob), and it has worked perfectly. The clumps are firm enough to separate cleanly during the cycle. The brand’s GreatLitter may cause less dust than mine has, though.
Odor control is where I noticed the biggest shift. I can go nearly 8–10 days without emptying the waste drawer. And when I do empty it, it’s because it’s full—not because I smell anything in my bedroom, so it’s definitely one of the best cat litter boxes for odor control.
The main drawback has been litter tracking. Bones launches herself out of the globe instead of using the built-in step, so litter ends up scattered farther than I’d like. A mat helps, but not by much, so I still have to vacuum daily. This isn’t all that different from a standard litter box, and some Reddit users mention using the brand’s fence accessory or turning the device to face a wall.
The App and Features
The Litter-Robot 5 comes with a few upgrades over earlier models. There’s now a small onboard screen, so you don’t have to rely entirely on the Whisker app if you want to check status or manually run a cycle. I’ve rarely needed to do that — the automatic cycling has worked consistently — but it’s nice not to be dependent on your phone.
Then, there’s WasteID, which logs whether your cat went number one or number two, along with the time and approximate ounce of the visit. On the app, you can see a full history of box usage. Do I personally need timestamped data about my cat’s bathroom schedule? Not really. But if you’re monitoring a UTI, digestive issues, or behavioral changes, the level of tracking offered by Litter-Robot 5 could actually be useful.
It also helped ease my anxiety around traveling: I left my house knowing the cat sitter wouldn’t get in for a few hours, and instead of worrying that Bones would pee on my bed out of anger, all I had to do was open the app and confirm she’d used the box normally. Phew.
There’s also a weight tracking feature, which would be especially helpful in multi-cat households to differentiate usage. Since I only have one cat, it’s less handy, and occasionally, the weight didn’t register perfectly in the app.
Some of the features feel a bit overkill. The interior light, for example, is customizable and app-controlled. Bones refused to enter when it was on, so I turned it off immediately. I’m not really convinced that anyone needs ambient lighting inside a litter box, even if you can change the color to suit your aesthetic.
My Verdict
After a couple of weeks of testing, I knew my world was rocked. The Litter-Robot 5 has completely spoiled me (and my cat). Not only do I never have to scoop litter again, but it’s been a game-changer litter box for odor control and my room no longer lingers with the faint smell of dirty litter.
The Litter-Robot 5 is not cheap, and it’s not small. It’s a commitment of both space and money. But if you travel frequently, hate scooping, or have your litter box visible in your home like I do, it’s a worthwhile investment for your little one (or ones). Bones adjusted quickly and uses it consistently—despite past problematic peeing behavior. I don’t see myself going back to a standard litter box anytime soon.
