“This post contains affiliate links and I will be compensated if you make a purchase after clicking on my links.”
Cat carriers are almost essential when traveling with your cat but what carrier would be the best to use if you have a larger cat? Depending on your particular needs there are many that you could potentially go with but these are some of the best ones you can buy in my opinion.
Why Should You Get a Cat Carrier?
These are really important if you travel anywhere because in some places like airports they are required for you pet to be inside of one. They are also useful for other things like vet visits and emergencies.
Best Cat Carrier For Long Distance Travel – Pet Fit For Life Extra Large (32″x19″x19″) Collapsible/Portable Cat Cage/Condo
If I had to go with a larger cat carrier this would be my number one choice if I was traveling in a car. I like this one the most because it’s cheap and it comes with other stuff such as cat toys, a litter box and pegs to keep it blowing away in the wind. Click here to check the current price on Amazon.
Best Cat Carrier For Scared Cats – PetLuv Happy Cat Premium Soft Sided Foldable Top & Side Loading Pet Carrier
If you want something like the Pet Fit carrier but in a slightly different design this would also be one of my top choices. It also has a nice cushion floor that the Pet Fit doesn’t have which would be good for longer trips. It also comes in other colors including Navy Blue, Pink w/ Lace, Red, Tan, and Pink.
Click here for the amazon link.
Best Cat Carrier For Two Cats – Pawhut 39” Soft-Sided Portable Dual Compartment Pet Carrier
If you have two big cats this could be a potentially good choice to go with. Even if you only want to use only one of the crates you can detach them from one another and it even has a top hammock so your cat doesn’t have to sit in the same place the whole time. It also has privacy covers on the front compartments which is nice if you have a nervous, anxious cat or cats.
This cat carrier however only comes in grey with orange trimming. Click here to check the current price on amazon.
Best Cat Carrier For Safety – Sleepypod Air In-Cabin Pet Carrier
This carrier is slightly pricey but if you are the type to travel a lot this carrier would be a good investment for your cat on the go since its much higher quality compared to other carriers.
Its made out of luggage grade material and you can get this carrier in many colors as well including Dark Chocolate, Glacier Silver, Jet Black, Orange Dream, Robin Egg Blue and Strawberry Red. Click here for the amazon link.
Best Cat Carrier For Vet Visits – AmazonBasics Two-Door Top-Load Pet Kennel
Whenever I take my cat to the vet this is the carrier that I use. it measures 23 x 15 x 13 inches and is plenty large enough for say a large Maine Coon. These types of carrier are really useful for vet visits because cats get freaked out when going there so you need a carrier that won’t get damaged and this plastic carrier is perfect for that.
The top door can also open up left or right which can be useful. Click here to check the current price on amazon.
Best Cat Carrier For Airplane Travel – Sherpa Travel Original Deluxe Airline Approved Pet Carrier
Going more into airline approved cat carriers if I couldn’t choose the X-Zone carrier this would be my other choice to go with. This one is also nice for people who don’t want a black carrier or want other variations of black.
You can choose from Black Lattice, Charcoal, Original Black, Original Brown, Original Plum and Original Black. Click here for the chewy.com link.
Best Cat Carrier for Walking – Sherpa on Wheels Pet Carrier
If you need a cat carrier for walking this is probably the best one you can get. It has four mesh panels, privacy flaps, locking zippers, a flag for viability and its also airline approved which is really nice to know.
The Carrier also measures 20 inches; Length x 12.25 inches; Width x 10.5 inches; Height. It only comes in black however. Click here for the chewy.com link.
Other Carriers That Are Worth Checking Out
These are some of my other favorites that don’t really fit into a certain category but might be better in your situation.
SportPet Designs Large Portable Kennel
This carrier is pretty much as big as you are going to get. I would recommend this one if you have not only a large cat but multiple large cats you are traveling around with.
This one also has closing windows which can be useful for nervous cats. The price is also quite good as well which makes it even more appealing. Click here for the amazon link.
Necoichi Portable Stress Free Cat Cage
I like this one a lot because its similar to my first choice the Pet Fit For Life. This one however doesn’t come with the extra goodies but that might be a good thing for your case. If you have a large cat this would be a perfect choice to go with. Click here for the chewy.com link.
Pet Gear “The Other Door” 4 Door Steel Crate
This is another good crate style carrier that you could go with. It’s very large and it very well made. It is however on the pricey side but I think its worth the quality. It comes in Chocolate, Sage and Tan. Click here for the chewy.com link.
X-ZONE PET Airline Approved Soft-Sided Pet Travel Carrier
If you want something that’s airline approved this would be one of my top choices for a larger cat. It not only looks really nice but the price is also really good for a bag like this. It comes in black, brown and purple. Click here to check the current price on Amazon.
Mr. Peanut’s Airline Approved Soft Sided Pet Carrier
This is a nice high quality carrier that you could also get. I really like the design of this one and the material that its made out of. This one is also waterproof and has synthetic leather straps. You can get this one in Charcoal Ash, Deja Blue, Purple and Raspberry Red. Click here for the chewy.com link.
TopPets Portable Soft Pet Carrier
Another great option for really big cats is this one by topPets. I really like this soft cat carrier because its washable, waterproof and overall just very well made. It comes in Beige, Dark Blue, Maroon Red and Moss Green. Click here to check the current price on Amazon.
AmazonBasics Folding Soft Dog Crate
As the headline says this crate is made for dogs but if you have a larger cat its probably the size of a dog (or at least close to one) anyway so it makes sense. I would recommend this carrier if your cat is very large and you need the biggest carrier you can get. You can also get a lot of other sizes as well if for some reason you need smaller cat carriers to go along with a bigger one.
This carrier however only comes in tan but I think it looks quite nice. Click here for the current price on Amazon. I would also suggest pairing this with the “MidWest Homes for Pets Ombre Dog Beds, Plush Dog Beds Fit Wire Dog Crates, Machine Wash & Dry (click here for the Amazon link)” which people commonly buy together with this carrier.
Petego Pet Tube Kennel
This is a great choice for a large cat because its got plenty of space and its really easy to fold up and store when you don’t need it anymore. The only possible downside is it has a cylinder shape which may not possibly be to your liking.
However if it is This is a good carrier to go with. It comes in only black and the sizes are small and large. Click here to check the current price on amazon.
One for Pets Fabric Portable 2-in-1 Double Pet Kennel/Shelter
If you don’t like the color of the previous Pawhut cat carrier this one here is a great alternative if you like black. Just like the Pawhut carrier you can detach the carriers to use them separately from one another, you can attach a hammock to each one and there is also privacy covers on the front compartments. Click here to check the current price on amazon.
Petseek Extra Large Cat Carrier
This is one of my favorite looking cat carriers and best of all it would be very suitable for a medium and a large cat as well. It’s white with black mesh and measures 24×16.5×16 inches. It also has privacy windows to make the trip less nerve wracking for your cat. Click here to check the current price on amazon.
Tips For Using A Cat Carrier
Get Luggage locks: Cats can be crafty at opening zippers so getting a luggage lock would be a good idea if you want to avoid your cat potentially escaping. The “Forge TSA Approved Cable Luggage Locks (click here for the amazon link)” is very good at keeping your zippers cat proof (and people proof as well…).
Let Them Get Used To The Carrier: If you have never used a cat carrier before cats are known to really hate them until they get used to using them. Gradually introduce them to the carrier before going on big trips or it could really stress them out.
How to Keep Soft Carriers Clean: Soft carriers can be slightly harder to clean than harder carriers. If you want to keep these types of carriers clean just put soap on a rag and scrub it that best that you can then just let it dry. The mats are usually machine washable which is nice.
You can also get a cat carrier lining if you want to make things easier so you don’t have to wash it as much. The ones by “DryFur Pet Carrier Insert Pads (click here for the amazon link)” are really good at doing this.
Keep Cats in Their Own Carrier: If your cats are stressed out (which traveling can do to them) they will most likely fight with each other and make the trip worse. Only put them in the same carrier if your cats are accustomed to traveling and you know that they will get along. Otherwise you want to keep them in separate carriers.
Get the Right Sized Carrier: For your cats comfort you should get a carrier that is at least 1 ½ times bigger than your cat in size for the best results with traveling with them. Anything smaller than that and they will feel too cramped which isn’t comfortable for them if they are going on long trips. You can also go bigger if you need to.
If you go bigger however make sure that when you are driving that they don’t slide around the carrier which can be scary and uncomfortable for them.
Final Thoughts
So, that wraps it up those are my top choices for cats carriers for bigger cats. Keep in mind if you are looking for a cat carrier you should check to see if the carrier is airline or train approved before buying.
If you still can’t find what you are looking for you can check out my other articles “Best Airline Approved Pet Carriers In Cabin” and “Best Cat Carriers For Long Distance Travel” which has a lot more carriers that I personally like as well.
