How to Easily Convert Cat Years to Human Years

Cat owners across the country are known for treating their cats just like their human offspring, so it’s natural to want to convert your feline’s cat years to human years.

Luckily, it’s pretty easy to do. We spoke with Marty Becker, DVM and founder of Fear Free Pets on the easiest conversion method for you to try at home. But if math isn’t your thing, we made an easy-to-understand chart.

Keep reading to find out how to easily convert cat years to human years.

How to Convert Cat Years to Human Years

Cats reach the equivalent of 15 human years in their first year of life and the equivalent of 25 human years by age two. Clear as mud? When they are young, it’s a little tricky to convert cat years to human years exactly, but after their second birthday, it gets very simple, Becker says. That’s because cats develop rapidly in the first two years of their lives.

Each year of a cat’s life after age two is roughly equal to four human years, so a three-year-old cat is about 29 human years old, a four-year-old cat is 33, a five-year-old cat is 37, and a six-year-old cat is 41. And so on and so on. If your cat reaches age 20 in cat years, she’ll be around 97 human years old.

Unlike dogs—who have different human age equivalents depending on their size—the formula for cats is universal because they’re all roughly the same physical size.

Cat Years to Human Years Chart

As promised, to find out the exact human age of your cat, check out the chart below!

When Is a Cat No Longer a Kitten?

Your kitten will develop so much in her first year, it’s actually a little crazy.

“The first year is the terrible twos and the teenage years in one year,” Becker says.

Oof. That’s why it’s probably a good idea to consult this guide on how to care for your kitten. Then, you’ll want to make sure you have all the essentials.

When Is a Cat Considered a Teenager?

Probably whenever she stops really listening to you, avoids her chores, and starts spending too much time staring at her phone. In reality, this occurs shortly before your cat turns one and lasts a few months after her first birthday. By that time, she’ll be a young adult cat.

How Old Is an Adult Cat?

By our human standards, cats are considered young adults when they turn one. At that point, they’ll have finished their physical development and are waiting for their minds to catch up, Becker says.

“They’ve got their younger, physical maturity. Their mental maturity is not there,” he says.

That will arrive as they end their second years on earth and move firmly into the adult phase.

When Is a Cat Considered a Senior?

Cats become seniors around their 11th birthday, when their human age creeps into the 60s. That’s when they’ll start considering retirement from their extremely strenuous professional lives.

What is the Average Lifespan of a Cat?

It’s common to see a cat reach 20 years old (almost 100 in human years!) these days, Becker says, so it’s safe to assume a healthy cat will make it within a few years of that.

We can’t guarantee your feline pal will make it into a third decade, but there are a few things you can do to elongate your cat’s life. Becker lists three main factors that determine your cat’s longevity: heredity, environment, and nutrition.

There’s not much you can do about heredity once you bring home your cat, Becker says. But you can do your best to make her environment safe. That means limiting time outside—where dangers like predators, vehicles, and parasites could injure your cat. That’s why outdoor cats generally don’t live as long as their indoor counterparts.

The third factor is nutrition, so you’ll want to work with your veterinarian to make sure your kitty stays as close to her healthy weight as possible. Cats at or near their ideal body weight will live longer than those who aren’t, Becker says.