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8 Games for Cats on Your Phone: The Ultimate Collection (2024 Update)

Chantelle Fowler

By Chantelle Fowler

kitten touching the screen of mobile phone while on a woman's lap

There’s no written rule that smartphones have to be explicitly used by humans. If you have cats, you should know that there are several games available to download that your kitty will absolutely love playing.

Read on to find eight apps you can download for your cats to play, as well as five videos your pets will love watching and engaging with on YouTube.

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Benefits of Downloading Games for Your Cat

If your cats are anything like mine, they’re probably spoiled with a basket full of toys they rarely ever touch. When you’re a cat, anything can become a toy, after all. There’s no need to play with the expensive interactive toys that Mom and Dad buy when there’s a perfectly good cardboard box or crumpled-up piece of paper on the floor.

Truth be told, all cats can benefit from more playtime in their lives, and as gimmicky as apps for cats sound, there are many benefits to allowing your cats to play on your phone.

Games Promote Mental and Physical Well-Being

Phone games can promote mental and physical well-being as they encourage activity and can help your cats stay in tip-top body condition while preventing obesity. The games below are all interactive and require some type of movement from your kitty, so while they won’t need to make laps around your home while playing these games, they still do promote physical wellness.

Games Build Confidence

Playing catching games on your phone can help your kitty to build up their confidence. Who knows, you may even find your reluctant-to-play cat more interested in stalking, pouncing, and capturing their other toys around the house once they’ve built up some confidence in their skills via smartphone games.

cat playing cellphone
Image Credit: Linalyan, Shutterstock

Playing Together Can Strengthen Your Bond

Cats are pretty smart, but yours may need some help figuring out how to play the new games on your phone. When the two of you play the games together, it can help your kitty make a positive association between you and playtime, strengthening your bond.

Playing Promotes Better Behavior

Playing games with your kitty can put a stop to problem behaviors. If your little troublemaker is always climbing curtains or knocking your things off of shelves, scheduling play sessions can be a great way to redirect their energy to more positive behaviors.

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The 8 Games for Cats on Your Phone

1. Friskies Cat Fishing 2

Friskies Cat Fishing 2

Price: Free
Operating System: iOS or Android

Cat Fishing 2 is a classic fish-catching app that challenges your kitty to “catch” (AKA touch) as many fishes as they can. There are several levels you can choose from to give your expert fisher-kitty a real challenge.


2. Mouse for Cats

Mouse for Cats app game

Price: Free
Operating System: iOS or Android

Mouse for Cats follows the same premise as Cat Fishing, except instead of catching fish, your kitty will need to catch a mouse. This game has 11 different levels, and because each mouse is a different color and is programmed with tail movements to drive cats up the wall, your kitty will get much enrichment playing this game.


3. Cat Alone 2

Cat Alone 2

Price: Free
Operating System: iOS or Android

Cat Alone 2 is an eight-stage game that allows your kitty to chase spiders, bat at feathers, or stop water droplets as they fall. One of the best features of this game is its Selfie Mode, which allows you to snap sweet pictures of your kitty as they play.


4. Cat Playground

Cat Playground game app

Price: $1.99 USD
Operating System: Android

Cat Playground allows your feline family members to chase mice, fish, or a laser pointer. They earn points for every catch they get, which is honestly kind of pointless but fun for humans who may want to keep tabs on their cat’s catching skills.


5. Pocket Pond 2

Pocket Pond 2

Price: Free
Operating System: iOS or Android

Pocket Pond 2 is an interactive game that allows your kitty to catch the koi fish swimming around in a pond. This is actually a fantastic, cozy game for humans, too, so as long as you don’t mind sharing your pond with your kitty, Pocket Pond 2 is a great game you can play together.


6. Friskies Jitter Bug

Friskies Jitter Bug game app

Price: Free
Operating System: iOS or Android

Friskies really knows what cats want, as evidenced by their second hit mobile app for cats. Jitter Bug allows your kitty to practice their bug-catching skills in either game or advanced mode. In game mode, your kitty will go through five 15-second rounds to see how many bugs they can catch. In advanced mode, you select how many of each bug will appear to challenge your kitty.


7. Cat Games – Games for Cats

Cat Games - Games for Cats app

Price: Free
Operating System: Android

As uncreative as “Cat Games” is for a game for cats, this Android app allows your cats and kittens to play with hamsters or bees that move across the screen. The levels are short, which is great for a cat’s short attention span, and are sometimes interrupted by ads.


8. Games for Cats!

Games for Cats app

Price: Free
Operating System: iOS

Games for Cats! is a collection of—you guessed it—games for cats. There are several levels to choose from, including ones with fish, lasers, mice, birds, and squirrels.

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Other Games for Cats on Your TV, Computer, or Projector Screen

If your phone screen isn’t large enough to attract your kitty’s attention, take it to the big screen. These “games” are really just YouTube videos, but they’re great for giving your kitty some physical and mental stimulation.

Note: Please ensure your television is secured properly, as some of these games may bring out the inner hunter in your kitty and cause them to ‘attack’ the screen.

1. Cartoon Mice

This six-minute mouse-catching game is not unlike the smartphone version. The mouse runs around the screen unpredictably, so your cats never know where he’ll go next.


2. Real Mice

If your cats show no interest in cartoon-styled mice, they might prefer this ten-hour-long video, which provides a view into the life of real mice.


3. Bugs and Butterflies Compilation

This one-hour-long video features several different backgrounds, sounds, bugs, and butterflies to grab your cat’s attention. Whether your kitty loves catching beetles, butterflies, bees, or fireflies, there’s sure to be some kind of creepy crawl for them to watch.


4. String

Challenge your cat’s inner hunter with this two-hour-long video of a red string running across your screen.


5. Fishing

Just like the cat-focused fishing games for your phone, this one-hour-long video provides your kitty with plenty of fun fish to watch and try to catch.

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Final Thoughts

Cats need a lot of mental and physical enrichment to stay happy and healthy. While most kitties will get the stimulation they require through their daily play sessions and household toys, using your smartphone to boost their activity further is totally acceptable. We hope your cats enjoy some of the above games and activities to pass the time. Just don’t expect these apps to fulfill your pet’s activity requirements completely; they still will require their daily play sessions with you at the helm.


Featured Image Credit: Impact Photography, Shutterstock

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