With all the gloom-and-doom talk about the economy and consumer sentiment (including by yours truly, I have to admit), you might think spending on pet food would be cratering. But according to recent surveys, that’s not the case, at least among U.S. pet owners.
Dog Food Advisor, the dog food rating site, just released a survey of 10,000 U.S. dog owners, 13% of whom reported spending US$200 or more a month on dog food. Not surprisingly, among respondents with a household income of US$150,000 or more, the level is 17%.
These findings mirror those of a previous survey, conducted in July 2025 by CouponCabin among just over 1,000 U.S. pet owners (dog and cat), which asked how much they spend on total pet care per year. More than half said they spend between US$500 and $1,999 annually, with the bulk of the spending going toward pet food. On the other end of the spectrum, 14% reported spending US$4,000-US$9,999 annually on pet care.
Of course, that spending adds up over the life of a pet. “Dogs and cats alone account for lifetime pet care FMCG spend of $9,819 and $12,733, respectively,” said NielsenIQ. Now, that takes some unpacking: “FCMG” stands for fast-moving consumer goods, which in the case of pets, often means food and treats; but the statement says “pet care,” so it’s difficult to know what else might be included. Also, I believe they may have the two amounts switched. Considering that dogs tend to eat a lot more than cats, it’s likely the larger figure applies to dogs — though it’s also not unusual for pet cats to live longer than many breeds of dogs.
Despite those caveats, it’s still a fair amount of money being spent over a period that typically averages around 10 years or longer, depending on the pet. That seems to be good news for pet food and pet care brands, but are there caution signs lurking around the bend?
Rising costs a concern, yet devotion to pets persists
One reason a good portion of U.S. pet owners report spending at a high level is because of rising costs. According to the Dog Food Advisor survey, 60% of the dog owners said they’re spending more on food per dog than the year before, including “a lot more” for 18%. About 52% reported being at least “a little” worried about the cost of dog food, and 19% said they were very worried (though 30% said they weren’t worried at all).
Similarly, a July 2025 survey from Brandon, a marketing agency, showed 31.7% of U.S. pet owners spending more on pet care this year. Among those spending less, many said they skipped or delayed veterinary visits, and 45.6% said cost is their “number one barrier.” (Note that this was a much smaller sample, 180 people, which skewed toward mid to higher incomes of US$65,000-$85,000 and between the ages of 30 to 50.)
And, while the CouponCabin survey indicated nearly 75% of those respondents choosing higher-priced pet food brands, they also said they don’t necessarily go for the most expensive pet foods available. That might suggest importance placed on a balance between price and quality.
Still, as has been the case for a while with humanization firmly established as the foundation of pet ownership and care, the surveys showed a high level of devotion and commitment to feeding their pets’ high-quality foods. Among the Dog Food Advisor respondents, 52% said they would skip meals to feed their dogs, 92% would go into debt to cover emergency veterinary care and 96% would never give up their dog due to financial strain.
Among the CouponCabin survey respondents, 44% reported they would choose to spend, even splurge, on their pets before spending on personal purchases, family or friends.
Trust in brands, ingredients is key
For pet food or treat brands wondering how they can capitalize on consumer loyalty (to them or to these owners’ pets), trust plays a significant role, particularly when it comes to pet and food safety. In the Brandon survey, 54.4% of owners said they trust brands they perceive as safe.
Trust is even more important to the dog owners surveyed by Dog Food Advisor, which makes sense given that the site has long expressed a certain viewpoint and rating system — not always positive or open-minded, in my opinion — toward specific types of pet foods and ingredients. The good news is that 33% of the respondents surveyed said they trust pet food labels “a lot,” while just 12% said they completely distrust dog food companies. In the middle, I suppose, are 50% who said they have fed their dogs home-cooked meals due to a lack of trust in “storebought” dog foods. (It isn’t clear how, or if, the survey defined “storebought” or even “home-cooked.”)
In terms of pet food ingredients, 92% of respondents said they prefer one sourced in the U.S.; and, given the likely skewing of mindsets of visitors to Dog Food Advisor, they don’t much trust ingredients from anywhere else. That includes expected sources like China and even Mexico, trusted by only 6.7% and 20%, respectively, along with unexpected sources like the U.K., trusted by only 47%. Only Canada scored relatively higher, with 64% saying they trusted ingredients sourced there.
Make what you will of that data, yet with trust in brands showing up as important to consumers of all categories of products, it seems wise to keep this factor in mind and perhaps to strategize around.
