Cat Boarding Cost per Night: $25–$60, +50% on Holidays

A single cat in a standard kennel costs $25–$60 a night in the US, £18–£45 in the UK and ¥80–¥300 in China. The same cage over a public holiday is 50% more, and if the cat needs twice-daily insulin the number jumps to $80–$150 a night. For a 7-night trip that is $175–$420 at the base rate, $266–$630 at holiday rates, and $560–$1,050 in medical boarding before you add a single extra.

What the Nightly Rate Buys

The base rate covers a cage or condo of 0.8–1.5 square metres, 2–3 feedings a day, litter changed once or twice daily, and 15–30 minutes of human contact. It does not usually cover: play sessions ($8–$15 each), medication administration ($5–$15 per dose), a bath on pickup ($30–$60), Sunday collection (often $15–$30), or the deposit, which is commonly 25–50% and non-refundable inside 7–14 days. Ask what happens if you collect a day late; most facilities charge a full extra night plus 10–25%. Cattery design matters more than price here, because a cat that can see and smell 20 other cats spends 7 nights hiding, and the bill is the same.

Kennel, Sitter or Friend: Three Real Bills

For 7 nights with one cat the three options price out as follows. A kennel at $45 a night is $315, plus $40 of car rides and $25 of extra litter and food at home. A professional sitter at $25 a visit, twice a day, is $350, and that covers the whole household if you have 3 cats. A friend who looks in once a day is free and costs you $60–$120 in thank-you dinner and a gift card, and the cat gets 1 visit instead of 14. Under 4 nights the kennel usually wins on price; past 7 nights, and with 2 or more cats, in-home care does, unless the cat needs injections that only a staffed facility will reliably give.

The Holiday Surcharge Is 50%, Sometimes 100%

Peak pricing starts about 4 days before a major holiday and runs 3 days after. A $45 night becomes $68, a $60 night becomes $90, and in the week between Christmas and New Year some urban facilities quote double. The surcharge is not greed: staff wages, and the kennel is full, so the marginal night is the one they would rather not sell. Book 6–10 weeks ahead for Thanksgiving, Christmas, Lunar New Year and the July–August travel block, and expect the deposit to be taken at booking rather than at drop-off.

Medical Boarding Costs 2–3 Times More

Medical boarding means a veterinary facility, not a kennel with a friendly owner. It runs $80–$150 a night because it includes a technician, a treatment sheet, and a vet on site. Diabetic cats are the common case: 2 insulin injections a day, 1–2 glucose checks, and a chart. Add $15–$40 a night for the injections and $10–$25 per glucose curve if the facility runs one. A cat on 3 oral medications, or one recovering from a blockage, is often quoted at the top of the range or refused outright, and a cat with a contagious condition will be refused.

Prices in the US, UK and China

These are typical published rates. They vary by city and by facility tier: a city-centre cattery with webcams sits 40–80% above a rural one 40 minutes out, and the same gap exists between a tier-1 Chinese city and a provincial one.

Line item	US (USD)	UK (GBP)	China (CNY)
Standard kennel, 1 cat, per night	25–60	18–45	80–300
Holiday peak, per night (+50%)	38–90	27–68	120–450
Medical boarding, per night	80–150	60–110	300–600
In-home sitter, per 30-minute visit	20–35	12–25	60–150
Second cat, same household, per night	13–30	9–23	40–150
7 nights, standard rate, 1 cat	175–420	126–315	560–2,100
7 nights at holiday rate, 1 cat	266–630	189–476	840–3,150

The 6-Item Handover Sheet

Every kennel should receive the same 6 items in writing, on one page, taped inside the cage door as well as filed. Staff change shift at 7 pm, and the person who reads your sheet at 9 pm is not the person who took your booking.

Food: brand, exact grams per meal, number of meals, and what the cat will actually eat when stressed.
Medication: drug name, dose in mg, time, route, and what to do if a dose is missed.
Litter and box habits: type, depth in cm, and the cat's normal stool and urine pattern so a change is noticed.
Emergency consent: your ceiling in dollars, your own vet's number, and a signed authorisation to treat.
Carrier, bedding and one worn T-shirt from home, plus the vaccination booklet.
Contact chain: your number, a second adult's number, and the time zone you are in.

What a Cheap Kennel Costs Later

A $25 night and an $60 night differ mostly in air handling and staffing ratio. Cats in a crowded facility pick up upper respiratory infection at a noticeable rate, and a 10-day course of doxycycline plus a recheck is $80–$200, which erases the saving on a 7-night stay. Stress-related cystitis is the other one: a cat that stops eating for 48 hours is at risk of hepatic lipidosis, and the workup starts at $400–$900. Weight loss of 100–200 g over a week is common and mostly reverses at home; a cat that has lost 300 g or more, or has not urinated in 24 hours, needs a vet the day you collect it.

Booking Timeline and Total

Book 6–10 weeks out for holidays, 2–4 weeks for ordinary weeks, and confirm 3 things in writing: the holiday rate applies to which nights, what the late-pickup charge is, and whether the vaccine requirement is 14 days before drop-off (most are). Then add the extras honestly: 7 nights at $45, plus 5 play sessions at $10, plus one medication at $10 a day comes to $435, not $315. Run your own numbers against the cost calculator before you compare quotes, and remember that the litter, food and litter-box line at home does not stop while the cat is away; that recurring cost is priced in the monthly litter cost breakdown.

Short version: budget $30–$45 a night for a healthy cat, add 50% for holiday weeks, add 2–3 times that for medical boarding, and put the 6-item sheet in writing every single time.

Frequently asked

How much should I budget for a week of cat boarding?

For one healthy cat, 7 nights at $25–$60 comes to $175–$420 in the US, £126–£315 in the UK and ¥560–¥2,100 in China. Holiday weeks add 50%, so the same stay becomes $266–$630. Add $8–$15 per play session and $5–$15 per medication dose, and expect a 25–50% deposit taken at booking.

When is medical boarding required instead of a normal kennel?

When the cat needs injections, twice-daily medication with observation, or monitoring after a blockage or surgery. Medical boarding runs $80–$150 a night at a veterinary facility, roughly 2–3 times a standard kennel, plus $15–$40 a night for injections. A cat with a contagious condition will be refused by both, and needs hospital isolation instead.

What should I hand over to the cattery in writing?

Six items on one page: food with grams per meal, medication with dose and timing, litter type and the cat's normal urine and stool pattern, emergency consent with a spending ceiling and your vet's number, carrier and bedding plus the vaccination booklet, and a contact chain that includes a second adult. Staff change shifts at 7 pm, so the sheet must be readable without you there.