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30% OFF
Instinct &
Hill's Ideal Balance
For New Customers
$10 OFF
Instinct &
Hill's Ideal Balance
For New Customers w/ Code: SAVENOW
15% OFF
Instinct
For New Customers w/ Code: AFPAWDIET
Instinct vs. Hill's Ideal Balance
In this comparison article for Instinct vs Hill's Ideal Balance, we'll highlight the key differences between these two pet food brands. To properly compare Instinct and Hill's Ideal Balance, we'll use up-to-date nutritional and price information.
There are many factors to consider when choosing the best pet food brand for your pet. Factors such as ingredient quality, guaranteed analysis, product safety, brand history, and cost are among the most important factors to consider.
Throughout this Hill's Ideal Balance vs Instinct comparison, we've utilized average data to make general comparisons. If you'd like to see individual product reviews, visit our Instinct Review Page or Hill's Ideal Balance Review Page.
Guaranteed Analysis: Hill's Ideal Balance vs. Instinct
According to AAFCO, all pet food labels must provide a guaranteed analysis of nutrient content. The analysis must provide guaranteed minimum percentages of crude protein and crude fat, and maximum percentages of crude fiber and moisture.
All percentages used in this comparison are averages reported on a dry matter basis.
Instinct Dog Food vs. Hill's Ideal Balance Dog Food
| Dry Dog Food | Instinct | Hill's Ideal Balance |
| Crude Protein | 35.5% | 23.5% |
| Crude Fat | 20.3% | 17.8% |
| Crude Fiber | 4.6% | 1.6% |
| Wet/Canned Dog Food | Instinct | Hill's Ideal Balance |
| Crude Protein | 45.0% | 26.6% |
| Crude Fat | 25.1% | 19.7% |
| Crude Fiber | 8.1% | 4.8% |
Crude Protein Comparison For Dog Food
Dogs require twenty-two amino acids to sustain life. Twelve of these amino acids are synthesized naturally, the remaining ten are consumed. Protein is the nutrient which provides some or all of these ten essential amino acids.
The comparison table above shows that Instinct dry dog foods provide significantly more protein than Hill's Ideal Balance. More specifically, Instinct guarantees at least 12.01% more protein. Similarly, Instinct wet dog foods provide significantly more protein than Hill's Ideal Balance wet foods.
Crude Fat Comparison For Dog Food
Fats are an absolutely vital component of a balanced canine diet. Not only do fats provide energy, but they also serve important roles in the normal development and function of your dog's body. For example, fats help dogs produce prostaglandins, which reduce inflammation among many other significant functions.
There is a small difference between the fat content of Instinct and Hill's Ideal Balance. We can see that Instinct guarantees about 2.52% more fat than Hill's Ideal Balance. In addition, Instinct wet dog foods also provide more fat than Hill's Ideal Balance wet foods.
According to our average data, Hill's Ideal Balance typically provides less fiber than Instinct. However, this difference is relatively small and doesn't represent a significant difference between the two brands. In addition, Instinct wet dog foods also provide more fiber than Hill's Ideal Balance wet foods.
Instinct Cat Food vs. Hill's Ideal Balance Cat Food
| Dry Cat Food | Instinct | Hill's Ideal Balance |
| Crude Protein | 44.4% | 32.5% |
| Crude Fat | 20.4% | 21.9% |
| Crude Fiber | 4.1% | 0.9% |
| Wet/Canned Cat Food | Instinct | Hill's Ideal Balance |
| Crude Protein | 48.2% | 43.6% |
| Crude Fat | 24.4% | 22.1% |
| Crude Fiber | 8.8% | 3.3% |
Crude Protein Comparison For Cat Food
Cats require twenty-two amino acids to sustain life. Eleven of these amino acids are synthesized naturally, the remaining eleven are consumed. Protein is the nutrient which provides some or all of these eleven essential amino acids.
Instinct dry cat foods clearly provides more protein than Hill's Ideal Balance. In fact, the difference between the protein content is roughly 11.92%, which is a significant amount. For wet cat foods, Instinct provides more protein (about 4.56% more).
Crude Fat Comparison For Cat Food
There are many ways in which dietary fat contributes to the overall health of our feline friends. Here is a short list of benefits provided by fats (not exhaustive):
- Fats help with the digestion and absorption of fat-soluble vitamins
- Reduce inflammation associated with arthritis
- Slow the growth of yeast infections
- Prevent or reduce the likelihood of certain heart problems.
- Aid in the development of the retina and visual cortex.
There is a relatively insignificant difference between the crude fat content of the two brands. For wet cat foods, Instinct typically provides a little more fat (about 2.32% more).
If you look at the average percentages of crude fiber, you'll notice that Instinct typically guarantees 3.13% more fiber. This is a fairly small difference between Instinct and Hill's Ideal Balance, but still worth mentioning. In addition, Instinct wet cat foods also provide more fiber than Hill's Ideal Balance wet foods.
Instinct Pet Food Ingredients vs. Hill's Ideal Balance Pet Food Ingredients
Instinct and Hill's Ideal Balance both use the following controversial ingredients in many of their products:
Here are some of the controversial ingredients used only by Instinct.
Here are some of the controversial ingredients used only by Hill's Ideal Balance.
We believe that certain pet food ingredients are linked to adverse health affects; these ingredients are classified as harmful.
Instinct and Hill's Ideal Balance both use the following harmful ingredients in many of their products:
Product Safety: Recall History of Instinct & Hill's Ideal Balance?
Instinct has been recalled 2 times.
- July 24, 2015: Salmonella
- Feb. 15, 2013: Pieces of clear plastic in bag
According to our records, Hill's Ideal Balance has never been recalled.
Price Comparison: Which Brand Is More Expensive?
| Dry Dog Food | Instinct | Hill's Ideal Balance |
| Per Pound | $3.37 | $1.98 |
| Per Calorie | $0.0018 | $0.0011 |
| Dry Cat Food | Instinct | Hill's Ideal Balance |
| Per Pound | $4.60 | $2.49 |
| Per Calorie | $0.0024 | $0.0013 |
| Wet Dog Food | Instinct | Hill's Ideal Balance |
| Per Pound | $5.94 | $3.32 |
| Per Calorie | $0.0110 | $0.0100 |
| Wet Cat Food | Instinct | Hill's Ideal Balance |
| Per Pound | $8.92 | $7.12 |
| Per Calorie | $0.0181 | $0.0160 |
The average cost-per-lb is heavily influenced by the varying amounts of moisture present in each brand's food products (wet vs. dry food, dry vs. freeze-dried food, etc). However, the average cost-per-kcal eliminates the influence of moisture. Therefore, the average cost-per-kcal is the better metric to consider.
If you'd like to calculate the average cost-per-day or cost-pet-year of feeding Instinct or Hill's Ideal Balance, input your pet's weight into our cost analyzer widget.
Averages price data can identify whether or not there exists a significant price difference between two brands. However, the actual price that you'll pay for Instinct or Hill's Ideal Balance will depend on your shopping habits.
Pet owners who use our price comparison feature typically save more than 25% off retail prices for Instinct and Hill's Ideal Balance. In addition, we currently have some great coupons for our readers.
- $10 Off + Free Shipping Orders $60+ @ PetFlow (Use Code SAVENOW)
- 10% Off Treats @ PetFlow (Use Code HOT10)
- 15% Off The Entire Site @ OnlyNaturalPet (Use Code AFPAWDIET)
Disclosure: PawDiet has an affiliate relationship with stores featured (or linked-to) in this article. We are compensated for referring customers. Thank you for shopping with our retail partners!
Where To Buy Instinct Pet Foods
You can purchase Instinct pet foods from the following stores:
Where To Buy Hill's Ideal Balance Pet Foods
You can purchase Hill's Ideal Balance pet food products from these retailers:
Type Of Pet Foods Available
| Product | Instinct | Hill's Ideal Balance |
| Dry Dog Food | 31 Recipes | 6 Recipes |
| Wet Dog Food | 19 Recipes | 2 Recipes |
| Dog Treats | 3 Treats | |
| Dry Cat Food | 16 Recipes | 4 Recipes |
| Wet Cat Food | 18 Recipes | 2 Recipes |
| Cat Treats |