35% OFF
Instinct &
The Honest Kitchen
First Auto-Ship
20% OFF
Instinct &
The Honest Kitchen
First Auto-Ship w/ Code: PAWDIET20
15% OFF
Instinct &
The Honest Kitchen
For New Customers w/ Code: AFPAWDIET
Compare Instinct To
Compare The Honest Kitchen To
Brands Similar To
Ingredient Reviews
35% OFF
Instinct &
The Honest Kitchen
First Auto-Ship
20% OFF
Instinct &
The Honest Kitchen
First Auto-Ship w/ Code: PAWDIET20
15% OFF
Instinct &
The Honest Kitchen
For New Customers w/ Code: AFPAWDIET
Instinct vs. The Honest Kitchen
In this comparison article for Instinct vs The Honest Kitchen, we'll highlight the key differences between these two pet food brands. To properly compare Instinct and The Honest Kitchen, 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 The Honest Kitchen 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 The Honest Kitchen Review Page.
Guaranteed Analysis: The Honest Kitchen 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. The Honest Kitchen Dog Food
| Dry Dog Food | Instinct | The Honest Kitchen |
| Crude Protein | 36.2% | 29.3% |
| Crude Fat | 24.1% | 15.7% |
| Crude Fiber | 4.4% | 6.3% |
| Wet/Canned Dog Food | Instinct | The Honest Kitchen |
| Crude Protein | 42.1% | 50.4% |
| Crude Fat | 27.7% | 24.5% |
| Crude Fiber | 10.0% | 5.1% |
Crude Protein Comparison For Dog Food
Protein is an extremely important part of your dog's diet. Without sufficient protein, dogs can develop a wide-range of serious health problems.
The Honest Kitchen dry recipes contain 6.93% less protein than Instinct dry recipes. This difference in protein content is a notable difference between Instinct and The Honest Kitchen. In addition, The Honest Kitchen wet dog foods also provide more protein than Instinct wet foods.
Crude Fat Comparison For Dog Food
Dietary fats serves a multitude of roles in the proper development and function of our canine companions. Here are some of the benefits (not exhaustive):
- Help produce prostaglandins, which reduce inflammation among other critical functions.
- Aid in the absorption of fat-soluble vitamins
- Improve skin and coat health
- Improve the palatially of your dog's food
Instinct dry dog foods clearly provides more fat than The Honest Kitchen. In fact, the difference between the fat content is roughly 8.44%, which is a significant amount. For wet dog foods, Instinct typically provides a little more fat (about 3.19% more).
Both brands provide roughly the same amount of crude fiber. For wet dog foods, Instinct provides more fiber (about 4.90% more).
Instinct Cat Food vs. The Honest Kitchen Cat Food
| Dry Cat Food | Instinct | The Honest Kitchen |
| Crude Protein | 43.7% | 40.4% |
| Crude Fat | 25.4% | 23.1% |
| Crude Fiber | 3.7% | 3.5% |
| Wet/Canned Cat Food | Instinct | The Honest Kitchen |
| Crude Protein | 47.1% | 52.0% |
| Crude Fat | 25.0% | 24.6% |
| Crude Fiber | 8.6% | 5.1% |
Crude Protein Comparison For Cat Food
Protein is an extremely important part of your cat's diet. Without sufficient protein, cats can develop a wide-range of serious health problems.
According to our average data, The Honest Kitchen typically provides less protein than Instinct. However, this difference is relatively small and doesn't represent a significant difference between the two brands. In addition, The Honest Kitchen wet cat foods also provide more protein than Instinct wet foods.
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):
- Aid in the digestion and absorption of fat-soluble vitamins
- Improve the health of skin/coat
- Slow the growth of yeast infections
- Slow the development and spread of certain type of cancers.
- Maintain healthy blood pressure
If you look at the average percentages of crude fat, you'll notice that Instinct typically guarantees 2.29% more fat. This is a fairly small difference between Instinct and The Honest Kitchen, but still worth mentioning. For wet cat foods, Instinct and The Honest Kitchen provide roughly the same amount of fat.
As you can see, The Honest Kitchen and Instinct guarantee a similar amount of crude fiber. For wet cat foods, Instinct typically provides a little more fiber (about 3.56% more).
Instinct Pet Food Ingredients vs. The Honest Kitchen Pet Food Ingredients
Here are some of the controversial ingredients used only by Instinct.
Here are some of the controversial ingredients used only by The Honest Kitchen.
We believe that certain pet food ingredients are linked to adverse health affects; these ingredients are classified as harmful.
Here are some of the harmful ingredients used only by Instinct.
Product Safety: Recall History of Instinct & The Honest Kitchen?
Instinct has been recalled 2 times.
- July 24, 2015: Salmonella
- Feb. 15, 2013: Pieces of clear plastic in bag
The Honest Kitchen has been recalled once.
- Feb. 21, 2013: Salmonella
Price Comparison: Which Brand Is More Expensive?
| Dry Dog Food | Instinct | The Honest Kitchen |
| Per Pound | $8.93 | $9.66 |
| Per Calorie | $0.0044 | $0.0053 |
| Dry Cat Food | Instinct | The Honest Kitchen |
| Per Pound | $11.49 | $9.67 |
| Per Calorie | $0.0057 | $0.0049 |
| Wet Dog Food | Instinct | The Honest Kitchen |
| Per Pound | $6.31 | $5.73 |
| Per Calorie | $0.0107 | $0.0129 |
| Wet Cat Food | Instinct | The Honest Kitchen |
| Per Pound | $8.87 | $8.41 |
| Per Calorie | $0.0179 | $0.0176 |
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 The Honest Kitchen, 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 The Honest Kitchen 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 The Honest Kitchen. In addition, we currently have some great coupons for our readers.
- 20% Off First Auto-Ship @ PetFlow (Use Code PAWDIET20)
- 35% Off First Auto-Ship @ Chewy (No Code Required)
- 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 The Honest Kitchen Pet Foods
You can purchase The Honest Kitchen pet food products from these retailers:
Type Of Pet Foods Available
| Product | Instinct | The Honest Kitchen |
| Dry Dog Food | 37 Recipes | 9 Recipes |
| Wet Dog Food | 10 Recipes | 10 Recipes |
| Dog Treats | None | 23 Treats |
| Dry Cat Food | 20 Recipes | 3 Recipes |
| Wet Cat Food | 16 Recipes | 10 Recipes |
| Cat Treats | None | 3 Treats |
Top Rated Instinct Recipes
Top Rated The Honest Kitchen Recipes
