Male or Female Cat: Which Should You Adopt?

Is a male or female cat better?

Neither, for most homes. Cats Protection, a UK cat charity, puts it plainly: as long as a cat is desexed there really isn't much difference between getting a male or a female, and it is much better to think about the personality you want. Australian guidance points the same way. When the RSPCA Knowledgebase lists what shapes how a cat gets on in a home, sex is one item among many, alongside genetics, age, desexing, personality, previous living situation and individual sociability.

The big behavioural differences people associate with toms and queens (spraying, roaming, fighting, yowling) are mostly differences between entire cats and desexed cats. Most cats adopted from Australian rescues go home already desexed, so for an adopter the question usually shrinks to size, a small lifespan gap and personal preference.

What does the research actually say about male and female cats?

Less than the internet suggests. Most published work on cat personality relies on owner questionnaires, and sex effects, where they appear, are small and do not always repeat from one study to the next. The table sets out the common claims and how well each is supported.

Sources: Cats Protection; the 2026 aggression review in Veterinary Sciences, which summarises the 2024 Fe-BARQ survey; Elzerman et al. (2020); International Cat Care; RSPCA Knowledgebase; Teng et al. (2024); the 2020 temperament review in Animals. All read 10 November 2026.

The honest summary: if someone tells you a girl cat will be aloof or a boy cat will be cuddly, they are passing on folklore. The evidence for a personality difference between desexed males and females is thin, and where studies find one, others do not. A cat's own genes, how it was handled as a kitten and its age carry far more weight.

Why does desexing matter more than sex?

Because most of the behaviour people blame on a cat's sex is really driven by its hormones. The RSPCA lists less wandering and roaming, and less mounting and urine spraying, among the commonly accepted benefits of desexing, and International Cat Care describes what entire cats of each sex do:

From International Cat Care, Neutering your cat, and the RSPCA Knowledgebase, both read 10 November 2026.

The FIV point matters for anyone planning a multi-cat home. The RSPCA Knowledgebase says FIV is mainly shed in saliva and that fights involving a deep bite are the most common way it spreads, and its guidance on cat aggression says territorial aggression is more likely in entire males during the breeding season.

When to desex: the RSPCA advises before four months of age, because cats can breed as early as 16 weeks, and International Cat Care also recommends around four months. One side effect to manage: the RSPCA notes a documented increase in obesity risk in desexed cats, particularly males, so portion control and play matter.

The law: several states and territories make cat desexing compulsory by a set age, with limited exemptions, and NSW charges an annual permit for a cat not desexed by four months. The RSPCA Knowledgebase summarises the rules, and our cat desexing cost guide sets out each state's law, the right age and published male and female prices. For help with the cost, see free and low-cost desexing in Australia.

How much bigger are male cats?

Usually a little. Cats Protection says males are usually slightly larger than females, particularly if they were not desexed before they reached sexual maturity at around four months, and that entire or late-desexed males typically have rounder faces with bigger cheeks because of testosterone. The pedigree registries show how wide the gap can be within a breed:

Weights are the Cat Fanciers' Association's published figures in pounds, converted to kilograms, read 10 November 2026. Individual cats vary, and most rescue cats are domestic shorthairs, which have no breed standard.

For an adopter, size mostly matters for gear (a bigger litter tray and carrier) and for food and parasite product weight bands. If you want a big cat, see our guide to the largest cat breeds; for a petite one, small cat breeds.

Do female cats live longer?

A little, on average. Life tables for pet cats from the UK VetCompass programme (Teng et al., 2024), used 7,936 confirmed deaths among cats under UK primary veterinary care in 2019. Female cats had a life expectancy at birth of 12.51 years and males 11.18 years, a gap of 1.33 years. The same study linked being entire, being purebred and a non-ideal body weight to a shorter life.

Read that carefully. It is a UK population average, not a forecast for any one cat, and the factors you control (desexing, weight, vet care) are linked to lifespan in the same study. A desexed male kept at a healthy weight is not a short-lived choice.

Why are ginger cats mostly male and calicos female?

Because the orange colour gene sits on the X chromosome. In 2025, researchers at Kyushu University in Japan, publishing in Current Biology, identified the mutation behind orange fur, and a separate Stanford-led team confirmed it. Their explanation of the pattern:

• Males have one X chromosome, so a single copy of the orange gene makes a male ginger. That is why most ginger cats are male.
• Females have two X chromosomes and need two copies to be fully orange, so ginger females are less common.
• Calico and tortoiseshell coats appear when a female carries orange on one X and black on the other, giving the patchwork. That is why these cats are nearly always female; a male tortie or calico is a genetic rarity.

None of this is about personality. Our guide to moggy colours and patterns covers the rest of the coat genetics, and why coat colour stories should not cost a good cat a home. To browse by colour, see the orange cat, calico and tortoiseshell pages.

If you want two cats, which sexes go best together?

There is no reliable best combination. What predicts success is whether the two cats already get along, not whether they are two boys, two girls or one of each. The RSPCA's cat buyer's guide suggests adopting two kittens who are littermates, or two cats who are already bonded, because they are more likely to live happily together than cats who are strangers.

The sex evidence is thin. A 2020 study of multi-cat households in the Journal of Feline Medicine and Surgery cites earlier work on cats referred to a behaviour service for fighting with a housemate: males were more likely to start the aggression, but it was as likely to be aimed at a same-sex housemate as an opposite-sex one. The RSPCA Knowledgebase lists sex as one of many factors in how well cats adapt to sharing a home, alongside personality, age, genetics and desexing.

Practical rules that do hold:

• Desex both cats. International Cat Care warns that brothers and sisters from the same litter can and will breed once they mature.
• Match energy, not sex. The RSPCA says a high-play newcomer with a low-play resident is more likely to cause tension.
• Introduce slowly. The RSPCA's step-by-step introduction starts with swapping scents, and its multi-cat guidance says the process should be gradual (weeks to months) and that a harmonious multi-cat home is not guaranteed.
• Double the resources. Separate food, water, litter trays, resting and hiding spots for each cat.

A bonded pair from a rescue skips the riskiest step. The Cat Protection Society of NSW charges $150 per cat or $250 for two, and RSPCA NSW lists $220 for an adult cat (both checked 10 November 2026; reference figures, not quotes).

What should you ask the rescue instead?

Ask about the cat, not its sex. Shelter staff and foster carers spend every day with the animals, and many rescue cats live in foster homes, so someone can tell you how this cat actually behaves. Useful questions:

• Is it a lap cat, a sit-beside-you cat, or an independent one?
• How does it react to strangers, children, dogs and other cats?
• How much play does it need, and how vocal is it?
• Has it ever sprayed or had litter tray problems, and was it checked by a vet?
• When was it desexed, and does it have any health conditions?
• Does it have a bonded friend it should go home with?

The RSPCA says a kitten's experiences between roughly 2 and 9 weeks of age can shape its behaviour for life, which is one reason an adult cat with a known history is often a surer bet than a kitten of either sex. For more on matching personality to your home, see the best cat breeds guide and the what cat breed am I quiz.

Find a cat near you

Every listing shows the cat's sex and desexing status and links straight to the rescue. Pages are refreshed regularly.

• Sydney: all cats, kittens, bonded pairs
• Melbourne: all cats, kittens, bonded pairs
• Brisbane: all cats, kittens, bonded pairs
• Perth: all cats, kittens, bonded pairs
• Adelaide: all cats, kittens, bonded pairs

Still deciding whether a cat is right for you? Try the dog or cat quiz and the adoption readiness check, read how cat adoption works in Australia, and budget with what a cat costs. If a kitten is on your list, kitten blues covers the first hard weeks honestly.