Rotating drum~$799Whisker
Whisker's 2025 replacement for the LR4 keeps the same 22-by-27-inch footprint and entry but raises the rated weight to 30 lb and the cat count to five. WasteID sensing tells urine from stool, which the app uses for routine tracking. The emptying estimate moves from about eight days to about ten for a single cat, though neither figure comes with a drawer volume.
Approx. price
~$799
maker's store, not a live price
Best for: Large multi-cat homes that want visit-level tracking without a camera
Whisker says the sensor detects cats from 3 lb. At the usual rate of about a pound a month, that means leaving automatic cleaning off until roughly 3 months. Below the threshold, a kitten may not register at all, and the box could start a cycle with it inside.
Detection: weight, infrared / radar. The maker does not state any anti-pinch protection.
How minimum weights work, and what to do below themThe maker publishes no drawer volume, so the days cannot be worked out. Its own claim is up to 10 days for one cat.
The two lists above are drawn from the maker’s own pages, manuals and prices, not from owner reports. Where owner discussion has been read it appears in its own section below, so the two are never mistaken for each other.
The Litter-Robot 5 arrived in late 2025 into a community already sceptical of its price and the new Whisker+ membership, and much of the discussion since has been about the company as much as the machine. Owners who have lived with it tend to describe the hardware positively: a sturdier build than the LR4, a larger drawer and taller globe, and a display that explains what the robot is doing.
The early months were rougher than the LR4's current state. Several owners had units that would not connect, and replacements were needed. Others found litter sticking to plastic parts, or mould on clumps in the better-sealed drawer if it was left for a fortnight. In mid-2026 the internal USB-C port, which owners had used to power their own cameras, stopped providing power.
Large multi-cat homes that want the bigger drawer and cat-weight range, and are comfortable buying Whisker's new accessories, get the most from it. Owners who already have an LR4, or who are buying on value, often recommend the LR4 with a hopper and an extended warranty instead, particularly at the discounts it regularly sells for.
Owners who have both say the LR5 feels better built and the larger drawer helps, but several who bought early recommend the LR4 with a hopper and warranty on value, because the LR5's extras depend on accessories and app features that arrived late.
No. Owners report that the LR4 shield and hopper do not fit, and the LR5 has its own hopper with a larger 17.3-cup capacity.
Owners think the drawer seals better than older models, so moisture stays in. Changing the bag weekly rather than leaving it for two weeks, or adding silica gel crystals to the bag, stops it.
Contact Whisker support. Owners whose units would not onboard were sent replacements, and one was told a faulty Wi-Fi chip was a known issue on early units. The LR5 needs a 2.4 GHz network.
Owners did until mid-2026, when the internal port stopped providing power on both the LR5 and LR5 Pro. Support told one owner the feature no longer works.
Rotating drum
Best for: Two or three average cats in a home that already uses clay clumping litter
Rotating drum
Best for: Multi-cat homes where telling similar-weight cats apart matters
Rotating drum
Best for: One or two average-size cats in an apartment