Cat breed FAQ
How Many Cat Breeds Are There?
Somewhere between 45 and 75, depending on who is counting. There is no single official number, because the major cat registries each keep their own list, and the lists do not match. TICA, the largest registry, recognizes 73 to 75 breeds. The CFA recognizes 45. The European federation FIFe lands in between at 50. Below is what each registry counts, why the numbers disagree, and what that means when you are trying to work out what breed your own cat is.
What each major registry recognizes
Counts from Wikipedia's 2023 tally of the major registries, crossed with what the registries publish on their own sites. The exact figures drift as registries add new breeds and merge old ones, so treat the numbers as a snapshot rather than a law.
| Registry | Breeds | Note |
|---|---|---|
| TICA | 73 to 75 | TICA's own site says 73; Wikipedia's 2023 tally lists 75 |
| CFA | 45 | The oldest US registry, and the most conservative list |
| FIFe | 50 | The main European federation |
| GCCF | 45 | Britain's governing council |
| WCF | 69 | Wide reach in Europe and Latin America |
Sources: TICA's own breed list currently says 73. Wikipedia's 2023 tally lists TICA at 75, CFA at 45, FIFe at 50, the GCCF at 45, and the WCF at 69. Check the registries directly if you need the count as of today.
Why the registries disagree
Three reasons, and they all come down to the fact that a breed is a registry decision, not a biological fact.
First, naming. The same cat can carry different breed names at different registries. One registry's British Shorthair is another's separate breed plus a color variant. Wikipedia puts it plainly: inconsistency in classification and naming means an individual animal may be considered a different breed by different registries.
Second, hybrids. Some registries fold savannahs and other wild-domestic crosses into their lists; others refuse them or relegate them to a probation tier. That alone moves the count by several breeds.
Third, experimental status. New breeds spend years listed as experimental or championship-pending before they count fully, and each registry promotes them on its own schedule. A breed can be "real" at TICA and nonexistent at the CFA for a decade.
Breeds are not species
Every domestic cat, from the hairless Sphynx to the oversized Maine Coon, is one species: Felis catus. A breed is a population that humans breed for a consistent look, closer to dog varieties than to wild species. The lion and the tiger are different species from your cat. The Persian and the Siamese are not.
Most cats belong to no breed at all
Here is the part the registry lists never show: the majority of the world's cats are random-bred. Pedigree cats are a small slice of the population. If your cat came from a shelter or a barn litter, the honest paperwork reads domestic shorthair or domestic longhair, and neither of those is a breed. They are catch-all labels for cats with no pedigree.
That does not mean the answer stops there. A random-bred cat can still carry strong echoes of a specific breed: a pointed coat, a bobbed tail, polydactyl paws. The mixed breed identification guide walks through reading those clues, and what breed is my cat covers the step-by-step process.
You do not need the count to identify a cat
Furriq profiles 61 breeds with photos, visible markers, and look-alike notes, and the breed chart puts them side by side. Upload a photo and Furriq checks 40+ visible markers against those profiles, framed as clues, never proof. Guests get one free scan, no sign-up required.
No cat photo handy?
Scan a sample, one tap:
Only cat photos are recognized — non-cat images will return meaningless results
Example results
Maine Coon
~92%
Large frame, ear tufts, rectangular body
Siamese
~87%
Blue eyes, pointed coat, triangular face
British Shorthair
~85%
Dense coat, round face, copper eyes
Frequently asked questions
How many cat breeds are there in total?
No total exists, because each registry keeps its own list. The big five land between 45 and 75: TICA at 73 to 75, the WCF at 69, FIFe at 50, and the CFA and GCCF at 45 each. Pick any registry and you get a different total, and all of them change as new breeds gain recognition.
How many cat species are there?
One domestic species, Felis catus. Every breed is a human-made variety within that single species. The cat family Felidae also holds dozens of wild species, lions and tigers among them, but none of those are cats you can adopt, and none of them are breeds.
Which registry recognizes the most breeds?
TICA, with 73 to 75 recognized breeds depending on whether you read its own site or Wikipedia's 2023 tally. The WCF comes next at 69. The CFA sits at the strict end with 45, which is one reason its championships carry extra weight among breeders.
Is a domestic shorthair a breed?
No. Domestic shorthair and domestic longhair are labels for random-bred cats with no pedigree, the way mutt works for dogs. They say nothing about ancestry. A domestic shorthair can still resemble a specific breed closely enough that a photo tool or a marker checklist will find likely contributors in its background.