The Petcube Fountain is a battery-powered, motion-activated fountain with a 1.7-liter tank and an app that tracks filter life and cleaning. CNET's Tyler Lacoma picked it as the best overall cat water fountain, calling it one of the best-designed pet fountains he has seen and especially quiet, with dishwasher-safe main parts. He also found the motion sensor inaccurate, and noted that the 30-day filters are sold in three-packs and that the fountain is too small for large pets.
Full review
What CNET tested
CNET's Tyler Lacoma reviewed the Petcube Fountain with a ceramic tray; a stainless steel tray is also sold. He measured it at about 9 inches long and said it holds about 6 cups of water. Petcube says that is enough for seven days of regular use, and Lacoma wrote that the estimate seemed accurate with his cat.
CNET lists the specifications as a 1.7-liter capacity, a rechargeable battery, and 4-layer filtration with carbon and UV-C light. In its cat-fountain roundup CNET gives the fountain its top spot as the best overall cat water fountain.
Design and noise
Water bubbles from a small rubber-tipped spout and runs across the tray back into the reservoir whenever the motion sensor fires. Lacoma called it one of the best-designed pet fountains he had seen and said it was especially quiet compared with the other fountains he has used.
The main components are dishwasher-safe. He did have to clean the tray a little more often than the rest because hair and debris collected there, which he said took a few seconds at the sink.
Battery, sensor and app
In wireless mode CNET reports the fountain lasts several days on a full charge, and the motion sensor keeps the pump off until a pet comes close. The app shows filter health and a cleaning schedule and explains the LED colors; red means the battery is low. Lacoma noted there are few settings beyond alerts.
The sensor was the weak point in CNET's review: it usually activated when the fountain was closely inspected rather than on approach, and the app did not explain why the fountain occasionally ran on its own during the day.
Running costs and limits
CNET says the filters are designed to be replaced about every 30 days and are readily available only in packs of three for $10. Lacoma also wrote that a fountain this size suits an average cat or small dog but not larger pets.
Strengths
- +CNET found it especially quiet compared with other fountains
- +Rechargeable battery and motion sensor let it sit away from an outlet
- +Main components are dishwasher-safe, per CNET
- +App reports filter health and a cleaning schedule
Watch-outs
- −CNET found the motion sensor usually triggered only on close inspection, not on approach
- −Filters need replacing about every 30 days and are sold in packs of three
- −About 6 cups of capacity is too small for larger pets, per CNET
How it compares
The Petcube Fountain runs on a rechargeable battery, while the PetSafe Drinkwell Platinum and PetSafe Multi-Tier need an outlet. Its 1.7-liter (57 oz) tank is the smallest on this page, well under the Platinum's 168 oz and the Petlibro Capsule Dog Fountain's 2.1 gallons, and CNET says it is not suitable for larger pets. It has app reminders but none of the camera, heating or auto-refill features of the Petkit Eversweet Ultra, which costs far more.
Rating sources
Our 4.5 score is the average of the 1 scored review above; 1 more reviewed it without printing a score and is not in the average. Ratings marked * were derived from the reviewer’s written analysis or video transcript — the publisher didn’t print an explicit numeric score, so we inferred one from their own words. Click through to verify. More about methodology.
