How Many Cat Breeds Are There?

Posted by Jennifer Copley Nov 16, 2008

There are 39 pure breeds officially recognized by the Cat Fanciers’ Association (CFA):

• Abyssinian
• American Bobtail
• American Curl
• American Shorthair/American Wirehair
• Balinese/Javanese
• Birman
• Bombay
• British Shorthair
• Burmese
• Chartreux
• Colorpoint Shorthair
• Cornish Rex
• Devon Rex
• Egyptian Mau
• European Burmese
• Exotic
• Havana Brown
• Japanese Bobtail
• Korat
• LaPerm
• Maine Coon
• Manx
• Norwegian Forest Cat
• Ocicat
• Oriental (Shorthair and Longhair/Javanese)
• Persian (including Himalayan)
• Ragamuffin
• Ragdoll
• Russian Blue
• Scottish Fold
• Selkirk Rex
• Siamese
• Siberian
• Singapura
• Somali
• Sphynx
• Tonkinese
• Turkish Angora
• Turkish Van

There are also a number of cat breeds not recognized by the CFA, including:

• Aegean Cat
• American Ringtail
• Asian Semi-Longhair/Tiffanie
• Australian Mist (formerly Spotted Mist)
• Brazilian Shorthair/Pelo Curto Brasileiro
• British Semi-Longhair
• Burmilla (cross between Chinchilla Persian and Burmese)
• California Spangled Cat
• Chantilly/Tiffany Cat
• Dragon Li
• European Shorthair
• German Rex
• Munchkin (a mutation that causes short legs)
• Nebelung
• Ojos Azules
• Peterbald
• Pixie-Bob
• Russian White, Black, and Tabby
• Snowhoe (cross-breed of Siamese and American Shorthair)
• Sokoke
• Ukrainian Levkoy

These lists don’t include hybrid cats that resulted from cross-breeding between domestic and wild cats, such as the Bengal, Chausie, Cheetoh, Layanese, and others.

For more on cat breeds, see:

• The Most Popular Cat Breeds
• Cat Breed Personality Traits
• Unusual Cat Breeds
• More Unusual Cat Breeds