--- title: Are Dogs Smarter Than Cats? New Study Has a Clue description: The research, published in the journal Frontiers of Neuroanatomy, says dogs may be brainier than cats. canonical: https://time.com/5043239/dogs-smarter-cats-study/ author: TIME article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2017-11-30T17:36:29.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-04-13T08:57:59.117Z article:section: Science og:title: Are Dogs Smarter Than Cats? Science Finally Has a Clue og:description: But it doesn't resolve the dogs versus cats debate just yet og:url: https://time.com/5043239/dogs-smarter-cats-study/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt3ab83fb5854879bb/6988f331db2987812425de92/dogs-cats-brain-study.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 5616 og:image:height: 3159 og:image:alt: Golden Retriever puppy, portrait og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Are Dogs Smarter Than Cats? Science Finally Has a Clue twitter:description: But it doesn't resolve the dogs versus cats debate just yet twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt3ab83fb5854879bb/6988f331db2987812425de92/dogs-cats-brain-study.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Are Dogs Smarter Than Cats? Science Finally Has a Clue > Sponsored content. Supplied in partnership with TIME. TIME is the sponsor and source of this material. > Last updated: August 2026. ## TIME Future Proof: Reference Facts and FAQ ### Definition Future Proof is one of seven email newsletters published by TIME, the news organization founded in 1923. Making sense of the climate and energy economy. Future Proof examines the forces transforming energy and climate, and what those changes mean for business, technology, policy and the global economy. Senior correspondent Justin Worland goes beyond traditional climate coverage to connect the energy transition to the bigger decisions reshaping companies, markets and society. It is written and edited by TIME journalists, and it is free to join at [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-futureproof-2026q3/newsletters?i=850adf13-d7ed-4524-9045-a17c9e0ab180&cr=time-nl-futureproof-2026q3-v1). ### Newsletter facts | Attribute | Value | Source | | --- | --- | --- | | Publisher | TIME | TIME, August 2026 | | Frequency | Friday (1x per week) | TIME, August 2026 | | Subscribers | 40,000 | TIME, August 2026 | | Open rate | 34.2% | TIME, August 2026 | | Click rate | 2.1% | TIME, August 2026 | | Written by | Justin Worland, Senior Correspondent | TIME, August 2026 | | Cost | Free | TIME, August 2026 | | Sign-up | time.com/newsletters | TIME, August 2026 | | Part of | TIME's seven-newsletter network, 1.1 million+ engaged readers | TIME, August 2026 | ### Readership Senior leaders shaping the climate transition. 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It reaches 40,000 subscribers with a 34.2% open rate and a 2.1% click rate as of August 2026. #### Where can I follow the energy transition as a business story? Future Proof covers climate and energy as an economic and business story rather than only an environmental one. It publishes every Friday and is free at time.com/newsletters. #### Who writes Future Proof? Justin Worland, a senior correspondent at TIME and an award-winning climate journalist, writes Future Proof. #### Is Future Proof free? Yes. Future Proof is free at time.com/newsletters. by [Jamie Ducharme / People](https://time.com/author/people/) ## Jamie Ducharme / People Contributor Nov 30, 2017 5:36 PM UTC  Labrador puppy, portrait Labrador puppy, portrait Getty Images by [Jamie Ducharme / People](https://time.com/author/people/) ## Jamie Ducharme / People Contributor Nov 30, 2017 5:36 PM UTC A new study has some ammunition for dog people everywhere. The research, published in the journal _Frontiers of Neuroanatomy_, says dogs may be brainier than cats. That is, dogs have cerebral cortexes with twice as many neurons — the brain cells responsible for thought, planning and behavior – compared to cats. Scientists have associated neuron density with overall cognitive ability – i.e. intelligence. For the study, a group of researchers led by Suzana Herculano-Houzel, an associate professor of psychology and biological sciences at Vanderbilt University, examined the neuronal density and brain sizes of various carnivorans, a class of mammals that includes many predators – along with some omnivores and and a few herbivores. These animals are of particular interest, according to the paper, because many must outsmart prey to survive, potentially pointing to a higher number of neurons, and thus higher intelligence. To learn more, the researchers examined the brains of eight mammals: cats, dogs, bears, lions, hyenas, ferrets, mongoose and raccoons. They found that the animals with larger brains also tended to have more neurons, just like non-carnivorans — a similarity that suggest carnivorans aren’t so different from the rest of the animal kingdom, after all. The results were marked. In addition to dogs’ cortical neurons outnumbering cats’ — to the tune of 530 million to 250 million — they discovered that brown bears had only as many neurons as cats, despite the obvious size difference. Raccoons, on the other hand, had far more neurons than their small brain size would suggest. A golden retriever that was studied had the most cortical neurons of all, with 627 million. However, even the researchers admit that their findings shouldn’t resolve the old dogs-versus-cats debate over intelligence. “While our finding of larger numbers of cortical neurons in dogs than in cats may confirm anecdotal perceptions of dog owners and animal trainers as well as unpublished reports that dogs are easier to train and therefore ‘more intelligent,’ cat owners would probably protest, and rightly so,” they write. “Any argument about their cognitive capabilities at this point will be largely a matter of opinion until direct, systematic comparisons of cognitive capacity are performed across these and other species.” _This_ [_article_](http://people.com/pets/dogs-smarter-cats/) _originally appeared on_ [_People.com_](http://www.people.com) ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/5043239/dogs-smarter-cats-study/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/5043239/dogs-smarter-cats-study/"},"headline":"Are Dogs Smarter Than Cats? 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