When it comes to our little hammies, we want the best for them.
We’ve taken our knowledge, the data we’ve collected for you, and the experience of hamster owners to create our list of the top list of best commercial hamster foods.
Our ratings include a review of the ingredients, variety, quality, and nutrition considerations. Take a look.
The best hamster foods based on nutrition and price point are Wild Harvest Advanced Nutrition Complete & Balanced Diet Hamster & Gerbil Food, Brown’s Tropical Carnival Natural Hamster & Gerbil Fortified Daily Diet Food, Science Selective Complete Hamster Food, Wild Harvest Advanced Nutrition Gerbil & Hamster Food – 4.5 lbs., and Higgins Sunburst Gourmet Blend Hamster & Gerbil Food. These foods range in protein levels from 15%-19% with prices that range from $2.07-$9.99 per pound.
Head to Head Comparison
Let’s look at the best recommended hamster foods based on nutrition levels.
| Hamster Food | Protein Level | Fiber Level |
|---|---|---|
| Wild Harvest Advanced Nutrition Complete & Balanced Diet Hamster & Gerbil Food | 18.00% | 10.00% |
| Brown’s Tropical Carnival Natural Hamster & Gerbil Fortified Daily Diet Food | 15.75% | 9.00% |
| Science Selective Complete Hamster Food | 19.00% | 5.00% |
| Wild Harvest Advanced Nutrition Gerbil & Hamster Food | 18.00% | 10.00% |
| Higgins Sunburst Gourmet Blend Hamster & Gerbil Food | 15.00% | 9.50% |
Now, let’s compare the best hamster foods by price per pound (lb.)
| Hamster Food | Price/lb. |
|---|---|
| Wild Harvest Advanced Nutrition Complete & Balanced Diet Hamster & Gerbil Food | $2.07/lb. |
| Brown’s Tropical Carnival Natural Hamster & Gerbil Fortified Daily Diet Food | $5.00/lb. |
| Science Selective Complete Hamster Food | $9.99/lb. |
| Wild Harvest Advanced Nutrition Gerbil & Hamster Food | $2.44/lb. |
| Higgins Sunburst Gourmet Blend Hamster & Gerbil Food | $3.20/lb. |
Wild Harvest Advanced Nutrition Complete & Balanced Diet Hamster & Gerbil Food
Protein 18% Fiber 10% Fat 5% Price / lb. $2.07 What You Should Know
Wild Harvest Advanced Nutrition makes our recommended list. Protein, fiber, and fat levels are right on target. Variety is good with 8 whole ingredients. Unfortunately, there are artificial colors that keep it from being a highly-recommended award winner for us. Fortunately, these artificial colors are not known to be dangerous to our furry friends.This is a great all-around food for hamsters and gerbils. As it is with all hamster foods under 20% protein, young (<6 months), pregnant, or nursing hamsters are suggested to have supplemental protein added to their diet.
Brown’s Tropical Carnival Natural Hamster & Gerbil Fortified Daily Diet Food
Protein 15.75% Fiber 9% Fat 8% Price / lb. $5.00 What You Should Know
The first 8 ingredients offer some welcomed variety of whole ingredients. The protein level is fine at 15.75%. Fiber is good at 9%. Overall this is a quality hamster and gerbil food that they will likely enjoy. Serve it in a dish or sprinkle around to get that foraging behavior going. It appears there may be multiple formulations of this hamster and gerbil food, one with 12.5% protein and this one with 15.75%-15.8%. This is the 15.8% protein product. For young, nursing, or pregnant animals, you will need to supplement the protein when using this food.
The price per pound of this hamster and gerbil food is higher than many others, but you get what you pay for. However, you definitely need to add another protein source when it comes to pregnant and nursing animals.
Young hamsters need 20%-24% protein in order to grow to their fullest potential. This food, like most commercial foods, is designed for adult hamsters and gerbils.
With that said, superworms or mealworms could be a great way to increase protein intake for these youngsters.
Higgins Sunburst Gourmet Blend Hamster & Gerbil Food
Protein 15% Fiber 9.5% Fat 7% Price / lb. $3.20 What You Should Know
Higgins Sunburst Gourmet Blend Hamster & Gerbil food makes it onto our recommended list of hamster and gerbils foods. At 15%, the protein level is a little lower than we prefer, however, it has great variety and quality with 19 whole ingredients and good fat and fiber levels. For nursing or pregnant hamsters or gerbils, you will want to supplement the protein. We really do like the variety in this food. There are small pellets included along with the whole ingredients, however, you’ll find that the pellets do not seem to be more of the mix and the whole components. That’s nice!Of course, there is no added sugar or artificial colors.
Science Selective Complete Hamster Food
Protein 19% Fiber 5% Fat 5% Price / lb. $9.99 What You Should Know
For a pelleted hamster food, Science Selective Complete Hamster Food has a good protein level. Fat is also good. Fiber is a little low. Of course, variety is nil since this is a pelleted food and will not encourage foraging behaviors well. If you are looking for a pellet hamster food, this one will provide good nutrition if supplemented with some additional fiber. There are no artificial colors or added sugar.
Wild Harvest Advanced Nutrition Gerbil & Hamster Food
Protein 18% Fiber 10% Fat 5% Price / lb. $2.44 What You Should Know
It’s interesting that this version of Wild Harvest Advanced Nutrition Gerbil & Hamster food has 10 whole ingredients while the bag version only has 8. Either way, we do recommend this food despite it containing 3 artificial colors. Those colors are not known to be harmful to our furry friends. There are no added sugars. The Protein level is good as are the fat and fiber levels. In reality, the food mix doesn’t look are varied as you might think. This food will work fine for your little hamsters and gerbils, although you might want to supplement with natural treats in the form of seed, grass, and dried fruits for variety on occasion.
Related Questions
Is pellet food good for hamsters? As a general rule, pellet food can meet all the nutritional needs of hamsters in captivity as pets. Pellet hamster food does not provide the same level of enrichment that non-pelleted foods do. Pellet hamster food does reduce nutritional imbalances due to selective eating of non-pelleted hamster food components.