Maine Coons typically live 10–13 years (Chewy, vet-reviewed; PetMD: about 13; Purina UK: 9–15). The largest study, of UK cats at vet practices, found a life expectancy at birth of 9.71 years for Maine Coons (95% CI 8.42–11.0) against 11.74 for all cats (Teng et al. 2024). The biggest breed-specific health factor is heart disease: 34% of Maine Coons tested carried the MYBPC3 HCM mutation (Fries 2008), so heart screening matters.
General information only. Every Maine Coon is different. For any health worry, see your vet. We give no medication or dosing advice.
Maine Coon lifespan: how long do Maine Coons live?
Most Maine Coons live 10 to 13 years. That is the average range given by Chewy's vet-reviewed guide, and PetMD puts the typical Maine Coon lifespan at "around 13 years", which it calls "on the shorter end of the average cat life expectancy". Brand profiles stretch a little further: Purina UK gives 9–15 years. So if you're asking how long do Maine Coon cats live, a fair answer is "into their early teens", with a real chance of reaching 15 and a small chance of 20.
That surprises a lot of owners. Maine Coons are big, sturdy, slow-maturing cats, and many people assume a robust cat lives longer. In fact the opposite tends to be true for this breed: it carries a higher inherited risk of heart disease and joint disease than the average house cat, and both of those can shorten life. The rest of this page explains where the numbers come from and what you can do about them.
Life expectancy of Maine Coon cats at a glance
- Typical range: 10–13 years (Chewy, vet-reviewed). PetMD: about 13.
- Average from the largest study: 9.71 years from birth (UK, 2024), compared with 11.74 for all cats.
- Range seen in that study: Maine Coons died at ages from a few days to 21.6 years.
- Biggest breed-specific risk: hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM), an inherited heart disease.
People phrase the question in many ways — "life expectancy Maine Coon cat", "life span Maine Coon cat", "life span of Maine Coon cat", the Maine Coon age span or the life expectancy for Maine Coon cats — but they all point to the same figures. The calculator above uses the 10–13 year range, with its midpoint of 11.5 years as the "typical" lifespan, to show how much of that span your cat has lived so far.
Maine Coon life expectancy: what the research says
The most useful Maine Coon life expectancy figure comes from a 2024 study by the Royal Veterinary College's VetCompass programme, published in the Journal of Feline Medicine and Surgery. The researchers built life tables from 7,936 cats that died while registered with UK vet practices in 2019. For the 69 Maine Coons among them, the life expectancy at birth was 9.71 years (95% confidence interval 8.42–11.0). For all cats it was 11.74 years, for crossbred cats 11.89 and for purebred cats 10.41.
Why is the study's figure lower than the 10–13 years in breed guides? Two reasons. First, "life expectancy at birth" includes every kitten and young cat that died early from accidents or illness, which pulls the average down. Second, 69 deaths is a fairly small sample, which is why the confidence interval is wide. Breed guides describe a typical cat that makes it through youth; the study describes the whole population. Both are useful, and neither is a promise about your cat.
| Source | Figure | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| UK VetCompass study (Teng et al. 2024) | 9.71 years life expectancy at birth | 95% CI 8.42–11.0; 69 Maine Coon deaths |
| PetMD (vet-reviewed breed profile) | about 13 years | "on the shorter end of the average cat life expectancy" |
| Chewy (vet-reviewed) | 10–13 years on average | The range this calculator uses |
| Purina UK breed profile | 9–15 years | Brand profile; the widest range we found |
| Same UK study, all cats | 11.74 years | Crossbred 11.89, purebred 10.41 |
Remaining life expectancy by age
Once a cat has survived kittenhood, its outlook improves. The same UK study published life tables showing how many more years cats of each age lived on average. There is no separate table for Maine Coons, so the calculator uses the purebred cat table and adjusts it with the study's female and male tables. The table below is produced by the same function the calculator runs.
| Age reached | Average years left | Female | Male | Expected total age |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 year | 10.2 years | 10.9 years | 9.6 years | about 11.2 |
| 3 years | 9.6 years | 10.2 years | 9 years | about 12.6 |
| 5 years | 8.3 years | 8.8 years | 7.7 years | about 13.3 |
| 8 years | 6.3 years | 6.7 years | 5.9 years | about 14.3 |
| 10 years | 5 years | 5.3 years | 4.7 years | about 15 |
| 12 years | 3.7 years | 3.9 years | 3.5 years | about 15.7 |
| 14 years | 2.8 years | 2.9 years | 2.6 years | about 16.8 |
| 16 years | 2.1 years | 2.2 years | 2 years | about 18.1 |
| 18 years | 1.5 years | 1.5 years | 1.5 years | about 19.5 |
| 20 years | 1.2 years | 1.2 years | 1.2 years | about 21.2 |
Read the table like this: a purebred cat that has already reached 10 lives about 5 more years on average, so it can expect to reach around 15. The older a cat gets, the higher its expected final age, because it has already avoided the risks of earlier years. It is still an average — some cats live far longer, and some much shorter.
Maine Coon longevity and what drives it
The UK study also looked at what made cats live longer, across all breeds. After accounting for other factors, neutered cats lived 1.07 years longer than entire (unneutered) cats, crossbred cats lived 1.27 years longer than purebred cats, and males lived 1.2 years less than females. Body weight mattered too: lifespan fell slightly for every 100 g a cat's adult weight sat away from the typical weight for its breed and sex. An earlier VetCompass study of 4,009 cats in England (O'Neill 2015) found the same pattern — crossbred cats had a median longevity of 14.0 years against 12.5 for purebred cats — and named trauma (12.2%) and kidney disorders (12.1%) as the most common recorded causes of death.
For Maine Coon longevity, that points to three levers you control: neutering, keeping a healthy weight and preventing accidents. Genetics you can only influence before you buy, by choosing a breeder who screens.
Average lifespan of a Maine Coon cat vs other breeds
How does the average lifespan of a Maine Coon cat compare? The UK study gave life expectancy at birth for 11 breed groups with at least 15 recorded deaths. Maine Coons sit in the lower half, close to Norwegian Forest Cats and British cats, and well behind Burmese and Birmans.
| Breed | Life expectancy at birth | 95% confidence interval | Deaths analysed |
|---|---|---|---|
| Burmese | 14.42 years | 12.91–15.93 | 45 |
| Birman | 14.39 years | 12.87–15.91 | 38 |
| Crossbred (moggy) | 11.89 years | 11.75–12.03 | 7,117 |
| Siamese | 11.69 years | 10.56–12.82 | 88 |
| Persian | 10.93 years | 9.63–12.23 | 80 |
| Ragdoll | 10.31 years | 8.86–11.76 | 69 |
| Norwegian Forest Cat | 9.95 years | 7.55–12.35 | 15 |
| Maine Coon | 9.71 years | 8.42–11.00 | 69 |
| British cats | 9.58 years | 8.73–10.43 | 194 |
| Bengal | 8.51 years | 7.12–9.90 | 73 |
| Sphynx | 6.68 years | 4.53–8.83 | 18 |
Do Maine Coons live shorter than other cats?
On current evidence, yes, somewhat. The average Maine Coon lifespan of 9.71 years from birth is about two years below the figure for all UK cats (11.74) and crossbred cats (11.89). PetMD also describes the breed as being on the shorter end. But the confidence intervals overlap for several breeds, so the safest summary of Maine Coon lifespan vs other cats is "a little shorter than the average moggy, and similar to other large longhaired breeds". If you're comparing with a long-lived breed, see our Siamese cat page; for any older cat, the senior cat calculator covers care from 7 to 30 years.
Maine Coon mix lifespan
No study has measured Maine Coon mixes on their own. What we do know is that crossbred cats in the UK study lived 1.3 years longer than purebred cats once other factors were accounted for, and that the oldest Guinness-verified cat with Maine Coon ancestry, Corduroy, was half Maine Coon and half domestic longhair. A Maine Coon mix lifespan is therefore likely to fall somewhere between the breed's 10–13 years and an ordinary house cat's — but a mix can still inherit HCM, so heart checks are worthwhile.
Maine Coon lifespan indoor vs outdoor
No study has split Maine Coons by lifestyle, so we have to rely on figures for cats in general. Chewy's vet-reviewed guide says indoor cats live 13–17 years on average, while an outdoor cat's life expectancy is "just 2 to 5 years". Indoor-outdoor cats fall in between: they face the same hazards as outdoor cats, just less often.
- How long do indoor Maine Coons live? Most should reach the breed's typical 10–13 years, and a well-cared-for indoor cat has the best chance of reaching 15 or more. The Maine Coon lifespan indoor figure isn't measured separately, but keeping a cat inside removes the main external risks.
- How long do outdoor Maine Coons live? There's no breed figure. Outdoor cats in general average only 2–5 years, mostly because of cars, fights, infectious disease and weather.
- Why it matters: trauma was the single most common recorded cause of death in the 2015 VetCompass study of 4,009 cats in England (12.2%).
A Maine Coon's thick, water-resistant coat was made for Maine winters, and PetMD notes that most Maine Coons now "happily live indoors". If you want to give yours fresh air, a secure catio, an enclosed garden or harness walks give most of the benefit with far less risk. Set the lifestyle in the calculator to see the matching note.
Male vs female Maine Coon lifespan
There is no Maine Coon study that compares the sexes, so there is no proven difference between male Maine Coon lifespan and female Maine Coon lifespan. What we do have is the all-breed UK data: female cats lived 12.51 years from birth against 11.18 for males, a gap of 1.3 years, and the gap shrank as cats got older. When you choose a sex in the calculator, it applies that general difference to the average years left.
One breed-specific fact is worth knowing. Slipped capital femoral epiphysis — a fracture through the growth plate at the top of the thigh bone — was diagnosed in 8.2% of Maine Coons seen at one Austrian clinic, about 12 times the rate in other cats, and 16 of the 17 affected cats were male (Borak 2017). It causes lameness rather than early death, but it is a good reason to get a limping young male Maine Coon checked promptly. Hip dysplasia, by contrast, showed no difference between the sexes.
Health problems that affect Maine Coon longevity
These are the Maine Coon health problems that vets and researchers mention most. This is general information only. Diagnosis and treatment belong with your vet.
Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (Maine Coon HCM)
Cornell Feline Health Center calls HCM the most common heart disease of cats and lists the Maine Coon among the breeds where it is more prevalent. The heart muscle thickens and works less efficiently; some cats develop heart failure, blood clots that block blood flow to the back legs, or, rarely, sudden death. Many show no signs early on. A Washington State University analysis of 3,310 samples found that 34% of Maine Coons tested carried the MYBPC3 mutation linked to the disease (Fries 2008), and a Swedish screening study found heart-wall changes consistent with HCM in 9.5–26.2% of apparently healthy Maine Coons, depending on the cut-off used (Gundler 2008). Cats with two copies of the mutation are very likely to develop HCM as they age; cats with one copy have a low risk early in life (Anderson 2022).
Maine Coon hip dysplasia
In a 20-year screening programme of 5,038 Maine Coons, 37.4% had some degree of hip dysplasia on x-ray, with no difference between the sexes; severity increased with age and body weight (Low 2019). PetMD lists avoiding stairs, not jumping up to favourite spots and not squatting in the litter box as signs to watch for. Hip dysplasia is painful rather than directly fatal, but arthritis and reduced activity affect quality of life in later years.
Spinal muscular atrophy (Maine Coon SMA)
SMA is an inherited, recessive disease that destroys the nerve cells controlling the muscles (Fyfe 2006). PetMD says affected kittens usually show weakness, a wobbly walk and tremors at about 3–4 months, and that with special care a cat with SMA "can live a long, happy life". It is rare: 11 of 1,971 Maine Coons tested in a large genetics study carried the variant (Anderson 2022).
Kidney cysts and polycystic kidney disease (PKD)
PKD is the most common inherited disease of cats, but it is mainly a Persian-breed problem. When 187 healthy Maine Coons were screened by ultrasound, only 7 had kidney cysts, mostly single and small, and none of those tested carried the Persian PKD1 mutation (Gendron 2013). The same study found changes suggestive of chronic kidney disease in 5.3% — a reminder that kidney checks still matter.
Periodontal disease
Cornell reports that 50–90% of cats over four have some form of dental disease. PetMD notes that Maine Coons may develop juvenile gingivitis as young as six months. Painful mouths lead to poor eating and weight loss, so dental care is a lifespan issue, not just a cosmetic one.
Obesity
Cornell estimates that about half of the cats seen at vet clinics are overweight or obese, and that overweight cats are 4.5 times more likely to develop diabetes. Extra weight also worsens hip dysplasia, which in Maine Coons is genetically linked to body mass (Low 2019). In the UK life-table study, each 100 g away from the typical adult weight for the breed and sex was linked to a slightly shorter life.
What is the most common cause of death in Maine Coons?
No study reports causes of death for Maine Coons specifically. Across all cats in England, the most common recorded causes were trauma, kidney disorders, non-specific illness and cancer (O'Neill 2015). For Maine Coons, heart disease deserves extra attention because of the breed's high HCM risk.
Genetic testing and screening for Maine Coons
Good Maine Coon genetic testing combines DNA tests with physical screening, because a DNA test only looks for known mutations. International Cat Care describes HCM screening as an ultrasound of the heart (echocardiogram) plus a blood sample or cheek swab sent to a specialist lab, and advises that cats diagnosed with HCM, or carrying two copies of the mutation, should not be bred from. The Cat Fanciers' Association says breeders use x-rays for hip dysplasia and saliva tests and echocardiograms for HCM.
- MYBPC3 (A31P) DNA test: shows whether a cat carries the known Maine Coon HCM mutation. A negative result doesn't rule out HCM, because other causes exist.
- Echocardiogram: the only way to see whether the heart muscle is thickening. PetMD quotes a vet calling a yearly echocardiogram "the gold standard of preventive medicine for Maine Coon cats".
- SMA DNA test: identifies carriers and affected kittens.
- Hip x-rays: used in screening programmes such as the one that produced the 5,038-cat study above.
- Kidney ultrasound and PKD1 test: sometimes included in breeding programmes; the PKD1 variant is rare in Maine Coons.
If you're buying a kitten, ask to see the parents' results. If you already have a Maine Coon, ask your vet whether heart screening makes sense for your cat — especially before an anaesthetic, or if a murmur is heard.
The oldest Maine Coon on record
There is no Guinness category for the oldest Maine Coon specifically, and many online claims can't be checked. These are the cases we could verify, and one we couldn't:
- Corduroy (verified, Maine Coon mix): Guinness World Records named Corduroy, of Sisters, Oregon, the oldest living cat in August 2015 at 26 years 13 days. News reports described him as half Maine Coon, half domestic longhair.
- The UK study's oldest Maine Coon: among the 69 Maine Coons in the 2024 life tables, the longest-lived died at 21.6 years.
- Rubble (anecdote, unverified): a Maine Coon from Exeter, UK, was widely reported to have died aged 31 in 2020. His owner chose not to apply to Guinness, so his age was never verified.
For comparison, the oldest cat ever recorded by Guinness, Creme Puff, lived to 38 years and 3 days. So the realistic Maine Coon max age is somewhere in the twenties, and anything past 20 is exceptional.
Can a Maine Coon live 20 years?
Yes, but it is rare. Maine Coons in the UK study died at ages up to 21.6 years, and in the purebred life table only 19 of 819 cats — about 2% — reached 20. About 26% reached 15. A 20-year-old Maine Coon has lived about 174% of the typical 11.5-year lifespan; enter "20" in the calculator to see it.
How to help your Maine Coon live longer
There's no guaranteed way, but this checklist covers what the evidence supports. It's the same checklist as in the calculator, so you can tick what you already do and see tips for the rest.
- Screen the heart: ask about an echocardiogram and the MYBPC3 DNA test (International Cat Care, PetMD). Early diagnosis lets your vet manage HCM before a crisis.
- Keep a healthy weight: aim for a WSAVA body condition score of 5 out of 9 — ribs easy to feel under a slight fat cover and a visible waist. Weight affects both lifespan (Teng 2024) and hip dysplasia (Low 2019).
- Look after the teeth: brush if your cat allows it and have the mouth checked at every visit (Cornell, PetMD).
- See the vet regularly: at least yearly as an adult, and about every six months once your cat is a senior (AAHA/AAFP).
- Neuter: neutered cats lived 1.07 years longer in the UK study, and entire cats had 4.29 times the odds of dying before age three.
- Reduce outdoor risks: indoor living, a catio or harness walks avoid the traffic and fights behind many early deaths.
- Buy from a screening breeder: ask for HCM, SMA and hip results for both parents (CFA, International Cat Care).
That is really how to make a Maine Coon live longer: heart screening, a lean body, healthy teeth, regular check-ups and a safe home. None of it is complicated, but all of it adds up over a decade or more.
Senior Maine Coon care and signs of aging
Under the 2021 AAHA/AAFP Feline Life Stage Guidelines, cats are seniors when they are over 10. PetMD's vet-written guide lists the usual signs of an old Maine Coon, or any older cat:
- Increasing cloudiness in the eyes (nuclear sclerosis, sometimes cataracts)
- Loss of muscle, especially along the back and hips, and less elastic skin
- A rougher, more matted coat as grooming decreases — a real problem for a long, thick Maine Coon coat
- More dental problems, with plaque, tartar and gum disease
- Stiffer movement and less jumping as arthritis develops
Good senior Maine Coon care builds on those signs. Help with grooming, because an older Maine Coon may no longer reach its back and belly, and mats pull painfully on thin skin. Offer low-sided litter boxes, ramps or steps up to favourite perches, and warm, padded beds. Weigh your cat monthly: unexplained weight loss is one of the most important warning signs in older cats. Twice-yearly check-ups give your vet a chance to catch kidney disease, thyroid problems, high blood pressure and heart changes early. Our senior cat age calculator has more senior-care tips for every age from 7 to 30.
How this Maine Coon lifespan calculator works
The calculator uses the vet-reviewed typical range of 10–13 years, with its midpoint of 11.5 years, for "% of lifespan used". A 1-year-old has used 9%, a 5-year-old 43%, a 10-year-old 87% and a 13-year-old 113%. Values over 100% simply mean your cat has passed the typical midpoint.
"Average years left" comes from the UK purebred-cat life table (Teng et al. 2024), read at your cat's exact age and adjusted by the ratio between the female or male table and the all-cat table when you pick a sex. A 5-year-old purebred cat has about 8.3 years left on average, a 10-year-old about 5 and a 15-year-old about 2.5. The life stage follows the AAHA/AAFP guidelines (kitten under 1, young adult 1–6, mature adult 7–10, senior over 10), and the timeline marks where your cat sits.
Lifestyle and the health checklist don't change the numbers, because no study puts a figure on them for Maine Coons. Instead they add the relevant evidence and tips. Ages above 26 years 13 days — the Guinness-verified Maine Coon mix record — show a friendly message instead of a result. The calculator can't detect illness or predict one cat's future, and it doesn't convert age into human terms. For that, use our Maine Coon age calculator; for size and weight, see the Maine Coon growth chart.
Frequently asked questions
How long do Maine Coons live?
Most Maine Coons live 10–13 years (Chewy, vet-reviewed), and PetMD gives about 13. A 2024 UK study found an average life expectancy of 9.71 years from birth, which includes cats that died young.
What is the life expectancy of a Maine Coon cat?
9.71 years from birth in the largest study (Teng et al. 2024, 95% CI 8.42–11.0). A cat that has already reached 5 has about 8.3 more years on average, and one that has reached 10 about 5.
Do indoor Maine Coons live longer?
Very likely. No study has measured Maine Coons separately, but indoor cats in general live 13–17 years on average against 2–5 for outdoor cats (Chewy, vet-reviewed), mainly because indoor cats avoid traffic, fights and disease.
Do male or female Maine Coons live longer?
There is no Maine Coon-specific data. Across all UK cats, females lived 12.51 years from birth and males 11.18 (Teng et al. 2024). For a 5-year-old, the calculator gives about 8.8 years left for a female and 7.7 for a male.
Can a Maine Coon live 20 years?
Yes, but it is rare. Maine Coons in the UK study died at up to 21.6 years, and only about 2% of purebred cats in that study reached 20.
What is the most common cause of death in Maine Coons?
No study reports causes of death for Maine Coons alone. Across all cats in England, trauma (12.2%) and kidney disorders (12.1%) were the most common recorded causes (O'Neill 2015). For Maine Coons, inherited heart disease (HCM) is the main breed-specific risk.
What is the average Maine Coon lifespan compared with other cats?
Shorter than average. Maine Coons had a life expectancy at birth of 9.71 years in the UK study, against 11.74 for all cats, 11.89 for crossbreds and 14.42 for Burmese.
How long do outdoor Maine Coons live?
There is no breed figure. Outdoor cats in general have a life expectancy of only 2–5 years (Chewy, vet-reviewed), so an outdoor Maine Coon is at much higher risk than one kept indoors.
What is the oldest Maine Coon on record?
The oldest verified was Corduroy, a half Maine Coon from Oregon, named the oldest living cat by Guinness World Records in 2015 at 26 years 13 days. A Maine Coon called Rubble was reported to have died at 31 in 2020, but that age was never verified.
How common is HCM in Maine Coons?
Common. 34% of Maine Coons tested at Washington State University carried the MYBPC3 mutation (Fries 2008), and a Swedish study found heart changes consistent with HCM in 9.5–26.2% of healthy-looking Maine Coons (Gundler 2008).
Do Maine Coons get hip dysplasia?
Yes. 37.4% of 5,038 Maine Coons screened by x-ray had some hip dysplasia, with severity rising with age and body weight (Low 2019). Keeping your cat lean helps.
How can I make my Maine Coon live longer?
Screen the heart (echocardiogram and DNA test), keep a lean body condition, look after the teeth, see the vet at least yearly (every 6 months for seniors), neuter, and keep your cat safe from traffic.
What is a Maine Coon mix lifespan?
It hasn't been studied. Crossbred cats lived 1.3 years longer than purebred cats in the UK study after adjusting for other factors, so a mix may do a little better than the breed's 10–13 years, but it can still inherit HCM.
When is a Maine Coon considered old?
Over 10 years, under the AAHA/AAFP feline guidelines. By then a Maine Coon has lived about 87% of the typical 11.5-year lifespan, so twice-yearly check-ups are worthwhile.
This calculator gives an estimate for education and fun. Every pet ages differently — for health decisions, talk to your veterinarian.