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Simply Nourish vs Vital Essentials

Simply Nourish vs. Vital Essentials

In this comparison article for Simply Nourish vs Vital Essentials, we'll highlight the key differences between these two pet food brands. To properly compare Simply Nourish and Vital Essentials, we'll use up-to-date nutritional and price information.

There are many factors to consider when choosing the best pet food brand for your pet. Factors such as ingredient quality, guaranteed analysis, product safety, brand history, and cost are among the most important factors to consider.

Throughout this Vital Essentials vs Simply Nourish comparison, we've utilized average data to make general comparisons. If you'd like to see individual product reviews, visit our Simply Nourish Review Page or Vital Essentials Review Page.

Guaranteed Analysis: Vital Essentials vs. Simply Nourish

According to AAFCO, all pet food labels must provide a guaranteed analysis of nutrient content. The analysis must provide guaranteed minimum percentages of crude protein and crude fat, and maximum percentages of crude fiber and moisture.

All percentages used in this comparison are averages reported on a dry matter basis.

Simply Nourish Dog Food vs. Vital Essentials Dog Food

Dry Dog FoodSimply NourishVital Essentials
Crude Protein31.8%52.2%
Crude Fat14.7%28.7%
Crude Fiber6.8%4.1%
Wet/Canned Dog FoodSimply NourishVital Essentials
Crude Protein44.7%53.7%
Crude Fat21.9%31.0%
Crude Fiber7.0%5.6%

Crude Protein Comparison For Dog Food

Protein is an extremely important part of your dog's diet. Without sufficient protein, dogs can develop a wide-range of serious health problems.

When you look at the average percentages of crude protein for dry dog food, it's clear that Vital Essentials provides significantly more protein. On average, Vital Essentials guarantees about 20.34% more protein than Simply Nourish. Similarly, Vital Essentials wet dog foods provide significantly more protein than Simply Nourish wet foods.


Crude Fat Comparison For Dog Food

Fats are an absolutely vital component of a balanced canine diet. Not only do fats provide energy, but they also serve important roles in the normal development and function of your dog's body. For example, fats help dogs produce prostaglandins, which reduce inflammation among many other significant functions.

The comparison table above shows that Vital Essentials dry dog foods provide significantly more fat than Simply Nourish. More specifically, Vital Essentials guarantees at least 13.93% more fat. Similarly, Vital Essentials wet dog foods provide significantly more protein than Simply Nourish wet foods.


According to our data, Simply Nourish guarantees 2.66% more fiber than Vital Essentials. Although this difference is relatively small, it's still a notable difference. For wet dog foods, Simply Nourish and Vital Essentials provide roughly the same amount of fiber.

Simply Nourish Cat Food vs. Vital Essentials Cat Food

Dry Cat FoodSimply NourishVital Essentials
Crude Protein39.9%54.0%
Crude Fat16.5%27.5%
Crude Fiber6.3%5.1%
Wet/Canned Cat FoodSimply NourishVital Essentials
Crude Protein48.0%50.6%
Crude Fat21.2%18.8%
Crude Fiber6.5%2.5%

Crude Protein Comparison For Cat Food

Protein is an extremely important part of your cat's diet. Without sufficient protein, cats can develop a wide-range of serious health problems.

Vital Essentials dry cat foods clearly provides more protein than Simply Nourish. In fact, the difference between the protein content is roughly 14.06%, which is a significant amount. For wet cat foods, Vital Essentials typically provides a little more protein (about 2.54% more).


Crude Fat Comparison For Cat Food

There are many ways in which dietary fat contributes to the overall health of our feline friends. Here is a short list of benefits provided by fats (not exhaustive):

  • Fats help with the digestion and absorption of fat-soluble vitamins
  • Reduce inflammation associated with arthritis
  • Slow the growth of yeast infections
  • Prevent or reduce the likelihood of certain heart problems.
  • Aid in the development of the retina and visual cortex.

On average, Vital Essentials dry cat food recipes contain 11.02% more fat than Simply Nourish recipes. Clearly, there is a significant difference between the fat content of Simply Nourish and Vital Essentials. For wet cat foods, Simply Nourish typically provides a little more fat (about 2.40% more).


Vital Essentials and Simply Nourish both provide roughly the same amount of crude fiber. For wet cat foods, Simply Nourish provides more fiber (about 4.01% more).

Simply Nourish Pet Food Ingredients vs. Vital Essentials Pet Food Ingredients

Here are some of the controversial ingredients used only by Simply Nourish.

Pasta
Canola Oil
Pea Protein
Tomato Pomace
Vegetable Oil
Powdered Cellulose
Canola Oil (Preserved With Mixed Tocopherols)

We believe that certain pet food ingredients are linked to adverse health affects; these ingredients are classified as harmful.

Here are some of the harmful ingredients used only by Simply Nourish.

Menadione Sodium Bisulfite Complex

Product Safety: Recall History of Simply Nourish & Vital Essentials?

Simply Nourish has been recalled once.

  • Aug. 13, 2021: elevated levels of vitamin D

Vital Essentials has been recalled 4 times.

  • July 8, 2015: Listeria monocytogenes
  • Jan. 15, 2016: Salmonella
  • Feb. 24, 2018: Salmonella
  • April 16, 2018: Salmonella

Disclosure: PawDiet has an affiliate relationship with stores featured (or linked-to) in this article. We are compensated for referring customers. Thank you for shopping with our retail partners!

Where To Buy Simply Nourish Pet Foods

You can purchase Simply Nourish pet foods from the following stores:


Where To Buy Vital Essentials Pet Foods

You can purchase Vital Essentials pet food products from these retailers:


47 Recipes In-Stock Today

43 Recipes In-Stock Today

22 Recipes In-Stock Today

23 Recipes In-Stock Today

Type Of Pet Foods Available

ProductSimply NourishVital Essentials
Dry Dog Food35 RecipesNone
Wet Dog Food20 RecipesNone
Dog Treats14 Treats30 Treats
Dry Cat Food15 RecipesNone
Wet Cat Food21 RecipesNone
Cat Treats9 Treats8 Treats

Top Rated Simply Nourish Recipes

Dog Food
Simply Nourish
Source Chicken & Turkey Recipe For Adult Dogs
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Dog Food
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Source Turkey Recipe (Canned) For Adult Dogs
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Cat Food
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Source Fish & Chicken Recipe For Indoor Adult Cats
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Cat Food
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Source Venison Recipe Paté For Adult Cats
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Top Rated Vital Essentials Recipes

Dog Food
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Freeze-Dried Entrees Beef Mini Nibs
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Dog Food
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Frozen Entrees Beef Mini Patties
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Cat Food
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VitalCat Freeze-Dried Duck Mini Nibs For Cats
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VitalCat Frozen Rabbit Entree Mini Patties For Cats
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