Pet Care Rankings

Breeds and metros ranked by grooming costs, popularity, and care complexity. Based on industry pricing data and AKC statistics.

Breed inventory by size

Exclusive partition of the 140 published breeds on this site (AKC size bands). Parts sum to the catalog total.

Most Expensive Metros

Metro areas with the highest pet care costs relative to the national average.

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  1. 1New York1.50x
  2. 2San Francisco1.48x
  3. 3San Jose1.45x
  4. 4Bellevue1.42x
  5. 5Honolulu1.42x

Cheapest Metros

Metro areas with the most affordable pet grooming and care prices.

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  1. 1Laredo0.76x
  2. 2Jackson0.76x
  3. 3Lubbock0.78x
  4. 4Shreveport0.78x
  5. 5Mobile0.78x

Most Expensive Breeds

Dog breeds with the highest average grooming service costs.

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  1. 1Bernese Mountain Dog$102
  2. 2Great Pyrenees$102
  3. 3Leonberger$102
  4. 4Newfoundland$102
  5. 5St. Bernard$102

Cheapest Breeds to Groom

Dog breeds with the lowest average grooming service costs.

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  1. 1Chinese Crested$24
  2. 2Basenji$27
  3. 3Boston Terrier$27
  4. 4Chihuahua$27
  5. 5Dachshund$27

Most Popular Breeds

Top dog breeds by AKC popularity ranking.

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  1. 1French Bulldog#1
  2. 2Labrador Retriever#2
  3. 3Golden Retriever#3
  4. 4German Shepherd#4
  5. 5Poodle#5

Most Grooming-Intensive Breeds

Breeds requiring the most frequent and complex grooming care.

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  1. 1Barbet1.40x
  2. 2Bedlington Terrier1.40x
  3. 3Bichon Frise1.40x
  4. 4Cockapoo1.40x
  5. 5Goldendoodle1.40x

How PlainPetCare Rankings Are Compiled

Our rankings are computed directly from the upstream dataset, not editorially curated and not influenced by advertisers. Each ranking surfaces a clear, reproducible metric (for example, count of records per jurisdiction, share of records within a category, or rate per capita), and the underlying numbers are visible on the associated record pages so you can verify them. We recompute rankings whenever the upstream data refreshes, and we publish the refresh cadence on the methodology page.

What Rankings Mean (and What They Do Not)

A ranking is a useful lens, it tells you where to start looking, but it is not a judgment about quality, safety, or reputation. Being at the top of a count-based ranking typically reflects scale: more records in a jurisdiction, more entities in a category. It does not mean "better" or "worse." Whenever a ranking could be misread as a quality claim, we include an explanatory note on the page. When a ranking is rate-based (per capita, per thousand, share), we describe the denominator so you can sanity-check whether the normalization fits your question.

Why We Publish These Rankings

Rankings make large public datasets navigable. Most visitors arrive with a question ("Which jurisdiction has the most records?" or "Where is this category concentrated?") and benefit from seeing a ranked list with direct links to the full records. Publishing ranked views of public data is a long-established practice in civic journalism; we are careful to surface the raw numbers, link to the official source, and avoid editorial spin. If a ranking ever implies a value judgment not supported by the data, please email us at the address on the contact page and we will review the wording.

Methodology, Sources, and Corrections

Every ranking is derived from the source dataset linked on the methodology page. We do not blend proprietary signals; we do not substitute editor opinion for data. If you believe a ranking is miscomputed or that a record is misclassified, please contact us with the specific record ID and the expected correction, and we will investigate within the next refresh cycle. Corrections that affect the published ranking are rolled forward immediately; minor formatting fixes go out with the next scheduled refresh.

Every figure on PlainPetCare is rendered directly from AKC breed data and industry pet-service pricing surveys, no number is typed in by an editor. This page draws directly on AKC breed data and industry pet-service pricing surveys, no figure is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error.