How Katwars Rankings Work: Elo Ratings for Cats
· 6 min read
Every vote on Katwars is a tiny match: two cats, one winner. Those matches feed a rating system called Elo, originally designed to rank chess players and now used everywhere from online games to sports statistics. This page explains exactly how it works on Katwars — no hidden formula, no pay-to-win.
Every cat starts at 1500
When a cat enters the arena its rating (shown as POWER on fighter cards) starts at 1500. From then on, each vote moves points from the loser to the winner. The number of points gained by the winner is exactly the number lost by the loser, so ratings are never created out of thin air.
Expected score: who “should” win
Before each vote, Elo estimates how likely each cat is to win based on the difference in ratings. The formula for the higher-rated cat’s expected score is:
expected = 1 / (1 + 10^((opponent − self) / 400))Some rough numbers:
- Equal ratings → each cat is expected to win 50% of the time.
- A 100-point gap → the stronger cat is expected to win about 64%.
- A 200-point gap → about 76%.
- A 400-point gap → about 91%.
How many points change hands
The points exchanged after a vote are:
points = round(K × (1 − winner’s expected score))So when a favourite wins, it only gains a few points — that result was expected. When an underdog wins, the expected score was low, so it gains a lot. For example, with K = 32:
- Two cats at 1500: the winner gains 16 points, the loser drops 16.
- A 1700 cat beats a 1500 cat: it gains about 8 points.
- A 1500 cat upsets a 1700 cat: it gains about 24 points.
Upsets matter, which is why a new cat with a great photo can climb quickly.
The K-factor: fast at first, steady later
K controls how much a single vote can move a rating. Katwars uses a schedule based on how many battles a cat has fought:
- 0–20 battles: K = 32. New cats move quickly so they can find their true level.
- 21–100 battles: K = 24.
- 101+ battles: K = 16. Veterans’ ratings are more stable, so one odd vote doesn’t knock a champion off the top.
Tiers
Ratings map to tiers shown on the leaderboard:
- Bronze: below 1300
- Silver: 1300–1499
- Gold: 1500–1699
- Platinum: 1700 and above
Cats with fewer than 10 battles are shown as Calibrating — their rating is still moving too fast to mean much.
Why fair matchmaking matters
Elo only works if every cat gets a fair chance to be seen. Katwars’ matchmaking spreads appearances across the roster, including new entries, rather than showing the same favourites over and over. Voting is anonymous, rate-limited and protected against repeat voting and bots, so a cat’s rating reflects many independent opinions rather than one enthusiastic fan.
Streaks, records and the Hall of Fame
Alongside the rating, fighter cards track wins, losses, K.O. rate (win percentage) and streaks. Each week the top ten cats are frozen into the Hall of Fame permanently, so a champion’s moment is preserved even if its rating later drifts.
Common questions
- Why is a cat with fewer wins ranked above one with more? Elo rewards who you beat, not just how often. Ten wins against Platinum fighters are worth far more than ten wins against cats that are still calibrating, and a long record also includes the losses along the way.
- Can I vote for my own cat? No. Matchmaking never shows you a battle involving a cat you entered, so every point your cat earns comes from someone else’s vote.
- Why did my cat’s rating barely move after a win? Either it beat a much lower-rated opponent (an expected result), or it has fought more than 100 battles and now uses the steadier K = 16.
- Can a champion be caught? Yes. The top spot is only as safe as the next upset — and upsets pay the challenger the most points.
What Elo can’t tell you
Elo measures one thing: how often voters pick this photo over others. It says nothing about which cat is the best pet — every cat is the best cat to someone. A higher rating usually means a sharp, well-lit photo with lots of personality, which is why our guide to taking great cat photos is the closest thing to a strategy guide Katwars has.
Ready to see where your cat lands? Enter the arena or start voting.