Is Fancy Feast actually good for cats, or is it junk?

This is the most contested question in the category. Ingredient-focused review sites like cats.com flag Fancy Feast for vague meat by-products, but high-engagement r/CatAdvice and r/catfood threads repeatedly cite vets recommending Fancy Feast Classic Pâté as a solid budget wet food — even for diabetic cats — because it's grain-free, high in protein, and low in carbs. The Classic Pâté line gets noticeably more praise than the gravy varieties.