Ficus plants are irritants to cats (S2 Irritant) as a group: Pet Poison Helpline records that "Numerous species of plants belong to the genus Ficus and contain irritating sap," causing mouth and gut irritation when chewed and skin irritation where the sap touches — the weeping fig, fiddle leaf fig, and rubber plant all carry that record.
"Ficus" is a genus of hundreds of species, and the three sold as houseplants share one defence — an irritating sap. Below: the full verdict pages for the three we have verified against primary sources, and the smaller names that have no source entry yet and therefore no grade.
⚠ THE ONE THAT DROPS LEAVES: WEEPING FIG
Every houseplant ficus is S2 and none is worse than the others, so the warning goes to the one a cat meets most: the weeping fig sheds leaves constantly, and the ASPCA's record for Ficus benjamina is the only one in the genus to spell out the signs — "Gastrointestinal and dermal irritation," from ficin and the psoralen ficusin. Pet Poison Helpline adds drooling, vomiting, diarrhea, decreased appetite, and skin irritation where the sap touches. Clear dropped leaves; if a cat chews them and signs persist, call your vet.
Full verdict →None of the three we have verified is safe, and none is worse than the others: weeping fig, fiddle leaf fig, and rubber plant are all S2 Irritant, for the same reason. Pet Poison Helpline's genus entry covers all of them in one sentence: Ficus species "contain irritating sap. Following ingestion, irritation of the mouth and gastrointestinal tract may occur. Dermal irritation is also possible if the sap gets on the pet's skin." The practical difference is exposure, not toxicity — the weeping fig drops leaves, the other two mostly do not. If you want a floor tree a cat can chew, the palms are the safe genus: see our palm guide.
Not in the sources, and that matters when you look a plant up. The ASPCA's entry titled "Fig" gives the scientific name Ficus benjamina — the ornamental weeping fig — and lists "Weeping Fig, Indian Rubber Plant" as its other names; there is no ASPCA entry for the fruit-bearing Ficus carica, and Pet Poison Helpline has none either. So the edible fig tree in a garden has no grade here, and the "Fig" record you may find by searching belongs to the houseplant on our weeping fig page. Check the botanical name on the tag before you trust any verdict that just says fig.