How much does a Maltese puppy cost?

A Maltese puppy is priced by its breeder, so the comparison worth making is what each price covers, from the parents' health tests to the puppy's own bile acid test. Maltese puppies listed on Puppy Connection right now are priced from $1,950 to $2,200.

Does color change the price of a Maltese?

The AKC breed standard asks for one color, pure white, and says light tan or lemon on the ears is permissible but not desirable. AKC's color list for the breed has white as the standard color and white and lemon or white and tan as alternate colors. A Maltese with tan or lemon ears is still within the standard, but it is no more correct than a pure white one, so the standard gives no reason for any color to cost more.

The standard also wants a single coat with no undercoat, hanging long, flat and silky, and it calls any kinky, curly or woolly texture objectionable. If a puppy's coat looks curly, ask about the parents' coats.

What do teacup and toy mean for a Maltese?

Under the standard a Maltese weighs under 7 pounds, with 4 to 6 preferred, and the standard names no teacup or micro size. A size word in a listing is the breeder's own description, so ask for both parents' adult weights.

What health testing should a Maltese breeder have done?

For breeding dogs, the national club's list on AKC covers the knees, the heart and a serum bile acids test. AKC says responsible breeders screen their stock for luxating patella and for PDA, a heart defect, and it recommends a bile acid test for Maltese puppies to rule out a congenital liver problem.

AKC also notes that encephalitis, called GME, has been reported in the breed, and that no screening test for it exists at this time.

Does registration change the price?

A Maltese litter can be AKC registered only when its mother and father are both AKC-registered Maltese. Limited registration leaves a puppy registered but its offspring ineligible, and only whoever owned the litter can lift it to full.

What comes home with the puppy?

All 3 listings here come with a vet exam, a microchip, a health record and a written health guarantee. Each listing says what that puppy goes home with.

Ask whether the puppy's bile acid test is part of what the price covers, and get any health guarantee in writing.

How do deposits work?

Breeders who take a deposit ask $600 to hold a puppy. Ask the breeder how a Maltese deposit is applied to the price and whether it can be refunded, and keep the answer in writing.

When paying, the FTC's advice is to stay away from anyone who demands gift cards, a payment app, cryptocurrency or a wire transfer, and to use a credit card for the most protection. A seller who will not let you visit, video chat or talk by phone is one the FTC says to move on from.

What should you ask a Maltese breeder?

Ask for both parents' patella, heart and bile acid results, and whether the puppy has had its own bile acid test. Ask what each parent weighs grown. Ask what the puppy goes home with and the earliest date it can leave.

See Maltese puppies

Each Maltese on Puppy Connection carries the price its breeder has set. Click through to a puppy for its details and a way to reach the breeder.