Does it hurt cats to clip their nails?

I have a lovely cat that doesn't scratch enough to shed his claws, despite having gotten him several different materials to scratch. His nails grow super long, and twice he got one stuck in his paw, so now we get them clipped once a month. I wonder if this is ok for him? I know that declawing a cat, which is when you completely remove the cats nails, causes both physical and emotional discomfort, but I don't know how he feels about having them clipped occasionally?

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WellFrog · 56-60, M

Taking just the tip, right at the point where the nail begins to taper into a fine point, is generally going to be the safest approach.

The nails of cats and dogs have a similar structure in general (and vast differences as well, please don't misread this, folks) which has a blood vessel and a nerve ending which are behind the tip and easier to visualize in lighter colored nails. Snip just the tip and you should do well every time.