🦈 Bull shark vs Giant squid 🦑
The giant squid is about 5 times as long as the bull shark. The giant squid weighs about 9 times as much as the bull shark.
Getting the animals ready…
| Row | 🦈 Bull shark | 🦑 Giant squid |
|---|---|---|
| Size The giant squid is about 5 times as long as the bull shark. | 7.5 to 9.3 ft2.3 to 2.8 m1 | 35 to 45 ft11 to 14 m2 |
| Top speed Neither has a checked number yet. | no checked number yet | no checked number yet |
| Weight The giant squid weighs about 9 times as much as the bull shark. | 209 to 245 lb95 to 111 kg1 | 2,000 lb907 kg2 |
| Lives We don't have a checked number for the giant squid yet. | 32 years32 years1 | no checked number yet |
| Eats The bull shark eats fish; the giant squid eats meat. | mostly fish such as catfish and stingrays, and also crabs | deep-sea fish and some other deep-sea animals |
| Lives in They can live in the same kind of place. | warm, shallow coastal seas, and also rivers and lakes | the deep sea, far below the surface |
Which one? Bull shark or giant squid
🏁 Who would win the race?
We don't have a checked top speed for the bull shark or the giant squid yet, so there is no race.
We only race. Real animals mostly avoid each other. A race is the only fair contest: who reaches the tree first, by top speed. Our face-off books compare real numbers, and nobody gets hurt.
9 things to know about Bull shark vs Giant squid
- The bull shark: A sturdy shark that can swim in salt water and in fresh water.
- The giant squid: A huge animal of the deep sea with long arms and feeding tentacles.
- They are different kinds of animal. The bull shark is a fish, so it breathes with gills; the giant squid is a bug.
- The giant squid is about 5 times as long as the bull shark: 2 against 1.
- The giant squid weighs about 9 times as much as the bull shark. That is 1 for the bull shark and 2 for the giant squid.
- The bull shark eats mostly fish such as catfish and stingrays, and also crabs. The giant squid eats deep-sea fish and some other deep-sea animals.
- The bull shark lives in warm, shallow coastal seas, and also rivers and lakes. The giant squid lives in the deep sea, far below the surface. They can live in the same kind of place.
- The bull shark: needs help (Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List). 3
- The giant squid: doing fine (Least Concern on the IUCN Red List). 4
Wow facts
🦈 Bull shark
- A bull shark can swim in salt water and in fresh water.
- It is the only shark that can stay in fresh water for a long time.
- It eats mostly fish such as catfish and stingrays.
🦑 Giant squid
- A giant squid is as long as a bus, with its tentacles.
- It lives deep in the sea.
- It has no backbone.
Questions kids ask about Bull shark and Giant squid
Which is bigger, bull shark or giant squid?
The giant squid is about 5 times as long as the bull shark: 2 against 1.
Which is heavier, bull shark or giant squid?
The giant squid weighs about 9 times as much as the bull shark. That is 1 for the bull shark and 2 for the giant squid.
What do bull shark and giant squid eat?
The bull shark eats mostly fish such as catfish and stingrays, and also crabs. The giant squid eats deep-sea fish and some other deep-sea animals.
Where do bull shark and giant squid live?
The bull shark lives in warm, shallow coastal seas, and also rivers and lakes. The giant squid lives in the deep sea, far below the surface. They can live in the same kind of place.
Do bull sharks eat giant squid?
The bull shark eats mostly fish such as catfish and stingrays, and also crabs. Giant squid are not in that list, which comes from its page. And the giant squid is about 5 times as long as the bull shark.
Do giant squid eat bull sharks?
The giant squid eats deep-sea fish and some other deep-sea animals. Bull sharks are not in that list, which comes from its page.
Who would win, bull shark or giant squid?
We never show fights, because a fight is not a fair way to compare animals. They can share the same kind of place, and real animals mostly keep out of each other's way. What we can compare is how big, how heavy, how fast, how long they live and what they eat, as above.
📤 Share this pair
The link carries only the two animals’ names: peabody.kids/animals/compare/bull-shark-vs-giant-squid
Where these numbers come from
- University of Michigan Museum of Zoology, Animal Diversity Web: Carcharhinus leucas (bull shark), checked 10 November 2026.
- University of Michigan Museum of Zoology, Animal Diversity Web: Architeuthis dux (giant squid), checked 10 November 2026.
- Wikidata, from the IUCN Red List, checked 10 November 2026.
- Wikidata, from the IUCN Red List, checked 10 November 2026.