🐆 Cheetah vs Sailfish 🐟
The sailfish is about twice as long as the cheetah. They are about the same. The sailfish is a bit heavier than the cheetah.
| Row | 🐆 Cheetah | 🐟 Sailfish |
|---|---|---|
| Top speed They are about the same. | 60 to 70 mph96 to 112 km/h1 | 68 mph109 km/h2 |
| Weight The sailfish is a bit heavier than the cheetah. | 75 to 141 lb34 to 64 kg1 | 128 lb58 kg3 |
| Lives We don't have a checked number for the sailfish yet. | 8 to 10 years8 to 10 years1 | no checked number yet |
| Eats The cheetah eats meat; the sailfish eats fish. | antelopes such as gazelles and impalas, and hares | small fish such as sardines and anchovies, and squid |
| Lives in They live in different kinds of places, so they would hardly ever meet. | the grasslands of eastern and southern Africa, and a few in Iran | the warm Pacific and Indian oceans |
Which one? Cheetah or sailfish
🏁 Who would win the race?
A photo finish! The cheetah and the sailfish are about as fast as each other. It isn't quite fair: the cheetah is running and the sailfish is swimming.
We only race. Real animals mostly avoid each other. A race is the only fair contest: who reaches the tree first, by top speed.
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Getting the animals ready…
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The link carries only the two animals’ names: peabody.kids/animals/compare/cheetah-vs-sailfish
Where these numbers come from
- Smithsonian's National Zoo, Cheetah, checked 30 October 2026.
- NOAA National Ocean Service, Ocean Facts feed ('What is the fastest fish in the ocean?'), checked 30 October 2026.
- NOAA Fishery Bulletin 78(3), 1980 (Beardsley and others, Atlantic sailfish), checked 30 October 2026.
- Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, Shorefishes of the Greater Caribbean (Istiophorus platypterus), checked 30 October 2026.