🐆 Cougar vs Snow leopard 🐆
The cougar and the snow leopard are about the same size. The cougar weighs about twice as much as the snow leopard.
Getting the animals ready…
| Row | 🐆 Cougar | 🐆 Snow leopard |
|---|---|---|
| Size They are about the same size. | 4.9 to 8.2 ft1.5 to 2.5 m1 | 5.9 to 7.5 ft1.8 to 2.3 m2 |
| Top speed Neither has a checked number yet. | no checked number yet | no checked number yet |
| Weight The cougar weighs about twice as much as the snow leopard. | 64 to 265 lb29 to 120 kg1 | 77 to 99 lb35 to 45 kg2 |
| Lives They are about the same. | 18 to 20 years18 to 20 years1 | 21 years21 years2 |
| Eats Both eat meat. | mostly hoofed animals such as elk and deer, and smaller animals too | blue sheep and other animals of the mountains |
| Lives in They live in different kinds of places, so they would hardly ever meet. | mountains, forests, grassland and deserts across the Americas, mostly in wild, quiet places | high, cold mountains in Asia, from the forest edge up to bare rock |
Which one? Cougar or snow leopard
🏁 Who would win the race?
We don't have a checked top speed for the cougar or the snow leopard 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.
10 things to know about Cougar vs Snow leopard
- The cougar: A big, plain-colored cat of the Americas, also called a mountain lion.
- The snow leopard: A pale, spotted cat with a long tail that lives in high mountains.
- They are the same kind of animal: both are mammals.
- The cougar and the snow leopard are about the same size: 2 against 1.
- The cougar weighs about twice as much as the snow leopard. That is 1 for the cougar and 2 for the snow leopard.
- They are about the same. Usual lifespans: 1 for the cougar and 2 for the snow leopard.
- Both eat meat. The cougar eats mostly hoofed animals such as elk and deer, and smaller animals too; the snow leopard eats blue sheep and other animals of the mountains.
- The cougar lives in mountains, forests, grassland and deserts across the Americas, mostly in wild, quiet places. The snow leopard lives in high, cold mountains in Asia, from the forest edge up to bare rock. They live in different kinds of places, so they would hardly ever meet.
- The cougar: doing fine (Least Concern on the IUCN Red List). 3
- The snow leopard: needs help (Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List). 4
Wow facts
🐆 Cougar
- A cougar is also called a mountain lion.
- It once lived across more of the Americas than any other land mammal.
- It eats mostly hoofed animals such as elk and deer.
🐆 Snow leopard
- A snow leopard has a tail almost as long as its body.
- It lives high in the cold mountains of Asia.
- It is so hard to see that scientists know little about it.
Questions kids ask about Cougar and Snow leopard
Which is bigger, cougar or snow leopard?
The cougar and the snow leopard are about the same size: 2 against 1.
Which is heavier, cougar or snow leopard?
The cougar weighs about twice as much as the snow leopard. That is 1 for the cougar and 2 for the snow leopard.
Which lives longer, cougar or snow leopard?
They are about the same. Usual lifespans: 1 for the cougar and 2 for the snow leopard.
What do cougar and snow leopard eat?
Both eat meat. The cougar eats mostly hoofed animals such as elk and deer, and smaller animals too; the snow leopard eats blue sheep and other animals of the mountains.
Where do cougar and snow leopard live?
The cougar lives in mountains, forests, grassland and deserts across the Americas, mostly in wild, quiet places. The snow leopard lives in high, cold mountains in Asia, from the forest edge up to bare rock. They live in different kinds of places, so they would hardly ever meet.
Who would win, cougar or snow leopard?
We never show fights, because a fight is not a fair way to compare animals. They live in different kinds of places, so they would hardly ever meet. 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/cougar-vs-snow-leopard
Where these numbers come from
- University of Michigan Museum of Zoology, Animal Diversity Web: Puma concolor (cougar, mountain lion), checked 10 November 2026.
- University of Michigan Museum of Zoology, Animal Diversity Web: Uncia uncia (snow leopard), checked 10 November 2026.
- Wikidata, from the IUCN Red List, checked 10 November 2026.
- Wikidata, from the IUCN Red List, checked 10 November 2026.