🦈 Great white shark vs Nile crocodile 🐊
The great white shark is about twice as long as the nile crocodile. The great white shark weighs about 20 times as much as the nile crocodile.
Getting the animals ready…
| Row | 🦈 Great white shark | 🐊 Nile crocodile |
|---|---|---|
| Size The great white shark is about twice as long as the nile crocodile. | 20 ft6.1 m1 | 6.6 to 11 ft2 to 3.3 m2 |
| Top speed We don't have a checked number for the nile crocodile yet. | 35 mph56 km/h3 | no checked number yet |
| Weight The great white shark weighs about 20 times as much as the nile crocodile. | 2 tons1.8 tonnes1 | 154 to 220 lb70 to 100 kg2 |
| Lives We don't have a checked number for the nile crocodile yet. | 30 to 70 years30 to 70 years1 | no checked number yet |
| Eats Both eat meat. | seals, sea lions, fish and dead whales | insects when it is young, and big animals such as impala and buffalo when it is grown |
| Lives in They live in different kinds of places, so they would hardly ever meet. | cool coastal seas around the world | freshwater lakes, rivers and coastal swamps south of the Sahara |
Which one? Great white shark or nile crocodile
🏁 Who would win the race?
We don't have a checked top speed for the nile crocodile 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 Great white shark vs Nile crocodile
- The great white shark: The biggest fish that hunts, with rows of spare teeth waiting.
- The nile crocodile: A big, strong river reptile that lives in Africa.
- They are different kinds of animal. The great white shark is a fish, so it breathes with gills; the nile crocodile is a reptile, so it has scaly skin.
- The great white shark is about twice as long as the nile crocodile: 1 against 2.
- The great white shark weighs about 20 times as much as the nile crocodile. That is 1 for the great white shark and 2 for the nile crocodile.
- Both eat meat. The great white shark eats seals, sea lions, fish and dead whales; the nile crocodile eats insects when it is young, and big animals such as impala and buffalo when it is grown.
- The great white shark lives in cool coastal seas around the world. The nile crocodile lives in freshwater lakes, rivers and coastal swamps south of the Sahara. They live in different kinds of places, so they would hardly ever meet.
- The great white shark: needs help (Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List). 4
- The nile crocodile: doing fine (Least Concern on the IUCN Red List). 5
Wow facts
🦈 Great white shark
- A great white keeps growing new teeth its whole life.
- It can feel the tiny electric signals of other animals.
- Its body stays warmer than the water around it.
🐊 Nile crocodile
- A mother Nile crocodile digs her nest in sandy soil near water.
- The youngest crocodiles eat insects.
- It is thought to live a very long time.
Questions kids ask about Great white shark and Nile crocodile
Which is bigger, great white shark or nile crocodile?
The great white shark is about twice as long as the nile crocodile: 1 against 2.
Which is heavier, great white shark or nile crocodile?
The great white shark weighs about 20 times as much as the nile crocodile. That is 1 for the great white shark and 2 for the nile crocodile.
What do great white shark and nile crocodile eat?
Both eat meat. The great white shark eats seals, sea lions, fish and dead whales; the nile crocodile eats insects when it is young, and big animals such as impala and buffalo when it is grown.
Where do great white shark and nile crocodile live?
The great white shark lives in cool coastal seas around the world. The nile crocodile lives in freshwater lakes, rivers and coastal swamps south of the Sahara. They live in different kinds of places, so they would hardly ever meet.
Who would win, great white shark or nile crocodile?
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/great-white-shark-vs-nile-crocodile
Where these numbers come from
- NOAA Fisheries, checked 30 October 2026.
- San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance, Nile crocodile fact sheet, checked 10 November 2026.
- NOAA Science On a Sphere, checked 30 October 2026.
- Wikidata, from the IUCN Red List, checked 30 October 2026.
- Wikidata, from the IUCN Red List, checked 10 November 2026.