🐻 Grizzly bear vs Polar bear 🐻❄️
The grizzly bear is a bit bigger than the polar bear. The polar bear weighs about twice as much as the grizzly bear.
Getting the animals ready…
| Row | 🐻 Grizzly bear | 🐻❄️ Polar bear |
|---|---|---|
| Size The grizzly bear is a bit bigger than the polar bear. | 5 to 7 ft1.5 to 2.1 m1 | 4.9 ft1.5 m2 |
| Top speed We don't have a checked number for the polar bear yet. | 35 mph56 km/h3 | no checked number yet |
| Weight The polar bear weighs about twice as much as the grizzly bear. | 243 to 661 lb110 to 300 kg4 | 399 to 1,450 lb181 to 658 kg2 |
| Lives They are about the same. | 25 years25 years4 | 25 years25 years2 |
| Eats The grizzly bear eats plants and animals; the polar bear eats meat. | roots, berries, grasses, nuts, fish, insects and meat | mostly seals, caught at holes in the sea ice |
| Lives in They live in different kinds of places, so they would hardly ever meet. | the mountains and forests of western North America, from Alaska to Wyoming | the Arctic, on the sea ice around the North Pole |
Which one? Grizzly bear or polar bear
🏁 Who would win the race?
We don't have a checked top speed for the polar bear 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 Grizzly bear vs Polar bear
- The grizzly bear: A big brown bear with a shoulder hump, strong enough to dig.
- The polar bear: The biggest bear, at home on the frozen Arctic sea ice.
- They are the same kind of animal: both are mammals.
- The grizzly bear is a bit bigger than the polar bear: 1 against 2.
- The polar bear weighs about twice as much as the grizzly bear. That is 4 for the grizzly bear and 2 for the polar bear.
- They are about the same. Usual lifespans: 4 for the grizzly bear and 2 for the polar bear.
- The grizzly bear eats roots, berries, grasses, nuts, fish, insects and meat. The polar bear eats mostly seals, caught at holes in the sea ice.
- The grizzly bear lives in the mountains and forests of western North America, from Alaska to Wyoming. The polar bear lives in the Arctic, on the sea ice around the North Pole. They live in different kinds of places, so they would hardly ever meet.
- The grizzly bear: doing fine (Least Concern on the IUCN Red List). 5
- The polar bear: needs help (Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List). 6
Wow facts
🐻 Grizzly bear
- The hump on its back is a big shoulder muscle for digging.
- Its cubs are born tiny, in the middle of winter.
- Many grizzlies eat more plants than meat.
🐻❄️ Polar bear
- Under its white-looking fur, a polar bear's skin is black.
- Each hair is clear and hollow, not white.
- Its huge paws work like paddles and snowshoes.
Questions kids ask about Grizzly bear and Polar bear
Which is bigger, grizzly bear or polar bear?
The grizzly bear is a bit bigger than the polar bear: 1 against 2.
Which is heavier, grizzly bear or polar bear?
The polar bear weighs about twice as much as the grizzly bear. That is 4 for the grizzly bear and 2 for the polar bear.
Which lives longer, grizzly bear or polar bear?
They are about the same. Usual lifespans: 4 for the grizzly bear and 2 for the polar bear.
What do grizzly bear and polar bear eat?
The grizzly bear eats roots, berries, grasses, nuts, fish, insects and meat. The polar bear eats mostly seals, caught at holes in the sea ice.
Where do grizzly bear and polar bear live?
The grizzly bear lives in the mountains and forests of western North America, from Alaska to Wyoming. The polar bear lives in the Arctic, on the sea ice around the North Pole. They live in different kinds of places, so they would hardly ever meet.
Who would win, grizzly bear or polar bear?
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/grizzly-bear-vs-polar-bear
Where these numbers come from
- National Park Service, Bears (brown bears), checked 30 October 2026.
- National Park Service, checked 30 October 2026.
- National Park Service, Glacier, checked 30 October 2026.
- US Fish and Wildlife Service (grizzly bear species profile), checked 30 October 2026.
- Wikidata, from the IUCN Red List, checked 30 October 2026.
- Wikidata, from the IUCN Red List, checked 30 October 2026.