🦡 Honey badger vs King cobra 🐍
The king cobra is about 5 times as long as the honey badger.
Getting the animals ready…
| Row | 🦡 Honey badger | 🐍 King cobra |
|---|---|---|
| Size The king cobra is about 5 times as long as the honey badger. | 24 to 28 in60 to 70 cm1 | 10 to 12 ft3.1 to 3.7 m2 |
| Top speed Neither has a checked number yet. | no checked number yet | no checked number yet |
| Weight We don't have a checked number for the king cobra yet. | 18 to 26 lb8 to 12 kg1 | no checked number yet |
| Lives The king cobra usually lives about twice as long as the honey badger. | 7 to 8 years7 to 8 years1 | 17 years17 years2 |
| Eats The honey badger eats plants and animals; the king cobra eats meat. | eggs, small rodents, snakes, birds and frogs | mostly other snakes |
| Lives in They live in different kinds of places, so they would hardly ever meet. | forests, grassland, rocky hills and deserts across most of Africa south of the Sahara and on the Arabian Peninsula | forests, bamboo thickets and swamps near streams, from northern India to southern China |
Which one? Honey badger or king cobra
🏁 Who would win the race?
We don't have a checked top speed for the honey badger or the king cobra 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 Honey badger vs King cobra
- The honey badger: A short, strong animal from Africa and Asia that eats eggs, snakes and more.
- The king cobra: A very long snake that eats mostly other snakes.
- They are different kinds of animal. The honey badger is a mammal, so it breathes air with lungs and feeds its babies milk; the king cobra is a reptile, so it has scaly skin.
- The king cobra is about 5 times as long as the honey badger: 2 against 1.
- The king cobra usually lives about twice as long as the honey badger. Usual lifespans: 1 for the honey badger and 2 for the king cobra.
- The honey badger eats eggs, small rodents, snakes, birds and frogs. The king cobra eats mostly other snakes.
- The honey badger lives in forests, grassland, rocky hills and deserts across most of Africa south of the Sahara and on the Arabian Peninsula. The king cobra lives in forests, bamboo thickets and swamps near streams, from northern India to southern China. They live in different kinds of places, so they would hardly ever meet.
- The honey badger: doing fine (Least Concern on the IUCN Red List). 3
- The king cobra: needs help (Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List). 4
Wow facts
🦡 Honey badger
- A honey badger lives in forests, grassland and deserts.
- A male can walk a long way in one day looking for food.
- It eats eggs, small rodents, snakes, birds and frogs.
🐍 King cobra
- A king cobra eats mostly other snakes.
- It is longer than most grown-ups are tall.
- It lives near streams in forests, bamboo and swamps.
Questions kids ask about Honey badger and King cobra
Which is bigger, honey badger or king cobra?
The king cobra is about 5 times as long as the honey badger: 2 against 1.
Which is heavier, honey badger or king cobra?
We only have a checked weight for the honey badger: 1. Scientists are still working out the other.
Which lives longer, honey badger or king cobra?
The king cobra usually lives about twice as long as the honey badger. Usual lifespans: 1 for the honey badger and 2 for the king cobra.
What do honey badger and king cobra eat?
The honey badger eats eggs, small rodents, snakes, birds and frogs. The king cobra eats mostly other snakes.
Where do honey badger and king cobra live?
The honey badger lives in forests, grassland, rocky hills and deserts across most of Africa south of the Sahara and on the Arabian Peninsula. The king cobra lives in forests, bamboo thickets and swamps near streams, from northern India to southern China. They live in different kinds of places, so they would hardly ever meet.
Who would win, honey badger or king cobra?
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/honey-badger-vs-king-cobra
Where these numbers come from
- University of Michigan Museum of Zoology, Animal Diversity Web: Mellivora capensis (honey badger), checked 10 November 2026.
- University of Michigan Museum of Zoology, Animal Diversity Web: Ophiophagus hannah (king cobra), checked 10 November 2026.
- Wikidata, from the IUCN Red List, checked 10 November 2026.
- Wikidata, from the IUCN Red List, checked 10 November 2026.