Strongest Bite Force in the Animal Kingdom: Top Animals Ranked

How is bite force measured?

Bite force is the push that an animal’s jaws produce, usually measured in newtons (N) or pounds-force (lbf); 1 lbf equals about 4.45 N. Scientists measure it by getting an animal to bite a padded force sensor, called a bite bar, placed between its teeth. This works well for crocodilians and some mammals, but it is difficult and risky with large, fast predators.

For many species, researchers instead estimate bite force from skulls, using the size of the jaw muscles and the leverage of the jaw. Computer models of whole skulls can give more detailed estimates. These methods are useful but can differ from real bites by a wide margin.

You will often see bite strength quoted in PSI (pounds per square inch). PSI is a unit of pressure, not force, and depends on how sharp the tooth tip is, so a small animal with needle-like teeth can produce a huge PSI with little force. Many PSI figures repeated online come from television tests and were never published in scientific journals.

Bite force ranking at a glance

1. Saltwater crocodile: the strongest bite ever measured

The saltwater crocodile is the largest living reptile, and it also holds the record for the strongest measured bite. In a 2012 study led by Gregory Erickson, researchers measured the bite forces of all 23 living crocodilian species. A 4.59 m (15 ft) male saltwater crocodile weighing 531 kg (1,171 lb) produced 16,414 N (3,690 lbf), the highest bite force ever recorded for any living animal.

Large male saltwater crocodiles can grow considerably bigger than that individual. Based on how bite force rose with body size across the species tested, the researchers estimated that crocodiles weighing around 1,300 kg (2,900 lb) could bite with roughly 27,500–34,400 N (6,200–7,700 lbf). Read more in How strong is a crocodile bite?

2. American alligator

The American alligator held the record before the saltwater crocodile was tested, and in the same 2012 study one alligator bit with 13,172 N (2,961 lbf). Alligators use this crushing power to bite through the shells of turtles, which large adults regularly eat.

Although their closing muscles are enormous, the muscles that open a crocodilian’s jaws are small and weak. That is why handlers can hold the jaws shut with tape when moving the animals. For other differences between the two groups, see alligator vs crocodile.

3. Nile crocodile and other crocodilians

A Nile crocodile measured on a National Geographic television program by herpetologist Brady Barr is said to have bitten with about 22,000 N (5,000 lbf). The figure is widely quoted but was not published in a scientific journal, so it cannot be checked like the 2012 results.

One of the most useful findings of the crocodilian study is that bite force depends mainly on body size, not on snout shape. A slender-snouted crocodile bites about as hard as a broad-snouted one of the same weight. What differs is the pressure at the tooth tips, which shapes which prey each species can handle.

4. Great white shark: a powerful estimate

No one has measured a great white shark’s bite directly. In 2008, scientists built a three-dimensional computer model of a shark’s jaws from scans of a 2.5 m (8.2 ft), 240 kg (530 lb) juvenile and found it could bite with about 3,131 N (704 lbf) at the back of the jaws. Scaled up to a 6.4 m (21 ft), 3,324 kg (7,328 lb) shark, the estimate rose to 18,216 N (4,095 lbf).

That would make a large great white’s bite comparable to the biggest crocodiles, but it is a model, not a measurement. Shark teeth are serrated blades designed for slicing rather than crushing, so their bites work differently from a crocodile’s clamp.

5. Hippopotamus

The hippopotamus has enormous jaws that open extremely wide, armed with long, tusk-like canine teeth. Its bite is often quoted as 1,800 psi, and sometimes as about 8,100 N, but no peer-reviewed study has confirmed either number. Hippos use their jaws mainly in fights with rivals and in defense rather than to eat, since they are grazers.

6. Spotted hyena: the bone crusher

The spotted hyena has one of the most powerfully built skulls of any carnivore for its size, with cone-shaped premolars for cracking bones. In a study of captive hyenas published in 2000, one individual bit a force transducer with about 4,500 N (1,000 lbf), one of the highest measured values for any mammal. Hyenas can crack the leg bones of large prey such as zebras and wildebeest to reach the marrow.

7. Jaguar and other big cats

Studies that estimate bite force from skulls place the tiger and lion first among cats in absolute bite force, followed by the jaguar. For its body size, the jaguar bites unusually hard, with a canine bite estimated at about 900 N. It often kills by biting through the skull of its prey and can pierce the shells of river turtles and tortoises. See How strong is a jaguar bite?

8. Grizzly bear

Grizzly bears are often said to bite with about 1,200 psi, a figure whose original source is unclear and that has not been published as a force measurement. Grizzlies certainly have strong jaws for crushing bones and tough plant foods, but their bite has not been reliably compared with those of crocodiles or hyenas.

Strongest bite for its size: the Tasmanian devil

To compare animals of different sizes, scientists use the bite force quotient, which adjusts bite force for body mass. Among living mammalian carnivores, the Tasmanian devil scores highest, at about 181, with an estimated canine bite of 553 N (124 lbf) from an animal that weighs only around 6–8 kg. Devils crush and eat the bones of the carcasses they feed on.

Other animals with strong bites for their size include snapping turtles; learn more in How hard do snapping turtles bite?

Extinct giants with even stronger bites

Some extinct predators had bites far beyond any living animal. Scaling the great white shark model to the giant shark megalodon gave estimates of 108,514–182,201 N (24,395–40,960 lbf), though megalodon’s exact size is uncertain. Computer models also suggest that Tyrannosaurus rex had the most powerful bite of any land animal known, strong enough to crunch through bone.

For more record-breaking power, see the strongest animals in the world.