Are Chimpanzees Monkeys? Apes vs Monkeys Explained

Why is a chimpanzee an ape and not a monkey?

All monkeys and apes are primates, but they belong to different groups. The chimpanzee is in the ape superfamily (Hominoidea) and, within it, the great ape family. Apes and the monkeys of Africa and Asia (the Old World monkeys) share a common ancestor that lived roughly 25–30 million years ago, and since then the two groups have evolved separately.

Calling a chimpanzee a monkey is common in everyday speech, cartoons and films, but biologists keep the two apart because apes share a set of features that monkeys lack.

How to tell an ape from a monkey

The tail is the easiest clue. Apes lost the tail long ago; only a few small bones at the base of the spine remain, as in humans. Monkeys use their tails for balance, and some South American monkeys can grip branches with them.

The ape body is built for hanging. The shoulder blades sit on the back rather than the sides, and the shoulder joint can rotate widely, so an ape can reach overhead and hang by its arms. Gibbons have taken this furthest, swinging hand over hand at high speed.

Which animals are great apes?

There are eight living species of great apes:

• Orangutans: the Bornean orangutan, Sumatran orangutan and Tapanuli orangutan, all in Southeast Asia.
• Gorillas: the western gorilla and eastern gorilla of Central Africa, the largest living primates.
• Chimpanzees and bonobos: the two species of the genus Pan, from equatorial Africa.
• Humans: Homo sapiens, the only surviving member of our genus.

Chimpanzees and bonobos are our closest living relatives, sharing a common ancestor with humans roughly 6–8 million years ago.

Are apes smarter than monkeys?

Great apes have larger brains for their size than monkeys, and in tests they usually do better on tasks such as recognizing themselves in a mirror, using tools and planning ahead. Chimpanzees make tools, pass on local traditions and can learn symbols in experiments.

That does not make monkeys simple. Capuchin monkeys crack nuts with stones, macaques learn complex social rules, and many monkeys have rich alarm-call systems. Intelligence in primates is better seen as a range of abilities than as a ladder with apes at the top and monkeys below.

What are the lesser apes?

Gibbons, including the larger siamang, are known as lesser apes. About 20 species live in the forests of Southeast Asia, southern China and northeastern India. They are much smaller than great apes, with the siamang weighing up to about 14 kg (31 lb), but they have no tail and are true apes. They live in small family groups and are famous for their loud morning songs.

What counts as a monkey?

Monkeys fall into two main groups:

• Old World monkeys of Africa and Asia, such as baboons, macaques, colobus monkeys and mandrills. Many have nostrils that point downward and pads of hard skin on the rump. The mandrill is the largest monkey; see What is the largest monkey?
• New World monkeys of Central and South America, such as capuchins, howler monkeys, spider monkeys and marmosets. They have flatter noses with nostrils pointing sideways, and several have gripping tails.

Not every primate is a monkey or an ape. Lemurs, lorises, galagos and tarsiers form other groups; see Are lemurs monkeys?

Are apes technically a kind of monkey?

Some biologists point out a twist in the family tree. Apes are more closely related to Old World monkeys than Old World monkeys are to New World monkeys. If “monkey” were defined as one complete branch of the tree, it would have to include apes, and humans too. In practice, scientists and dictionaries still use “monkey” for the tailed groups and “ape” for gibbons and great apes.

Common confusions

“Barbary ape.” The Barbary macaque of Morocco, Algeria and Gibraltar is often called an ape because it has no visible tail, but it is a monkey.

Chimps in films. Many performing “monkeys” in old films and TV shows were young chimpanzees, which helped spread the idea that chimpanzees are monkeys. Young chimpanzees were used because they are easier to handle; adults become far too strong and unpredictable, which is one reason performing chimpanzees have largely disappeared from entertainment.