Species comparison
Snow Leopard vs Lion
A side-by-side look at Panthera uncia and Panthera leo across body measurements, habitat, diet, behaviour and conservation status.
At a glance
- The lion averages about 4.4 times the body mass of the snow leopard.
- The lion has the higher recorded top speed, at 50 mph (80 km/h).
- The two species occupy different habitat types with no overlap in our classification.
- Their ranges both include Asia.
- Both are currently listed as Vulnerable on the Red List.
Identification
How each species is named and classified.
Snow Leopard
Panthera uncia
Lion
Panthera leo
Snow Leopard
Panthera
Lion
Panthera
Snow Leopard
Panthera lineage
Lion
Panthera lineage
Snow Leopard
Big cats
Lion
Big cats
Snow Leopard
Ounce, Ghost of the mountains
Lion
African lion, Asiatic lion
Body and movement
Published field measurements for adults. Ranges cover both sexes unless noted.
Snow Leopard
2 ft 10 in – 4 ft 1 in (86–125 cm)
Lion
5 ft 3 in – 8 ft 2 in (160–250 cm) Longer
Snow Leopard
2 ft 7 in – 3 ft 5 in (80–105 cm) Longer
Lion
2 ft 4 in – 3 ft 5 in (70–105 cm)
Snow Leopard
22 in – 2 ft 2 in (55–65 cm)
Lion
3 ft 3 in – 4 ft 1 in (100–125 cm) Taller
Snow Leopard
49–121 lb (22–55 kg)
Males average roughly a third heavier than females.
Lion
243–496 lb (110–225 kg) Heavier
Males typically 150–225 kg, females 110–152 kg.
Snow Leopard
34 mph (55 km/h)
Rarely measured in the field; the species relies on terrain, not pursuit.
Lion
50 mph (80 km/h) Faster
Sustained only for short charges of a few hundred feet.
Life span
Typical adult longevity. Figures for managed care come from zoo and sanctuary records.
Snow Leopard
10–12 years
Lion
12–16 years Longer
Snow Leopard
18–22 years
Lion
20–25 years Longer
Habitat and range
Where each species lives and the conditions it tolerates.
Snow Leopard
rocky alpine, montane forest, steppe
Broken cliff, ridgeline and alpine meadow, generally between 9,800 and 17,000 feet in the Himalaya, and considerably lower in the northern part of the range where treeline is lower.
Lion
savanna, grassland, dry forest, semi-arid scrub
Open and lightly wooded landscapes with water and abundant grazing herds. Lions avoid closed rainforest and true desert interiors, but persist in arid systems such as the Kalahari where prey concentrates seasonally.
Snow Leopard
Asia
Twelve range countries across the Himalaya, Karakoram, Pamir, Tien Shan, Altai and Sayan mountains, including China, Mongolia, India, Nepal, Pakistan, Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan and Russia.
Lion
Africa, Asia
Fragmented populations across sub-Saharan Africa, with strongholds in southern and eastern Africa. A single Asiatic population survives in and around the Gir landscape of Gujarat, India.
Diet and behaviour
Feeding ecology, social organisation and hunting technique.
Snow Leopard
medium ungulates, small mammals, birds
Blue sheep and Siberian ibex are the staples across most of the range, supplemented by argali, marmots, pikas, hares and gamebirds.
Lion
large ungulates, medium ungulates, carrion
Zebra, wildebeest, buffalo, gemsbok and warthog dominate the diet where available. Lions readily appropriate kills made by hyaenas, cheetahs and wild dogs.
Snow Leopard
Solitary
Home ranges are very large, reflecting low prey density; individuals mark travel routes along ridgelines with scrapes and scent. Snow leopards cannot roar.
Lion
Social — lives in prides
Prides usually hold three to twelve related adult females plus dependent young; males live in coalitions and defend access to one or more prides. Roaring maintains spacing between groups and can carry several miles at night.
Snow Leopard
Crepuscular
Movement peaks at dawn and dusk, matching the activity of mountain ungulates, with resting sites chosen for a view over approach routes.
Lion
Nocturnal and crepuscular
Most hunting happens between dusk and dawn, with peaks in dark, moonless conditions. Daylight hours are spent resting, often for twenty hours in hot weather.
Snow Leopard
Ambush from above on broken ground
The cat uses cliffs and gullies to approach unseen, then charges downhill; leaps of several body lengths across rock are routine.
Lion
Cooperative stalk and ambush
Females often hunt together, with individuals taking consistent flanking or centre positions. Cooperation raises success rates against large prey such as buffalo, which single lions rarely tackle.
Snow Leopard
Exceptional More developed
Superb on rock and scree, using the long tail for balance on narrow ledges. Tree climbing is largely irrelevant in its habitat.
Lion
Limited
Adults climb heavily and infrequently, although the tree-resting lions of Lake Manyara and Queen Elizabeth National Park show the behaviour is learned locally.
Snow Leopard
Very limited
Rarely recorded in water; the species occupies cold, mostly frozen catchments where swimming offers no advantage.
Lion
Limited More developed
Lions swim when they must cross channels, as in the Okavango Delta, but avoid deep water where possible.
Conservation
Red List category, population direction and the pressures documented for each species.
Snow Leopard
VU — Vulnerable
Assessed 2017
Lion
VU — Vulnerable
Assessed 2023
Snow Leopard
Decreasing
Lion
Decreasing
Snow Leopard
Retaliatory killing after livestock loss, Poaching for pelts and bones, Prey depletion from competition with livestock, Mining and linear infrastructure, Climate-driven treeline shift
Reclassified from Endangered to Vulnerable in 2017 after improved survey data, though the assessment stressed that the change reflected better information rather than population recovery.
Lion
Habitat conversion, Prey depletion, Retaliatory killing after livestock loss, Poorly regulated hunting, Trade in bones and body parts
The species has disappeared from the large majority of its historical range and now survives mostly inside or beside protected areas. West African populations are of particular concern, and the Asiatic population depends on a single landscape.
Notable traits
Details that do not fit neatly into a measurement table.
Snow Leopard
- Snow leopards lack the specialised vocal anatomy of roaring cats and instead produce a wailing call known as a "yowl".
- Their tails can measure close to ninety per cent of head-body length, proportionally the longest of any big cat.
- Camera-trap and genetic surveys still cover only a fraction of the species' vast, difficult range.
Lion
- A lion roar is produced by an unusually elastic, square-shaped vocal fold that allows loud calls at low effort.
- Prides fission and fuse: members frequently split into smaller subgroups for days at a time rather than travelling as one unit.
- Asiatic lions are on average smaller than southern African lions and typically show a longitudinal fold of skin along the belly.
Sources used for this comparison
- IUCN Red List of Threatened Species Global assessment categories, population trends and documented threats.
- IUCN SSC Cat Specialist Group Species accounts, distribution notes and Cat News reporting for every wild felid.
- Snow Leopard Trust Long-term ecological study of snow leopards and high-mountain prey systems.
- Panthera Field research programmes and species profiles for big and small wild cats.
- World Wildlife Fund Range descriptions, threat summaries and conservation programme reporting.
- Smithsonian's National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute Body measurements, longevity records and life-history notes.