T. rex vs Spinosaurus: Which Was Bigger, and Who Would Win?
Two of the biggest meat-eating dinosaurs ever found, built in completely different ways. T. rex was a heavyweight land hunter with a bone-crushing bite. Spinosaurus was a longer, sail-backed river hunter that caught fish. Here they are side by side, inside and out.
T. rex
About 12 m long and around 8 tonnes. Western North America, 68 to 66 million years ago.
Spinosaurus
About 14 m long and several tonnes. North Africa, 99 to 93 million years ago.
T. rex vs Spinosaurus: true size
T. rex vs Spinosaurus at a glance
| T. rex | Spinosaurus | |
|---|---|---|
| Lived | About 68 to 66 million years ago | About 99 to 93 million years ago |
| Where | Western North America | North Africa, in what is now Egypt and Morocco |
| Length | About 12 m | About 14 m, the longest known meat-eater |
| Weight | About 8 tonnes, heavily built | Several tonnes, more lightly built |
| Skull | Wide and deep, built for biting through bone | Long and narrow, like a crocodile |
| Teeth | Thick, serrated, up to about 30 cm with the root | Straight cone shapes for gripping slippery fish |
| Arms | Tiny, with two fingers | Longer and strong, with a big hooked thumb claw |
| Diet | Large animals, such as Triceratops | Mostly fish |
| Home | On land | Rivers and riverbanks |
| Famous feature | One of the strongest bites of any land animal | A tall sail on its back |
Which was bigger?
Spinosaurus wins on length. At around 14 m it is the longest meat-eating dinosaur we know of, a couple of metres longer than T. rex. But length is not everything. T. rex had a much thicker, heavier body and a huge deep skull, so it was probably the heavier animal, at around 8 tonnes.
Who would win in a fight?
They never met. Spinosaurus died out more than 25 million years before T. rex appeared, on a different continent. If they had met on land, most scientists would bet on T. rex. It was heavier, its bite could crush bone, and it was built to take down big animals. Spinosaurus was a specialist fisher, with narrow jaws and cone-shaped teeth made for slippery prey, and it spent much of its time in water.
Built for different jobs
- T. rex teeth were thick and serrated for biting through flesh and bone. Spinosaurus teeth were straight cones for gripping fish.
- T. rex had tiny two-fingered arms. Spinosaurus had longer, stronger arms with a big hooked thumb claw.
- Spinosaurus had dense bones and a paddle-like tail that helped it in water. T. rex was a land animal through and through.
- Spinosaurus carried a tall sail of spines on its back, probably for display. T. rex had no sail.
- T. rex had huge smell areas in its brain for tracking prey across the land.
Look inside both
T. rex vs Spinosaurus questions
Was Spinosaurus bigger than T. rex?
Spinosaurus was longer, at about 14 m against about 12 m. But T. rex was much more heavily built, so it was probably the heavier of the two.
Who would win, T. rex or Spinosaurus?
They never met, so nobody can know. On land, most scientists think T. rex would have had the edge, with its heavier body and bone-crushing bite. Spinosaurus was built to catch fish, not to fight other giants.
Did T. rex and Spinosaurus live at the same time?
No. Spinosaurus lived about 99 to 93 million years ago in North Africa. T. rex appeared more than 25 million years later, in North America.
Which had the stronger bite?
T. rex. It had one of the strongest bites of any land animal ever. Spinosaurus had narrower jaws made for gripping fish rather than crushing bone.
Did Spinosaurus beat T. rex in Jurassic Park?
In the film Jurassic Park III, a Spinosaurus wins a fight against a T. rex. That is movie fiction. In real life the two lived millions of years and thousands of kilometres apart.
More face-offs: see all 3D comparisons.
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