The record · Speed

How fast was Spinosaurus?

For such a huge predator, Spinosaurus was surprisingly poorly built for speed. Here is what the fossils suggest about how fast it could move, on land and in the water.

Quick answer

Spinosaurus was not built for speed on land. Its short hind limbs and heavy, dense bones suited wading and swimming rather than sprinting, so it was likely one of the slower large predators on land. It relied on ambush near water, not the chase, and probably moved best in the water itself.

Built for water, not sprinting

Fast-running dinosaurs tend to have long, slender hind limbs. Spinosaurus is the opposite: the 2014 skeleton shows relatively short hind legs, and its bones were unusually dense and heavy, adaptations linked to life in water rather than running on land.

That heavy, low-slung build means Spinosaurus was almost certainly a slow mover on land, well behind leggy pursuit hunters like Tyrannosaurus rex. There is no reliable top-speed figure for it, but a walking or slow trotting pace is the realistic picture.

Faster in the water

Where Spinosaurus really moved was in the water. The deep, paddle-shaped tail described in 2020 could sweep side to side to drive it forward, much like a crocodile or a newt. So while it lumbered on land, it was likely an efficient swimmer.

How it caught prey

A slow land predator does not chase down fast prey, and Spinosaurus did not need to. It hunted fish in and around rivers, using ambush, its long jaws and pressure-sensing snout to grab prey in the water rather than running it down.

Common questions

How fast could Spinosaurus run?

There is no reliable top-speed estimate, but Spinosaurus was likely slow on land. Its short hind limbs and dense, heavy bones suited wading and swimming, not fast running, so it probably moved at a walk or slow trot rather than a sprint.

Was Spinosaurus faster than T. rex?

On land, almost certainly not. T. rex had long, powerful legs built for movement, while Spinosaurus had short hind limbs and a heavy, water-adapted body. In the water, though, Spinosaurus would have the advantage.

Could Spinosaurus outrun a human?

Probably, over a short distance, given its huge stride, but it was not a fast pursuit predator. It hunted by ambush near water rather than by chasing prey across land.

All the facts How big was Spinosaurus?Spinosaurus vs T. rex Size comparison