Fastest Land Animals by Top Speed
Source:
National Geographic
Key Findings
🏆
Cheetah leads in Top Speed (km/h) with 112.
📊
Average Top Speed (km/h): 85.88 · median: 80.
↔️
Gap: Cheetah is 1.6× larger than Elk.
About This Dataset
Fastest Land Animals by Top Speed
The cheetah's extraordinary speed is the product of millions of years of evolutionary refinement — its hyper-flexible spine acts as a coiled spring, nearly doubling stride length compared with other big cats of similar body mass. At 112 km/h, it can accelerate from 0 to 100 km/h in under three seconds, faster than most production sports cars, though it can only sustain peak speed for roughly 20 to 30 seconds before overheating. The pronghorn antelope of North America is the second-fastest land animal, and far more impressively, it can maintain speeds above 80 km/h for miles — a stamina no cheetah can match. Scientists believe the pronghorn's extreme endurance evolved not to outrun today's predators, but to escape the now-extinct American cheetah that roamed the continent until roughly 10,000 years ago. Among domesticated animals, the Quarter Horse holds the speed record at distances up to a quarter mile, bred specifically for explosive short-distance bursts.
Analysis
Cheetah heads the table on 112, ahead of Pronghorn Antelope (98) and Springbok (88) in Top Speed (km/h). 40 separates the highest figure (112) from the lowest (72) in Top Speed (km/h). First and second are separated by 14, so the leader sits inside the field rather than apart from it. Places 3 to 8 are close together, spanning 88 to 72 Top Speed (km/h).
Data Insights
Numbers, trends & sources behind this chart
Methodology & source
- Data source
- National Geographic
- Coverage
- 8 entities · 8 observations
- Measure
- Top Speed (km/h)
- Last updated
- 6 September 2026
- Compiled by
- The ANYSTAT team, from the source above
How the figures are calculated
- Values use the measure and unit named on this page. Consult the dataset description and cited source for coverage, definitions and any unit conversions. Displayed values may be rounded for readability.
- Entities are ranked highest-first on their value.
Data Sources & References
All external sources cited in this dataset
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