How Big Are Penguins – Height & Weight of Every Species

Penguins are a group of flightless aquatic birds, that have a unique countertide appearance, found exclusively in the Southern Hemisphere. There are approximately 18 species of penguins known which may look similar but do vary in length as well as weight. Each of these species is listed below.

Penguins – Height & Weight Of Every Species 

Penguins vary in length as well as in weight from species to species. On average, the length of the specie measure from 15 to 45 inches whereas the weight measure around 2 to 88 pounds.  The 18 species of penguins with varying sizes are enlisted here:

Species	Scientific Name	Geography	Length	Weight	Population	Life Span	Status
Emperor Penguin	Aptenodytes forsteri	Antarctic Mainland	45 inches or 115 cm	77 to 88 pounds or 25 to 40 kg	120,000 breeding pairs	20 to 40 years	Least concern
King Penguin	Aptenodytes patagonicus	Sub Antarctic islands, Tierra del Fuego and Falkland Islands	35 to 37 inches or 90 to 95 cm	30 to 35 pounds and 13 to 16 kg	1.6 million breeding pairs	13 to 15 years	Least Concern
Gentoo Penguin	Pygoscelis papua	Falkland Islands, South Georgia and Chile	29 to 35 inches or 75 to 90 cm	11 to 18 pounds or 5 to 8 kg	400,000 breeding pairs	12 to 15 years	Near Threatened
Royal Penguin	Eudyptes schlegeli	Macquarie and Campbell Islands and south of New Zealand	26 to 30 inches or 65 to 75 cm	13 to 18 pounds or 6 to 8 kg	850,000 breeding pairs	15 to 20 years	Vulnerable
Yellow-Eyed Penguin	Megadyptes antipodes	New Zealand, Stewart Island, South Island Foveaux Strait,	2 to 30 inches or 65 to 75 cm	11 to 13 pounds or 5 to 6 kg	1,700 breeding pairs	12 to 20 years	Endangered
Adelie Penguin	Pygoscelis adeliae	Mainland of Antarctica	24 to 28 inches or 60 to 70 cm	8.75 to 12 pounds or 4 to 5 kg	2.4 million breeding pairs	15 to 20 years	Least Concern
Fiordland Penguin	Eudyptes pachyrhynchus	New Zealand	24 to 28 inches or 60 to 71 cm	4.5 to 13.1 pounds or 2.5 to 6 kg	1,500 to 5,000 breeding pairs	10 to 15 years	Vulnerable
Magellanic Penguin	Spheniscus magellanicus	Coastal Argentina, Falkland Islands, Chile and   southern Brazil	24 to 30 inches or 61 to 76 cm	8 to 14 pounds or 4 to 6 kg	1.5 million breeding pairs	15 to 20 years	Near Threatened
Macaroni Penguin	Eudyptes chrysolophus	Antarctic islands, Atlantic and Indian oceans, Peninsula, Chile and Argentina	28 inches or 70 cm	7 to 14 pounds or 3.2 to 6.4 kg	9 million breeding pairs	11.4 years	Vulnerable
African Penguin	Spheniscus demersus	South Africa	27 inches or 69 cm	7 to 11 pounds or 2.5 to 4 kg	15,000 breeding pairs	20 years	Endangered
Humboldt Penguin	Spheniscus humboldti	Coastal regions of Chile and Peru	26 to 28 inches or 65 to 70 cm	9 to 11 pounds or 4 to 5 kg	16,000 breeding pairs	12 to 15 years	Vulnerable
Chinstrap Penguin	Pygoscelis antarcticus	Antarctic Peninsula, sub-Antarctic Region, South Sandwich Islands, South Georgia, Balleny Islands	27 to 28 inches or 68 to 72 cm	9 to 14 pounds or 3.5 to 5 kg	4 million breeding pairs	15 to 20 years	Least Concern
Northern Rockhopper Penguin	Eudyptes moseleyi	sub-Antarctic regions, Saint Helena, Tristan da Cunha, Ascension Island	22 inches or 57 cm	7 to 10 pounds or 3 to 4.3 kg	190,000-230,000 breeding pairs	9 to 12 years	Endangered
Southern Rockhopper Penguin	Eudyptes chrysocome	Macquarie Island, Campbell Island, the Falklands, and the Antipodes	21inches or 55 cm	5 to 8 pounds or 2.2 to 3.5 kg	1.2 million breeding pairs	11.5 years	Vulnerable
Galapagos Penguin	Spheniscus mendiculus	Fernandina Island and west coast of Isabela Island and Galapagos archipelago island	16 to 19 inches or 40 to 50 cm	4.5 to 5.5 pounds or 2.2 to 5 kg	600 breeding pairs	12 to 15 years	Endangered
Little Penguin	Eudyptula minor	Chatham Islands, New Zealand, Tasmania, and southern Australia	14 to 16 inches or 35 to 40 cm	2.25 pounds or 1 kg	250,000 breeding pairs	6 to 10 years	Least Concern
Snares Penguin	Eudyptes robustus	New Zealand	20 to 24 inches or 50 to 60 cm	6 to 9 pounds or 2.5 to 4 kg	32,000 breeding pairs	12 to 20 years	Vulnerable
Erect-Crested Penguin	Eudyptes sclateri	Australia, Southern Ocean, New Zealand	20 to 28 inches or 50 to 70 cm	5.5 to 13.2 pounds or 2.5 to 6 kg	68,000 breeding pairs	12 years	Endangered

Final Verdict

There are approximately 18 species of penguins are known, which varies greatly in size. Among all, the Emperor penguins are the tallest and heaviest species whereas the Little penguins are considered the smallest ones. The size of the penguins matters a lot because it helps them to stay for a long period under the water and to take e deep dives when chasing prey.