American Bully vs American Pit Bull Terrier

An American Bully
Photo: Juan. botti
An American Pit Bull Terrier
Photo: geoggirl

Side by side

American Bully
American Pit Bull Terrier
Adult weight
20–60 kg (44–132 lb) (registry figure)1
Males 16–27 kg (35–60 lb); females 14–23 kg (30–50 lb) (registry figure)2
Height
Males 35.6–58.4 cm; females 33–55.9 cm (registry figure)1
Males 45–53 cm; females 43–50 cm (registry figure)2
Lifespan
10–12 years3
12–13 years4
Fully grown
13 months, both sexes5
11 months, both sexes5
Group
Terrier (AKC)
Class
Companion
Companion

Which suits you

Size
The American Bully comes in a wide range of sizes, 20–60 kg (44–132 lb) as an adult, against 14–27 kg (30–60 lb) for the American Pit Bull Terrier.
Temperament
They differ most on activity (American Bully: happy with modest walks; American Pit Bull Terrier: needs lots of exercise) and on intelligence (American Bully: easy-going, simple routines; American Pit Bull Terrier: learns readily, likes games).
Alike
Both are rated the same on affection: a lap or leaning dog.
Neither is the better dog in general. Which suits you depends on your home, your days and the care you can give.
Take the breed matcher

What they're like

American Bully
Terrier · Large

Breed standards describe a confident, outgoing and gentle dog, affectionate with its household, and treat aggression towards people as highly undesirable.

American Pit Bull Terrier
Terrier · Medium

Breed standards describe a confident, eager and people-focused dog that is usually friendly with strangers, which makes it a poor guard dog.

The American Bully page →The American Pit Bull Terrier page →

Breed traits

Day to day
American Bully
American Pit Bull Terrier
Activity
Differs
Happy with modest walks
Needs lots of exercise
Intelligence
Differs
Easy-going, simple routines
Learns readily, likes games
Handler demand
Differs
Needs steady training
Needs an experienced owner
With people
American Bully
American Pit Bull Terrier
Affection
A lap or leaning dog
A lap or leaning dog
Loyalty
Bonded to its family
Bonded to its family
Independence
Cooperative, with its own ideas
Cooperative, with its own ideas
Around the home
American Bully
American Pit Bull Terrier
Sensitivity
Differs
Hardy, takes a busy home in its stride
Average
Voice
Differs
Quiet
Barks to alert, then settles
Prey drive
Differs
Chases; needs managing
Likely to chase small pets
Breed explains only about 9% of how individual dogs differ in behaviour6. Meet the dog. A good breeder breeds for temperament as well as health, and matches each puppy's personality to the right home7,8.

Puppy growth

Reference curves · both sexes
The American Bully grows to the heavier adult, about 40 kg against the American Pit Bull Terrier's 20 kg.
American Bully
American Pit Bull Terrier
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More comparisons

Compare the American Bully with
American Pit Bull Terrier vs Staffordshire Bull TerrierAmerican Pit Bull Terrier vs American Staffordshire TerrierAmerican Bully vs Staffordshire Bull TerrierAmerican Pit Bull Terrier vs Bull TerrierAmerican Pit Bull Terrier vs German ShepherdAmerican Pit Bull Terrier vs BulldogAll breed comparisons →

Sources

Parts of this page were written by AI ·