American Pit Bull Terrier vs German Shepherd

An American Pit Bull Terrier
Photo: geoggirl
A German Shepherd
Photo: Erick Drumss Hernández

Side by side

American Pit Bull Terrier
German Shepherd
Adult weight
Males 16–27 kg (35–60 lb); females 14–23 kg (30–50 lb) (registry figure)1
Males 36–45.5 kg (79–100 lb); females 30.6–39.5 kg (67–87 lb) (measured in UK vet records, n = 12,146, middle 50%)2
Height
Males 45–53 cm; females 43–50 cm (registry figure)1
No sourced figure
Lifespan
12–13 years3
Median 11.3 years4
Fully grown
11 months, both sexes5
13 months, both sexes5
Group
Terrier (AKC)
Sheepdogs & cattledogs6
Coat
No sourced figure
Double coat or long coat6
Shedding
No sourced figure
Moults most as the seasons change
Exercise
No sourced figure
Plenty
Health
No sourced figure
Blood-vessel cancer (much more likely); Elbow joint disease (much more likely)7,8
Class
Companion
Watchdog

Which suits you

Size
The German Shepherd is much larger: about 38 kg (84 lb) as an adult, against 20 kg (44 lb) for the American Pit Bull Terrier.
Temperament
They differ most on affection (American Pit Bull Terrier: a lap or leaning dog; German Shepherd: affectionate on its own terms) and on independence (American Pit Bull Terrier: cooperative, with its own ideas; German Shepherd: keen to work with you).
Alike
Both are rated the same on activity: needs lots of exercise.
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 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.

German Shepherd
Sheepdogs & cattledogs · Large

The breed is alert, watchful and self-assured, devoted to its own people and reserved with strangers.

The American Pit Bull Terrier page →The German Shepherd page →

Breed traits

Day to day
American Pit Bull Terrier
German Shepherd
Activity
Needs lots of exercise
Needs lots of exercise
Intelligence
Differs
Learns readily, likes games
Needs daily brain work
Handler demand
Needs an experienced owner
Needs an experienced owner
With people
American Pit Bull Terrier
German Shepherd
Affection
Differs
A lap or leaning dog
Affectionate on its own terms
Loyalty
Differs
Bonded to its family
Sticks close to its people
Independence
Differs
Cooperative, with its own ideas
Keen to work with you
Around the home
American Pit Bull Terrier
German Shepherd
Sensitivity
Differs
Average
Needs a calm, predictable home
Voice
Barks to alert, then settles
Barks to alert, then settles
Prey drive
Differs
Likely to chase small pets
Chases; needs managing
Breed explains only about 9% of how individual dogs differ in behaviour9. Meet the dog. A good breeder breeds for temperament as well as health, and matches each puppy's personality to the right home10,11.

Puppy growth

Reference curves · both sexes
The German Shepherd grows to the heavier adult, about 38 kg against the American Pit Bull Terrier's 20 kg.
American Pit Bull Terrier
German Shepherd
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More comparisons

Compare the American Pit Bull Terrier with
Belgian Malinois vs German ShepherdAmerican Pit Bull Terrier vs Staffordshire Bull TerrierAmerican Pit Bull Terrier vs American Staffordshire TerrierDoberman Pinscher vs German ShepherdGerman Shepherd vs RottweilerAmerican Bully vs American Pit Bull TerrierAll breed comparisons →

Sources

Parts of this page were written by AI ·