# How Big Is A Humpback Whale?

> Humpback Whale size and weight: typical 25,000–30,000 kg (28–33 tons), dimorphism, and growth.

- **Species:** Humpback Whale (*Megaptera novaeangliae*)
- **Conservation status:** Least Concern
- **Diet:** Carnivore (krill and small fish)
- **Habitat:** Oceans worldwide
- **Lifespan:** Up to 80–90 years
- **Top speed:** Up to 27 km/h (17 mph)
- **Canonical HTML:** https://globalanimalguide.org/animals/humpback-whale/how-big-is-a-humpback-whale/
- **Parent profile:** https://globalanimalguide.org/animals/humpback-whale/
- **Last reviewed:** 2026-07-16

## Quick answer

The humpback whale is a large baleen whale found in oceans worldwide, famous for its complex, haunting songs, spectacular breaching, and enormous wing-like flippers. Humpbacks can grow to 15 m (49 ft), migrate thousands of miles between feeding and breeding grounds, and live up to 80 years or more. Once hunted to the brink, they are now a conservation success story listed as Least Concern.

## Who should skip this page

Skip this if you need the full biology — use the [Humpback Whale profile](https://globalanimalguide.org/animals/humpback-whale/) instead.

## The whale that sings

Male humpbacks produce some of the longest and most complex songs in the animal kingdom, sequences of moans, cries, and whistles that can last 20 minutes and be repeated for hours. All the males in a population sing the same evolving song, which gradually changes from year to year, likely as part of breeding behavior.

## Help protect the Humpback Whale

Ocean wildlife is under mounting pressure from overfishing, bycatch and plastic pollution.

[Donate to wildlife protection](https://worldanimalrescuenetwork.org/donate/)

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Source: Global Animal Guide (https://globalanimalguide.org/animals/humpback-whale/how-big-is-a-humpback-whale/). Licensed CC BY-NC 4.0 — free for non-commercial reuse with attribution.