Two of the largest meat-eating dinosaurs that ever lived, Carcharodontosaurus and Tyrannosaurus rex, are often compared and often confused. They were similar in length and both were apex predators, but they lived on different continents, millions of years apart, and hunted in very different ways. Comparing Carcharodontosaurus vs T. rex reveals two separate evolutionary paths to becoming a giant predator, and their teeth tell that story best.
When and where they lived
Carcharodontosaurus lived in North Africa roughly 100 to 95 million years ago, in the middle of the Cretaceous period. Its best fossils come from the Kem Kem beds of Morocco, where it shared a river-rich landscape with Spinosaurus.
Tyrannosaurus rex lived in western North America at the very end of the Cretaceous, roughly 68 to 66 million years ago. Its fossils come from formations such as the Hell Creek of Montana and the Dakotas.
That puts around 30 million years between them. They lived on separate continents and never met. Any “fight” between them is pure imagination.
Different family trees
Although both were large two-legged predators, they were only distantly related.
Carcharodontosaurus belonged to the carcharodontosaurids, a group of giant predators related to Allosaurus. Its relatives include Giganotosaurus from South America and Acrocanthosaurus from North America.
T. rex was a tyrannosaurid, part of a group more closely related to birds. Tyrannosaurs started small and only became giants late in the Cretaceous, after carcharodontosaurids had largely disappeared from the Northern Hemisphere.
In other words, these two predators evolved giant size independently.
Size
Both dinosaurs reached roughly 12 metres in length. T. rex was generally more heavily built, with a deep, broad body and massive skull. Carcharodontosaurus was probably somewhat lighter for its length, though weight estimates for both animals vary and continue to be refined.
For collectors and enthusiasts, the honest answer is that they were in the same size class, with T. rex likely the bulkier of the two.
Skulls and senses
The skull of Carcharodontosaurus was long and fairly narrow, with large openings that kept it light. The skull of T. rex was much broader at the back, giving room for huge jaw muscles. Its eyes faced more forward, giving T. rex better depth perception than most large predators.
T. rex also had a relatively large brain for a dinosaur of its size, with well-developed senses of smell and sight.
Teeth: knives vs spikes
The biggest difference between them is in their teeth, and this is where fossils make the comparison easy to see.
Carcharodontosaurus teeth are flattened, blade-like and curved backward, with fine serrations on both edges and distinctive wrinkles in the enamel near the edges. They worked like knives, slicing deep wounds in large prey.
T. rex teeth are thick, rounded in cross-section and built like spikes. They have serrations on both edges, but their robust shape let them puncture and crush bone without breaking. Fossil bones with T. rex bite marks, and even its fossil droppings containing bone fragments, show that it regularly bit through bone.
Place the two teeth side by side and the difference is obvious. One is a slicing blade; the other is a bone-crushing spike.
How they hunted
Carcharodontosaurus likely attacked large prey, including sauropods, with repeated slicing bites that caused heavy bleeding, then waited for its prey to weaken.
T. rex relied on raw bite power. Its bite force was among the strongest of any land animal, allowing it to crush bone and deliver devastating single bites to prey such as Triceratops and Edmontosaurus.
Arms
T. rex famously had tiny arms with two functional fingers. Carcharodontosaurus arms are poorly known from fossils, but its close relatives had small, three-fingered hands. Neither relied on its arms as primary weapons.
Building a comparison display
One of the most rewarding displays in dinosaur collecting is a Carcharodontosaurus tooth beside a T. rex tooth. Together, they show two separate solutions to being a giant predator, from two continents and two ages. Explore Carcharodontosaurus teeth and T. rex teeth at Buried Treasure Fossils to build your own pair.
Frequently asked questions
1. Was Carcharodontosaurus bigger than T. rex?
They were similar in length, around 12 metres. T. rex was probably heavier and more robustly built.
2. Did Carcharodontosaurus and T. rex ever meet?
No. They lived about 30 million years apart on different continents.
3. How are their teeth different?
Carcharodontosaurus teeth are flat, blade-like and slicing. T. rex teeth are thick, rounded and built to crush bone.
4. Which had the stronger bite?
T. rex. Its thick teeth and broad skull gave it one of the strongest bites of any land animal.
Two giants, two stories
Carcharodontosaurus and T. rex were both kings of their worlds, but they reached the top in very different ways. Their teeth capture that difference perfectly. Discover authentic Carcharodontosaurus teeth at Buried Treasure Fossils.