Could an Unarmed Human Beat a King Cobra?

Written by Kyle Glatz
Published: December 4, 2022
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Venomous snakes are some of the deadliest animals in the world, killing roughly 100,000 people yearly. Although the king cobra has very potent venom and lives in areas where snake bites are frequent, they don’t often bite people, preferring to feed on other snakes. That fact, coupled with the videos of humans grabbing venomous snakes and snapping them like a wet towel to kill them, raises the question, would an unarmed human beat a king cobra in a fight?

There are many factors that we have to consider in such a battle. We’ll show you how this fight would go and why. Before we start, you should never attack a venomous snake unless there is no other course of action left for you. Your best bet is to simply leave the area since most snakes aren’t too keen on chasing down a person.  

Comparing an Unarmed Human and a King Cobra

The king cobra has a potent venom it can use against an unarmed human.
Unarmed HumanKing Cobra
SizeWeight: average between 130 and 199 pounds with higher weighs possible
Height: average between 5 feet 3 inches and 5 feet 9 inches
Weight: averages between 10 and 15 pounds
Length: grows between 10 and 19 feet at its utmost
Height: Can pull a few feet of its body off the ground when preparing to strike
Speed– Can run at speeds between 6.5 and 8 mph on average
– Top measured speeds go as high as 27.5 mph
– Up to 5 mph over short distances
– Striking speed is much faster than 5 mph but slower than many other snakes
Defenses– High intelligence allows humans to recognize and leave dangerous situations
– Humans have high stamina that can help them run from adverse situations
– Bodies are relatively weak, with many exposed vital points
– Can hide in vegetation or squeeze into small places
– Threat display of spreading its “hood” is enough to scare most animals away
– Its long body leaves it open to attacks at its midsection  
Offensive Capabilities– May bite, kick, punch, throttle, or grapple other animals
– Weak bite force that measures 160 PSI at its top
– Small, relatively blunt teeth
– Has 0.5-inch fixed fangs that inject upwards of 1,000 mg of venom
– Uses a neurotoxic venom to kill a human in 15 minutes
– The snake injects enough venom to kill 11 adult humans
– Can raise its head and several feet of its body off the ground to attack higher on its enemy’s body
Predatory Behavior– Can act as an ambush predator, cursorial predator, or trapper with tools
– Unarmed, a human would try an ambush attack
– Prefers to attack prey that it can actually kill and eat rather than humans
– Ambush predators that seek to strike their prey and allow the venom to kill them

What Are the Key Factors in a Fight Between an Unarmed Human and a King Cobra?

The most important factors in a battle between an unarmed human and a king cobra are a combination of five elements: size, speed, attack methods, predatory instincts, and defenses. We need to explore each of these factors in the context of both creatures.

By understanding what each animal brings to the fight, we can determine which of them has an advantage in a given area. Using all that information and the advantages of each contender will allow us to figure out which animal is most likely to win the bout!

Unarmed Human vs. King Cobra: Size

Human

Humans are larger than king cobras.

©restyler/Shutterstock.com

The average unarmed human is much larger than a king cobra. The average person weighs between 130 and 199 pounds and stands between 5 feet 3 inches and 5 feet 9 inches tall.

Meanwhile, the king cobra grows between 10 and 19 feet long, can stand about 2 feet high when it pulls its head and body off the ground, and weighs between 10 and 20 pounds.

A human has a size advantage, and their size may save them in this fight.

Unarmed Human vs. King Cobra: Speed

The average human is faster than a king cobra on land. A king cobra can slither at about 5 mph over short distances. The average human can walk at 3 mph and run up to 8 mph. Yet, the fastest person alive can run at speeds of 27.5 mph, but only during a sprint.

All in all, humans have the speed advantage in this fight.

Unarmed Human vs. King Cobra: Defenses

What Eats Snakes

The king cobra can put up a scary threat display.

©Vova Shevchuk/Shutterstock.com

King cobras are large snakes, even longer than some constrictors. That large body helps them absorb damage but also makes it hard to defend attackers coming from the rear. Still, king cobras have great hunting senses that can help detect threats before they arrive.

They also have a scary threat display that will make most people and animals turn and run. Aside from that, they can hide in tall grass and surprisingly small spots.  

Without weapons or tools, humans are a little helpless when it comes to defenses. Certainly, the average person is smart enough to get out of harm’s way or to use the terrain to their advantage. Yet, our bodies are riddled with weak spots such as the eyes and exposed neck.

King cobras have the defensive advantage in this fight.  

Unarmed Human vs. King Cobra: Offensive Capabilities

King cobras have the potential to be incredibly deadly to humans, but they don’t often attack larger animals that they can’t consume. Still, they can bite and inject up to 1,000 mg of venom, enough to kill 11 people! Their long fangs can penetrate deeply into tissue, getting past humans’ thin skin. The neurotoxic venom these snakes generate can cause symptoms like dizziness, loss of coordination, unconsciousness, and death in as few as 15 minutes.

Humans aren’t all that strong, and they’re not all that great offensively without the aid of tools and weapons. An unarmed human can bite, kick, grapple, strangle, and punch enemies. However, humans are rarely as strong as wild animals.

King cobras have the offensive advantage in this fight.

Unarmed Human vs. King Cobra: Predatory Behavior

King cobras are ambush predators that strike from hidden places or actively hunt their prey. They strike quickly, inject venom, and consume their prey whole.

Humans can attack in many ways, but their best bet is to use an ambush attack against another creature. If that’s not possible, they’ll rely on their wits. They’ll find an opening, wear down their prey, and use some form of attack to lay them low.

With weapons, though, humans can attack in various ways that would make them successful in this fight. As it is, though, the person has nothing on them but the clothes on their back.

King cobras have a predatory advantage over an unarmed human.

Who Would Win a Fight Between an Unarmed Human and a King Cobra?

Human

It is possible for an unarmed human to win a fight against the king cobra.

©restyler/Shutterstock.com

An unarmed human could beat a king cobra in a fight. Several factors come into play in this case. Humans are large, smart creatures that king cobras don’t want to fight.  

Basically, the justification for a human winning this fight is that the hesitancy of king cobras to bite humans and waste their venom on something that they can’t consume would give the human an advantage. Also, we have to consider what constitutes a “win” for this fight. In this case, being the last one standing is a win.

A skilled or lucky human can kill a king cobra and live. You can find videos of people carefully approaching and collecting king cobras with just their bare hands.

There’s no doubt that this would be difficult and dangerous. Also, the act of attacking the snake would probably result in the person getting bitten since they’re not trained. Nevertheless, the goal is to get the snake by the last third of its body and wait for an opportune moment, such as when the snake instinctively starts to flee, to get control of its head.

If a person can get control of the snake’s head, the fight is over. The person can replace their hand with their heel and then kill it.

The more likely outcome is that a human gets bitten and decides to take the snake out with it. If a human being was bitten by the king cobra and knew that they weren’t going to live for much longer, they could take the direct path of overwhelming the snake to kill it. They could gain control of the snake’s body and smash its head into the ground, stomp on it, or employ other grisly methods.  

By no means is this an easy thing to do. The human would probably get bitten in this scenario, but king cobras can issue dry bites, so the person might live.

Remember that we said the unarmed human could kill a king cobra. It’s not likely that they will escape without injury or death, though.

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The photo featured at the top of this post is © mrjo/Shutterstock.com


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About the Author

Kyle Glatz is a writer at A-Z-Animals where his primary focus is on geography and mammals. Kyle has been writing for researching and writing about animals and numerous other topics for 10 years, and he holds a Bachelor's Degree in English and Education from Rowan University. A resident of New Jersey, Kyle enjoys reading, writing, and playing video games.

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