Home / Breeds / Compare / Boxer vs American Bully
Boxers are exuberant, muscular clowns that stay playful well into middle age. From United States, the American Bully is a large primitive landrace breed whose traditional work was to survive and work alongside people as a hunter, guardian and general purpose dog, shaped by natural selection as much as by breeders. This page puts the two side by side on the numbers that actually differ: size, exercise, grooming, what each costs to keep, and the health tests a breeder should show you.
The biggest gap is size: the middle of the American Bully weight range is about 88 lb against 65 lb for the Boxer.
The next biggest gap is trainability: the Boxer is rated 4 of 5 against 2 of 5 for the American Bully.
The third gap worth noting is monthly cost: the modeled total is about $128 a month for the Boxer against $106 for the American Bully.
| Boxer | American Bully | |
|---|---|---|
| Group | Working | Working |
| Origin | Germany | United States |
| Height | 21.5 to 25 in | 14 to 20 in |
| Weight | 50 to 80 lb | 66 to 110 lb |
| Lifespan | 10 to 12 years | 10 to 12 years |
| Coat | Short, smooth coat that lies close and shines with health. | Short, smooth and glossy. |
| Temperament | Fun loving, bright, loyal and patient | Alert, loyal, reserved and tough |
| Energy | 5 of 5 | 4 of 5 |
| Trainability | 4 of 5 | 2 of 5 |
| Grooming needs | 2 of 5 | 2 of 5 |
| Shedding | 3 of 5 | 3 of 5 |
| Barking | 3 of 5 | 3 of 5 |
| With children | Good with children | Better with older children |
| With other dogs | Usually good with dogs | With early socialization |
| With strangers | Friendly but watchful | Wary of strangers |
| Apartment fit | With enough exercise | With enough exercise |
| Daily exercise | 60 to 90 min | 60 to 90 min |
| Food per month (model) | $40 (3.7 cups a day) | $50 (4.7 cups a day) |
| Insurance per month (model) | $65 to $110 | $40 to $73 |
| Monthly total (model) | $105 to $150 | $90 to $123 |
| Yearly total (model) | $1,259 to $1,799 | $1,081 to $1,477 |
| Lifetime total (model) | $12,589 to $21,586 | $10,810 to $17,724 |
| Breeder health tests | 5 recommended tests | 3 recommended tests |
| Health watch | Cancer, heart conditions (aortic stenosis and Boxer cardiomyopathy), hip dysplasia and hypothyroidism lead the list. Choose breeders who heart test with Holter monitoring and screen hips. | Landrace breeds are usually notably healthy, shaped by natural selection rather than fashion. Sensible breeders still screen hips and eyes, and the bigger health task for owners is socialization, not medication. |
Boxer: scores 16 on the first-time-owner rule (trainability weighted double, then calmer energy, grooming and barking), against 13 for the American Bully.
Boxer: matches the American Bully on the apartment rating ("With enough exercise") and edges ahead on the tie-breaks: barking, then daily exercise, then size.
Boxer: is listed "Good with children" while the American Bully is listed "Better with older children".
Level on shedding. Shedding is only a proxy for loose hair in the home; no breed is allergen-free, so time spent with the breed matters more than this row.
American Bully: comes in about $22 a month below the Boxer on modeled food plus insurance, at $106 against $128 on the midpoints.
Scoring rules behind the Boxer and American Bully verdicts: a first-time-owner score of 2 x trainability + (6 - energy) + (6 - grooming) + (6 - barking); the apartment verdict ordered by apartment rating, barking, exercise, then weight; children ordered by the children rating, trainability, then stranger friendliness; allergy by lowest shedding, then grooming; budget by the lowest monthly modeled total. Level scores are declared ties.
The published breeder panel for the Boxer lists 5 recommended tests; the American Bully panel lists 3. 0 test areas are shared by both panels.
Listed for the Boxer and not in the American Bully panel: 24 hour Holter monitor for Boxer cardiomyopathy (ARVC); Aortic stenosis Doppler echocardiogram, by a cardiologist; DNA tests listed by the club; Hip and elbow radiographs; Thyroid panel.
Listed for the American Bully and not in the Boxer panel: Advanced cardiac evaluation (examination by a cardiologist, with; Elbow evaluation (OFA radiographic evaluation); Hip evaluation (OFA radiographic evaluation or PennHIP).
Full panels: Boxer health testing and American Bully health testing.
On the modeled figures, keeping the Boxer costs more each month: the midpoint of food plus insurance is about $128, against $106 for the American Bully. Across the lifespan ranges, the model gives $12,589 to $21,586 for the Boxer and $10,810 to $17,724 for the American Bully. These are planning estimates, not quotes.
They are level: both plan on 60 to 90 minutes a day, and energy is rated 5 of 5 for the Boxer against 4 of 5 for the American Bully.
On our ratings, yes: both are rated 3 of 5 for shedding. The coats still feel different in the house. Boxer: Short, smooth coat that lies close and shines with health. American Bully: Short, smooth and glossy.
Not equally. The Boxer is the better fit for an apartment: it matches the American Bully on the apartment rating ("With enough exercise") and edges ahead on the tie-breaks, barking, then daily exercise, then size.
The Boxer is the more trainable of the two on our ratings, 4 of 5 against 2 of 5 for the American Bully. Temperament notes describe the Boxer as: Fun loving, bright, loyal and patient
The Boxer: its published breeder panel runs to 5 recommended tests, against 3 for the American Bully. A longer panel is not a mark against a breed; it usually means the breed club has identified more inherited risks that testing can screen for, and it gives you more paperwork to ask a breeder for.
Choosing between more than two? Open the comparison tool and put up to four breeds side by side, or read all written breed comparisons.
The Boxer and American Bully facts on this page follow the standards and club guidance summarized on each breed's profile. Cost figures are modeled estimates for planning, labeled with their basis; they are not quotes and not veterinary advice. Health test panels are the recommendations published by the breed clubs and CHIC, as set out on each breed's health testing page.