What is the maximum recorded weight of a polar bear?

The maximum recorded weight of a polar bear is 1,002 kg.

That record belongs to a male polar bear shot at Kotzebue Sound in northwestern Alaska in 1960. Reports state that the animal measured roughly 3.4 metres tall when standing on its hind legs, making it an extraordinary example even for the largest living land carnivore.

The figure is a recorded maximum, not a typical adult weight. Adult males commonly weigh several hundred kilograms, while females are substantially smaller; a pregnant female may reach around 500 kg. Polar bears also gain and lose considerable mass as they build fat reserves for periods when hunting is difficult.

Polar bears are exceptionally large because their Arctic lifestyle rewards insulation, energy storage and the ability to overpower seal prey. Their broad paws distribute weight on snow and ice and also function as swimming paddles. The record is sometimes presented as an absolute, universally verified limit, but “reportedly” is appropriate: historical wildlife records can differ in measurement quality. It remains the standard cited maximum for a wild polar bear.