How many white rhinos are left? There were 15,752 at the end of 2024, according to the IUCN’s African Rhino Specialist Group, reported by the IUCN. Almost all are southern white rhinos. The northern white rhino is functionally extinct: only two females survive, in Kenya, and neither can carry a calf.
That total fell by 11.2% in a single year, mainly because of losses in South Africa and Namibia, the IUCN says. Even so, white rhinos are still the most common rhino on Earth. They are listed as Near Threatened by the IUCN, one step below Vulnerable.
How many white rhinos are left in the wild?
The 15,752 figure covers white rhinos across Africa, in national parks, state reserves and private land. It is built from counts that each country and reserve sends to the IUCN rhino experts. Many white rhinos live on fenced private ranches, but they still live outdoors and feed themselves.
They are packed into very few places. Just five countries hold 99% of Africa’s white rhinos, and most of those are in South Africa, says the International Rhino Foundation (IRF). South Africa alone looks after close to 80% of the world’s rhinos of all species, says the IUCN SSC African Rhino Specialist Group’s 2024–2025 report. That makes white rhinos easier to guard, but trouble in one country hits the whole population.
Is the white rhino population going up or down?
Down, for now. But the long story is one of the biggest comebacks in conservation.
| Year | White rhinos | What happened | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Early 1900s | Fewer than 100 | Hunted almost to extinction | IRF |
| End of 2012 | More than 21,000 | Peak after a century of protection | IRF |
| 2012–2021 | Fell by 24% | Poaching crisis | IRF |
| 2023 | 17,464 | Before a new wave of losses | IRF State of the Rhino |
| End of 2024 | 15,752 | Down 11.2% in one year | IUCN SSC African Rhino Specialist Group |
From under 100 to over 21,000 is a rise of more than 200 times. Protected parks and strict guarding in South Africa made that possible. Then, from about 2008, rising demand for horn brought a poaching crisis, and numbers began to slide.
Why are white rhinos declining again?
Poaching is the main reason. Criminal gangs kill rhinos for their horns, which are sold on the black market. In early 2025 alone, poachers killed 83 southern white rhinos in South Africa, 52 of them in Kruger National Park, the IUCN reports. The IUCN’s 2025 update also names drought and other threats among the causes of rhino losses.
There is some good news. Across Africa, the share of rhinos poached in 2024 was 2.15%, the lowest since 2011, says the IUCN. Some reserves also cut off horns to make rhinos worthless to poachers; see do rhino horns grow back for how that works.
How many northern white rhinos are left?
Two: a mother named Najin and her daughter Fatu. Both live under guard at Ol Pejeta Conservancy in Kenya, says the BioRescue research team. Neither can carry a pregnancy, and there are no living males. That is why San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance and other experts call the subspecies functionally extinct.
Scientists are trying to bring it back with IVF. By August 2025, BioRescue had made 38 pure northern white rhino embryos from stored eggs and sperm. They have tried placing embryos into southern white rhino mothers, in July 2024, December 2024 and May 2025. None of these transfers had led to a lasting pregnancy by August 2025.
How many rhinos are left in the world?
About 26,700 wild rhinos of all five species, if you add the IUCN’s latest estimates. White rhinos make up well over half of them.
| Species | Number | Trend |
|---|---|---|
| White rhino (southern and northern) | 15,752 | Down 11.2% |
| Black rhino | 6,788 | Up 5.2% |
| Greater one-horned rhino | 4,075 | Up from 2,565 in 2007 |
| Javan rhino | About 50 | 26 poached, 2019–2023 |
| Sumatran rhino | 34–47 | Down from 280–320 in 2007 |
The rarest are in Asia. Read how many Javan rhinos are left for the story of the species that lives in a single park.
How big is a white rhino?
After the elephant, the white rhino is one of the heaviest land animals alive. It weighs 1,800–2,700 kg (4,000–6,000 lb) and stands 1.5–1.8 m (5–6 ft) at the shoulder, says the IRF. Its front horn averages about 90 cm (35 in), and the longest on record measured 150 cm (59 in), according to the IRF. White rhinos eat grass on open savannas. For another giant that needs room to roam, see why Asian elephants are endangered.
Quick facts: white rhino numbers
- White rhinos left: 15,752 (end of 2024).
- Change in one year: down 11.2%.
- Northern white rhinos left: 2 females, Najin and Fatu.
- Countries holding 99% of them: five, mainly South Africa.
- IUCN status: Near Threatened.
Frequently asked questions
Are white rhinos endangered?
Not officially. The IUCN lists the white rhino as Near Threatened, one step below Vulnerable, because there are still 15,752 of them. But numbers fell 11.2% in 2024, and the northern white rhino subspecies is functionally extinct, with only two females left.
Why is it called a white rhino?
Not because of its colour: white rhinos are grey, like other rhinos. The name's origin is uncertain. A popular story says it comes from a word for 'wide', describing its broad, square mouth, which is built for grazing grass. Historians have questioned that story, so treat it as a legend.
Can the northern white rhino be saved?
Possibly, with IVF. Scientists have made 38 northern white rhino embryos and plan to grow them in southern white rhino mothers. Three transfers between July 2024 and May 2025 did not lead to lasting pregnancies. Any calves would be raised alongside Najin and Fatu to learn rhino behaviour.
Where do white rhinos live?
In the grasslands and savannas of Africa. Five countries hold 99% of them, and most live in South Africa, according to the International Rhino Foundation. The last two northern white rhinos live at Ol Pejeta Conservancy in Kenya.
Sources
- IUCN (2025). Poaching of African rhinos down – but drought and other threats drive losses globally.
- International Rhino Foundation. White rhino.
- International Rhino Foundation. State of the Rhino.
- IUCN Species Survival Commission (2025). IUCN SSC African Rhino Specialist Group 2024–2025 report.
- San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance. Rhinoceros.
- International Rhino Foundation. How long can a rhino's horn grow?.
- BioRescue (Leibniz Institute for Zoo and Wildlife Research) (2025). BioRescue scientists produced three new embryos and began using northern white rhino embryos in embryo transfers.
Sources checked 15 September 2026.
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