Smallest Dog Breeds by Published Weight
Dog breeds ordered by the lower end of the weight range their registry publishes — the smallest published figures first.
Methodology, and what this ranking cannot tell you
This ranks PUBLISHED BREED STANDARDS, not animals. A standard describes an ideal, and individual dogs routinely fall outside it. Breeds whose standard gives only a floor or only a ceiling are excluded rather than assigned an invented other end, and the count of exclusions is shown. Where a registry publishes separate figures by sex or by variety, the widest published span is used. Ranges overlap heavily — every row shows the range it was ordered by, so two adjacent breeds are usually not meaningfully different.
18 dog breeds in FaunaHub's registry are excluded from this ranking because their standard gives no comparable figure. They are not at the bottom of the list — they are not on it.
Breeds you might expect here, and why they are not
These dog breeds would plausibly belong at this end of the list, but their standard publishes only one side of the figure — so there is no second end to order them on. Their published wording is given so you can place them yourself.
- Beagle — under 20 pounds (13 inches & under); 20-30 pounds (13-15 inches)
- Chihuahua — not exceeding 6 pounds
- Dachshund — 16-32 pounds (standard); 11 pounds & under (miniature)
- French Bulldog — under 28 pounds
- Maltese — under 7 pounds
- Manchester Terrier (Toy) — under 12 pounds
- Pekingese — up to 14 pounds
- Pembroke Welsh Corgi — up to 30 pounds (male); up to 28 pounds (female)
- Russian Toy — Up to 6.5 pounds
| # | Breed | Published weight | As published |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Pomeranian | 1.4–3.2 kg | 3-7 pounds |
| 2 | Biewer Terrier | 1.8–3.6 kg | 4-8 pounds |
| 3 | Poodle (Toy) | 1.8–2.7 kg | 4-6 pounds |
| 4 | Toy Fox Terrier | 1.8–4.1 kg | 4 - 9 lbs |
| 5 | Papillon | 2.3–4.5 kg | 5-10 pounds |
| 6 | Alaskan Klee Kai | 2.7–11.3 kg | 6 - 25 lbs |
| 7 | American Eskimo Dog | 2.7–15.9 kg | 6-10 pounds (toy); 10-20 pounds (miniature); 25-35 pounds (standard)Ordered on “6-10 pounds (toy)” |
| 8 | Bolognese | 2.7–4.5 kg | 6-10 pounds |
| 9 | Russian Tsvetnaya Bolonka | 2.7–4.1 kg | 6 - 9 pounds |
| 10 | Affenpinscher | 3.2–4.5 kg | 7-10 pounds |
| 11 | Havanese | 3.2–5.9 kg | 7-13 pounds |
| 12 | Italian Greyhound | 3.2–6.4 kg | 7-14 pounds |
| 13 | Japanese Chin | 3.2–5 kg | 7-11 pounds |
| 14 | Yorkshire Terrier | 3.2 kg | 7 poundsA single published figure, not a range |
| 15 | Brussels Griffon | 3.6–4.5 kg | 8-10 pounds |
| 16 | Chinese Crested | 3.6–5.4 kg | 8-12 pounds |
| 17 | Coton de Tulear | 3.6–6.8 kg | 9-15 pounds (male); 8-13 pounds (female)Ordered on “8-13 pounds (female)” |
| 18 | English Toy Spaniel | 3.6–6.4 kg | 8-14 pounds |
| 19 | Miniature Pinscher | 3.6–4.5 kg | 8-10 pounds |
| 20 | Teddy Roosevelt Terrier | 3.6–11.3 kg | 8-25 pounds |
| 21 | Lancashire Heeler | 4.1–7.7 kg | 9-17 pounds |
| 22 | Portuguese Podengo Pequeno | 4.1–5.9 kg | 9-13 pounds |
| 23 | Russell Terrier | 4.1–6.8 kg | 9-15 pounds |
| 24 | Shih Tzu | 4.1–7.3 kg | 9-16 pounds |
| 25 | Tibetan Spaniel | 4.1–6.8 kg | 9-15 pounds |
| 26 | Poodle (Miniature) | 4.5–6.8 kg | 10-15 pounds |
| 27 | Rat Terrier | 4.5–11.3 kg | 10-25 pounds |
| 28 | Schipperke | 4.5–7.3 kg | 10-16 pounds |
| 29 | Silky Terrier | 4.5 kg | around 10 poundsA single published figure, not a range |
| 30 | Xoloitzcuintli | 4.5–24.9 kg | 10-15 pounds (toy); 15-30 pounds (miniature); 30-55 pounds (standard)Ordered on “10-15 pounds (toy)” |
| 31 | Miniature Schnauzer | 5–9.1 kg | 11-20 pounds |
| 32 | Norfolk Terrier | 5–5.4 kg | 11-12 pounds |
| 33 | Border Terrier | 5.2–7 kg | 13-15.5 pounds (male); 11.5-14 pounds (female)Ordered on “11.5-14 pounds (female)” |
| 34 | American Hairless Terrier | 5.4–12.7 kg | 12-28 pounds |
| 35 | Bichon Frise | 5.4–8.2 kg | 12-18 pounds |
| 36 | Boston Terrier | 5.4–11.3 kg | 12-25 pounds |
| 37 | Lhasa Apso | 5.4–8.2 kg | 12-18 pounds |
| 38 | Manchester Terrier (Standard) | 5.4–10 kg | 12-22 pounds |
| 39 | Norwegian Lundehund | 5.4–8.2 kg | 15-18 lbs (male); 12-15 lbs (female)Ordered on “12-15 lbs (female)” |
| 40 | Norwich Terrier | 5.4 kg | 12 poundsA single published figure, not a range |
This ranks standards, not animals. A breed standard describes an ideal, and individual dogs routinely fall outside it. Two breeds a few places apart usually have overlapping published ranges — the range column is there so you can see that rather than infer a difference the data does not support. Where a standard gives one figure rather than a range, that row says so — a point figure is placed against other breeds' range ends, which is the closest comparison available and not a like-for-like one.
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