How Big Do Leopard Geckos Get?

Leopard geckos are rapid growers. They typically mature from hatchling to adult in about 12 months, but will continue growing until they’re between 18 and 24 months. So, how big do leopard geckos get? It varies from leo to leo, and from male to female, but on average leopard geckos can get to be over 8 inches and between 65-70 grams or more.

Leopard Gecko Growth Chart

The Four Leopard Gecko Life Stages

Leopard gecko experts generally divide the leopard gecko lifespan into four loosely defined stages: hatching, juvenile, sub-adult, and adult. For convenience’s sake, these four life stages are assigned months as markers for the end of one stage and the beginning of another. It’s important to remember, however, that your leopard gecko’s maturity is determined more by weight than by age.

Pro Tip: Weight is the most important measurement for determining your leopard gecko’s health and maturity. Weigh your leopard gecko weekly to ensure it maintains a healthy weight as it continues growing.

Baby or Hatchling Leopard Geckos

Baby leopard geckos hatch from eggs that are around two inches in length. Upon hatching, these little leos are only a few inches long. Although they don’t have the characteristic “leopard spots” upon hatching, their spots will begin to develop within a couple of weeks.

• Age: 0-2 months
• Length: 3-4 inches
• Weight: 2-5 grams

Many leo keepers prefer to keep their baby leopard geckos in small, 10 gallon enclosures. This is perfectly fine, so long as you graduate the babies into a larger tank once they reach the juvenile stage. 

Juvenile Leopard Geckos

Somewhere between the two and seven month marks, your leopard gecko should weigh around 15 grams. This is a sign that it’s matured to the juvenile stage.

• 2-7 months
• 5 inches
• 15-25 grams

At this point, you should move your leopard gecko into a 20-30 gallon enclosure. These are usually between two and three feet in length, about a foot and a half deep, and about a foot and a half tall. This enclosure will serve as a permanent home as your leopard gecko gets bigger and bigger. 

Between six and eight months of age, you’ll notice a significant slowing of your leopard gecko’s growth. It’s now transitioning into the next stage of its lifecycle.

Pro Tip: Although your leopard gecko needs plenty of space to grow, it also needs plenty of places to explore and to hide. Be sure to include at least three “hides” in your leopard gecko’s enclosure, as well as rocks, branches, and slate for climbing, and plants for variety.

Sub-Adult Leopard Geckos

As a sub-adult, your leopard gecko isn’t yet as big as it’s going to get. However, you’ll notice a significant slowing in its growth from this point on.

• 7-8 months
• 6-7 inches
• 30-40 grams

Although it’s actually considered an “adult” at this point, your leopard gecko won’t reach full sexual maturity until it’s between 45-60 grams, around 18 months old.

A varied and nutritious diet is key throughout your leopard gecko’s lifespan. This is especially true when helping your leo to mature from the sub-adult to the adult stage. Be sure to alternate feeding your leo gut-loaded crickets, Dubia roaches, and mealworms, dusting the insects with a high quality calcium/vitamin D3 supplement at each meal.

At this point, you’ll notice some small differences between how big your female leopard gecko will get, and how big your male leopard gecko will get.

How Big Do Female Leopard Geckos Get?

Female leopard geckos are usually considered fully mature adults somewhere after the 12-month mark. At this point, your leo should be at least 30 grams, and may measure up to eight inches!

• 12+ months
• 7-8 inches
• 30-40 grams

If it’s your dream to become a leopard gecko breeder, know that your female leo is not yet ready. For the sake of her health, hold off on any attempts to breed until she is 18 months old and at least 60 grams.

How Big Do Male Leopard Geckos Get?

As you might expect, male leopard geckos usually get somewhat bigger than female leopard geckos. It’s not uncommon for a male leo to be the same size at six months as a female leo will be at 12 months!

• 6+ months
• 8-11 inches
• 60+ grams

Now that you know how big you can expect your leopard gecko to get, let’s take a look at how you can encourage it to grow to its full potential.

How to Help Your Leopard Gecko Grow

As far as reptiles go, leopard geckos are very easy to raise and keep as pets. Helping them reach their full growth potential is actually pretty simple and very common sense.

What can you do to help your leopard gecko grow? Just keep it healthy!

Here are a few simple things you can do to keep your leo healthy and encourage growth:

• Provide a properly-sized enclosure – 20+ gallons for an adult leo
• Offer it a varied and nutritious diet of gut-loaded insects (see feeding chart below)
• Dust each feeding with a high-quality calcium/vitamin D3 supplement
• Maintain a proper temperature gradient within the enclosure – 85ºF-90ºF for basking area, and 75ºF-80ºF in the cooler area.
• Maintain optimal humidity levels – 20%-40%
• Clean the enclosure regularly

Leopard Gecko Feeding Charts

Frequency per Age

Amount of Feeders

The quantity that leopard geckos eat varies from leo to leo. If you’re not sure how much to give your leo, try placing a shallow bowl of mealworms in your leo’s enclosure and observe how many it eats within 15 minutes. This will give you a good idea of your leo’s normal appetite.

Takeaway: How big do leopard geckos get? Sizes vary, but a fully mature leopard gecko can weigh 60 grams or more and measure over 8 inches!

Knowing your leopard gecko needs highly-nutritious, gut-loaded insects to help it grow to its full potential, you need to find a reliable source of live insects – like Dubia roaches. Dragon’s Diet offers humanely raised Dubia roaches that are gut-loaded with highly nutritious foods immediately prior to shipping. Our Dubia roaches are also backed by our live delivery guarantee. Shop Dubia roaches today!