Adult cows have an average body weight of 1,350 kg and an average shoulder height of 144 cm. Adult bulls are larger with an average mass of 1,500 kg and an average shoulder height of 150 cm. The hippopotamus is one of the largest megaherbivores in the world.

Common Hippos are endemic to Africa, ranging widely over most of sub-Saharan Africa, from Senegal and Gambia in the west to Sudan, Ethiopia, and Somalia in the east, and south to KwaZulu–Natal in NE. South Africa, the Okavango Delta in Botswana, and the Kunene R. in Namibia. They are restricted to appropriate areas, e.g.meadows with rivers, lakes, and swamps; absent from rainforest except for rivers with adjacent grassy areas.