Breed selector

Which dog breed fits your life?

Answer a few questions about your home, routine and family, and get a short list of breeds to read about.

Where will the dog live?

An apartment or condo A house, small yard or none A house with a fenced yard

What size dog suits your home, car and budget?

Small (under about 22 lb) Medium (about 22 to 55 lb) Large (over about 55 lb) Any size

On a weekday, how long would the dog usually be alone?

Under 4 hours 4 to 6 hours More than 6 hours

How much exercise and play can you give every day?

Easy walks, about 30 minutes About an hour of walks and play More than an hour, including running or hiking

How much coat care are you willing to do?

Minimal, an occasional brush Weekly brushing Frequent brushing and regular groomer visits

How do you feel about dog hair in the house?

I want as little as possible Some is fine It does not bother me

Are there children under 6 in your home or visiting often?

Yes No

Is there another dog in your home?

Yes No

Is this your first dog?

Yes No

Does anyone in the home have dog allergies?

Yes No

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Answer a few questions about your home, schedule, activity level, grooming preferences, allergies, children and dog experience. You'll get a short list of breeds to read about.

The results are suggestions, not a verdict, and your answers are not stored. There's no account to make and no email to hand over before you see your list.

Individual dogs vary, and a mixed-breed or shelter dog may fit your life better than any breed label does. Think of the selector as a way to turn a long list of breeds into a few worth reading about.

What the selector asks, and why each question matters

Every question is about your routine, because that's what a dog actually has to fit into. The selector starts with your home and space, since a small apartment, a house with a yard and a place with strict building rules all lead to different questions about noise and exercise. Size comes next: how big a dog your home, car and budget can handle, and how comfortable you are lifting or walking one.

Then it asks about your days. How many hours would a dog usually be alone on a weekday? How much walking, running or play can you give every day? Some breeds were developed for hours of work and tend to need a lot of both movement and mental effort. Others settle with a daily walk and some company.

Grooming, shedding, family and experience

Grooming and shedding get their own questions because coat care is a routine, not a detail. A long or curly coat may mean regular brushing and trips to a groomer, while a short coat may mean more hair on the furniture. The selector asks how much of that you're willing to do.

It also asks whether young children or another dog share your home, and whether this is your first dog. Allergies are part of the picture too. Coat and shedding information is about grooming, and no breed can be promised to suit an allergy, so spend time around a dog before you commit.

How to read your matches

Your results are a short list to research, not a ranking of winners. A breed that shows up is worth reading about based on your answers, and its page tells you what daily life with that dog tends to involve. Expect ranges, such as an adult size range or a lower-to-higher activity level, because breeds describe tendencies and not exact measurements.

Look for the friction points as well as the fit. A breed can match most of your answers and still need more exercise or grooming than you planned for. Read those parts of the breed page slowly, and ask yourself honestly whether your week has room for them. If a match looks wrong, change your answers and run it again.

What a breed can't tell you about one dog

A breed describes a group, and the dog in front of you is an individual. A large 2022 study in Science looked at 18,385 purebred and mixed-breed dogs and found that breed explained roughly 9% of the variation in individual behavior. That's enough to make breed a useful starting point for planning, and too little to predict how one dog will act.

That's why mixed-breed dogs and adult dogs deserve a place on your list. Shelter and rescue staff see how a particular dog behaves day to day, and they can tell you about its energy, sociability and handling. Before you decide, meet the dog, spend some time together and ask questions about that dog's history, not only its breed.

Where to go next

For each breed in your results, the next step is to read its breed page: size, activity, grooming, shedding and barking, all in plain language. If you want to browse before or after the selector, these lists group breeds by the situation people ask about most:

Once you're down to two finalists, put them side by side with the breed comparison tool. It's the quickest way to see how two breeds differ on the things that change daily life.